Chapter 2

Nick loved uncorking a bottle of Champagne, but not in Stockton's finest restaurant. Sometimes that cork could get away from you and fly across the room. In a place like this, it was better to leave the uncorking to the expert, who did it expertly and poured. Sitting beside Ellen, his arm around her, Nick waited for her to lift her glass, and he lifted his. "What shall we drink to?" he asked.

"The start of a beautiful friendship?" she suggested.

Nick clinked glasses with her. "How about we also drink to the success of the Cattlemen Bank?"

Ellen chuckled a little. "It's doing just fine without us drinking to it, but I'm sure it couldn't hurt."

They drank, then put their glasses down, and Nick took Ellen's hand. "So, are you ready to find a new place to live yet?"

"No, not quite yet," Ellen said. "I'm in no hurry. The hotel will be fine for a while."

"A hotel makes it a little hard for a friend to visit," Nick said.

Ellen smiled at him. "But it works when a woman is not quite ready for entertaining."

Nick laughed a bit, then said, "Well, I hope you'll consider visiting out at the ranch soon. I have four chaperones living with me, and they would love to meet you. How about dinner Friday night? I can pick you up at about five. We get together for drinks and conversation about six, have dinner about seven. We have the best cook west of the Mississippi."

"A tempting offer, but do you mind if I wait a bit before accepting?" Ellen said. "I have some business opportunities that need my attention, and I may need to go to Modesto for a couple days next week."

"All right," Nick said. "Is it any kind of business I can help you with?"

"No, I can handle it," Ellen said. "My husband involved me in all our business affairs. He was not a typical husband, all boss of the household and the little wife stays at home and keeps the servants in line. I know what I'm doing in the business world."

"Obviously. You bought into a bank."

"I imagine you're a pretty fair businessman yourself."

"I am. My brother Jarrod handles most of the non-ranch activity, but I handle it when he's busy with his legal practice. He has offices both here and in San Francisco, so he's often away for long spells and I have to take up the slack."

"It must be handy having a lawyer in the family."

"It saves a lot in legal fees," Nick said. He took her hand, and kissed it.

They chatted a little bit idly before dinner came. Nick had ordered veal for both of them, Ellen approving heartily, and they enjoyed their food and the rest of the champagne. After dessert, Nick escort Ellen back to her hotel – the long, slow way.

"It's a beautiful night," Nick said, looking up at what stars he could see through the streetlights.

"Very unlike Chicago," Ellen said. "There are far too many streetlights and carriage lights to see the stars in Chicago, and this time of year it tends to get windy, so no one stays outside very long anyway."

"Are you Chicago born and raised?" Nick asked.

"Uh-huh," she said. "This isn't the first time I've been out of there, but this is the first time I've considered moving elsewhere."

"If you haven't figured it out already, Stockton is no Chicago."

"Well, there are similarities. Both big cattle towns. The banking industry is closely connected to the cattle industry."

"I hadn't thought about that," Nick said.

"You've got one of the largest herds around, I hear."

"My family's been big in cattle since California was part of Mexico. My parents came here before the Mexican War."

"That war must have been disruptive."

"I wasn't born yet, and they never talked about it, but it couldn't have upset things much. They went on to build a good-sized operation that I took over after my father was killed."

"I heard about that – fights with the railroad."

"The railroad gets grabby," Nick said. "Things are quiet now, for a while, anyway."

They walked quietly for a while, then talked some more, but before long they were at Ellen's hotel and it was time to say good night. Standing outside, out of the brightest of the light, Nick leaned in for a kiss – and he got it. Soft, sweet, it made him tingle. He liked to tingle.

"You know," Ellen said, "I would like to accept that invitation to your house for dinner on Friday night. I can put off my trip to Modesto if there's any conflict."

Nick smiled, his dimples showing even in the soft light. "I will call for you at five, then. Maybe we'll run into each other before that, who knows?"

"Who knows?" she said.

XXXXXXX

Jarrod and Heath were heavy into a game of cribbage, a game they were only halfway through when Nick came into the house. They both looked up, but did not get up.

"How was dinner?" Heath asked.

"Exquisite," Nick said happily.

Heath and Jarrod exchanged raised eyebrows. 'Exquisite' was not a word either of them ever associated with Nick. "Quite the dinner companion, was she?" Jarrod asked.

"She was lovely," Nick said. "Have Mother and Audra gone to bed?"

"About half an hour ago," Jarrod said. "Did you invite Mrs. Penn for dinner Friday night?"

"I did, and she accepted," Nick said.

"Well, it'll be good to finally meet her," Heath said.

"Where did she say she was from, Nick?" Jarrod asked.

"Chicago," Nick said. "Why?"

Jarrod shrugged. "No real reason. She looks like someone I saw in San Francisco once."

Nick thought about it for a moment. "I don't think she's ever been there," but she had said San Francisco was too rich for her, so maybe she had been there. Nick hadn't asked.

"I'm probably just confusing her with someone else," Jarrod said. "I'm sure I'll figure it out once I meet her and get to know her."

"No cross-examination," Nick said, pointing directly at his lawyer brother.

"I already promised, Nick," Jarrod said. "No cross examination."

"Just remember that," Nick said, and he turned and headed upstairs.

Now it was Heath looking at Jarrod. "Do you really think you saw her in San Francisco?"

"I don't know," Jarrod said. "If I did, it was just in passing. I don't think I ever met her."

"Boy, howdy, I hope not," Heath said. "Nick's love affairs get complicated enough as it is."

"Don't they though?" Jarrod said. "And you haven't even been here for most of them."

"Don't tell me about them," Heath said. "After Hester, I really don't think I want to know."

"You're right," Jarrod said. "You don't."