August Jones sped down the lone highway to town, accelerating so that the needle pointed to five miles per hour past the speed limit. Hopefully, there was no officer parked on the edge of the usually deserted stretch of highway that led to a handful of ranches and rancheries outside Garnet Valley, Montana.

Or if there was an officer, hopefully it was someone she knew and who was a little lenient with the speed limit. She could not be late to this project meeting. If she wanted to successfully take over Jones Construction and break into landscaping, she needed to be at this meeting, on time. This project was her opportunity to finally follow her dream, and she wasn’t going to lose it.

Unfortunately, she had been so focused on preparing for this meeting, reviewing the project requirements, and figuring out who they could team up with, that she had not noticed her horses had gotten out. By the time she got them back into their pen, it was too late to change out of her button-down shirt and jeans. She just grabbed her boots and ran out to her truck.

Gus barely noticed the herd of deer in the yellow-green field of grass flattened by the past winter snow. Her truck charged up the worn gray highway. The top of the hill led to one of her favorite views—the wide endless range of purple-blue Absaroka mountain range, capped with snow, surrounded by the valley of greens and yellow flora. The truck hit the top of the hill and she accelerated a bit more.

Up ahead, a small white dot on the side of the road caught her eye. The dot grew as her truck flew closer.

An SUV. A shiny one without the layer of dust that usually caked the cars from endless drives up and down the dusty dirt roads. She squinted at it and let off the gas a hair.

There were only a handful of neighbors that lived on this highway. None of them drove a vehicle that looked like this. At least that she could recall.

She eased up on the gas a little more. The miles of wood and wire fence continued to whip past and the SUV grew closer.

Did one of her neighbors need help?

Gus glanced at the clock and tucked her hair behind her ear.

She could not afford to be late. This was the initial meeting that kicked off renovations for the town’s two parks and their surrounding structures. Projects this large did not come by frequently in Garnet Valley, and she didn’t want to miss this opportunity.

Now what to do about the man?

She could call highway patrol. Then she would have done the neighborly thing, and she’d still make her meeting on time. That wouldn’t make her a terrible person. Right?

Her truck was now close enough that she could see someone standing outside the car with their cell phone in the air.

Not a neighbor. Anyone who lived in this area even six months knew this spot on the top of the hill was a dead zone for cell service. You had to go a half mile in either direction to get it back.

Okay, perfect plan, she would call highway patrol in a half mile, they would be there in twenty minutes, tops, and she would still have helped a person in need.

The guy was hatless, and his dark hair shone in the late morning sun. He waved frantically at her, one hand stretched high in the air, making his tall, lean body seem even longer.

She roared past him, her foot frozen on the gas.

No way.

Absolutely no way.

She swallowed hard.

That looked like a Hartman brother.

Her brain kicked into gear, and she hit the brakes, slowing her giant three-quarter ton pickup until she could ease onto the side of the road, gravel crunching under her tires. Glancing at the clock, she gave up any hope that she would make the meeting on time.

She was just like her mom—couldn’t help but stop for a neighbor in need.

Even if this man looked achingly like Colton Hartman.

Her heart hammered against her ribs.

As far as she was aware, Colton had not stepped foot in Montana in over a decade. She hadn’t seen him since the night she told him she loved him, and he told her he was leaving the state for good.

Twisting around in her seat, she peered behind her. The man was looking down at the ground, his cell phone in his hand.

It had to be Ty, Colton’s younger brother. Ty still lived in Garnet Valley and frequently went out to his father’s ranch, even more so since Beau Hartman passed away in a car accident only three weeks ago.

But then it would also make sense if Colton was back in town as well. The funeral was only two days ago.

Her breath caught as she pieced the connection together. Butterflies unfurled in her lungs and stomach, beating against her diaphragm so hard, it was impossible to breathe.

“Get a grip, girl,” she muttered to herself. “We’re moving on from this stupid high school crush, remember?”

Flipping a U-ie, she started back for the SUV. Her best friend, Steph, would no doubt have an earful to say about this.

Pulling up on the opposite side of the road, she parked her truck and turned it off. Glancing over her shoulder to make sure no one was coming, she stepped out.

The smell of prairie grass and old asphalt greeted her nose, and a spring chill pricked through her jacket.

Her body felt overly light as she walked to the car, nerves making her hands and legs feel numb. Her pulse throbbed in her ears, louder than a ticking clock when she couldn’t sleep.

The man looked up as she headed across the empty highway, and his gray-blue eyes connected with hers.

Old, familiar emotions slammed into her, nearly knocking the air out her body.

“Gus?” His voice was warm with recognition.

The man had somehow gotten sexier over the years. The lean ropes of muscles that filled out his long-sleeve black Henley shirt now swelled into broad shoulders and tapered into a narrow waist. The designer jeans were not Wranglers, but they still did a fair job showing off those thighs of his. His face, which had been handsome but softer in high school, had become chiseled, a shadow of beard on his square jaw.

Not fair. Not fair at all.

Suddenly that cool spring breeze wasn’t cool enough.

“Colton,” she squeaked out. Unsure of what to do or say, she waved awkwardly at him.

On those late nights, when she would reminisce about her late teens and imagine what she would do if Colton ever returned, the awkward wave was never something she had envisioned herself doing.

Heat crept over her entire face. There was no way her skin was anything less than fire engine red right now.

No. Not these feelings. Not for him. Why, now that she was determined to move on from her past, did her past have to show up?

“What are you doing here?” he asked. As though her being here was more ridiculous than Colton coming home.

Looking his car over, she noticed the front tire was no longer round.

Great. She was already late to her meeting. This was going to make it worse. However, she couldn’t leave him stranded on the side of the road with a flat in a cell phone dead zone. The alternative was to take him into town with her. It was weird enough seeing Colton; she wasn’t sure if she could handle sharing the small space of her truck with him.

