Read Home For Christmas (A Copper Mountain Christmas) for Free Online

in Marietta, but if Rachel kept shutting down his offers of help, Nate didn't want her to know what he was doing. Just a hunch, but if Rachel found out he was going to make her gingerbread business soar so she'd stay in Montana, she would probably catch the next flight back to Phoenix and take Ty with her.
    Not. Going. To. Happen.
    A few minutes later, Nate parked outside the main house. He headed to the mudroom, anticipation building over seeing Rachel and telling her about the tree farm.
    Opportunity and possibility.
    He would focus on those two things when he spoke with her. Two things that helped him when he returned to the Bar V5 four years ago. Two things that kept Ty from bailing when this place became a dude ranch. Two things that made the Bar V5 a success today.
    Helping Rachel meant Ty would not only remain at the ranch, but Nate would be able to repay his friend for all he'd done for his dad and for him. A win-win-win situation. The best kind.
    Movement caught Nate's attention. He stopped. Something was in the meadow behind the house. Deer?
    He took a closer look. Glimpsed a flash of red.
    Not a deer.
    Rachel.
    A gray hat covered her hair and ears. She wore a black parka with a red scarf and matching gloves. Her jeans were tucked into snow boots. She was making a snowman, one nearly as tall as her.
    He walked closer and glimpsed her profile.
    A nice pink tinged her cheek.
    He'd thought she was pretty yesterday. Today, out here in the fresh air with a smile on her face, she looked beautiful.
    Nate sucked in a breath. The cold air stung. He didn't care, didn't want to take his gaze off her.
    Standing in front of the snowman, she pushed two pebbles into the face for eyes then stuck a carrot in the center for a nose. She stepped back, surveying her work.
    "Aren't you a handsome fella? But something's missing." Rachel removed her scarf and tied the bright cloth around the snowman's neck. "That's better. You'll drive all the snowwomen crazy."
    The way she talked to the snowman as if he were Frosty come to life was cute. She sniffled, shook her hands, and tugged on her gloves.
    Knit gloves, the wrong kind for playing in the snow. But someone who wasn't from around here might not know that.
    Nate took a step forward, then stopped. Telling her she needed different gloves wasn't the right tactic, given her independent streak. He'd bring her a pair. Let her see the difference herself.
    He sprinted to the house, grabbed gloves from a basket in the mudroom then returned to the meadow. "Nice snowman."
    She stiffened, glanced his way then looked back at her snow friend.
    "A little lopsided." She stuck sticks into the sides for arms. "But not too bad considering it's been ten years since I last made one."
    "Not a lot of snow in Phoenix."
    She straightened the scarf. "We had a little in February, a mix of snow, rain and hail. I had to work, so missed out on the fun, though driving to and from the bakery was interesting."
    "You worked at a bakery?"
    "I was on the before-the-sun-rises, also known as the moonset shift. That's what we called it." She adjusted the snowman's nose. "I also worked as a pastry chef at a restaurant in the evening."
    "When did you sleep?"
    "Whenever I could."
    "Not a lot of time for fun."
    She rubbed her hands together. "The hours were hard on my social life, but I had no complaints. I made decent money, enough to save some so I could open my own business."
    Nate could provide her with all the capital she needed this time. He'd spent a significant amount of money turning the Bar V5 into a working dude ranch, but had his own fund for investment ventures. He preferred investing locally so he wouldn't have to be away from the ranch.
    "Your gloves look soaked." He held up the pair he'd brought out. "These are waterproof. They'll work better when you make the next one."
    "Thanks, my hands are kind of cold." Little lines formed above her nose. "But how did you know I wanted to make more than one snowman?"
    "I saw