“I swear, it wasn’t planned. It just happened spontaneously.”

“Let’s try to keep that from happening again.”

Despite Nevada’s obvious annoyance, Montana grinned. “I’ll do my best.”


OVER THE NEXT WEEK, Simon braced himself for two events that never happened. The first was a final, hard push by the town to convince him to stay. The second was Montana “just happening” to show up in places where he would see her. Because she had to know that every time he looked at her, he wanted her with a desperation that nearly drove him to madness. Neither occurred.

He ran into Mayor Marsha twice, some women from the city council once and played golf with Josh, Ethan and Raoul Moreno, the former NFL quarterback who was married to Pia. No one mentioned that he was leaving or hinted at one reason why he should stay. Josh even asked about his next assignment, and the four men debated the merits of working in the States versus traveling to Pakistan.

He didn’t get it. He knew he would be an asset to the community, that the new hospital would have state-of-the-art facilities that would tempt any medical professional. Arranging to have patients come to him instead of the other way around added a layer of logistics, but was somewhat doable. He knew—he’d seen multiple presentations on the process over the years. Still, they were all silent on the subject.

He also hadn’t run into Montana anywhere. Once, leaving the hospital, he thought he caught sight of her turning the corner, but he wasn’t sure and by the time he’d reached the corner himself, she was gone. Although Cece showed up regularly in Kalinda’s room, Montana remained elusive. The one time he’d hung around until it was time for the dog to be picked up, he’d met her boss instead. Max Thurman had been the one retrieving the dog.

He’d gone so far as to question Reese, a regular visitor, about how his aunt was. The kid had blinked at him. “Which one?”

Simon had said it didn’t matter and walked away.

Not seeing her was even more difficult than seeing her all the time, he realized. At least when he was with her, he could lose himself in her presence. He could inhale the scent of her body, listen to whatever she was talking about, argue with her, make her laugh, touch her. When they were alone, he could make love with her, losing himself in her passion and healing himself in the process.

She was a part of him and being without her was as painful as cutting off an arm.

But he knew he had to keep moving, to heal, to push himself and to concentrate on the financial rewards of leaving and the emotional rewards of staying single.

But he wanted more.

He left his hotel Saturday morning, more because he was restless than because he had somewhere he needed to be. A little boy from Guatemala with a malformed face had had his last surgery the previous day and would probably be cleared to go home at the end of next week. Kalinda was getting ready for her next surgery, but in the meantime was happy and healing.

Everyone he treated, the burn victims, those in accidents and those simply born with differences, were managed, fixed or in the process of getting back to normal. He had nothing to do.

He walked toward the center of town, not surprised to find the area by the park set up for yet another festival. Crowds filled the sidewalk and spilled into the closed streets. The smell of barbecue and caramel corn filled the air.

From what he could tell, Fool’s Gold had festivals nearly weekly in the summer. Someone had told him about the Fall Festival, which was before the Halloween Festival but after the End of Summer Festival.

He’d been told he couldn’t miss the Saturday Day of Giving in December, and that the Live Nativity was always fun because the animals were real and last year one of the goats had eaten Mary’s gloves and then thrown up over everyone.

As he wove through tourists, he imagined the mountains covered with snow and then couldn’t help picturing Montana’s face softened by the glow of candles.

He paused to buy a hot dog from a vendor and overheard two women talking about the new construction project.

“It’s going to be huge,” one was saying. “A big, fancy hotel and casino. Shops, too.”

“I heard there might be an outlet mall. I’d love that.”

“My Frank is applying with Janack Construction. We’ve heard they’re a good company to work for.”

“That’s what Julia told me when I was getting my hair done. That’ll be a boost to the economy.”

He eavesdropped as he ate, then finished his soda and dropped the can into a blue recycling bin. He was about to head back to the hotel when he heard a whisper of sound. The faintest of laughters, but unmistakable, even in the crowd.

He turned slowly, searching for the source. Then he saw her. Montana was with her sister Dakota. While Dakota sat on a bench, smiling, Montana held her niece in her arms, laughing as she spun her round and round.

