The Challenge(60)

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The relationship that was flourishing, although Beth didn’t talk about it, was Beth and Harvey’s. There were no expectations on either side and no promises. They enjoyed each other’s company, were fascinated by each other’s histories, and were a surprisingly good though unusual match.

He took her to an old-fashioned but charming dance bar in Billings. It took them an hour to get there, but Beth loved it. The food was delicious and a small band in black tie played traditional dance music after dinner. They did the foxtrot and the waltz, and found that they could both do the tango. He was a surprisingly good dancer, and she felt like a small china doll in his arms. They were breathless when they got back to the table after a very long waltz, and Beth collapsed into the chair, laughing.

“You are the best dancer ever!” she complimented him. “I love this place. Promise me we’ll come back again.”

“Every night, if you like.” He was beaming and pleased that she had enjoyed it so much. They ended the evening on a tender note, with a last slow dance to “Moon River,” which was one of her favorite songs, and then he kissed her.

They found that they liked the same old movies, and they downloaded them on the nights that Juliet was with her father.

They were going at a slow, comfortable pace. It was turning into a sweet, old-fashioned romance. It made her feel foolish and giddy and young and optimistic about life all at once. She felt alive again, for the first time since the loss of her marriage.

He had the occasional emergency to deal with, and she found his work life interesting and varied. He loved reading what she wrote and made intelligent comments about it.

“Promise me you won’t get trampled by an elk or a moose or a bison, or eaten by a bear. I’m enjoying your company. Please don’t do anything to spoil it.” The time she spent with him was so warm and pleasant she was increasingly afraid of something going wrong, like a helicopter crash or an avalanche—all the dangers he took for granted that worried her now.

Juliet had seen Harvey come and go ever since her mother returned to Fishtail. Beth insisted they were just friends. Juliet didn’t believe her, but Beth was adamant about it. Juliet was happy for her. And she liked Harvey.

He took Beth back to their favorite dance bar the night before Thanksgiving. They had just sat down when he said he had something to tell her.

“Now is when you tell me that you have a wife and ten children you forgot to mention, or you’re moving to a remote village on the Amazon or Kenya or Tanzania, and ‘it’s been fun, but’…”

“Is that what you think I’m going to do?” he asked her.

“Isn’t that how life works, Harvey? You think you found the woman of your dreams, and she dies suddenly. Or the man you thought you’d spend the rest of your life with marries someone else or moves to Tokyo or Bogotá. I don’t like getting attached to people anymore. I learned that with Tom. I thought we were set forever, then fifteen years later, it turns out he hated our life, and I’m at a dance bar in Montana, and I’m not even the same person anymore. People change, and happy endings don’t happen very often.” She believed that.

She wasn’t a cynic, but she was no longer an optimist either, or very trusting. “I put all my eggs in one basket with Juliet, and one of these days, she’ll wave goodbye and take off. I’m trying to brace myself for it. So, what were you going to say?” She was braced for the worst. They were so different that she fully expected him to say he didn’t want to see her anymore. Nothing surprised her now. She just went along from day to day, and tried not to be shocked when the worst happened. Although losing Tom hadn’t turned out to be the worst after all. She wouldn’t have met Harvey if she and Tom hadn’t divorced. But Harvey was fifteen years older, and maybe he wanted a twenty-year-old he could have babies with. Her reproductive equipment was still in working order, but at thirty-nine, she didn’t want more children. For her, one was enough.

“You certainly are a long-winded pessimistic woman, but a fabulous dancer.” He smiled at her. “That’s all I wanted to tell you, and the simple fact that I’ve fallen in love with you, as unlikely as that is, with me, a forest ranger from Montana, and you, a successful writer from New York.” They were both a great deal more than that, as they had discovered. She couldn’t imagine what a future would look like with him, but maybe it didn’t matter. She was smiling at what he had said, and all they needed for now was the present. It was very sweet.

“Do you suppose, Ms. Turner…” He had her name right now—her own, not Tom’s. “Do you suppose that you would be brave enough and do me the honor of letting people know that we’re dating? Or do you like the word ‘courting’ better? I rather like that one. It’s old-fashioned but nice.”

“And why would we want to do that? Tell them, I mean,” she asked, looking intrigued.

“Because I’m proud to be with you, and I feel foolish hiding it. Your daughter looks like she thinks I’m going to arrest you whenever I show up.”

“That shows that she’s suspicious of me, not of you,” Beth said with a grin. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt. Do I call you my beau or my boyfriend, if we’re being old school?”

“Chief Ranger Mack,” he said formally, with a grin.