Epilogue

J.T. CAME OUT of the barn, swearing under his breath as he looked toward the ranch house. Christmas lights blinked through the falling snow. His mother’s doing. She had announced that they were going to have an old-fashioned Christmas this year.

He’d caught her crying just this morning as she was wrapping presents.

“I’m just feeling a little sentimental,” she’d said when he asked her if something was wrong. “This is my first Christmas with all of you.”

He hadn’t pointed out that it had been her choice—and his father’s. He’d just nodded and left the room, running into Rourke and Cassidy. They’d come back from their honeymoon and had taken over one wing of the house until they could break ground on their place in the spring.

He’d never seen Rourke so content or happy. Even Dusty was getting along better with Shelby, although like the rest of them she wasn’t calling her Mother yet. Brandon was obviously still seeing his mystery girlfriend and actually seemed to be enjoying working on the ranch. He was to start law school next fall.

Cash had come out to help their mother decorate and put up strings and strings of lights. Asa had insisted on getting the Christmas tree, riding up into the hills to bring back a huge tree that was now glittering in the living room.

It was as if his entire family had been transformed into a Christmas special. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits except him.

He still had nightmares about fires. Only this time Claude died in the shed fire. Cash and the state investigators found his body and made a positive identification based on the DNA samples. Claude Ryan was dead. J.T. paid to have him buried at the local cemetery. He’d even bought him a stone that read May He Rest In Peace under his name and dates.

He and Reggie had talked before she left for Los Angeles. She’d admitted that she owned the jeans company. It had been passed down to her by her mother and grandmother, but it was in trouble financially. She had to make one last-ditch attempt to change the company’s image. Her mother and grandmother were depending on her.

She’d never wanted the company, never wanted that life to be hers but hadn’t known anything different because she’d been raised in the garment industry.

But neither her mother or grandmother had realized the need to change the company’s image until it was too late. Both were broke. It had been left up to Reggie to save the company and take care of her mother and grandmother.

She was sure this new commercial promotion would do it. Then she had intended to take the company public, set up a trust fund for her mother and grandmother and finally get a chance to decide what she wanted out of life.

J.T. had listened to how she had to return to Los Angeles to finish what she’d started.

“I want to come back,” she’d said. “Back here, that is if…”

He’d been so surprised he hadn’t said anything for a moment. And he certainly hadn’t said what was in his heart. He believed that once she got back to Los Angeles, she would never want to return to Montana. Not to a ranch in the middle of nowhere. Not to this life. Once she’d gotten the jeans company back on its feet and sold it, she’d have enough money to do whatever she wanted. He couldn’t imagine she would want Montana ranch life or him.

“You know you’re always welcome here,” he’d said.

She nodded, biting down on her lower lip, tears in her eyes. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you everything from the beginning.”

“It wouldn’t have made any difference,” he said. The commercial had come out. He was now known as Hollywood McCall in town. It hadn’t been as bad as he’d thought it would be. He tried not to catch the commercial when it came on TV. It only reminded him of Reggie. He just hoped the promotion turned her jeans company around and that she was happy.

As he walked through the snowstorm toward the house, he realized he would do the commercial over in a heartbeat just to have Reggie back here. His whole family had missed her after she’d left but not half as much as he did.

Hell, he’d fallen for her against every ounce of common sense he’d ever had. And his heart broke to think that he would probably never see her again.

As he neared the house, he heard laughter over the sound of Christmas music and started to turn around and go back to the barn. He had no Christmas spirit this year, wasn’t sure he would ever again.

“McCall?”

He looked up at the sound of her voice, caught half-turning back toward the barn.

She was standing at the end of the porch, her dark hair floating around her shoulders. She had on a sheepskin coat, jeans and boots and she looked so right standing next to the ranch house that his heart just stopped.

“Reggie?” He thought he must be seeing things.

“I told you I’d be back.” The snow fell around her as she stepped off the porch and came toward him. “The commercial promotion worked. I don’t have to worry about my mother and grandmother anymore. I’m free.”

He just stared at her. Was she saying what he hoped she was?

“I love you, James Thomas McCall. I had to come back and tell you.”

“Reggie.” His voice broke and his feet were moving and she was smiling at him, crying, running toward him now. He threw his arms around her. Nothing had felt more right than holding her.

Snowflakes drifted down around them. She snuggled against him. “Merry Christmas, McCall.”

He pulled back to look down into her face. “Oh Reggie, I love you. Merry Christmas.” He kissed her, lifting her into his arms. He would have carried her away but the Christmas music seemed to grow louder and when he raised his lips from hers, he saw his entire family on the porch. They began to applaud.

And he realized how much he loved them and needed them. This was going to be the best Christmas he’d ever had. But it was only the first of many. He put his arm around Reggie and they walked back toward the ranch house and his family.