Jake (Men of Clifton Montana Book 1) Read Free

complained,
holding up the envelope marked certified .
    “I just hate for
you to be gone for six months. I mean, nothing much goes on here, but what will
I do without you?”
    Becca gasped. “Oh, my God! I forgot about Steve.”
    “Damn time,” Olivia
muttered, but shrugged when Becca narrowed her eyes at her. “What? You know I
can’t stand him, Becs. I trust him about as far as I can throw him.”
    “Liv, I know you
don’t like him, but we’re not serious.”
    Olivia snorted. “Maybe
you’re not but I promise you, he is.”
    Becca was about to
argue when the bell chimed at the front of the shop. Olivia stood up and
motioned for Becca to make her call, she’d take care of the customer. After a
short phone conversation, Becca walked out front and found Olivia and Steve
glaring at each other. Biting back a groan, she smiled at Steve and gave Olivia
a dirty look.
    Olivia’s eyebrows
lifted but instead of leaving, she took a seat on a stool and moved her eyes
back and forth between Becca and Steve Harris.
    Becca thought Steve
was a good-looking man. Tall at six feet, he had blonde hair and blue eyes but otherwise,
he just didn’t float her boat. She knew Olivia hadn’t liked him on sight. Now,
here he was. He smiled at Becca and ignored Olivia.  
    “How’s your day
going so far, Becca?”
    Her eyes shifted to
Olivia who grinned, then back to Steve.
    “I have to go to
Montana for a while. It has to do with my grandmother’s ranch,” Becca said in a
rush.
    Steve’s eyes
widened. “Montana?”
    “Yes, Steve. You
know it’s a state out west,” Olivia said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
    Steve spun around
and glared at her. “I know where Montana is. Don’t you have something to do?”
    Olivia’s smile
grew. “Nope.”
    Becca glared at her
friend, and then took Steve’s arm, pulling him over to a table. They both sat
down. Becca explained to him about going to Montana. To say he wasn’t happy
would be an understatement.
    “But … but you can’t
just leave. You have a coffee shop to run. The Daily Grind needs you. I need
you. Can’t you just sell this ranch you inherited?”
    When Olivia
snorted, both Becca and Steve glared at her. She feigned a cough to cover it.
    “Liv can run the
shop while I’m gone. It is half hers, you know. I’ll be back before you know
it. Maybe it’s time we took a break anyway.”
    “A
break? Well, seeing as you’re going out to some godforsaken place, I
guess a break is going to happen whether I like it or not.” Steve stood, and
after shooting a look of disdain toward Olivia, stormed out.
    Becca rose and
walked back to the counter. “That went well, don’t you think?”
    Olivia burst out
laughing and Becca joined her. “Oh, and the lawyer said that I absolutely have
to be in Montana within the week.”
    Both women stopped
laughing. “Great,” Olivia let out a long breath. “I’ll miss you.” Then she got
a mischievous look in her eye. “Who knows, you might meet a handsome cowboy
who’ll make the trip worthwhile.”
    Becca frowned.
“Don’t even say those words out loud. I have no intention of staying in Montana
one moment longer than I have to.”

 
    * * * *

 
    Becca peered
through the windshield in yet another attempt to see beyond the hood of the
rented SUV. Except for the occasional flare of brake lights, the vehicles she
knew were in front of her were almost invisible in the snow. It continued to
pile onto the hood of the SUV, grating on her nerves as she inched forward
little by little. With a sigh of frustration, she turned up the radio to
give herself a distraction. She needed something, anything to drown out her fear
of driving in this weather. Being raised in western Maryland, she was used to
snow…but this, this was just ridiculous.
    She recognized the
voice of Blake Shelton on the radio right away, and sang along but ended it
with a yawn. Exhaustion clawed at her, and the depressing storm around her only
served to enhance her