Julie reached the top of the stairs and dropped the box on the porch. Then she opened her arms to receive Katie’s hug.
“It’s been too long,” Julie said.
“We have a lot of catching up to do, you and me.”
“I’ll say. When did you suddenly get the hots for my brother?”
Katie laughed and turned away as if she were embarrassed. But not before Julie saw the twinkle in her eyes. “We have lots of catching up to do. Let me help you.”
“I don’t have a lot to move. I told Caleb I didn’t have much.”
Katie glanced over Julie’s shoulder toward the car. “I’ll grab those bags in the trunk to make it go faster. Be right back.”
Katie headed down the stairs and ran through the parking lot towards her car. Julie had left the trunk open to make it easier to unload everything. She didn’t have anything worth stealing, so if someone had been inclined to take any of her belongings, it wasn’t going to be a huge loss. Except for the box she’d taken first. She reached down, lifted the box to her arms, and turned to find Caleb in the doorway.
He opened the door and stepped out onto the porch. “Do you want me take that for you?” he asked.
“I’ve got it. Where do you want me to put these things?”
“Anywhere you can find some open space. We will deal with how to rearrange everything later.” He peered down toward her car. “That’s all you have? No furniture?”
“I told you I didn’t have much. I usually rent rooms that are furnished. I didn’t need any.”
She walked through the apartment and searched for some empty space to drop the box. She finally decided to tuck it in the corner of the kitchen where it wouldn’t be tripped over.
“If this is all too much, I can get a storage unit and just unpack some clothes.”
“No, it’s okay. We’ll find room. Look around and make yourself at home. I’m going to go help Katie.”
She was standing by the window and it made it hard to ignore the interaction between Katie and Caleb. He pulled the bags from her hand and placed them on the ground next to them. Then he took her in his arms and began dancing with her in the middle of the parking lot.
She wanted to gag.
But it was so romantic.
Aliens had to have kidnapped her brother and replaced him with this guy dancing with her friend.
Julie turned away from the window and looked around. It was small but it was home. She’d finally come home. Now she had to keep her word and talk to Hunter.
Sweet Montana Secrets: Chapter Three
Why wasn’t the phone ringing? His cell phone was normally filled with messages from horse owners this time of the year, and this year was no different. But the one call he wanted to get was from Julie. She hadn’t called.
He couldn’t keep going back to the Lone Creek Ranch for no reason just to see if she’d stopped by there. Caleb had Hunter’s number. If Julie wanted to get in touch with him, she could easily get it from him.
But she hadn’t called. It had been five days since she’d stopped by the Lone Creek Ranch to see him and she hadn’t called.
He’d filled his day with work. The Friday before any type of competition was always busy. Horse enthusiasts, stock companies, and barrel racers needed their horses in top shape to compete. As he finished the last job and climbed into his truck to head home, he checked his cell phone for recent calls.
Seven missed calls. Four phone messages. All the calls were from numbers he had in his contact list, which meant they were clients.
Julie hadn’t called.
It had taken Hunter years to get Julie out of his mind. There were days he swore he’d never forget her. In a way, he longed for those days when he’d been working hard to get clean. He’d been hyper-focused then. He’d had to be in order to get healthy again. That hyper-focus had made it easier for him not to think about missing Julie.
But as time had worn on and he’d found his head clearer, the longing for her had become almost unbearable. Throwing himself into work helped. But it hadn’t worked today even though he’d filled his schedule to keep his mind occupied.
It was the end of the month and he needed to stop by the post office to drop off his rent check. If he waited until the weekend to mail it, he might forget. He was always getting calls throughout the weekend for an emergency of some sort. He drove through town and passed the police station. He saw Caleb and another police officer in the parking lot talking. He waved but they were deep in conversation and didn’t see him.
Continuing on, he passed the diner where he ate most mornings. Maybe he’d call Brody or Trip and see if either one of them wanted to meet him in the morning. The one thing he missed about working as a ranch hand was the communal meals and conversation. He wasn’t lonely. He saw people all day long when he went to shoe horses. Hunter liked being able to move around and meet new people. But he worked alone and that had its disadvantages.
He pulled into the parking lot of the small post office near the center of town. The post office was closed, but the lights were on for after-hours drop off and pick up of mail. Hunter kept a mailbox in town rather than at his apartment mostly out of convenience since he drove through town a few times a day. He pulled open the glove compartment where he’d tossed his rent check envelope this morning.
He’d forgotten to swing by first thing this morning when he’d headed out to the Mason ranch in the next town, but