The baby grinned and waved her arms, obviously delighted. The sun touched Montana’s face, making her more beautiful than usual.

Simon stood rooted in place, staring hungrily, a starving man within sight of a meal. He soaked in the sounds, the way she moved, the vision of her with a child.

His child, he thought fiercely. He wanted Montana holding his child. No. Their child.

Longing washed over him and stole his breath. The need to be with her, not just for a few hours or days, but always. The craving was greater than anything he’d ever known.

He turned slowly, looking at the people at the festival, the families who took their happiness for granted.

Even as he started to walk toward her, he stopped himself. He couldn’t. He just couldn’t. Would he really sacrifice all he was, all he had, for a fleeting dream of happiness?

While those words had worked in the past, today he rebelled against them, wanting to take on those who determined his fate. Suddenly suffocated by the crowd, he hurried back to the hotel. He needed answers, he thought grimly, and he only knew one way to get them.


MONTANA KNEW SHE’D PUT OFF the inevitable for long enough. It was time to confess all and take her punishment.

Finding Mayor Marsha was relatively easy. She was at the festival with Charity and her new great-granddaughter. Montana admired the baby and then asked Marsha if they could talk for a second.

“Of course.”

The mayor led the way to a bench, her sleeping great-granddaughter still in her arms.

When they sat down, Montana angled toward her. “I’m sorry,” she began. “I failed. Simon is leaving.”

“My dear girl, I’m far more concerned about you. I heard the two of you weren’t together anymore. How are you?”

“I’m getting by.” If one considered living with a hole the size of Utah in one’s heart “getting by.”

“I miss him.”

“You love him.”

“Yeah, well, that wasn’t part of the plan, was it? You asked me to help convince him to settle in Fool’s Gold. Falling in love was my own fault.”

“Love is rarely a bad thing. I’m sorry for my part. If I hadn’t thrown you two together, none of this would have happened.”

“Don’t say that,” Montana told her. “I’m not sorry. Simon is an amazing man. Maybe I won’t get my happy ending, but I have wonderful memories of my time with him. I really liked being with him and who I was around him. He helped me see that all the choices in my life have led me to where I am. To where I belong. I’m hurting, but I’ll heal.”

“I know you will.” The mayor smiled at her. “You come from a long line of strong women. The women of the Máa-zib tribe were warriors.”

Montana laughed. “While I would love to claim them as ancestors, my family moved here. I’m not a descendant.”

“True, but their strength is all around us. The trees, the leaves, the very air carries their essence. You are one of them, Montana. They are very proud of you.”

The words should have frightened her. Instead she felt oddly proud and a little sniffly. “I hope so.”

“I know so.” Marsha smiled at her. “Now, don’t worry. I’m not getting senile or getting weird. I’m speaking the truth.”

Reese ran up to them. “Something’s wrong with Dr. Bradley,” he announced.

Montana was instantly on her feet. “What happened?” An accident? Had he been hurt?

“He’s gone crazy. People saw him running back to the hotel. He was talking to himself. Then he got in his fancy car and put the top down. He drove up the mountain and he was yelling at someone, only no one was there.”

“That can’t be good,” Marsha murmured.

Montana was already hurrying toward her house, where her car was parked. “I’ll go after him,” she called over her shoulder.

She had no idea what had happened, but if Simon needed her, she would be there.


SIMON DROVE UP the winding road easily, his Mercedes convertible hugging the curves. The sun beat down on him, mocking him with light and warmth. Rain would have been better, he thought grimly. A howling wind.

It had taken a few minutes to get out of town, what with all the tourist traffic. Once he got onto the mountain road, there were a few guys on bikes and no one else.

He knew exactly where he was going—to the meadow where Montana had taken him. A quiet place, spiritual, some might say. An excellent location for the final battle.

As he navigated each turn, his mind fought conflicting ideas. Trapped or protected. Stay or escape. He’d never questioned his choices before. Had never wondered.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the new hospital was only a few weeks away. He could be a part of that, if he wanted. Determine the direction, the focus. He could develop a program that was the best in the world, bring in other specialists, make a difference on an ongoing basis.