Chapter 12
Coy King was apparently the master of ceremonies as far as the tree-cutting ritual went. At supper that night, he deemed that the time had come for cutting trees, and he recruited Josh and Ethan as his helpers. Actually he hadn’t so much as asked for Ethan’s help as Ethan had volunteered his services. Previously he had wanted to be involved in the Christmas preparations, to take part in the King’s idyllic celebrations and immerse himself in all things holiday in order to get the full Montana experience. Now he just wanted to get as far from the house as possible.
“We’re cutting much later this year,” Coy said cheerfully as they tromped through waste deep snow a quarter mile from the house. “With the women being so sick, everything is thrown off. Usually the trees are up and the house is full of the scents of baking cookies.” His tone was apologetic and directed toward Ethan.
“But this way I get to be here for the tree-cutting,” Ethan said, trying to summon some enthusiasm so Coy didn’t think his lackluster attitude had anything to do with the family’s belated Christmas season.
“Layla has plans to bake tomorrow,” Josh announced. “Sam’s going to try to help, and Belle, too. I think they’ve recruited PJ, also. I hope she makes those things we like.”
Ethan was curious about what the things were, but he couldn’t bring himself to ask. Any mention of PJ was too painful right now.
Coy remained wisely silent. Ethan wondered how much of the story he knew. After his discussion in the barn with PJ, she had closeted herself away with Ivy for the afternoon. Had Coy overheard any of the story or had Ivy told him? Ethan hoped not; he would feel ridiculous. Still, supper had been a tense and silent standoff, so everyone must have noticed something was up. Everyone but Josh, apparently.
“What’s up with you and PJ?” he blurted.
“Nothing,” Ethan said sincerely, dismally.
“But you and your girlfriend broke up, right?” he pressed.
“Yes,” Ethan said, his tone turning bitter. Chrissy was turning out to be more of a demanding diva than he could have realized. She didn’t seem to care that the women in the family were barely back on their feet, and she also seemed to think she was staying at a four star resort. She hadn’t stopped complaining since she emerged from her room this morning. “I’m sorry about her,” he added.
“You can’t apologize for someone else’s bad behavior,” Coy said.
“Yes, but I brought her here. I had no idea she was so…or maybe I did, but chose to ignore it anyway.”
“A pretty face can have that effect,” Josh said. “I used to date a girl who was…well, let’s just say I’m glad I married Sam.” He shuddered, thinking about the girl who got away. “If you broke up, why is she staying here?”
Ethan wasn’t sure how to explain. Josh and Coy didn’t know about their brother’s secret occupation. How could he possibly explain the convoluted situation to them when he didn’t understand it himself? He certainly hadn’t done a good job of trying to explain it to PJ. He could still see the dismay in her eyes and hear it in her tone.
“You want me to lie?” she had said, easing out of his embrace.
“Would you believe me if I told you it was for a good cause?” he asked, sounding almost as desperate as he felt. He watched as both the adoration and the trust slowly faded from her eyes.
“No, I’m not sure I would,” she said, easing farther away from him.
They stared at each other in a silent standoff. He so badly wanted to explain things to her, to tell her he was protecting Cam. But he couldn’t. He was sworn to secrecy, and he didn’t feel comfortable revealing the secret, not even to PJ. If Belle was back to full strength, he could confer with her and strategize, but she was too weak and too sick. He would have to handle this problem himself. The only way he knew how to do that was to put Chrissy off until they returned to New York. Then their lawyers could handle it. And the only way he knew to put Chrissy off was to use PJ as a diversion. But how to explain all that to PJ?
“The situation is complex, but it would really help me if you would do this, if you would pretend to be Suzanne Rey, just until Chrissy returns to New York. Please,” he added, reaching for her hand.
She moved her hand behind her back, out of his reach. “No,” she said slowly. “I don’t think I can do it; in fact, I’m positive I can’t. Even if I knew the slightest way to pretend to be an author, I wouldn’t. I won’t lie for any reason, or for any person.”
Ethan had felt a gulf opening between them as he watched her shore up her emotional defenses and slip away. It had seemed like ill fate when Grant chose that moment to appear, claiming her attention and diverting her to another stable. She had left without turning to look back at Ethan, and he hadn’t talked to her since. She hadn’t even looked at him during supper, preferring instead to sit next to Grant and talk to him about horses.
Realistically, he should be happy. He should listen to his head which was telling him to let her go. They had no future together. Even if they somehow worked out the issue between them, what was he supposed to do? Take her to New York with him? Montana was her home and always had been. And, besides, there weren’t many open positions for farriers in Manhattan, just like there wasn’t much need for an executive assistant in Montana. But every time he thought of letting her go, his gut twisted in agony. He didn’t know how, but he loved her. It was so improbable that it was nearly impossible, but he had somehow fallen in love with a woman he had known for only a few days.
