Fallen

USA TODAY bestselling author B.J. Daniels welcomes you to the town of Beartooth, Montana, for a new series set under Montana’s big sky…

Since teenager Bethany Gates was a girl, Clete Reynolds had been hers—in her heart, at least. She was devastated when he left their small ranching town of Beartooth, Montana, on a football scholarship, but then an injury brought him back. Now she’s determined to get him to notice her…if her rival Ginny West doesn’t get in the way. But Bethany doesn’t know Ginny has a secret of her own—one that could turn out to be deadly….

Return to Beartooth in Unforgiven by B.J. Daniels, available from Harlequin HQN.

Fallen

USA TODAY Bestselling Author

B.J. Daniels

Contents

Fallen

THE LAST BREATH OF summer blew out of the high timber. It swept down from the Crazy Mountains to turn into a howling gust that blew into the near ghost town of Beartooth, Montana. Picking up a tumbleweed, the wind sent it cartwheeling past the Branding Iron Café.

From inside the café, Bethany Gates saw it blow by as she refilled coffee cups at the local ranchers’ regular front table. She was counting the days until she wouldn’t have to waitress. Her senior year of high school was about to begin and she’d promised herself that this year she was going to change her life.

As the tumbleweed rolled past, a pickup pulled up in front of the Beartooth General Store across the street. Bethany watched Ginny West climb out and start up the steps to the two-story, old-fashioned storefront.

Bethany hated the familiar taste of jealousy, bitter and strong, in her mouth. Often she wondered what it must be like to be Ginny, blond and beautiful, popular and rich. Well, maybe not rich like movie stars and athletes, but rich by Beartooth standards since her daddy owned a nice ranch south of town.

Ginny West wasn’t spending her summer before college in a greasy-spoon café slinging plates of food and pouring coffee until her arm ached.

“I’d take a little more of the decaf,” one of the ranchers said behind her.

Bethany turned away from the window and admitted to herself the real reason she resented Ginny so much. His name was Clete Reynolds. She’d seen the two of them laughing and talking. The memory still bit into her like a rabid dog. Since Bethany was a girl, Clete had been hers. At least in her mind and heart.

She filled the rancher’s cup, tuning out the same talk she’d heard every morning all summer. The men came in about the same time every day, took the same table and talked about the same things: the price of cattle, the weather, how the crops had done this year and the upcoming hunting season.

The only way she’d been able to survive the summer was to spend it daydreaming about Clete. She’d been devastated when he’d gone off to the University of Montana on a football scholarship. Everyone said he would make pro and that the next time they all saw him would be on ESPN. She’d known that he’d never come back to Beartooth if that happened.

As if she’d put a curse on him, Clete had gotten hurt his sophomore year, quit college and come home. He’d taken a job bartending just down the street at the Range Rider — just until he got better and could go back to playing football for U of M, he told everyone.

Bethany knew that was never going to happen and figured most people in town did as well. But since everyone liked Clete, no one was about to tell him to his face.

From the back of the café, Lou, the cook, called through the pass-thru that her orders were up. Bethany had learned to stack the plates along her arms and was now able to carry six to eight of them without any trouble. Her arms had muscled up over the summer. She was in the best shape she’d been in since when she used to barrel race competitively.

Not that Clete had noticed, she thought, as she carried the food to the ranchers’ table. She distributed the plates, pulling ketchup and Tabasco sauce out of her deep-pocketed apron, and asking if anyone needed anything else.

No one answered so she wandered back to the front window. She could see Ginny West in the store visiting with the owner Nettie Benton. She wondered what the two of them were talking about. Nettie was the worst gossip in the county. Seeing them with their heads together and looking in this direction sent an arrow of dread through her.

She and Ginny had never gotten along. But then there’d been that incident last year... Surely that wasn’t what Ginny and old Nosey Nettie were talking about. Bethany felt herself flush and hurriedly shoved the painful memory away.

