Page 1 of Rose's One Night to Forever
1
April, Red Boot ranch
* * *
Chance Gabrielle was tired of living out of suitcases.
He followed the GPS of his rental car, turning down the rustic driveway. A scene from a country and Western movie lay before him as he stopped in the wide car park outside a small cabin. One of a dozen scattered around the area.
Stepping outdoors, he was assaulted by fresh air and the scent of the spring afternoon. The distant mountains still held snow, but the nearby fields were mostly clear. Brown grasses and open fields flowed toward rolling hills dotted with pine trees of varying heights.
The landscape held grace. A kind of beauty that reminded him of his homeland in Ireland and yet something fresher. Younger. A land that Chance could already sense would suit the man he called brother to a T.
It didn’t matter how few years they’d had together before Chance had grown up and moved away, that truth had always been clear. His little brother, Cody, was a man of the earth and eager to work with his hands.
Chance’s career might be less physically challenging, but it too was full of life and appreciation of beauty. Hopefully, Heart Falls would inspire him and suit him as well as it did his brother.
He turned from the majestic scenery and made his way up the cabin steps.
Before he could knock, the door swung open and a tall man dressed in jeans, boots, and a cowboy hat jerked to a stop in the doorframe.
His stepbrother’s expression flashed quickly through surprise and confusion to settle on utter delight. “Chance. Holy shit—you’re really here.”
“I really am,” Chance agreed, a smile coming easily. “Gawd, look at you.”
Cody caught him in a tight embrace, slapping Chance on the back with enthusiasm. “I had no idea you were coming. Did I miss an email or something?”
“No, I didn’t warn you because I wasn’t certain I’d be able to pull it off.” Chance stepped back and clasped Cody by the shoulders. His brother’s eyes were bright, the white skin of his face and hands tanned in spite of just having come through winter. Contentment sat easily on his shoulders. He looked good. “I don’t have long, but I wanted to see with my own eyes that you were still kicking.”
“I would have told you if it were otherwise,” Cody promised with a hint of twisted humour. “Come back as a ghost, or somehow made myself appear in one of your fantasy paintings.”
Chance had so much to share, but his brother’s quick glance at his watch warned a drawn-out conversation was not in the books. “I’ve surprised you, and I’m keeping you from your duties. Can you take a break later for us to chat?”
“How long can you stay?” Cody asked.
“I return to Ireland tomorrow with a weeklong stop in Germany first. My flight’s at four p.m.”
A snort escaped his brother. “This isn’t a visit; it’s a flyby.”
“Pretty much,” Chance agreed. “But I needed to try my luck.”
Cody took a deep breath then motioned to the deck chairs outside the cabin. “Let me contact my boss to tell her I’ll be late. She won’t mind, but I have a site evaluation in an hour with an inspector, and they’ve been a pain in the ass to schedule. I have to make that one.”
“We’ll have time,” Chance promised.
“In the morning, if nothing else.”
Chance waited as Cody made a call, using the opportunity to admire not only the surroundings but how well his younger brother fit into the space. He looked completely at home.
A sharp jab of jealousy struck before being instantly vanquished. Chance wanted nothing but the best for his family. The choice to wander the world and live apart from them had been his own.
The decision to change his mind was also his to make.
Cody settled into the other chair. “Talk fast,” he teased before sobering. “It’s good to see you. Seriously.”
“I would have given you more warning,” Chance said, “but I had three different meetings myself. The final gallery thankfully decided I was one step shy of God himself and didn’t ask for a single change to my proposal. Which meant, instead of being done tomorrow with barely enough time to head to the airport, I had an extra evening.”
“I’m glad you came. Just pissed off that this is one of the few days I’m absolutely booked solid.” Cody shook his head. “So tell me—the gallery showing in Calgary. Can you come for a longer stay when that happens? I assume you’re still curating shows for your fancy art goddesses and what have you.”
