Hidden Treasure(54)

This was the insecurity that Brielle dealt with, the sadness of being abandoned at a young age by the one person who was supposed to always be there for a child. Her mother’s betrayal would inevitably haunt her for the rest of her life.

And though Brielle had never had any inclination to have children, she could see Colt’s child growing inside her. She could picture them as a family, and she vowed that if she was lucky enough to have that picture come to life, she would be a much better mother than the woman who’d given birth to her.

When the next song came on and it was a fast number, the rest of the people dancing cheered, and then Colt was dragging her to the front of the dance floor.

“What the heck are you doing?” she asked as he put his hands into his pockets and began moving his feet in sync with the crowd.

“Come on, Brielle. It’s easy — just follow me.”

And so she got her first lesson in line dancing.

Brielle was terrible at it, but no one seemed to mind, and her laughter was mixed with everyone else’s hoots and hollers and yee-haws. She and Colt stayed on the dance floor for nearly an hour, until she was hot and sweaty and in desperate need of something to drink.

He led her to an area on the rolling lawn with blankets spread out, and he sat, pulled her down onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her waist. As the fireworks began, he kissed her neck and whispered sweet promises for later that had her heart pounding.

People all around them laughed, chatted excitedly, and cheered as explosion after explosion filled the night sky with color.

Maggie stood up on the stage when the celebration was concluding, and she thanked everyone for another great year, announced that they’d raised more than ever before for the fire department, and sent out a stern motherly look as she reminded them all to use their designated drivers.

Brielle stood up slowly, knowing that Colt would come home with her, but still reluctant to leave. She found herself wishing for a time loop in which she could replay this day over and over again.

Eventually, the two of them were going to need to talk about where they were headed. Brielle had fought being in Montana, had fought against living this kind of life, thinking she was much happier in a city where they didn’t even know what line dancing was. But she had found something here in Big Sky Country, and she never wanted to let it go. She only hoped that Colt’s feelings mirrored her own.

“I have to say, Brielle, that this has been one of the best days I’ve ever had.”

“I was just thinking the same thing, Colt.”

He drew her into his arms. “I know I’m probably going to scare you to death, but I love you, Brielle. I can’t go a single minute without thinking about you. I can’t imagine you moving away from here, leaving what we have together behind.”

After a brief silence, she lifted her hand to cradle his face. “I won’t lie and say I’m not terrified to say this, Colt...but I love you, too.”

But was love enough? Sometimes it was, but unfortunately, sometimes it wasn’t.





Chapter Twenty-Eight

It was the first day of harvest, a process that would take weeks, and Brielle wasn’t as confident as she should have been in her ability to help. But she was bound and determined to give it her best. Though she knew Joe was worried, Colt had told her that a combine was easy-peasy. It was just like driving a car, really — a really, really big car.

Hey, what could go wrong?

After her shower, Brielle dressed and came downstairs in a hopeful mood. The sun was just beginning to rise in the sky and she was ready to get started with the workday. Before her job at the mall last year she hadn’t worked for a paycheck once in her life. She’d gone to school and she’d done a lot of service work with her brothers when she was younger, but she hadn’t punched a time clock. It was one of the advantages of being raised in wealth.

So Brielle was completely surprised by how much she was enjoying running this ranch. Sure, there were some tasks and projects she despised, but she adored others, and all in all, she was happy with her large spread here in the middle of Montana.

Once she made it outside, she watched as her large crew gathered together. She didn’t know whether she was relieved or sad when she didn’t find Colt among them, but it didn’t matter. She would prove to him today that he hadn’t been wasting his time on her, that what he’d been teaching her over the last month was sticking.

“Hi, Brielle. What are you doing up so early?”

“I’m going to help harvest the fields, Joe,” she said with a confident smile. If she appeared to know what she was doing, then surely the men would welcome her help.