Struggling to pick up the pieces of her life, widow Brie Beaumont accepts an invitation to visit the Circle C ranch in Canada's Rocky Mountains. Co-owner Jed Cameron distrusts Brie's motives. He is determined to protect his brother and the ranch from the redheaded gold digger. But when tragedy strikes, Jed's only hope is the woman he vowed to run off.

One
She shouldn’t have come! From the moment two well-worn, black leather cowboy-booted feet hit the ground and the pilot swaggered around the nose of his plane toward her, Brienna Beaumont knew she shouldn’t invade Jed Cameron’s territory. She inhaled sharply and pressed her fingernails to her palms but still failed to calm the butterflies twirling in her stomach. The merciless sun beating down on Vancouver airport’s tarmac added to her distress. She wiped the perspiration from her forehead and hoped her underarms didn’t display their discomfort.

The gleaming Cessna 210 drew her attention when she noticed the heat waves rippling above the metal surface of its bright yellow wings. The plane’s engines purred, poised for take off. Brie hurried to catch up with her new friends and Alaska cruise mates, Matt Cameron, blind part owner of the Circle C, and his foreman, Hank. They had begged her to return with them to their ranch in Alberta. Their friendship on board Holland America’s Ryndam had begun to erode her past year’s misery. Grateful for their help, she couldn’t back out and disappoint them.

They quickened their steps to greet the pilot, Matt’s brother, Jed. When Jed Cameron removed his sunglasses, Brie’s heart flip-flopped. His deep brown eyes twinkled as he grabbed Matt by the shoulders in a brotherly show of affection. Until his gaze fell on her.

Brie focused on the tall, lean and--judging by his scowl--surly man standing in front of her. At six-foot-two, he towered a good six inches over her. His coal black hair displayed a sprinkling of gray, but an errant forelock dipped low on his forehead, gave him a boyish appeal. For some indeterminate reason, she had offended him; his scathing appraisal told her so.

Brie stopped dead in her tracks. She had not even opened her mouth, but she felt as if she were a piece of meat, inspected by him and found unfit for human consumption. She inwardly cringed; she had been made to feel like that before.

Brie carried on with her own examination knowing it wasn’t as tasteless as his. His deeply tanned, wind-burned complexion contrasted sharply with the white sparkle of his teeth. She wished he were toothless to destroy her initial impression of how handsome this guy was. If she could only get out of this arrangement and climb into a taxi for the short drive home. At least the jitters wouldn’t attack her in her apartment.

Against her better judgement, she had agreed to this additional excursion shortly before leaving the ship. She wished she had time to pick up other clothes. Her suitcases contained feminine, cool-weather duds, perfect for the cruise they had ended this morning, but suitable for a cattle ranch? Not likely.

Dressed in a dark green, long-sleeved shirt and beige palazzo pants, Brie forced herself to endure the suffocating heat and humidity. She pushed her long burnished tresses back from her face and prayed it would be cooler aloft. Why hadn’t her instinct kicked in and goaded her back to The Gallery so she could focus on her artwork? Then she remembered her instinct had advised her to take the Alaska cruise. The trip had given her hope that her emotional wounds had started to heal. Maybe some part of her wanted to accept this further challenge and continue the process.

Matt’s introduction carried an uncompromising tone. “Jed, meet our guest, Brie Beaumont.” Had Matt expected Jed’s antagonism?

“Ma’am.” Jed nodded, but he didn’t remove his hat or offer his hand.

“I’m pleased we’re meeting after hearing so much about you, Mr. Cameron.” She ducked when a large plane thundered its takeoff overhead. She wrinkled her nose at the overpowering smell of jet fuel.

“Don’t believe everythin’ they said. Matthew’s been known to exaggerate and Hank’s not a helluva lot better.” He winked at Matt. Hank shrugged his innocence and the pilot grinned. Trying to appear unperturbed, Brie extended her hand. She glanced up at Jed’s face and wondered if this man would refuse to shake it. Was his rudeness a bluff or her imagination running rampant? He took the bait with obvious reluctance, but his grasp was firm, too firm. She was glad the handshake didn’t last long because her fingers stung from his tight squeeze, a deliberate show of power. If he thought he impressed her by his display of strength, he was wrong--she’d had enough strong-armed tactics used against her to last a lifetime.

“I’m really glad Brie is going to be staying at the ranch, Jed,” Matt said. “She guided me around the ship when Hank was seasick. I think she deserves a longer vacation since I took up so much of her time.”

