As he passed the exit to Big Sky, she wondered where this restaurant was that he was taking her to. A few miles later, he turned off the highway. The pickup bounced along the dirt road, over a bridge spanning the Gallatin River, and came to a stop in front of a large two-story ranch house. She saw barns and outbuildings, corrals and horses. Up on the mountain was a series of small cabins.
“Brick?” she asked as she took in the house again. This didn’t look like a restaurant. As the front door opened and an older woman stepped out wearing an apron, Mo saw the resemblance immediately. “Is that your mother?”
“Best cook in four counties,” he said, smiling as he got out of the pickup and came around to her side to open the door for her as if this was a date. She realized that to Brick, it was. Worse, he’d taken her home to meet his mother? And if that patrol car parked on the other side of the ranch pickup was any indication, it wasn’t just his mother.
Mo cursed him under her breath. She was having dinner with the marshal and his wife? What had Brick been thinking?
Chapter Sixteen
“Mom, this is Mo,” Brick said and quickly added, “Maureen Mortensen.”
Dana smiled and reached for Mo’s hand. “When my son called and asked about bringing a guest for dinner, I was delighted. I don’t see enough of him and it is always wonderful to meet a friend of his.”
Mo started to correct her about their relationship, but Brick cut her off as he put his arm around her and said, “I was just telling Mo that my mother is the best cook in four counties.”
“Oh, you quit that,” Dana said, letting go of Mo’s hand to swat playfully at him. She frowned as she took in his injuries, but didn’t say anything. No doubt she’d already heard he’d been in jail. “In case you haven’t noticed, my son tends to exaggerate.”
“I’ve noticed,” Mo said and turned to gaze up at him, her blue eyes hot as a laser. “He’s just full of surprises.”
His mother cocked her head at him as if wondering about his relationship with this woman, but she was smiling as she ushered them both inside. “Your father should be here shortly. He’s checking the new foal. I thought it would be nice to just have dinner with the four of us.”
“Where’s Angus and Jinx?” he asked as they entered the farmhouse with its wood floors, Native American rugs and antlers on the walls. The place never changed and that was what he loved about it. Coming here always felt like home. The house was cool even on the hot summer evening and rich with the scent of roast beef cooking in the kitchen.
“Your brother has Jinx up on the mountain, helping him at the house,” Dana said and turned to Mo. “Angus and his wife are building a home on the ranch. I assume you haven’t met either of them yet?” She looked to her son.
He shook his head. “We’ve been busy.”
“So I’ve heard.”
“Angus is my twin brother. I’m the charming one,” Brick said. “I’m also the handsome one.”
“Don’t believe anything Brick says,” his mother chided. “He just can’t help himself.” At the sound of the front door opening, she insisted they have a seat in the dining room while she saw to his father.
Brick knew what that meant. The marshal was unaware of their dinner guests.
“This was a very bad idea,” Mo said under her breath as he steered her toward the huge table that took up most of the equally huge dining room.
“It’s fine, trust me.”
“There you go again thinking I’m going to trust you.” She stopped short of the table and turned to face him. “And why are you letting your mother think that we’re...”
“Lovers?”
Her eyes flared even hotter. “Involved.”
“We are involved. And last night we slept together.” He grinned to show that he was joking. “What does it matter what she thinks about our relationship?”
“It’s not honest. And I like her. I don’t want to lie to her.”
He cocked an eyebrow at her. “I had no idea you were so straight-laced,” he said, leaning close to whisper the words. “I’m beginning to wonder just about your relationships with those men you said you thought you had fallen in love with before.”
“If you’re asking what I think you are...” She gave him a shove. Brick chuckled, seeing her face redden charmingly before he realized they were no longer alone.
“Marshal,” Mo said.
Brick turned to face his frowning father. “I guess Mom warned you that you have dinner guests.”
“Everyone, please sit,” his mother said, rushing into the room. “Brick’s been bragging up my cooking, so I’d better get that roast out before it’s overdone.”
“Let me help you,” Mo said and left Brick alone with his father, which he realized was her plan.
“I hate to even ask,” Hud said.
“Then don’t. I promised Mo a good meal with lively conversation.”
His father harrumphed at that. “Not from me.”
“Never from you,” Brick said and laughed.
As the marshal moved toward his seat at the head of the table, he placed a hand on his son’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “Glad to see you’re still alive and not in jail.”
“Me, too,” he admitted as he hurried to help his mother with the huge platter of roast beef. She always cooked as if for an army so he’d known there would be plenty. Mo brought out bowls of towering fluffy mashed potatoes and freshly snapped and cooked green beans from his mother’s garden as well as the buttered carrots.
As Brick pulled