Instead she wondered why Ginny hadn’t already gone back to college yet. Ginny was two years older than her, but had been held back a year from when she broke her leg barrel racing. Ginny should have been back at Montana State University in Bozeman by now. So what was the hold up? Bethany couldn’t shake the bad feeling that for some reason Ginny West had changed her plans to leave town. It had better not have anything to do with Clete.

* * *

STANDING AT THE CHECKOUT counter in the general store, Ginny West nodded, barely listening to Nettie as the older woman went on about the owner of the Branding Iron Café. Ginny had more to worry about than Claude Durham’s health, she thought, touching the note in her pocket. She’d put it there after finding it on her pickup seat this morning.

It wasn’t the first note like it that she’d received. She’d hoped the person who’d left them would get tired of harassing her. The notes felt...threatening. She could no longer pretend that no one knew the truth.

“Claude’s already had at least one heart attack. Doesn’t take care of himself. Won’t take anyone’s advice.” Nettie sniffed as she looked across the narrow road to the cafe. “He was downright rude when I suggested he quit eating off his own menu.”

“Uh-huh,” Ginny said, watching Bethany serve a large table full of local ranchers. The girl had been a thorn in her side from as far back as Ginny could remember. Had she left the threatening notes for her?

Doubtful, since the notes appeared to be quotes from the Bible. She’d never seen Bethany Gates in the small community church at the end of the street. Not once.

She wished it had been Bethany Gates who’d left them. That girl she could deal with. But she feared the person leaving the notes was someone else entirely and that had her running scared.

Which is why she’d called him and told him they had to meet.

The moment he’d answered the phone, she’d known it had been a mistake. He’d been upset with her for calling him at home.

“I wouldn’t have called if it wasn’t urgent,” she’d said, hating that he made her feel like a child.

“I’m not sure I can get away,” he’d said lowering his voice.

“This can’t wait. Someone knows.”

Silence, then, “Give me an hour.” He’d hung up, sounding as upset as she was. But she doubted their reasons were the same.

Across the street, Bethany paused in front of the large plate glass window and looked directly at her. Ginny could feel the girl’s loathing for her. Before last year, she’d never done anything to Bethany. She’d pretty much ignored her since they had nothing in common even though Bethany had begun dressing like her, even had her hair cut like her. Ginny had finally had to put a stop to it.

Bethany was one of those true western girls who’d barrel raced at all the rodeos, would jump off the cliffs into the creek with the boys and didn’t squeal at the sight of snakes and frogs and spiders. She’d always spent more time hanging out with the boys than any of the other girls in the ranch community. Bethany had more in common with Destry Grant.

The thought of Destry reminded her that she wasn’t the only one with a secret. Destry and Ginny’s brother Rylan had been dating behind their fathers’ backs. There had always been bad blood between Taylor West and Waylon “WT” Grant. Apparently the two had been boyhood friends until something happened that made them lifelong enemies.

Which was why when she’d started dating Destry’s older brother Carson last year, her father had hit the roof. It hadn’t helped that she and Carson had an off-and-on-again relationship that often sent her home in tears. Off because Carson hadn’t been ready to commit.

“Why do you keep going out with him?” her father had demanded on one of those nights when she’d come home obviously upset.

She hadn’t been able to explain it. Carson was the most infuriating man she’d ever known. But there was something about him...

So it was no wonder when her brother started dating Destry Grant, he and Destry had decided to keep it a secret. Ginny had thought Rylan would tire of Destry. He always had before long of all the other girls he’d gone out with. But it appeared the two were crazy about each other, which was fine with Ginny. She liked Destry.

“So are you still dating that Grant boy?” Nettie asked now, as if reading her thoughts.

“Carson?” Ginny shook her head but didn’t dare look in Nettie’s eyes as she did. Nettie had a way of getting at the truth that was unnerving. “I broke up with him.”

“So who are you seeing now?”

