Shifting Calder Wind Read Online Free PDF Page A

sailed into the den, carrying a serving plate crowded with appetizers. “Sally says dinner will be ready in fifteen minutes. With any luck, Logan will be here by then, but with this storm I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets called away to an accident scene.”
    She offered the assortment of appetizers first to Monte, then to Jessy. Standing side by side, the two women were a study in contrasts. Cat, with her glistening black hair and green eyes, was petite and strikingly beautiful, gifted with a tremendous capacity for emotion, which she rarely concealed. On the other hand, the fair-haired and hazel-eyed Jessy was tall and boy-slim, projecting a steady calm and innate strength. It was rare that she ever revealed what was going on inside her head, whereas Cat was an open book.
    “The two of you do understand that I am accepting this dinner invitation only on the condition that you come to my ranch on Sunday.” After a scant pause, Monte added, “Chase will be back by then, won’t he?”
    Jessy nodded. “When I spoke to him yesterday, he said he planned to fly home on Friday.”
    “Good.” He nodded decisively. “I am eager for him to see my new arrivals.”
    “What new arrivals?” Cat asked.
    “Your cattle arrived, then?” Jessy used the lift of her voice to turn the statement into a question.
    “They did,” he confirmed.
    “You imported some cattle,” Cat guessed and helped herself to a cracker mounded with crab salad.
    “Not just any cattle,” Monte asserted with a hint of pride. “These are registered Highland cattle.”
    “Highland,” Cat repeated. “Aren’t those the ones that have shaggy hair hanging around their horns, making them look like they have bangs?”
    “Their appearance is quite distinctive,” Monte agreed with his typical flair for understatement. “But their attributes are many and valuable. Once the American public learns of them, the demand for Highland beef will soar.”
    “What makes Highland beef better than any other beef?” Cat showed her skepticism.
    “In my opinion, it tastes better, and the Queen agrees with me. But more than that, it is a naturally lean beef with lower amounts of cholesterol. In short, it is the ideal product for consumers who love beef but have to watch their cholesterol intake for health reasons.”
    “Is that true?” Cat frowned and glanced at Jessy. “Is he pulling my leg?”
    “Delightful as that exercise might be, I assure you that everything I said is absolutely true.” His mouth curved in a smile of understanding. “But please don’t take my word for it. Read up on the breed yourself.”
    “Don’t Highland cattle have long horns?” Cat’s frown deepened in an effort to recall more about the breed.
    “Yes, but nothing as impressive as those.” Monte gestured to the set mounted above the fireplace mantel.
    Impressive they were. Taken from a longhorn steer named Captain, the horns were long and twisted, the span of them measuring more than five feet across. The brindle steer had led the first herd of Calder cattle north from Texas to Montana and each subsequent drive thereafter. When the longhorn had died of old age, Benteen Calder had kept his horns and mounted them above the mantel in the steer’s honor, making him forever a part of the family lore.
    “Few modern-day longhorns grow sets like that pair of old mossy horns,” Jessy remarked.
    In the living room, Cat’s nine-year-old son, Quint, let out a shout, and the big house echoed with the rapid thud of feet running across the hardwood floor. Quint dashed by the doorway toward the foyer. Trey raced after him, skinny arms pumping, his expression grim with determination to catch up with his older cousin.
    “Hey, Dad!” Quint’s happy greeting reached all the way back to the den.
    “Logan must be here,” Cat realized, throwing a glance at the rain-lashed windows. “I didn’t hear him drive in.”
    “With all the lightning and thunder, that’s hardly surprising,” Jessy