Thankfully, years of working for her contractor dad had made her far handier than half the men she knew, and she was able to change a tire in fifteen minutes.

She forced a smile to her face.

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m here to rescue you.”

If someone had told Colton Hartman a month ago that he would step foot back in the great state of Montana, he would have told them to go to hell.

If that same person told him that he had an older brother he never knew about for the first twenty-nine years of his life, he would have laughed and smacked them on the back for a good joke well played.

Turns out he would have been wrong on both counts, and Colton hated being wrong.

More than anything, he wanted to snatch the cream-colored envelope, the one notifying him about his father’s will, off his passenger seat, rip it in half, and scatter it in the wind.

But destroying the envelope wouldn’t make up for the fact that he was stuck on the side of the road in his rental car, a nail through the wall of the tire, and late to a meeting with the lawyer he absolutely couldn’t miss if he wanted to get out of Montana as quickly as possible.

Damn it, damn it, damn it. He should have gone with his brother, Ty, rather than insist on driving himself. However, Ty’s surly attitude and facing a new brother had been more than he wanted to deal with on the drive into town.

Now he was stuck on the side of a ghost town highway without a car in sight. If he was back in San Francisco, a car share was a call away. Instead he was being rescued by the one woman he never could forget.

Like an idiot, he couldn’t stop staring at August—Gus—Jones.

He swallowed as Gus walked past him to the front of his SUV, greeting him with a hint of a musky vanilla scent.

“I thought you were some sort of lost city slicker,” she said as she passed by, apparently unable to resist sneaking in a jab.

“I gave up the jeans and boots years ago.” As if it was some sort of explanation for leaving all those years ago.

Somehow over the past decade, Gus had become more beautiful. Even squatting on the side of the road, her fingers running over the nail in the tire, the woman was gorgeous.

“Need a hand with the spare? I’m pretty good at changing tires.” She flashed a quick, brilliant smile, as though amused that she would be changing his tire for him.

“As much as I would love to see you as the princess in shining armor, the rental company did not include a spare with the car. Are you heading to Garnet Valley?”

She lifted a brow. “What kind of a rental company doesn’t keep a spare tire in the back of the car? This is Montana after all. Preparation is key.”

“The kind of rental company that is going to pay dearly for this and send someone out to fix it,” he said drily as he glanced at his watch. Shit. He was beyond late to the meeting with the lawyer.

“Mind giving me a lift?”

Gus opened her mouth, as though to speak, but stopped. Instead she glanced over her shoulder toward town. “I guess I can’t leave you stranded, can I? Those shoes don’t look made for hiking.”

He was pretty positive she could leave him stranded. He looked at her truck and then in the direction of Garnet Valley. He couldn’t even see the edges of town yet, and, as Gus had pointed out, his fancy leather shoes he had shelled out five hundred for were already making his feet ache as he stood on the side of the road.

“I’d rather you didn’t.” He offered the smile he used when pitching to clients.

She pushed against her knees, granting a brief flash of her bare back as the edge of her shirt rode up, and straightened. She tugged at her sleeves, as though considering her options. “If you don’t mind getting dropped off in downtown, I can give you a ride.”

“Downtown works.” Whatever got him to that lawyer’s office.

“Well, I need to get going. So if you don’t want to hike, we leave now.” She smiled then walked past him without a backward glance, as though she didn’t care if he went with her or not.

A weird ping shot through him as he watched her walk away. He brushed his hand over his forehead, almost as though he expected a cowboy hat to be there, but of course it wasn’t. He had left that behind when he had left Montana.

“I’ll take the ride.” He jogged to catch up to her.

“Good choice.” Gus opened the truck door and swung up into the cab.

He followed suit and soon they were heading down the worn black ribbon of highway to town. Gus muttered under her breath as she kept glancing at the clock.

“I’m late,” she offered quickly, her voice breathless, as she eased her truck around a turn.

Her scent filled the cab. She smelled different. No longer that sweet, innocent fruity scent of their high school years. Now it was something more mature. Something sexier. A sultry hint of vanilla that toyed with his senses.

He repressed a groan and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Thanks for the ride.” His voice came out as a growl.

“Happy to help,” she replied.

That was the Gus he remembered. She was always willing to help someone in need, even when her life was filled with stress from her mom’s illness. The other thing that didn’t appear to change—“Still never on time, I see.”

Her shoulders stiffened and her knuckles on the steering wheel turned white, but she dipped her chin and a small grin appeared on her face. Her voice did not match the smile. “I guess some things never change. Where are you off to?”

He let out a breath he was holding. “It’s the law office on Main. I’m supposed to be there for the reading of Dad’s will.”

“I’m sorry to hear about Beau.” She really did sound sorry.

“You’re probably one of the few,” he grumbled.

Gus cleared her throat. “He was never an easy man.”

He didn’t want to think about the reason he had left Montana, much less talk about him. He glanced at the clock, gauging how late he would be.

Twenty minutes late, at least. He clenched the edge of the seat until his knuckles hurt and the sickening blast of panic wrapped around his gut.

His phone buzzed. Then buzzed again, then once more, vibrating like a bomb ready to blow.

Finally. They had hit cell service. He pulled the phone out of his pocket to find three voice messages and numerous text messages.

Not good.

He shot a text over to Ty letting him know that he was on his way after a flat tire.

The phone buzzed with another message.

-Get here soon. They’ll reschedule if you aren’t here in another five.

“Dammit,” he muttered under his breath.

“What?” She glanced over at him.

“They’re going to cancel the meeting if I don’t show up soon.” It was probably already canceled. He tapped out a response letting his brother know he was on his way. “Any chance we could pick up the pace? No offense, I don’t want to be in Montana any longer than I have to be.”

“God forbid you stay in your hometown another day. I would love to speed, but I’m going five over as it is, and I’m not going any faster.”

“Smart reply from someone who never left,” he shot back at her.

