Page 20 of A Montana Fake Marriage

Caleb groaned and shoved both hands into his hair. They had about seven and a half months to go before they’d get that divorce.

At this rate, he didn’t think he’d be able to survive it.

The door to the bedroom opened then shut quietly. Every single one of his senses tensed when she entered. He could smell her perfume from here. It drifted toward him, wrapped around him, clung to him.

Slowly, he lifted his head and glanced toward her. She smiled tentatively at him as she tugged the elastic from the bottom of her braid. Her face was smudged with dirt, but she looked absolutely radiant. Even covered in grime, he couldn’t stop looking at her.

She took a few steps toward him and nodded to the paperwork on the desk. “The feed recipe?”

He nodded, holding his breath as she perched on the armrest of the chair where he sat. Her arm came around his shoulders.

“How’s it going?”

He blinked.

She laughed quietly. “I mean… I have no idea what it is you’re doing exactly, but I can listen.”

His heart throbbed with the offer. Caleb would be the first to admit he was a complete nerd when it came to this sort of stuff. A girl like Sammie would have never given him a second look when he was in high school—maybe not even now. He turned his head up to look at her. There was no hint of attraction in her eyes, just the usual Sammie he’d gotten to know. This Sammie was his friend. She wasn’t seated close to him just so she could touch him. She was offering him an olive branch—a connection.

He’d missed it over the last couple of days when things had been so strained that she could barely be in the same room as him without looking incredibly uncomfortable.

Caleb leaned back in his chair, rocking it slightly, but she remained in her seat. “It’s just about done. There’re only a couple things I want to add to it.”

She tilted her head. “Oh?”

He nodded then leaned forward and picked up a piece of paper that had notes and percentages scribbled on it. “The feed is made up of mostly these ingredients here, see?” He pointed to the list. “Corn and hay. But we have to add other things like limestone, vitamins, and minerals. Then I need to calculate how much feed they should be getting based on their weight and what they will be used for.”

Her eyes remained focused on the paper. “I didn’t realize it was so much work to come up with something like this.” Sammie glanced at him. “And you’re trying to fine-tune it based on the cattle we have here.”

Caleb nodded. “I want Sagebrush to be known for having the best cattle. Then I want to move on to developing feed for the other animals.”

One side of her mouth quirked upward. “You’ve always been an overachiever.”

His heart expanded with the compliment.

“But I always knew that.” Her smile deepened. “What with your scholarship and everything.”

He nodded. And without that scholarship, he would have never been as successful with the money he’d gained through his options trading. He’d been fortunate—far more fortunate than Sammie had been as of late. It just went on to prove himself right. Things could go sideways quicker than people realized.

His grandfather had needed to move in with their family, and they’d already been on the lower end of the national average when it came to income. Then Sammie lost access to the money her mother had set aside for her. Caleb had the distinct feeling that something would happen to him. His finances were off to a good start, but he wasn’t about to stop planning for his future—and the future of his family.

“You okay?” Sammie whispered.

He jolted, realizing she was still seated beside him. “Yeah,” he said firmly. “I’m great.”

She pointed to the papers again. “Congrats on being almost done.”

Caleb grinned at that. “Thanks, Sammie.”

Then she pulled away, and their little moment was gone. He didn’t know if this was her way of bridging the gap he’d put between them, or if she was craving that connection as much as he was. It didn’t matter. He was grateful for it, anyway.

“Something smells good,”Caleb murmured, pulling his hat from his head as he entered the kitchen. Barbeque. His stomach growled, and Sammie shot him an amused look.

She stood beside his mother at the stove. They were working on dinner. But it was a great deal more food than would feed their family of five—well, six.

He moved toward the island and plucked a potato chip from a large bowl. A satisfying crunch, and then he reached for another one, but Sammie swatted him away. He chuckled and darted around her to grab another. After he swallowed, he motioned to the spread. “What’s going on?”

“Eli and Jennifer wanted to do a spur of the moment barbeque with the whole extended family. I told them I had some extra time to make the main dish, and everyone will bring a couple sides.”

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