Her job demanded that she be well groomed, and she’d always appreciated having a reason to dress well. But, to her surprise, she’d had fun getting all muddy and bedraggled. That would happen a lot on a ranch, where appearance wouldn’t count as much as performance.
She contemplated that as an appealing change of pace and discovered she didn’t recoil the way she might have a couple of years ago. She loved her job. She did. But sometimes the constant need to look great wore on her. She’d never admitted that to herself before.
As she descended the wide staircase to the first floor, she ran her hand along the banister again. Without Alex as a distraction, she could pause a moment and take in the welcoming sight of roomy leather chairs facing a gigantic rock fireplace. Framed family photographs lined the wooden mantel. A paperback lay on a small wooden table beside one of the chairs, as if someone had been quietly reading there and had left the book, planning to settle in for another relaxing moment later.
Home. The word hadn’t meant much to Tyler over the years. Home had been a battered van until she moved out on her own. She couldn’t call her tiny apartment home because she spent so little time there. Her collection of souvenirs was the only thing that marked it as hers. The cruise ship was luxurious, but it was where she worked. It wasn’t home, either.
The Last Chance represented home to Morgan now. Tyler had thought her sister was crazy to tie herself to a man and then compound that by getting pregnant. Both Morgan and Tyler had witnessed how marriage and kids had absorbed nearly all their mother’s time, giving her no chance to develop other interests or have a career.
But Morgan wouldn’t be living the kind of life their mother had lived. Morgan would have a house and plenty of relatives around to help babysit. It wouldn’t have to fall to the older siblings the way it had to Morgan and Tyler.
She’d taken Tyler on a quick tour before bringing her over here. Although Morgan’s home wouldn’t be quite this grand, it would be filled with light and space. It would be—no, it already was—a home.
Tyler pushed aside a prick of envy. She had the life she wanted, and it would only get better once she became a cruise director with the freedom to direct every aspect of the cruise experience. Someday in the far distant future she might want a home, but not yet, not when her dream was within reach.
Her route to the dining room took her down the same hallway she’d walked with Alex that afternoon. The left side was a wall of windows that provided a view of the Tetons during the day. Now the glass reflected the light from two wall sconces and the image of Tyler moving down the hall.
The right wall was covered with more framed family pictures, including some that looked as if they’d been taken fifty or sixty years ago. The O’Connelli family’s vagabond lifestyle hadn’t allowed for this kind of display. There had never been a wall available, and even a scrapbook would have been something to haul around and keep track of.
Tyler paused when she realized new pictures had been added, with people she knew well. She found a wedding shot of Morgan and Gabe, and another one of the entire wedding party, her included. Morgan hadn’t offered her a copy, probably because she hadn’t expected Tyler to want one. Keeping pictures around wasn’t exactly an O’Connelli tradition.
It was obviously a Chance tradition, though. Next to that were the photographs of Jack and Nick’s double wedding to Josie and Dominique. Tyler’s heart warmed when she found Alex smiling happily in the group shot. He’d donned Western wear for the ceremony. Maybe that was when he’d started to transform into a cowboy.
Studying the picture, she identified two people who had to be Mr. and Mrs. Keller. They were both tall and had facial features that reminded Tyler of both Alex and his sister, Josie. Common wisdom said a father’s appearance could indicate how his son would age. If so, Alex would still be a hunk in his fifties.
“I thought you’d already be tucking into your rib eye.”
She glanced down the hall to find the man himself walking toward her. She must have been deep in thought to have missed hearing his booted feet on the hardwood floor. He’d put on a clean pair of jeans and a white Western shirt with pearl-covered snaps. The yoke of the shirt emphasized his shoulders, which she’d swear were wider than they had been last summer.
He’d obviously taken time for a shower, because his dark blond hair was still damp and he smelled like soap, the manly kind featured in commercials showing a guy lathering up his brawny chest. She wouldn’t mind observing Alex doing that. In fact, she wouldn’t mind being the person wielding the washcloth.
She looked into his gray eyes and wished they weren’t expected at the dinner table. “I got caught up in the rogues’ gallery. Are these two your folks?”
“Yeah.” His expression softened. “They had such a good time. They might end up retiring in Jackson Hole, or at least spending their summers here and maybe winters somewhere a little warmer.”
It all sounded so normal. Tyler decided not to mention that her parents didn’t have a retirement plan. They just lived in the moment, taking life as it came. It drove her nuts. She’d already started an IRA.
Alex brushed his knuckle over her cheek. “You look nice.”
“You, too.”
He sighed. “We need to go. Mary Lou’s probably keeping our food warm.”
“So we’ll go.” She caught his hand and pressed it to her cheek before stepping away from him.
“Right. We’ll go.” But he didn’t move, just continued to look at her.
