Sea of Grass

Professor Tess Rawlins spent the last twelve years teaching agriculture in California, away from Montana and her heart. When she’s called back to the sprawling Double R cattle ranch and her ailing father, Tess is thrown back into the world she had nearly forgotten since the death of her brother two years earlier. Unsettling memories boil to the surface for Tess, and her only pleasant distraction is the new cook Claire Redman and her son Jack. However, there is more facing Professor Rawlins than dealing with the memory of her brother or her attraction to Claire. Tess must figure a way to save the Rawlins’s five thousand acres of rich grassland. It has thrived for five generations, when her great-grandfather started the dynasty in the 1880s; now she may lose it all to an unscrupulous land developer. Set in the foothills of the Bitterroots, Tess and Claire find themselves in the fight of their lives—for love and the sea of grass.

Prologue

Professor Rawlins stood by the open window and gazed at the blue California sky. Far from Montana, he thought as he chomped on a piece of grass. He turned back into the empty classroom and smiled. There was Lenore standing in the doorway. She brushed the silver hair from her forehead and adjusted the wicker basket she held on her arm.

“What in the world are you doing here?” he asked his wife.

Lenore shook her head, walked into the classroom, and placed the basket on his desk. “I knew you wouldn’t stop to eat.” She plucked the thick blade of grass out of his mouth and kissed him soundly on the lips. “Working day and night on that grass seed.” She shook her head. “Why, I don’t know. Your father’s ranch has a wonderful pasture for the cattle.”

“I know, but it won’t last forever. It’s the twentieth century, Nore, and I’m trying to figure a way for Dad to keep the ranch.”

Lenore pushed him into his chair and placed a napkin in his lap. “It’s 1935 and cattle ranching may soon be a thing of the past, Jeremiah. You Rawlinses will have to face that one day.”

“I know that, you know that, but try telling it to my father. I’m not the rancher, he is.”

“As well we both know. He’s a stubborn one,” Lenore said and opened the thermos. “Hot soup.”

“I didn’t think I was hungry.” He rubbed his hands together when Lenore produced the cold fried chicken. “I don’t have another class for an hour.”

“Good, this will give you time to eat.” She filled his plate, then hers. “I don’t think the agriculture department of Cal will mind if I join you.”

Jeremiah waved her off as he ate his chicken leg. “I’ve got tenure. I’ve been here for nearly twenty years, and my papers have brought enough notoriety to this college. I think they can handle me having lunch with my wife.”

After a few minutes of eating and talking of their children, Lenore asked, “So tell me. How is your research coming?”

Jeremiah wiped his mouth with the napkin and shrugged. “I think I’ve done it. That blade of grass you took was the product of all my work.”

Lenore raised an eyebrow. “How did it taste?”

He laughed. “Like grass. It reminded me of the ranch and my childhood.” He gazed out the window once again, thinking of Montana and the Double R Ranch.

“Sweetie, I know you miss the ranch, but you make a better professor than a rancher.”

He looked back at his wife and grudgingly agreed. “My brothers and even my sister are better at it.”

Lenore stood and walked over to Jeremiah, who looked up and smiled. She cupped his weathered face and kissed him. “Your work here is just as important as working on the ranch. You’ll find a way to save the land and the ranch, Professor Rawlins.” She looked on his desk and saw a thick leather-bound notebook. “What is this?” She picked it up and leafed through it.

“I was working on my memoirs, you know, the family and the ranch. Someday, my son or a grandchild might find it useful.” He kissed his wife and pulled her onto his lap. They both looked out at the sky. “Maybe they’ll love the Bitterroots and the land as we have…”

Lenore looked into his eyes. “And the sea of grass you worked hard to protect for them.”

Chapter 1

Professor Rawlins pushed the window open and took a deep breath of California air. Gazing at the clear blue sky, she thought how much it was like Montana, just not as open. She missed it, missed the Bitterroot Mountains, missed the ranch, and missed her father.

“Professor Rawlins?”

She turned to see her assistant. “I’ve told you before, Bill, call me Tess.”

“Sorry, Tess. I got the results from our tests. They look good. I think between you and Dr. Spellman, you’re on your way.”

“I hope so.” She took the folder out of his hand. “Has Dr. Spellman seen it?”

“Not yet. I wanted you to see them first.”

They turned around when someone knocked on the classroom door. Tess grinned and Bill grunted, which Tess heard.

Melanie Davis stood in the doorway. She grinned and ignored Bill, who looked as though he couldn’t care less. He took the folder out of Tess’s hand. “I’ll just take this to Dr. Spellman.” He looked at Melanie. “Nice to see you, Melanie.”