Brie reached down and patted Matt’s hand. “It was a pleasure to help you enjoy the scenery, Matt. It forced me to look at the landscape in more detail so I could describe it to you. I felt like I was seeing everything through your eyes and that made it extraordinary.”

“If you two are through fawnin’ over each other, we’ll get underway,” Jed muttered. “There’s a lot of work waitin’ and we’re burnin’ daylight, Miss Beaumont.”

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Excerpt
Conscious of his resentful eyes turned toward her--as if he expected her to steal the silver--Brie refused to cave to Jed’s sulky behavior. “You have a beautiful house, Jed, from what I’ve seen of it.”

“Yes, we do. It’s taken a lot of hard work to get it this way, but it’s home. Tell me, Mrs. Beaumont... are you a contented little housewife or do you earn your keep?”
“That sexist remark wasn’t called for.” With a flip of her wrist, her mug tipped, spilling the contents into Jed’s lap.

Jed rocketed to the sink and grabbed a cloth to sponge his jeans. “Dammit, that’s hot!”

“Sorry. For two cents, I’d climb right back in your plane and leave.”

Reaching into his dampened side pocket, he palmed two pennies. “Be my guest, I’ll fly you out.”

“Let’s go!” Brie stomped to the front door.

Jed chased quickly behind her. A half-hearted grin pasted across his mouth, he reached out his arm and held the door shut. “Mrs... Brie, I’m sorry I made that comment.” His other hand grasped air instead of her shoulder when she sidestepped his touch. He quickly withdrew and hooked his hands into his belt. “Come back... I’ll pour you more coffee. I’ll even mind my manners... so long as you promise not to empty your mug on me.”

Stunned by her own actions and by the force that willfully prevented her escape, Brie’s insides churned. She gave a quick nod, but there would be no apology coming from her. Deploring the impossible situation she found herself in, she yanked her hand from the doorknob, marched back to the table and dropped into the chair. Jed strutted to the counter and picked up the coffeepot.

Brie remained quiet for a few minutes, then sighed, choosing to make one last effort to find a common ground for conversation. “In answer to your question, I’m an artist of sorts. I paint landscapes. I managed to do some sketching on the cruise, though not as much as I’d planned. Matt was right in saying we’d spent a lot of time together. Later, when Hank was feeling better, the three of us were almost inseparable.”

“What’ll you do with the sketches?” He drained the coffeepot into her mug.
His interest appeared genuine and her nerves calmed with the first sip of the brew. “I’ll sell some at a gallery owned by my friend; most I’ll use as a basis for paintings.” She picked up her mug and ambled to the kitchen window. “Matt and Hank were right about the beauty of your mountains. They’re more striking than those we see on the coast. I wish I’d brought my paints.”

Cradling the mug in both hands, Brie inhaled the fresh roasted scent of her drink and ignored the blistering silence behind her. If she were wise, she’d get the hell out of here. But she hadn’t been wise for almost a year. When pearls of wisdom were passed out, I was in the wrong line. She sipped her coffee, trying to enforce her determination to stay in control of their cat and mouse game.

Jed’s disapproval still emanated across the space between them, jacking up her tension. “Do I get to have a grand tour of the house, or would you rather busy yourself elsewhere and leave the chore to your brother?”

“Follow me.” Jed ground his chair from the table. The scrape against the ceramic tile shredded her nerves like nails scratching down a blackboard.

Review Companies MR Review
Rating:
Reviewer: Julia C.

Sep 22, 2009 by Carol As a multi-published author of thirteen novels at this point, I have to say Jed is my favourite hero. His worry over his blind  brother's life ane his suspicions of Brie's visit to the ranch more than account for his surliness. The Circle C and Matt's happiness depend on Jed's astuteness and his ability to ward off those who would take advantage. Brie has had her own terrible issues to rise above and her protection of herself and Matt is sensible and worthy of a heroine. As far as setting goes, who can not love any story set in the wilds of Rocky Mountain territory. Carol McPhee

Jun 28, 2008 by Linda I enjoyed this book immensely. Ms. McPhee has a talent for description and transporting the reader into her setting. I found her characters to be believable. I appreciated her hero as a rough-around-the-edges, sometimes unlikeable, but ultimately lovable guy.  He's a refreshing change from the more typical handsome, suave, easy-to-like cookie-cutter heroes we sometimes encounter. I like characters with whom I can relate, who remind of the people in my own life. And, fortunately or unfortunately, Jed is one of those characters.  In addition, the emotional conflicts in this story are so well-written. All in all, a good read. Linda Rettstatt