Montana Sky

be happily ripping off shiny paper for hours.
    The damnedest thing, I miss her.
    Despite all the Santa Clausing, I’m antsy. Too many hours indoors, I think. I’m using this extra time—winter is chock-full of time around here since it’s dark before five in the evening—to play with an idea for a book. Just for fun, just to pass the time during these incredibly long nights.
    And speaking of long nights . . . Since all seems quiet again, I’m taking one of the jeeps—I mean rigs—and driving over to Nate’s to deliver my gift. Ham gave me directions to Nate’s—what would I call it—spread, I suppose. I’ve been waiting weeks for an invitation to his house, and for him to make a move. I guess it’s up to me to start the ball rolling.
    I can’t decide how subtle I should be about getting him into bed, and so will play it by ear. At the rate he’s going, it could be spring before I get laid.
    The hell with that, too.
     
    “G OING SOMEWHERE ?” WILLA DEMANDED AS TESS GLIDED downstairs.
    “As a matter of fact.” She tilted her head, took in Willa’s usual uniform of flannel and denim. “You?”
    “I just got in. Some of us don’t have time to primp in front of a mirror for an hour.” Willa’s brow furrowed. “You’re wearing a dress.”
    “Am I?” Feigning surprise, Tess looked down at the simple, form-fitting blue wool that skimmed above her knees. “Well, how did that happen?” With a snicker, she came down the rest of the way and walked to the closet for her coat. “I have a Christmas present to deliver. You remember Christmas, don’t you? Even with your busy schedule you must have heard of it.”
    “There was a rumor.” Sexy dress, heels, fuck-me perfume, Willa mused, and narrowed her eyes. “Who’s the present for?”
    “I’m dropping in on Nate.” Tess swirled on her coat. “I hope he has some wassail handy.”
    “Should have figured it,” Willa muttered. “You’re going to break your neck getting to the rig in those ice picks.”
    “I’ve got excellent balance.” With a careless wave, Tess glided out. “Don’t wait up. Sis.”
    “Yeah. Good balance,” Willa repeated, watching as Tess made her way gracefully to the rig. “I hope Nate’s got good balance.”
    She turned away, walked into the living room, and stretched out on the sofa. After one long look at the tall,elaborately decorated tree framed in the front window, she buried her face in the leather.
    Christmas had always been a miserable time of year for her. Her mother had died in December. Not that she remembered, but she knew it, and it had always put a cloud over the holidays. Bess had tried, God knew, to make up for it with decorations and cookies, with silly presents and carols. But there had never been family gathered around the piano, or family huddled under the tree opening gifts on Christmas morning.
    She and Adam had exchanged theirs on Christmas Eve, always. After her father was rip-roaring drunk and snoring in his bed.
    There had been presents under the tree with her name on them. Bess had seen to that, and for years had put Jack’s name on them. But when Willa had turned sixteen, she’d stopped opening those. They were a lie after all, and after a couple of further attempts, Bess had given up the pretense.
    Christmas morning had meant hangovers and bad temper, and on the one occasion she’d been brave enough to complain, a stinging backhand.
    She’d stopped looking forward to the holidays a long time ago.
    And now she was tired, so damn tired. The winter had come so soon, and so brutally. They’d lost more cows than she’d expected, and Wood was worried they hadn’t gotten the winter wheat in soon enough. The market price per head had dipped—not enough for panic, but enough for worry.
    And she found herself waiting, every day waiting, to find something, or someone, slaughtered on her doorstep again.
    No one to talk to, she thought. So she kept her worries to herself. She didn’t want Lily and Tess terrified every minute of the day, but neither could she relax and ignore it. She made certain that either she or Adam or Ham kept an eye on both of them when they were out of the house.
    Now Tess was gone, driving off, and Willa hadn’t had the energy or the wisdom to stop her.
    Call Nate, she told herself. Get up and call Nate to tell him she’s coming. He’ll look out for her. But she didn’tmove, just couldn’t seem to swing her legs down and sit up. To sit up and face that