With a shake of her head, she turned and started down the hallway. “Come on, Alex. They’re expecting us.”
“Yeah, they are.” He fell into step beside her. “This is strange. I want to hold your hand, and yet I’d better not. I don’t want to be all that obvious, like it’s a done deal.”
“I know.” When they reached the large empty dining room where the midday meal was served, she could hear the buzz of conversation from the family dining area at the far end and through a set of open double doors. “I intended to get there ahead of you so we wouldn’t look quite so much like a couple.”
“So we won’t sit together unless that’s how it’s set up and we have no choice. You should probably try to sit next to Morgan. That’s who you’re here to see, after all.”
“And I plan to spend plenty of time with her. But she’s the one who wants me to sleep at the ranch house.”
He caught her arm, halting her progress. “And don’t think I don’t appreciate my good luck.”
His touch was warm, seductive. She wanted to nestle into his arms and savor the feeling of belonging that she always felt there. “See?” She gazed up at him. “Gabe was right. You’re an honorary Chance and that means you get some of the Chance luck.”
He smiled and stroked her arm. “It seems to be working for me so far. I checked my condom supply and found an unopened box.”
The question was out before she gave herself time to think. “And when was the last time you checked your condom supply?” Then she realized how jealous and possessive that sounded. “Don’t answer that. It’s none of my business.”
His gaze was steady. “It’s been a few months.”
And she shouldn’t be so damn happy about that, but she was. Whoever he’d been involved with hadn’t turned into a serious girlfriend. She didn’t want him to have a serious girlfriend, either, which was completely unfair, but the thought of him falling for someone made her miserable. How twisted was that?
He gave her arm a squeeze. “I’ll be counting the minutes until we can open that box. Now, let’s go face the family.”
Tyler wasn’t worried about that part. If she could handle a cruise ship full of passengers, she could deal with the Chances. In fact, she was looking forward to seeing them all together again and taking note of the changes that two more weddings had brought to the family dynamics.
As they walked into the dining room, all conversation stopped. Tyler glanced around quickly to make sure she recognized everybody. Sarah was at the far end of the linen-draped table, and on her right sat green-eyed Nick Chance and his bride, Dominique, a brunette with a pixie cut. The chair between Dominique and Alex’s sister, Josie, was empty, probably waiting for Alex. Jack was next to Josie.
Gabe and Morgan sat on the far side of the table, and Morgan also had an empty chair beside her, no doubt reserved for Tyler. A pretty blonde woman who looked to be in her fifties occupied the next chair, and a ruggedly handsome man of about the same age sat next to her.
Tyler finally remembered who they were. The woman, Pam Mulholland, owned the Bunk and Grub B and B down the road and was somehow related to the Chance family. The man next to her was Emmett Sterling, the ranch foreman, and he was dating Pam. Coupling up seemed to be the norm around here.
“There you are!” Sarah was the first to speak. “You both clean up real good.”
“Thanks.” Tyler smiled. “It’s great to see everybody again. And I sure hope you all have your thinking caps on, because Alex and I have been trying to figure out how to keep tomorrow’s guests out of the rain. The barn is one option, but we need some more.”
Nick glanced over at them. “I could have sworn you ordered some event canopies, Alex. I remember talking about it.”
“I ordered three,” Alex said. “But only one made it here. I’ve exhausted all the options for getting any more by tomorrow.”
Jack set down his empty beer bottle. “The tractor barn. We’ll move the equipment to a back pasture, temporarily cover it with tarps to protect it from the weather, do some cleanup, and use that space.”
“That’s a great idea,” Alex said. “I didn’t know that was possible, but—”
“Hold it.” Mary Lou bustled in carrying a steaming plate in each hand. “No more talk of the open house until these two eat. Tyler, I want you over there between your sister and Pam. Alex, you can sit next to Josie.” She deposited the plates at the designated places. “Who needs coffee?”
A chorus of requests went up.
“I’d love some, too,” Tyler said as she walked around the table toward her chair. Before she made it there, Gabe came to his feet and pulled the chair out for her. She thanked him and glanced down the table, noting Sarah’s pleased smile. “I’ll bet you drilled manners into these guys when you raised them.”
Nick rolled his eyes. “Tyler, you have no idea.”
“Remember those Sunday dinners?” Gabe said.
Nick and Jack both groaned.
“Pure torture,” Jack said. “She would use every blessed piece of silverware in the drawer and we couldn’t eat until we’d correctly identified all of them. The forks were the worst. I was the only guy my age who could tell you what a seafood fork looked like.”
“I was not about to raise a bunch of country bumpkins,” Sarah said.
“Sounds like a great idea to me,” Morgan said. “Between Sarah covering manners and Jonathan showing them the finer points of country swing, I’d say the Chance boys got the perfect education.” She patted her tummy. “I want the same for this little…kid.”