CHAPTER 1
October 1869
Rock Creek, Montana Territory
Eric LaGrange eyed the mountain slope still ahead of them. He rode with a group of Coulters, headed up this treacherous path toward their ranch. The blinding afternoon sun illuminated the snow-capped peaks to the west, its stark light only shadowed by the low-flying vulture circling overhead in search of its next meal.
This place reminded him too much of another steep slope. That jagged ledge was thousands of miles away from here, yet tragedy didn’t care about location. Though he and his best friend had only been boys, daring to play in the spot they'd been warned against, his best friend's life had changed forever that day.
He couldn't let that happen to his daughter.
Hisdaughter.
The word still sounded so foreign. How could he have had a child—been a father—for nearly a year and not known?Shouldn't he havefeltsomething? Somehow been different? Maybe sensed a gaping hole in his heart?
Hewasmissing a part of his heart, but that piece had been gone for more than the ten months his daughter had been alive. A year and seven months, as a matter of fact. Since the last time he'd seen Naomi.
What he’d thought would only be a few weeks away to handle business while his father recovered from a surgical procedure had turned to four long months. Four months during which Naomi never responded to a single letter. And when he’d finally been allowed a short trip back to Wayneston to see her, she'd been gone.
He’d searched for months to no avail. There’d been no trace of her until two and a half months ago—telling him he had a daughter.
He’d come to Montana Territory to find what he’d lost.
The autumn air nipped at his exposed skin as he breathed in the chill. Colder weather would arrive sooner than he wished. How bitter the winters must be at these heights. His mount trudged upward, picking its way around the boulders scattered along the sharp mountainside.
As the trail widened, Dinah, Naomi’s sister, slowed her horse to ride beside him, her expression concerned. "Eric, are you all right? You look pale."
He forced a smile. "Just lost in thought." He couldn't afford to show weakness, not when so much was at stake. He'd once thought Dinah a friend, back when he and Naomi were courting. The two were twins, but you wouldn’t guess it to look at them. They possessed completely different personalities and tastes, yet they’d often known what the other was thinking.
Did Dinah’s kindness to him now mean her sister would feel the same when he saw her again?
Maybe not.
He was not among friends, regardless how kind theseCoulters had been to him. There were enough of them that Eric had been able to stay at the fringe during the two weeks they'd been traveling. Dinah and Jericho, along with Jericho’s brothers, Jonah and Jude, plus Jude’s intended, Angela, who seemed to be a newcomer here. There were two youngsters as well, the brothers’ niece and nephew, Lillian and Sean. With so many, it was easy enough for Eric to keep to himself.
Dinah seemed fully entrenched in this place, having married Jericho Coulter. She had made a home on the Coulter ranch with the rest of these people. She was likely responsible for Naomi's engagement to Jericho's brother, Jonah.
Eric wouldn't be unkind to Dinah, but he also wouldn’t confide in her.
As the trail narrowed around the side of a cliff, the group spread out single-file. He would have preferred to remain at the very back, but Jonah, Naomi's intended, slipped in behind him. One of the Coulter brothers always stayed near the lead, and another lingered near the tail of the group. Maybe they were being protective, but it felt like an effort to control the rest.
"Almost there." Jericho’s voice sounded from the front.
Eric's body tightened. They’d built a house this close to a cliff? His daughter was being raised in conditions far more dangerous than he would have thought Naomi would allow.
Anger spurred through him. It wasn't as if she didn't have another choice. If she'd answered any one of his letters, he'd have dropped everything and come to her. They could have married immediately. He would have done whatever she needed.
Instead, she'd waited until six months passed to even tell him his daughter existed. Was it because of her impending marriage to Coulter that she finally sent word to him at all?
Maybe Eric should thank the man. Or not, for he’d also stolen the one woman Eric had ever loved.
"We're here!" The young girl's voice belongedto Lillian, the Coulters’ niece, who looked to be about twelve. "There's Naomi." The riders in front fanned out as they entered a clearing.
Eric’s insides squeezed tighter. He would see her in less than a minute.
Would she look the same? What would she think about his appearance? What would she say to him? Her letter had been to the point, stating facts like she was reporting a news story.
Where was the gentle, faithful woman he’d known? Where was the heart? The love? Gone, apparently. Or maybe given to the Coulter brother who’d been sending Eric narrow-eyed looks for two long weeks. As ifEricwas the one in the wrong.