The smile on her face fell. Not cool. He was taking his stress out on her, and it wasn’t fair. “I’m sor—”

“Not all of us want to leave,” she said evenly, her voice smooth and careful. “This is my home, and I’m proud of it.”

“I shouldn’t have said that. I know your life wasn’t the easiest when I left.” He took in the clothes she was wearing—worn jeans and leather boots. She never wore a belt. “Are you still working for your father?”

“Something like that,” she said, but did not elaborate. Just like that, she closed herself off from him quicker than the snap of a book.

Silence fell, as he stared at her, suddenly aware of a ravine between them, and one too wide to cross in the span of a fifteen-minute trip to town.

He looked out the window and watched a small herd of deer pop their heads up as they drove by. Their slender bodies tensed, ready to run if they sensed a threat.

“San Francisco has made you happy?” she finally asked, breaking the silence. A peace offering in the form of a question. Yet, even he knew the question held more than what was asked at the surface level.

He went for the easy answer. “Yes. Started my own company. Farm to You.”

It would be even better if his company financial weren’t causing him heartburn.

“Cute name,” she offered.

Once again, he glanced at the clock. Still late. He ran his hand down his face. If he was stuck here one more day, it was one more day he was away from work and one more day that he was not focused on productivity and income. “Life in San Francisco is better than what I left behind.”

She flinched, and he wanted to defend himself. It wasn’t her he’d left behind. It was his father.

Not that it mattered. What they had was so long ago.

Too long ago.

The soft spring sunlight shone down over the gold-green fields. The rugged blue-purple mountains rose into the background, framing the ranch homes and herds of cows, making the scene feel picture perfect, even with the mud puddles and bite to the air.

His chest tightened as he watched the familiar scenery pass by until the historic brick buildings of downtown came into view. He glanced over at her odometer to make sure she was still going five over.

“Well, in a few more minutes, you will never see me again. I hope you enjoy the rest of your life.”

His gut twisted. Being back home was bad enough. The last thing he needed was a guilt trip. “Gus—”

“Here we are,” she sang as she pulled up in front of the law office. Ty was standing outside, his hands on his hips, his eyes on the ground as he paced. Jace, his other brother he had met only two days ago, stood a few feet away, his shoulders tense and his expression grim.

Gus turned toward him, her dark eyes wide, but carefully blank.

He should say something. Anything. “Thanks for the ride,” he said gruffly.

“Happy to help.” Just like she always was, as though he was any old neighbor that she would lend a hand to. After all what else was there to do? She was still stuck in Montana.

“Look, if you ever want to get out, please look me up in San Francisco.”

She arched a brow at him. “Thank you, kind sir. You are so magnanimous.”

“You don’t need to be sarcastic.”

“You don’t need to insult my life.”

“I—” He stopped before he took the bait and took a breath. He couldn’t sit in this cab forever. There was a will to hear, a flight to catch, and a company to fix. “It was good to see you.”

He opened the door, and the fresh, clean smell of mountain air greeted him as he stepped out of the truck.

“No problem. Have a nice life.” She barely glanced in his direction as he closed the door, the smile still carefully on her face.

“Where the hell have you been?” Ty snapped the second Colton slammed the truck door shut. His brother shaded his eyes as he came closer, two vertical lines between his brows. As usual, Ty didn’t mince words. “The meeting is canceled. We’re scheduled for tomorrow.”

“Flat tire. Right at the top of that giant hill. There’s zero cell service out there.” He glanced over at Jace, who looked warily back. The other man’s resemblance to himself and Ty was striking. The same dark hair, the same square chin, the same tall, broad-shouldered build. There was no denying the relation. The lucky jerk who grew up without their dad.

Jace’s words were sharp as he spoke. “Guess we’re in town for a day longer than planned.”

The last thing he wanted was another night on the ranch in the rundown bunkhouse with the leaking roof. Another night with bad memories, an angry brother edging around him, and a mysterious brother who looked completely out of his element on the ranch.

And now memories of Gus were haunting him.

He couldn’t get out of this state fast enough, and now he was stuck here for one more night.

And once again, Gus was late. Super late. Like, holy smokes, she was late.

Her heart pounded, a mix of seeing Colton for the first time in over a decade and straight panic that she was late to a meeting for a project she desperately wanted and needed.

The first meeting was important. It showed the selection committee which companies were interested, and it gave an opportunity to meet the other players proposing on the project as well. If Gus played her cards right, she could take advantage of this opportunity to connect with some landscape architects who would boost her chances of a successful bid.

She forced herself to slow down her big truck and pull calmly into the parking lot instead of screeching to a halt in the first spot she could fine.

The community hall entrance was surrounded by trees on either side, the leaves bursting with new spring life. Birch trees, if she had to guess, but she didn’t stop to check as she rushed through the glass double doors. Her bag bounced against her hip, and her thighs burned as she sped-walked to the conference room at the end of the hall.

Half an hour late to a ninety-minute meeting wasn’t that bad, right? Now if she could just sneak in with no one noticing, she’d be golden.

She pulled the wooden door to the conference room open and paused as everyone turned to stare.

So much for going in unnoticed.

The room was filled with people interested in the park project. The only empty seats were the folding metal chairs on the peripherals of the room.

She shuffled inside the over-conditioned space and eased past women in clean dark slacks or skirts and men in dark jeans and blazers.

She glanced down at her holey jeans and worn leather boots. Note to self: when attending a meeting about new work for the town, wear nicer clothes. At the very least, she could have put on lipstick.

There were a handful of people she recognized from over the years. The people at the head of the table were all members of prominent families in the community. The man running the show, Adam Hearst, was part of a family who’d lived in the area for generations, longer than even the Hartmans. There were also a handful of men from competing construction firms that had far more experience in landscaping.

“Gus, glad to see you made it,” Adam called before returning to the meeting. She could see the contractors, her competition, snickering as Adam called her out.

The room seem to shrink to the size of a ring box as some people turned to look at her.

