Page 20 of Wild Highway (Runaway 2)

I’d lost myself in a thriller until Katherine had knocked on my door around six for dinner. We’d been talking for hours. I’d told Katherine about my life and she’d told me about hers here at the resort.

My gaze traveled around the room in a slow, appraising circle. The tables were arranged much like a restaurant, in varying sizes, around the space. Katherine had explained that they employed a full-time chef and served both breakfast and dinner here. Sack lunches were available by request, mostly because keeping regular hours with the resort activities was difficult.

A few guests had come down for dinner but had since retired to their rooms. Others must have opted for room service. The guests who rented the chalets—at four thousand dollars per night—had access to a different chef who’d go to their chalets and prepare a private meal.

“This place looks fantastic,” I told Katherine. “When I came in this morning, my first thought was how nothing here had changed. But that’s not true, is it?”

“About four years ago, we started doing some renovations,” she said. “Mostly cosmetic. Paint. Curtains. Art. Bedding. It’s made a difference.”

“It was your idea, wasn’t it?”

She hid her smile in her wine.

The differences had Katherine’s gentle and classic touch written all over them. She’d transformed the resort from lovely to magical.

The subtle differences had escaped my quick inspection earlier. The walls were a brighter shade of white, something that complemented the rich wood ceilings and floors. The chairs in the dining room had once been wooden, but they’d been replaced with cream upholstered pieces that softened the room and brightened the crystal chandelier’s golden light.

It was still rustic, but now there was a chic edge to the decor. It was fancy without being pretentious but would appeal to the wealthy who could afford a vacation here.

“We actually did updates all over the ranch. The stables are a dream these days. You could eat off the floor because Easton insists on keeping them spotless.”

Easton.

I’d seen him earlier from the window in my room. He’d been riding a huge black horse through a meadow in the distance. I’d spied on him until he and his horse had become nothing but a fleck in the green pasture.

But I’d known it was him. I’d recognize Easton’s broad shoulders and black cowboy hat anywhere. I remembered how his dark hair looked when the ends curled at the nape of his neck, and how his strong arms filled out the sleeves of his plaid, pearl-snap shirts.

The thud of boots echoed through the room, drawing me from my musings.

Katherine’s attention darted over my shoulder. “Hey.”

“Hey.”

Tingles ran up my spine at the familiar deep rumble.

But I refused to turn and pay Easton any mind. He’d been cold and unfriendly to me for as long as I could remember. Well, except that one night. But after today’s collision by the front door, it seemed nothing had changed.

“What’s up?” Katherine asked him.

“Came to grab some dinner before I go home.”

Home? It was almost nine o’clock at night. Didn’t he have a wife or a girlfriend waiting?

“You remember Gemma, don’t you?” Katherine gestured to me with her wineglass.

I looked over my shoulder and gave him a tight smile.

Easton was standing at my side, his arms crossed over his chest. His jaw was granite and his eyes didn’t so much as flicker my direction.

He ignored Katherine’s reintroduction entirely.

Asshole. “Nice to see you again, Easton. You look . . . older.”

Older. Sexy as hell. Same thing.

He harrumphed, but didn’t bother with any other acknowledgement, addressing only Katherine as he spoke. “I need an hour tomorrow when you have one to go over some schedules. I need to steal a couple of the hands from guest services to help move some steers.”

“Okay.” She nodded. “I’ll check my calendar and shoot you a text with the time.”