Free Rocky Mountain Valentine by Carol Steward

say a word,” he growled.
    “I was just thinking I never have my camera when I need it,” she said in a deliberate whisper. Lisa pulled open one cupboard, then another. Then, her voice louder, she said, “I’m sure Kat has an extra grocery sack around here someplace.” Finally she found the right cupboard and handed him one, a smile blatantly teasing her lips.
    “Not a word.” He dropped the clothes inside, then immediately distanced himself, hoping to shake this feeling. Lisa wasn’t his type. Once she had what she wanted, she’d be gone.
    Kevin came back inside with his arms full, stomped the snow from his loafers and handed Katarina the salad. “We’d better get dinner on so Adam and Lisa can get back to the ranch. This storm isn’t letting up.”
    Adam went to the sliding door and looked to the west. “I’d appreciate it. Why don’t I let Lisa stay and I’ll...”
    Emily stood immediately and stopped him. “Nonsense. We’ll have dinner on in a jiffy. Why don’t you and Kevin keep the kids occupied?” Alex finished setting the table and sliced the ham.
    In a matter of minutes, dinner was served, and everyone rushed to the table. By the time Adam made his way to the table, there were two seats left. One next to Lisa, or one across from her.
    His mother moved past him with the last serving dish and chose the chair across from Lisa, eliminating his options. With lead feet, Adam walked around the table and sat down.
    Adam could see Lisa’s discomfort as the awkwardness stretched between them.
    He wasn’t sure how he survived the meal, but he couldn’t deny he was more than relieved when it was over.
    After they’d cleared the dishes, Millie insisted Adam and Lisa get going. His mother explained that she’d be staying the week to help Katarina finish a large shipment of dolls and help Emily get ready for Alissa’s first birthday. Millie looked at Adam as if daring him to argue.
    “If you’d rather stay here...” Adam said.
    “Oh, no, I couldn’t...” Lisa rambled on with a full explanation and ended it with a quick goodbye.
    By the time they’d reached the highway, Lisa started asking questions as if her entire intention had been to corner him. “What made you open the ranch to the public?”
    Adam hedged, instinct telling him to give her as little information as possible. Maybe, just maybe, there was still a chance she would give up. “I was already hosting friends and their friends who wanted a quiet place to get away. They seemed to like having someplace close to home, but away from the city. It seemed natural to make the business official.”
    She asked another question, and he gave her a clipped response.
    “What activities do you plan to offer? Or do you plan to let guests find their own entertainment?”
    “Horseback rides, chuck-wagon dinners, hay rides, fishing. If we have enough snow, sleigh rides, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, snowshoeing... The possibilities are endless.” From the corner of his eye he could see her smile. “What’s so funny?”
    She let out a soft husky laugh. “Nothing. Am I making you nervous?”
    “What makes you think that?”
    “You’re so tense,” she said softly.
    Guilt hit him like a hoof in his gut. All the woman wanted was a story and he was treating her like she was out to take him for all he was worth. Adam didn’t need this reminder of Amelia, or the investigation. “The roads are terrible.”
    “Would you rather we continue this later?”
    Did he detect a flirtatious challenge in her voice? He resented her taking advantage of the slow drive home to bombard him with questions, and doubly resented that she could tell the interview was getting to him. He shoved the reminders of his past to the back of his mind. “No, go ahead.”
    She hesitated. “How do you feel about opening your home to strangers? Won’t you miss your privacy?”
    He had to hand it to the woman. Her questions teetered on the edge of personal, but the way she