She pulled at the collar of her shirt. Why had she bothered to pick up Colton Hartman when she could have just called highway patrol?

She knew the answer, even if she wanted to pretend otherwise. Afterall, he was the one man she had ever fallen for. He had made the trials of her life seem bearable, even when she didn’t know what to expect through her mom’s illness.

As much as she wanted to sink down into her seat, she forced herself to keep her back ramrod straight—so straight she didn’t even touch the back of the cold metal chair.

If she was going to branch into landscaping, she had to show everyone she was serious about these projects.

Two men in front of her leaned close. She recognized them immediately from another firm—Wood Builders.

“Did you know Jones was going to be here?” she heard one man ask.

The other man shook his head. “Not sure what their plan is, but as far as I’m aware, they don’t have the necessary experience for this project. There’s no way they’re going to get selected.”

She cleared her throat and pulled a notebook out of her bag. She began to take careful notes, forcing herself to focus on the meeting and to ignore the comments from her competition.

After the meeting ended, she started toward Adam, ready with her list of questions to figure out just how to qualify for the project. She was quickly waylaid by one of the men who was sitting in front of her.

“Gus,” the guy said smoothly, as though she hadn’t overheard him earlier. “I hadn’t realized you would be here.”

“Well, here we are,” she said, her sweetest smile in place.

“Does Jones Construction have the necessary background to win this project?” the guy asked, cutting to the chase.

“That’s none of your concern.” She tried to sidestep around him, but he stopped her.

“We could team up,” her competition tried. She looked him up and down. Wood Builders was a larger construction firm in Bozeman. They had grown immensely in the past decade and were now expanding into other towns. They frequently tried to take projects away from Jones Construction, oftentimes using underhanded methods. “You’re a local business; we can add our experience. We’ll win for sure.”

Gus snorted. “Right. We’re going to team with the company that has offered twice to buy Jones Construction and has tried to convince our clients to leave us when we turned you down. I don’t think so.”

“Like it or not, we’re getting established here and the surrounding area. We know you don’t have the experience necessary for this project. We can outbid you.” The guy smirked.

Her stomach turned. It was true. During the meeting, Adam emphasized time and again that they wanted an experienced team so that little could go wrong with the project.

“Think about it,” the guy offered, a sly smile on his face.

“Right,” Gus said, dismissing him and walking past him, but the comment stuck in her brain. What if the only way for her to win the project was to team up with another firm?

Clenching the strap of her purse, she headed to the front of the room. Adam had just finished talking to someone and smiled as she approached.

“I’m glad you’re here. Your father and I used to do a lot of projects together,” Adam said as she got closer. His thin gray hair was neatly combed, and his expensive shirt was tucked into dark Wranglers. “That was years ago though.”

Before her mother got sick.

“I’ve heard a rumor your father was thinking of passing the company to you?” Adam started packing up his notes as he spoke.

The rumor was correct. And her stomach still churned at the very thought of it.

“He’s starting to eye retirement, but he wants to make sure I’ve got full control of the reins before he leaves. Our focus right now are these park projects. We’re very interested.” She forced a bright expression to her face, her go-to expression when she was uncomfortable. Probably from years of helping her mom.

“I’m glad to hear that. I didn’t know you guys had experience with landscaping.”

She went for honest. “We’re trying to break in.”

“Hmm.” Two lines between Adam’s brows deepened. “Well, I can’t sway the deciding board one way or another, but I can say that they want strong experience. I would recommend that you team with an experienced architect or join forces with an experienced construction company—like Wood Builders.”

Gus hoped she didn’t flinch outwardly. “Well, we are the only local construction firm, and I hope that helps with the decision,” she said. She didn’t want to risk teaming up with a larger firm and then only have the mediocre work kicked down to them.

“I am happy to give advice. Some strong examples of community service and volunteer time would help. In addition, the timeline for these projects is especially important.” Adam lowered his chin and peered at her. “If you want to win this project, you need to show the board that you are serious about this. There are companies from Bozeman who are interested and have far more relevant experience who will easily outbid you.”

Her mind raced, desperate to come up with something that showed just how serious she was about this project.

“I work on mosaics and landscaping as a hobby,” she offered lamely. She didn’t dare add it was in her own backyard.

“What about volunteer experience?” Adam asked as he hefted his full leather briefcase off the table.

She clenched the notebook in her fist. Still, she was careful to keep a nice expression on her face. “No.”

Adam nodded and looked at her, a fatherly expression in his faded blue eyes. “Maybe think about volunteering. Interviews start in six weeks. Oh, and next time, arrive to the meeting on time. Showing up late doesn’t impress anyone.”

Gus opened her mouth, ready to place the blame squarely on Colton’s fancy leather shoes and her horses but stopped.

“If there is anything you can do in a month to turn it around, I’d start thinking about it now. It would be great to work with you, but the donors for this park want to see someone who has a lot of experience and a strong delivery,” Adam added.

Her heart hammered in her chest. She needed this project. This was her ticket into landscaping, something she had been studying for years, and a way to feel that she was paying homage to her mother. “We’ve done some small projects for Garnet Valley through the years.” Hopefully within the past decade.

“That will help,” Adam said. “But get some community service in as well.”

“I’ll do what I can.” Her voice came out a pitch too high, a bit too desperate.

Adam shook her hand as he said goodbye and then headed out of the room, leaving her with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.

She knew that getting the park project would be a big reach for them, but now it felt next to impossible.

One thing was for certain, if she wanted this project, she had to find some volunteer work, fast. And no more tardiness. She had to make the deciding board realize she was serious about this project.

Pulling out some business cards, she looked around the room. And most importantly, she needed to find a landscape architect to team up with.

Colton stared at the overpriced lawyer sitting behind the oversize oak desk.

“What do you mean, we are required to stay on the ranch for a year?” Colton felt like he had been kicked in the teeth.

Surely, he had misheard. Had to have misheard.