“This one looks good,” Coy announced, jogging Ethan back to the present. He looked around, noting they were in the middle of a large field of evergreen trees.
“It’s tall,” he noted.
“It’s for the main house,” Coy said as he knelt and began to saw. Ethan stood back, feeling extraneous while Coy and Josh loaded the tree on the sledge. He thought they were done, but then the brothers turned back toward the trees.
“Now we need one for Cade and Layla’s place and our place,” Coy said. “Plus I’m going to get one for our bedroom so Ivy will be able to look at it.”
Ethan smiled, thinking that was a sweet idea, and then he immediately decided to steal it. “Do you think it’s possible that I could take one for PJ’s room?”
Coy looked around at the seemingly endless mass of pine trees. “I think we could probably spare another.”
Ethan laughed, feeling almost giddy. Maybe a grand, romantic gesture would get him back in PJ’s good graces. While Coy was cutting Ivy’s tree, Ethan scouted the area looking for the perfect tree. He didn’t know what he was looking for, but he would know it when he saw it, and then he did. A six foot white pine tree stood alone, it’s long needles swaying softly in the breeze. It reminded him of PJ somehow as it stood graceful and alone.
When Coy was finished with the saw, Ethan used it to cut down his tree, and the brothers helped him secure it to the sledge.
“Does anyone have any ideas how I’m going to slip this thing into PJ’s room and set it up without her knowing?” Ethan asked as they began the long trip back to the house.
“Maybe you should ask Grant,” Coy suggested. “The Honeywells are especially talented at being sneaky. It’s weird. They’re so big, you’d think they would make a lot of noise, but they’re silent like ninjas. You never know where you’re going to find one or what he’s going to be doing.” He shuddered.
“I don’t think I’ll ask Grant for help,” Ethan replied coolly. He didn’t want Grant anywhere near PJ or this project. In fact, he wanted to do the project himself as a sort of penance. He hated having PJ think less of him.
It was still early in the evening when they arrived at the house. Josh rooted around in a storage barn until he located an extra tree stand and lights. Ethan hadn’t even thought of that stuff, so focused had he been on securing a tree.
“I don’t think we have any extra ornaments,” Josh said. “Not that you’d want them, anyway. They’re all personalized—our mom was
really into the ornament thing.”
“Lights will be perfect,” Ethan replied. “Thanks, Josh.”
“Good luck,” Josh said. “I had to do a whole lot of penance when Sam and I got together. This may surprise you, but I was kind of a jerk”
Ethan wisely didn’t reply to that. “Whatever you did must have worked because now she’s having your baby. Maybe I should be asking you for advice.”
Josh chuckled. “I wouldn’t do that. I think I only work with Sam. Anyone else and I would mess it up for sure. Good luck, Ethan.”
“Thanks, Josh,” Ethan replied, feeling like they were clearing the air a bit. He hoped Josh was finally letting go of his jealousy. Ethan had only been vaguely interested in Sam, and that had been a few years ago.
He felt anxious as he waited for PJ to go to bed, and even more so when he saw her talking endlessly to Grant. They sat close on the couch, laughing and swapping horse stories. At last she finally said goodnight—to everyone but him—and went into her room. He waited another hour before turning out the hall light and peeking into her room, feeling a bit like a creepy stalker. She didn’t stir or turn to look at him. He hoped that meant she was a heavy sleeper.
Slowly and silently he brought in the tree stand and set it in a corner. Next he returned with the tree, freezing in place when he bumped something and made a noise. PJ didn’t stir, and he continued with his task. It wasn’t easy to set up the tree by himself, especially because he couldn’t tell if it was leaning when he screwed it in place, but he got it as straight as he could in the darkness. He hadn’t thought adding the water would be the trickiest part, but it was. How was he supposed to carry a bucket of water across a dark room and pour it into something he couldn’t see without making a sound? In the end he used the light from his watch as a guide. It was dim, but the room was so dark it shone like a beacon.
At last the base was set and it was time to string the lights. He did so, and then realized he had no idea where a plug was. Shining his watch toward the wall, he located one, but it was too far away for the small length of light cord to reach. Instead of starting the lights over, he scooted the tree, inching it toward the plug. When it was at last in reach, he plugged it in. He waited breathlessly to see if PJ would wake up. If she did, that would be okay. She would see that he had set up the tree for her. Maybe they could kiss and make up, literally. But she didn’t stir. In fact, she began to snore softly and Ethan smiled at this small proof that she wasn’t perfect.
With his task at last completed, Ethan slipped across the hall into his room. A glance at the clock showed it to be past one. He got into bed, exhausted, and quickly fell asleep, still thinking of a job well done.