As if it was any of her business. Want to know what’s going on in this county? Just ask Nettie. She’ll give you an earful, Ginny thought.

“No one,” she said, turning away from Nettie’s sharp gaze. The whole town would know soon enough.

“Really?” Nettie said. “You’re such a pretty girl. I would think all the young men in town would be after you and half the old ones as well.”

Ginny felt a jolt at her words, but busied herself selecting a pack of gum. She laid it on the counter and made a production of digging in her purse for money. She could feel the older woman’s keen eyes on her. Nettie didn’t miss a thing.

“Shouldn’t you be heading back to Missoula by now?” Nettie asked.

“Bozeman. I go to MSU. But I’ve decided to wait until next semester to return to school.”

“Oh?”

Clearly stopping in here to kill time had been a mistake.

“I’m undecided on what I want to major in,” Ginny said, another lie. It shocked her how lying had become second nature since living with the big lie for months.

Nettie seemed to study her even more closely as Ginny put the exact change on the counter. She felt self-conscious and nervous under Nettie’s sharp gaze. Glancing at her watch, she was disappointed to see that she still had way too much time before she would meet him at their secret place. But she wasn’t spending it here.

He’d always made her wait. Always had an excuse for being late. She’d been determined that today would be different. That’s why she’d planned to let him get to their meeting spot first. Let him wait for a change.

But she was too anxious, had been all morning. She had to get this over with. Tears burned her eyes. What did it matter if she was early and had to wait on him again? This had to be settled today. She’d put it off long enough.

When she looked up, she saw that Nettie’s gaze was on her stomach. Instinctively, she sucked it in as best she could. Ginny felt her eyes burn again with hot tears. No, it wouldn’t be long and the whole town would know. That thought sent a cold chill through her.

“Glad to see you’ve put on a little weight this summer,” Nettie said as she scooped up the coins from the counter. “It looks good on you. Fills you out more. I hate these skinny girls and their skimpy clothes. They look like street walkers.”

Ginny felt faint, her heart pounding, as she turned away and started for the door. Her right hand went to her stomach protectively. She wasn’t showing yet, was she? But she couldn’t deny that her body was changing. Her breasts were tender and fuller than they’d ever been.

She couldn’t hold back the tears any longer. Nettie said something she didn’t catch as she pushed out the door, the full weight of her situation bearing down on her.

Hurrying across the porch that ran the width of the store, she rushed down the steps to the ranch pickup. She’d borrowed the truck this morning rather than drive the car her father had given her for high school graduation last year. If someone saw her car parked up in by the old mine, they’d be more suspicious than if they saw one of the ranch trucks.

The day was clear and cool, Montana’s big sky stretching from the Yellowstone River to the peaks of the Crazy Mountains in an iridescent blue. A flock of geese came into view, a perfect dark arrow of flight overhead. She’d heard their honking as she crossed the porch, the sound so familiar she seldom noticed it. Just as she seldom noticed the deep silence that followed.

Few people lived in a place where there wasn’t the sound of traffic or police sirens or close-by neighbors. Ginny had lived on a ranch under the shadow of the Crazies, as the locals called the mountain range, all her life. She had loved the solitude. But until this moment she’d never felt so isolated and alone.

* * *

NETTIE WATCHED GINNY CLIMB into the West Ranch pickup. Taylor West had bought his only daughter a pretty yellow compact for high school graduation last year. Nettie wondered why she wasn’t driving it. The car had caused quite a stir. Everyone in the county had known Ginny was spoiled, but the car proved it.

Taylor West normally didn’t throw his money around. This was a conservative, close-knit community. Except for Waylon “WT” Grant who acted like some of the out-of-staters moving in down by Big Timber. Like them, WT seemed to think he had to out-do everyone else.

Nettie shook her head as she glanced across the narrow street at the café again. She could see the owner Claude Durham sitting on a stool, his back to the counter, his fingers laced across his belly. He looked pale even from here. Locals had been commenting on his health for some time now.

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