The lawyer, Rich Patterson, blinked at him twice behind gold wire-framed glasses before turning his attention back to the papers in front of him.

“The will stipulates that the three sons shall inherit the ranch and the surrounding property provided you all live on the ranch for one year.” The man shuffled through the papers with long, knobby fingers. “The year will start as soon as the will is read. Which is—” he dropped the papers back onto his desk “—today.”

The overstuffed bookcases, files, and furniture made the room feel cramped and tight, and the air smelled stale. Colton felt like he barely fit in the space along with all the furniture and the other three men as the will and his father’s last demands were read out loud.

Colton shifted to the edge of the uncomfortable leather chair and leaned closer to the lawyer who was in the process of destroying his careful plans to return to San Francisco and prove to his father, even in his death, that he wasn’t some loser. “What if we have jobs that we can’t abandon?”

“Colton…” Ty’s tone was clear but firm.

“What?” he snapped. “Our father is trying to manipulate us, even from the grave, and I’m not falling for this bullshit.”

Wasn’t it enough that Beau was a distant father that never wanted anything to do with them? He left Montana because of the man, and now he was being forced to stay home? No way. Not in this life.

His company. He was going to lose his company and his condo. Farm to You focused on contracting with small farms to provide fresh organic produce to restaurants. His job was to build relationships internally and externally and make sure the clients were happy and that contracts were being executed. Farm to You prided themselves on building strong, in-person relationships. He headed out to the farms to look at crops and fields and to network with the farmers. He went into the restaurants to learn what the owners and chefs were looking for. While his company had a decent number of clients, they were still barely getting by. What if they lost clients because he couldn’t continue building the relationships in person?

His throat felt tight as he stood. “I’m supposed to fly out tomorrow, and you’re telling me that I need to call my company and tell them I won’t be back for a year? I don’t think so.” His father was going to be the man that forced him to fail. Again.

He looked over at Ty, but his younger brother only stared straight ahead, the corners of his mouth tight. Jace, on the other hand, looked like he was trying to bore holes through the lawyer with his eyes.

“What if we break the will? Is there a period of time that we can leave for and not break the will?” Colton asked and stared down the lawyer.

The older man steepled his fingers and looked over his glasses. “I did have that conversation with your father. You can leave for a month, at most, during this one-year probation period. The remaining eleven months will prove that you own and are invested in the place. All time away must add up to a month or less.”

Colton pulled at the ends of his hair. “There’s no way in hell I can miss work for more than a month. This happens in the middle of peak summer season. I need to be home for that. I need more than a month.”

“If you leave for longer than a month, you forfeit your right to the inheritance, and the estate will be donated to the University of Montana’s agricultural department. And, before you think you can just disappear for a month and no one will notice, your father requested that I check in intermittently once a month to make sure that no one has forfeited.”

Colton forced himself to pick up his jaw.

“So, stay here or lose it all? Couldn’t we just divide the land three ways?” His voice was tense, strung tighter than barbed wire on a new fence. He could use the cash. His small business was struggling right now. A cash reserve would make sure his employees were paid as they got through their rough patch, and the small farms they contracted with could continue to depend on Farm to You as a source of reliable income.

“This can’t possibly be binding,” Jace added. He sounded dazed, like he, too, was trying to figure out how the hell he was going to stay in Montana.

“There is to be no division of the land. I understand it is the Hartman legacy to not divide the land,” the lawyer droned on.

They had their great-great-great-grandfather William Hartman to thank for that.

“We aren’t interested in our legacy. Is there no alternative?” Colton demanded. “I have responsibilities back in San Francisco, and I’m supposed to sit in Montana, twiddling my thumbs?”

“Speak for yourself,” Ty suddenly snapped. Colton glanced over at his brother, who had been silent up until now. “You aren’t the only one whose life is impacted. We all have jobs that require us to not be at the ranch.”

Colton blinked at his brother. It wasn’t for Ty to say. As the local vet in the area, he didn’t have to risk an impact to his business.

“The legacy is ours, and I don’t want to just throw it away,” Ty added.

“You don’t plan to keep the ranch, do you?” Colton glanced over at Jace, who was staring straight ahead.

Ty’s chin jutted out. “The ranch is ours, and I don’t think we should make any rash decisions about it.”

Colton stared at his brother. Ty may want to keep the ranch, but there was no way he was going to be away from his company eleven months of the year.

“I’ll fight this,” Colton hissed at the lawyer. There was no way in hell that his dad was going to force this on him. Even if he needed the cash, even if it wouldn’t hurt to see Ty again, there was no way he was going to live here a year. The state his father called home would never again be home to him.

Ten minutes later, the lawyer finished reading the will, dividing the remainder of his assets between his brothers and his mother. The cash was to be used for ranch repairs.

The second it was over, he marched out of the office.

“Colton,” Ty called out to him. “We need to hash this out.”

“There’s nothing to hash out. I’m not sticking around. I can’t do this. I have to go back to California.”

“Then we lose the ranch,” Ty snapped. “Do you really think Jace is going to stick around as well? That ranch is our legacy. The least we can do is carry it on.”

“Ha! Our legacy? A bitter man lived there and ran it into the ground.”

Ty looked like he was ready to blow steam out his ears. “Look, we all know Dad wasn’t the greatest, but that doesn’t mean we should throw our history out. William Hartman started it six generations ago. It’s ours, well and truly.”

“I don’t want to deal with this now. I’m heading back to the ranch.”

“Always running,” he heard Ty mutter behind him as he headed back to his rental, but he didn’t stop. He didn’t owe his brother a reason.

On the trip back, he managed to get enough cell service to run the details by his lawyer and forward him a copy of the will.

Twenty minutes later, he pulled his car in front of one of the bunkhouses. The cloud of dust from the dirt road had barely time to settle before he was out of the car and pacing around in front of the buildings.

The ranch was an absolute pit. Hard to believe that a few decades ago, it was a full-blown operating ranch with hundreds of head of cattle and ranch hands to help keep the operation going.

