Page 52 of The Cowboy’s Reckoning

As they parted company from their big friend a half hour later, Jordan realized he’d developed softer feelings about the cattle trailer fiasco at the Graff Hotel. Hell, it’d been half their fault for agreeing to it when, clearly, they should have known better. Burke was, after all, Burke.

*

Maya came down the escalator at the airport, her blond hair fluffing around her face like a halo. She’d always looked more like an adorable kindergarten teacher than a lawyer, a fact that had both helped and hindered her, dependent on circumstances. Despite the kindergarten-teacher look, she was not a hugger, but she made an exception as she was rushed by her two sisters.

“You’re going to muss up my hair,” she protested, as if her blond curls could get any more mussed than they already were.

They’d barely cleared the exit when Maya said, “Tell me everything you didn’t tell me over the phone.”

Lil had purposely kept details to a minimum during their call the previous evening to keep from being peppered with questions. Which gave Maya time to think of more questions.

“I figured we could sit down with Jordan and go over things together.”

“Great. You can bring me up to speed on the drive to your place. And you can also explain again why you kept me out of the loop.”

“You know why,” Meg said.

Maya let out an exasperated breath. “I can drop things for a day or two to come and help out.”

Day or two being the key words. This visit would be all of three days. Two on the ranch and one traveling back to the airport to head to her conference in Seattle. It was practically a record with the exception of the five-day Christmas visit. Maya’s plate was full.

“Here’s what we’re going to do,” she said when they arrived at Lil’s pickup and Meg dropped the tailgate so that she could heft her carry-on bag into the bed. “I promise not to fly to the rescue if you promise to keep me updated. About everything.”

“Can you keep that promise?” Lil asked over the truck bed.

“I can.”

Meg made a disbelieving noise before opening the rear passenger door.

“I can’t help being the oldest,” Maya said as she settled in her seat.

“Bossiest,” Meg replied on a cough.

“Ha. Ha.”

Lil smiled into the rearview mirror and Meg smiled back. It was good to be together again.

*

Jordan hadn’t been certain of what to expect upon meeting the eldest McAllen sister, but Maya was the opposite of his mental picture of the lawyer sister who’d briefly worked for Carl Jordan’s company.

He could see the resemblance to Meg, the blond hair, blue eyes, and pert nose, but other than the stubborn chin with the cleft in the center, she had little in common with Lil, the dark-haired outlier middle child. Being a middle child himself, in one of his two families anyway, he wondered if that was one of the reasons they seemed to understand one another. They felt the same push-pull to both make peace yet carve out their own niches.

“You believe that the incidents were a push to get my sisters off the ranch?” Maya spoke directly to Jordan after Lil had summarized the facts while Maya jotted on her tablet.

As always, when conducting ranch-related business, they were seated at the big kitchen table.

“After the cow was shot, yes.”

Maya gave a considering nod then consulted her notes. “You have paid grazing land to the east owned by Tom Baxter. He wasn’t contacted by a potential buyer, but his land isn’t as private as yours. The Weston Conservancy is to the north. Federal land to the south and west. Is there any possibility of something valuable under the ground?”

Jordan hadn’t considered that. “Not that I’m aware of, but I think the motive is simpler than that. Since the celebrities discovered Big Sky, there’s been a lot of wealthier types looking for their own private spots. This isn’t a huge property, but it doesn’t need to be because it’s surrounded by undeveloped land.”

“There are other properties out there,” Lil said. “Why go to these lengths?”

“Maybe they don’t like being told no,” Meg, who’d been quiet up to that point, interjected.

“That’s possible. Big egos cause problems,” Maya agreed. “I’ve dealt with a few over the years.” She tucked a handful of curls behind her ear. “What bothers me is the timing of the offer. Since you received it prior to the will being filed in probate court, someone knew the terms and either passed them along or acted themselves.”