“That’s Professor Davis to you,” she said, not looking at him as he passed. “Close the door, Bill.”

He did with what Tess knew was with a little more force than necessary.

“You need a new assistant,” Melanie said, walking toward Tess.

“The ag department would be lost without him, Mel.”

Mel rolled her eyes. “I can find six people who could do his job.”

Tess shook her head. “Thank you, but I’ll take care of my department, you take care of…” She stopped and grinned. “What department was that again?”

Mel narrowed her eyes. “Communications.”

“Ah yes, the media,” Tess said, laughing at the irritated look on her lover’s face. She pulled Mel into her arms. “Don’t pout.”

Mel reached up and slid her fingertips against Tess’s lips. “You like my pout.”

“True,” Tess said and kissed her fingers.

“And why don’t you let your hair grow longer as I asked? You have such wonderful thick blond hair, and I want to run my fingers through it.”

“I don’t like my hair long.”

“I do,” Mel whispered in her ear.

Tess shivered when she felt Mel’s fingers rake through her hair. She stepped back with a nervous laugh. “Okay, that’s enough of that. I don’t want to lose my tenure.” She backed away to her desk. When Mel followed, Tess put her hand up. “Close enough, youngster.”

Mel stopped and folded her arms across her chest. “Youngster? You’re not old, Tess.”

“Older than you.”

“I’m thirty-four. You look older because you spent too much time in the sun on that dude ranch or whatever you call it.”

“It’s not a dude ranch, it’s a cattle ranch,” Tess said. “And it’s been in my family since the 1880s. So have some respect, woman, you city slicker from Los Angeles.”

Mel struck a thoughtful pose. “Yes, I am and I like it that way.”

Tess heard the challenging tone in Mel’s voice; it had been this way since they met. Mel was a city mouse—Tess a country mouse. Although since her brother’s death two years earlier, Tess had stayed at UC-Berkeley after the school year was over. She told herself she was needed for the research the agriculture department was doing, but if she were honest, it was too difficult to go back to Montana and the ranch. She felt guilty leaving her father to cope with the day-to-day business for the last two years.Though she loved the ranch, there were times she wished her father would sell it.

“Hey.”

Broken from her reverie, Tess looked up to see Mel smiling slightly. “You were miles away.”

Tess leaned against her desk and let out a sigh. “I was thinking about the ranch and my father.” She could practically feel Mel’s body tense.

“You’re not thinking of canceling our summer trip, are you?”

“No, no,” Tess said quickly.

“Because you need a break and God knows so do I.”

Tess raised an eyebrow. Melanie was a first-year professor, fresh out of grad school. She taught communications and had an average two classes per semester. “I know, don’t worry.”

“Good,” Mel said in a low voice. “I’m looking forward to a month in Hawaii doing nothing but making love to you.”

“I—” The cell phone buzzing in her pocket stopped her. Tess looked at the caller ID and frowned. “It’s Maria,” she said, almost to herself. Mel wasn’t listening; she groaned as she walked away from Tess, who flipped the phone open. “Hey, Maria.”

“Hello, Tess.”

Tess instantly heard the serious tone. “What’s wrong?”

There was a moment’s hesitation in her voice. “It’s your father. It’s nothing major.”

Tess sat at her desk. “Is he all right?”

“You know I would never speak of this. Your father is a proud man.”

“Please tell me.” Tess could feel her heart pounding in her chest. “And don’t use your Cherokee intuition.” Tess heard the soft laugh and smiled.

“He’s doing too much on the ranch. There’s much going on here, and he doesn’t want to worry you.”

“What’s going on?”

“I will tell you one name and you will understand…”

“Telford,” Tess said in disgust.

“Yes.”

“He’s still after Dad to sell the north pasture. The fat fucker,” Tess mumbled, but she heard the soft laugh. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay. We all feel the same.” Again Tess heard the hesitation. “I’m afraid for his heart. He needs you. It has been a hard winter. It will be spring soon and there’s much to do.”

“What about Chuck? He’s still foreman…”

“He needs you. He missed you at Christmas.”

Both listened to the silence until Maria spoke. “You’ve been away too long.”

Tess heard the truth and closed her eyes. She had been away from Montana, the ranch, and her father on and off for five years now. And since her brother’s death, nothing seemed to matter much.

“Tess?”

“I’m here, Maria. Look, I can get Professor Pruitt to take over till the end of the year. I’ll get things in order and be home in a week.”

“Thank you.”

“It’s okay. Please take care of him. And don’t let Telford anywhere near him.”