Now it felt like a ghost town. The graying wood of the buildings was drier than any bones, and the fence posts leaned in every direction.

There was no way that they could stay here for a year, much less sell the place, without fixing the buildings. Everything was old, sagging, fading, or peeling. The ranch was like a faded photograph of what the place once was.

The land was beautiful. The prairie-land fields of Paradise Valley nestled between the towering Absaroka and Gallatin ranges were ready to be planted. Green blades of grass peeked out of the yellow fields, and the air smelled rich with soil and coming rain. A small herd of cows lulled in one pasture, and a few horses and a half dozen yearlings lazed in another.

He could see why his ancestor George Hartman had settled here in the early 1800s to stake a claim on gold and ended up starting a cattle ranch. Each generation after added land to the property, expanding it until it was one of the largest ranches in the area. His father was probably the first who hadn’t.

Ty and Jace pulled up seconds later. Ty looked ready to explode.

Hailey stepped out of the house and headed toward the group.

“How did everything turn out?” she asked as she tipped her head back to kiss her husband hello. Jace, who was quick to glower at everyone else, beamed down at her.

“Sounds like we may be living here a year,” Jace muttered, which caused Colton to turn and stare. “We can talk about it later.”

“A year?” Hailey stepped back and looked at all of them, her dark eyes wide.

“We can’t live here for a year.” Colton gestured toward the bunkhouse he had been staying in. The roof was slowly giving up the fight with gravity, bending inward under its own weight. It would be a miracle if it survived the winter. He didn’t even want to think about what was living in the bunkhouse with the broken front door.

“Hard to believe you guys grew up here.” Jace looked at the place with a mix of disbelief and pity. He looked like he wanted to say more but was doing his damnedest to hold it in.

“We spent more time at our mom’s before she moved to Idaho,” Ty clarified. “Dad was too hard to be around to spend that much time on the ranch.”

That was the case for Ty. He, on the other hand, was always at the ranch, always trying to prove himself, and always failing. The only thing he did well was break horses.

“It looked better ten years ago,” Colton admitted grudgingly.

The roof of the barn was losing shingles, but otherwise was in decent shape. Next to the barn, the small herd of yearlings walked over and leaned against the fence that Colton himself had built years ago. They nickered in greeting, no doubt hoping their trough would be filled soon. The horses used to be his favorite part of ranching.

He turned away from the herd. “Either way, you weren’t missing much.”

Jace snorted, his face turning red. His brows slashed down over his eyes. “Right. I only missed out on two younger brothers and a father I knew nothing about.”

Colton flinched at the word “younger.” The word didn’t fit. Like putting on a too-small jacket and having your shirt bunch under your arms. He had spent his whole life as the oldest brother—the responsible one, the one paving the way.

“Our dad was a jerk. Honestly, you lucked out,” Colton explained.

Jace shook his head, turned on his heel, and headed toward the house.

Hailey shot Colton a sympathetic look. “He’s having a hard time taking this all in. Don’t take it personally.”

“He didn’t miss out on much,” Ty added, his voice soft.

“Give him some room to figure that out. Your father left him and stuck around for you two. Think about it,” Hailey said pointedly before following after her husband.

Great. Now he felt like an asshole on top of being angry.

“He was abandoned, and we both got scars. Which is better?” Ty asked, kicking at the gravel.

Neither. But he didn’t voice that as he walked up the three worn wood steps and pushed open the front door to his bunkhouse. It creaked open. The place smelled old, musty. It was fine for a couple nights, but not many more.

The front door to the main house slammed shut, and a few minutes later, Jace joined them. His face was dark, and his hands were shoved in his pockets, like he had been forced out against his will. “This place is a dump.”

“Agreed,” Colton said shortly.

“As much as I would like to offload this as soon as possible, I think we need to repair the buildings,” Jace said.

“We could fix the ranch up and manage it,” Ty countered. “This is our legacy; I’d like to see it restored.”

“I’m not keeping this ranch,” Colton deadpanned.

Ty glared at them. “You guys are both assholes.”

“I’m an asshole that needs the revenue,” Jace said in a cut-and-dry way that Colton found himself appreciating. “I’m here for the year. I’ll learn about this legacy of ours, but my life isn’t here. After a year, I will head back to Houston. I could start a new sustainable building with that income.”

“I could pay my employees with it,” Colton added. His company wasn’t big, just a few additional people to help out, but they were good people who had lives and families they needed to provide for. The last thing he wanted to do was lay them off.

Hands on hips, Ty glared them both down. “Even if you don’t want the legacy, the least we can do is restore it to something the Hartman men would be proud of. Let’s call a contractor and get this place fixed up. It’s the least Dad would have wanted.”

Colton flinched. If he was going to fix the ranch up, it wasn’t going to be for his father. It would be to help Ty. And to prove his father wrong. Ironic how nothing he ever did on the ranch was ever good enough when he was growing up, but it was his father who let the property fall into disrepair.

“I’m okay with fixing the place up. I think we can all agree on that.” He looked around the worn bunkhouse. “How long do we estimate this will take?”

“Depends on the contractor.” Jace leaned out the front door and surveyed the ranch. “Eight months? Well within a year.”

“That will give us time to put it on the market, and we can all sign the papers at the end of the year and never see this place again,” Colton said.

“Maybe I’ll just buy the ranch,” Ty offered.

Where Ty was going to get that cash, Colton didn’t know. But he refrained from bringing it up.

“Let’s get it fixed up first and then discuss a possible sale,” Jace said.

“Hire Jones Construction.” Ty pulled on the brim of his hat.

Colton froze at the name. Hiring Jones Construction meant one thing—they’d be hiring Gus.

Gorgeous, curvy, determined Gus.

