“Not a bad group overall. Maybe a couple of minor problems.”

“Which ones?”

“The older teenage girl looks like trouble but nothing we can’t handle,” she said, keeping her voice down. “The older couple look like they’re spoiling for a knock-down-drag-out with each other any minute. The three Wall Streeters seem okay, but I’d bet they’ve got more than twenty pounds of gear each on them and most of that is liquor.”

Jed nodded. She was getting good at this.

“I like the younger of the two sisters.”

“I didn’t even notice her.”

“You wouldn’t,” Dakota said. Then: “What was that about using other campsites? You know what the Park Service says about that. Why’d you say we might change up the route?”

He shrugged. “You never know. Conditions might dictate a change.”

“I thought it was kind of a strange thing to say,” she said, trying without success to get him to look back at her.

He changed the subject. “What about the single man? Wilson?”

She looked over. “He’s the one who gives me a bad vibe.”

He nodded, agreeing. “Maybe you can get him to talk to you a little. Find out what his deal is.”

“I knew you were going to ask me to do that.”

“He’s likely to talk to you before me,” Jed said.

Jed finished up on the saddle and leaned into her. He whispered, “If the situation presents itself I may take a look in his duffel to make sure he don’t have no gun.”

Dakota arched her eyebrows. “And if he does?”

“I’ll figure out a way to make it a nonissue.”

He could tell his turn of phrase puzzled her but he didn’t say more. He liked to leave her hanging, make himself a little mysterious. That was good for a relationship, he thought. Plus, he didn’t want her thinking this was their last trip together.

Which it was. Because, Jed thought but didn’t say, it was likely to be his last trip back of beyond. And if everything fell into place the way he’d planned it over the long and dark winter, he’d be set for life. Smart-ass girl wranglers like Dakota Hill-and needy clients like the ones who milled around before him-would be things in his past.

Hell, he thought, if things worked out like he planned them, he’d be the one getting catered to.

10

Gracie got Strawberry, a light red roan mare with dapples of white on her sides and haunches that had the effect of making her look like a pink horse. After sitting on Strawberry’s back for fifteen minutes as the long train of riders wound up out of the parking lot into the trees on the rocky trail, Gracie knew one thing for sure: she was in love.

Already she liked the sounds and rhythm of the ride; the heavy footfalls of the animals, their snorts, the rocking motion, even the smell of them. And she was thrilled with that big-eyed look Strawberry gave her when the old mare turned her head back and seemed to assess Gracie with a practiced eye, apparently satisfied with what she saw.

“I like you, too,” Gracie whispered, leaning forward in her saddle to pat Strawberry on the neck. “I like you, too. We’re a good team, I think.”

“What-are you talking to your horse?” Danielle said over her shoulder as she rode ahead. “Don’t be kissing him, now.”

“It’s a her,” Gracie said. “And you should talk to your horse. That’s one way to get her to like you.”

“What’s mine?” Danielle said. “I forgot. I know the name is Peanut.”

Said Gracie, “You’re riding a gelding.” She’d overheard Jed the outfitter and Dakota Hill brief her sister on Peanut and his particular tendencies, the worst of which was to take every opportunity available to grab a bite of grass from the side of the trail. “You know what a gelding is, don’t you?”

“Of course,” Danielle said. “He’s a unit.”

“A eunuch,” Gracie corrected.

“Right,” Danielle said, “a horse with no balls. A Peanut with a limp penis. Just great.”

“You wouldn’t want a stallion,” Gracie said. “They have only one thing on their minds.”

“I’m used to boys like that.”

“I know you are.”

“Shut up,” Danielle said. “Just because you took some lessons you act like you’re an expert.”

“I’m not,” Gracie said. “But I wish you would have gone to those lessons with me like I asked you. I learned a lot, and you would have, too. If nothing else, you could have listened to Jed and Dakota tell you about him. I don’t know how you get by never listening to anyone.”

“Yet somehow I do,” Danielle said, looking over her shoulder, smiling seductively, and batting her eyelashes.

Gracie rolled her eyes.

From behind her, Gracie heard Dakota Hill say, “S’cuse me while I puke.”

Gracie giggled and looked around. Dakota was leading her three mules and mumbling to herself, and acted embarrassed that Gracie had heard her. Gracie winked. Dakota grinned and winked back, obviously relieved they had something in common.

Gracie wondered what the deal was with Jed and Dakota, if they were an item. She’d seen how they talked with each other at the horse trailer.

Yes, she decided. They were a couple, even if Jed was too old for her. Maybe, Gracie thought, there weren’t many choices of men in Montana.

* * *