“I won’t. Goodbye, my child.”

“Goodbye, Maria.”

She closed the phone and smiled when she heard “my child.” It was what Maria always called her. Tess’s mother died when she a teenager, and it was Maria, the cook at the ranch, who took Tess and Stephen under her wing. Maria Hightower was a kind, wise woman of Cherokee descent who boasted of her lineage to a great chief. Tess suddenly realized how much she missed all of them.

“So Hawaii is out?”

Tess had forgotten Mel was there and winced. “Uh, yeah. I’m sorry, Mel. It’s my father. He’s doing too much on the ranch and Maria is afraid. I don’t blame her.”

Mel did not hide her disappointment. “We’ve had this vacation planned for three months. We’re locked in.”

“You can still go.” Tess looked her in the eye. “I’m going home for the spring and summer. I should have been there for Christmas.”

“And now you’re going to feel guilty about that.”

“Please don’t start the psychoanalysis.”

Mel straightened her back and glared at Tess, who raised an eyebrow. “Don’t give me that withering glare. I’m sorry this has changed our plans, but I’m sure you will still go to Hawaii.”

“Yes, I will. I need a vacation and I’m going to take it.”

She marched past Tess, who mumbled, “Yes, it’s taxing teaching How To Be An Anchorwoman 101. Don’t forget the lip gloss.”She cringed when she heard the door slam.

Alone in her classroom, Tess walked over to the window and gazed once again at the blue cloudless California sky. Smiling, she remembered her childhood on the ranch. She remembered her family and warm summer days.

“Dad, will ya tell Tess to get off me?” Steve complained from the ground. Tess was sitting on him, laughing as she had him pinned.

Just then, their mother came out with the laundry. “Elizabeth Anne!” she scolded, and Tess winced.

“You’re in trouble now,” Steve whispered and Tess glared down at him. “Now get off me, ya heifer.” He tried to buck her off.

“Tess, get off your brother and be a lady, for chrissakes,” her father called from the stable. “Both of you, quit your clowning. Steve, clean the stable and, Tess, get the hay from the barn,” he ordered, and both youngsters grumbled as Tess stood and offered her hand to her little brother. “Idiot children, you get that from your mother’s side of the family.”

Steve took the offering, then pulled her down and pinned her to the ground. Tess laughed as he narrowed his eyes at her. “You know now what has to be done, don’t you, Elizabeth Anne?” he said, and Tess laughed, trying to buck him off.

“Don’t you dare, Steve! Mom!” Tess called out while laughing.

Jed looked over to see Emily, his wife, hanging the clothes on the line and yanking the clothespin out of her mouth. “You asked for that, missy… Don’t start something you can’t finish,” she reminded her.

“Thanks!” Tess called out, then looked up at Steve.

“Beg me…”

“No!”

“Say it,” he warned and gathered the spit in his mouth. Tess’s eyes widened.

Jed chuckled from the stable door.

“Don’t you dare! Dad!” Tess called helplessly.

Jed shook his head. “You’re on your own, Tess.”

“Jed Rawlins! You’re as bad as they are!” Emily exclaimed.

“Say it.” Steve leaned over her.

Tess laughed and tried to wriggle out. “Okay, okay!” She hated herself for not being stronger. Steve sported an evil brotherly grin and waited. She felt him slack off for just a second, which was all she needed. “Ha!” she yelled and bucked him off.

“Darn it!” he said as Tess flipped him over and took off toward the stable.

“Elizabeth Anne!” Emily yelled, and Tess stopped dead in her tracks with Steve nearly knocking her over. “Both of you, stop the horseplay and get that stable cleaned,” she said seriously as she lifted the heavy basket.

Steve ran up and gently took it from her. “Sorry, Mom. Let me get that.”

Tess rolled her eyes and mimicked Steve. She turned to see her father standing in the doorway

Jed raised an eyebrow and handed her the pitchfork, then jerked his thumb toward the stable. Tess grumbled as she took the pitchfork.

She had a great childhood and a good relationship with Steve, who was more suited for life on the ranch. Oh, Tess loved it; she knew that. How could anyone be under that big Montana sky and not love it? But as she grew older, Tess wanted something more. Tess loved to hear her great-uncle talk about teaching. She was just a child, and Jeremiah was an old man but so soft-spoken and kind. She fell in love with the idea of traveling and becoming a teacher. So when the time came, off to school she went and never looked back.

Suddenly, a pang of regret rippled through her. Tess angrily rubbed her forehead, trying to dismiss the guilt she still harbored. Maybe going home was what she needed.