He looked around the bunkhouse. It was the same one he brought Gus over to during the summer he turned nineteen. Those hot summer evenings filled his mind. They used to make out on that couch. They barely fit on it, but were too crazy for each other to care, too desperate for any moment to touch each other. It was on this ranch, hidden in a little crevice between the barn and the haystack, that she confessed she loved him.

That long, slow, lingering evening was burned in his brain like a brand. It was the last time he saw her before his father kicked him off the ranch and he hightailed it out of Montana.

He swallowed tightly. “Is there anyone besides Jones?”

If they hired Jones Construction, there was a chance that Gus would not be the one working on their ranch. But did he really want to take that chance? Having her here every day felt like a spark in a haystack. Because as much as he wanted to deny it, he was still attracted to her.

“Jones Construction is the best construction firm in town.”

“They’re the only construction firm in town,” Colton pointed out drily.

“It’s perfect. They’re local, they’ll be cheaper than any firm from Bozeman, and Gus’s team will get it done right,” Ty said.

Colton narrowed his eyes, studying his brother. “I know it’s been a while, but even back then, I don’t remember Jones Construction getting projects done on time, and we want everything done in under a year.”

Ty rolled up his sleeves and looked around. “They’re working on that,” he acknowledged. “And half the town will tell you that Jones is better and cheaper than half the companies from Bozeman.”

“As long as they stay on track, that works for me,” Jace said.

“Cost isn’t an issue with the money left behind by Beau,” he reminded his brothers. Beau had left it specifically for ranch renovations.

Ty nodded. “I got drinks with Gus a few days ago, and she told me they are eyeing a big project. If we talk with her now, we may be able to get them to help out before that big project takes over.”

An ugly wave washed over Colton as he pictured his brother and Gus getting together to hang out. Of course, they saw each other on occasion. It was a small town, and they had grown up together.

But drinks sounded…personal. Like a date.

He rubbed at the back of his neck. He had no right to be jealous. He had zero claim on her. She was an old flame that he left forever ago.

That didn’t stop the memory of her walking across the old highway yesterday as she came to rescue him, the wind pushing her hair out of her face, swirling the strands behind her. She looked as beautiful and tempting as a desert siren coming to claim him.

“I’ll talk with Gus,” Ty continued. “See how soon they could get started.”

He stopped short of saying he’d do it. Ty clearly took some sort of ownership of the ranch. And honestly, it would be better if Ty worked with Gus. After the way he and Gus parted yesterday, there was a good chance she would turn them down flat if he asked her to work on the ranch.

“Let me know what she says.” He tapped his thumb against the counter. A habit he was never able to kick when he was stressed or impatient.

“Alright,” Ty said, looking curiously at Colton. “I’ll keep you posted.” He pulled his hat back on his head and headed out the front door. “I’m going to check on the cows. They’ll be calving soon enough.”

Jace looked awkwardly around the bunkhouse. “I need to set up an office somewhere. I have a large building in the works in Houston. I’m going to look around the ranch house and figure out where I can work best.” He looked like he wanted to add more but ended up taking a breath and shaking his head before following Ty out the door.

A few minutes later his lawyer called to confirm the bad news.

If they wanted to own the ranch, or sell the ranch, then today was the first day of an awfully long year. And if he didn’t want to push his brother away, Colton knew he had better follow through. As much as Ty could drive him up the wall, Colton did want to be there for him. They were brothers. That should count for something, especially since being a son hadn’t seemed to matter to his dad. And now there was a new brother.

Anxiety churned in his stomach. He was going to have to call his business partner, Jordan, and break the news to him. Jordan was already in the process of combing through their financial records, and he would have a good idea if they could last a year with Colton working remotely and only making a few short, but necessary trips.

Most of their clients preferred meeting in person as they started their working relationship, and Farm to You prided themselves on being down-to-earth guys who would go to the farm to see where the produce was coming from and walk into the restaurant to see where it was heading. Their clients liked having their hard work seen and appreciated. In addition, their contracts required on-sight inspections of the farm and the restaurant to make sure the food health standards were being met.

Hopefully, they could work out a strategy to keep clients happy and bring on new contracts, even if Colton was managing from hundreds of miles away.

Colton opened the tiny fridge and pulled out a beer. He didn’t know what crazy idea his father got into his head to bring all three brothers together. It was clear that Jace didn’t know what he was doing, and that Ty was the only one invested in the ranch. Why his dad didn’t just give it to Ty was beyond him. After all, Colton didn’t want it.

Call it ridiculous, but it almost felt like a test from his father—save the ranch or save his company.

He took a swig of his beer then set it down. There was a pair of worn leather gloves on the counter. They looked cracked and brittle with age. Who knew when the last time someone had used them?

Honestly, he didn’t care what happened with the ranch, but he cared that Ty wanted to keep it. Helping to restore it was the least he could do to make up for the fact that Ty had to deal with his father when he left.

One thing was for certain, he wasn’t going to sit up in Montana doing nothing. First things first, he had to sort out working remotely with Jordan.

Then he needed to figure out who his dad hired, if anyone, to plant the fields.

A knock on the door at Jones Construction echoed in the empty office, and Gus looked up to see her best friend Steph Hernandez waving through the glass.

Her friend had good timing. Her vision was starting to double from staring at their project list for too long. She was determined to find past projects they could use to try to win the park project, and so far, she’d had little success.

“Gus, you look like you could use a drink,” Steph announced after stepping inside. “Don’t worry, this burn ceremony will do the trick. We will purge both Colton and whatever happened this week from your life.”

Gus nearly choked as Steph said Colton’s name. Steph owned the only bakery in town. She saw dozens of people throughout the day, and typically that meant that she was very up on the town gossip.

There was no way she hadn’t heard Colton was in town.

Then again, Colton could be hiding out from everyone in town. Beau’s funeral was a private affair, and unless you were invited to the ceremony before the viewing, there was a chance that no one even knew he was in town.

“Today was rough.” With a sigh, Gus closed the program and turned off her laptop. “I went to the meeting for the park projects, and it was a disaster. I was late, and that company, Wood Builders—the one who’s been trying to steal our work—asked us to team up with them.”

Steph’s eyes narrowed. “And you told them exactly where they could go, right?”

“As nicely as possible,” she said. Steph snorted.

“And to top it off, I was told I won’t be taken seriously unless we get some sort of volunteer experience on our resume to make up for lack of experience.”

After years of night, weekend, and online classes, she had managed to get her degree in landscape architecture. Her mom had loved gardening, and the idea of going into landscaping felt like a way to connect with her mom, even with her gone.

Steph nodded and wandered farther into the office to plopped down on the worn gray sofa that was pushed against the exposed brick wall. “There are lots of volunteer opportunities. I know that they’re looking for recruits for the annual summer dance. Maybe the decorating committee?”

She snorted. “What does decorating have to do with landscaping?”

Her friend shrugged. “At least it’s something, right? We’ll keep brainstorming.” She shifted on the couch. “So, where do you want to do the burn? Your place or mine? You have a better fireplace than I do.”

Gus laughed. Her friend was very much into burn ceremonies as a means to move on from anything—a bad incident, an inner critic, a piece of the past you couldn’t let go.

As part of deciding to take over her dad’s company, Gus had decided it was time to take over her personal life as well. While she had dated here and there after Colton left, she always, always ended up comparing the guy to Colton. It wasn’t fair to the guy, and in the end, it wasn’t fair to her. She wanted to meet someone special, settle down, and start a family. And she couldn’t do that unless she let go of Colton and started dating seriously.

Thus, the burn ceremony. And, following the burn ceremony, she actually had a date that weekend.

Before she could answer, the door opened, ringing the announcement of someone.

She turned toward the entrance, and a man’s dark head of hair caught her eye as he closed the door.

Colton Hartman.

She almost panicked, then her eyes landed on the Wranglers, and she realized it was Ty.

“Thank god,” she muttered.

“Hi, yourself,” Ty said, a friendly smile on his face. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Almost a ghost of her past. But Colton was already out of town, she reminded herself.

“I thought you were your brother,” she admitted.

“Colton is back in town?” Steph asked, her dark eyes wide.

Ty nodded.

Steph turned to her. “Does this mean the burn ceremony is off?”

“Burn ceremony?” Ty looked perplexed.

“The burn ceremony is still on,” she insisted. If anything, running into Colton during his brief stay in Montana only made her more determined to purge him from her life.

“Do I even want to know?” Ty looked suspiciously between them.

“Probably not.” Besides, there was no way she was going to explain to Ty that the burn ceremony was because she had struggled to fully move on from Colton, even after all these years. “So what brings you here?”

Ty moved farther into the room. “I’ve got a project for you.”

She raised her brows. “For me?”

“Yep. We spoke with the lawyer yesterday, and it turns out that Dad left the ranch to all the brothers.”

“All the brothers?” she repeated. “You mean you and Colton?”

Ty snapped his fingers before clapping his palm over his fist. “And Jace. Haven’t you heard? Has the Garnet Valley rumor mill let us down? He’s my other brother. From another mother. Literally.”

Steph looked like she had hit gossip gold.

“I—” Gus licked her lips as she stared at him. “Okay, wow. That’s a lot to process.”

“Tell me about it. I think he’s still struggling to wrap his head around it too.”

Steph excused herself. “I’m going to head to your place to make brownies. You always need a good dessert for a successful burn.”

Gus waved to her friend before turning back to Ty.

“So you want to have the ranch repaired?” she asked.

“I do. I’m not sure when the last time you were out at the ranch, but the buildings are in pretty bad disrepair. Jace and Colton are looking to sell it, so it would need to be done in about a year.” Ty looked uncomfortable as he said the words.

Figured that Colton would want to sell it. He had been pretty set on getting out of the state. There would be no reason why he’d want to keep the ranch.

“A year is a tight turnaround.” Especially if she was going after the park project. Jones was already working on a larger project that took most of their staff’s time. If they took on the Rocking H, that would mean that she would need to be there, in person, working on construction.

Which was something she had been hoping to move away from as she took the reins of the company over.

On the other hand, getting a large project like that would convince her dad that she was capable of bringing in work that would help support the company, and he wouldn’t have to worry if the company would survive under her control.

She licked her lips. “Would you be the one managing it?”

It was a dumb question since she knew that Colton was likely already out of town, but she couldn’t help feeling a confusing mix of relief and disappointment as Ty nodded.

“Yep.”

“That’s the ranch house, three bunkhouses, a barn, and a shed, right?” Her voice sounded calmer than she felt. It was so many buildings. Even if they hired help, the project would take a significant portion of her time.

“Dad left enough money to help with the repairs if the cost is reasonable. Makes me wonder why he hadn’t fixed it up himself, but maybe since there was no one else to help out on the ranch, he didn’t see the point.”

She could definitely give them a reasonable estimate. But even with a reasonable estimate, this would be a decent-size project. This would give her a chance to hire another project manager to train. She would still be required to help out in the field, but it would be helpful down the road to have another trained manager. It would give her more time in the future to pursue expanding the company.

“I’d appreciate if you did it as a favor to me,” Ty finally said, laying on the friend guilt trip.

“Alright, alright,” she relented. She would have to work overtime to get the landscaping proposal together to bid for the park project. “I’ll be out first thing tomorrow to look at the buildings. If we do get started on this, we’ll want to start with the roof and walls as soon as possible so we can close up by winter.”

Ty closed his eyes, looking absolutely relieved. “Thanks,” he muttered.

She didn’t bother to ask if Colton would plan to show up during any part of construction. If the man had left just as quickly as he claimed he was going to, she had a feeling he wasn’t going to show up in Montana again.

She was in the clear. She could do her burn ceremony tonight, and then tomorrow, she would head out to the Rocking H ranch, ready to face her old memories there and rebuild. Literally.