She used to work for him, and then when he wanted to retire, she took it over. She’s trying to make a go of it, but her dad made a lot of poor decisions, and so it hasn’t been easy trying to turn it around.”

“What do you do there?”

“Just administrative stuff. I’m only supposed to be part-time, but when she’s slammed, it can turn into full-time.”

“I hope you get paid for those extra hours.”

“I get health insurance, and that’s huge. I’ll need it when I’m pregnant, for maternity care and everything.”

His smile faded, and he regarded her with a rather brooding intensity. “How will you manage when you have the baby?”

“I have my business. I can do it from home.” She reached for her phone and scrolled through her photos. “This is what I love to do.” She turned the phone around to show him, quickly clicking through a series of photos of tables, chairs, dressers, headboards. “I buy salvaged pieces and then make them into something new.” She then scrolled further. “And this is my new thing. I’ve started to make pillows out of vintage fabric, and it’s been really successful. The Christmas ones sold out within a week.”

He took the phone and looked through the pictures more slowly, studying each of her designs. “Where do you sell them?”

“Through my website, The Montana Rose, and I also have a couple local stores that have started carrying pieces. They want my pillows but those are easy to pack and ship myself, so right now they’re only available through my site.”

“You don’t want your own retail space?”

“Maybe one day, but I can’t afford the overhead, and frankly, I don’t want to be tied down with regular hours and staffing. I like the freedom of working out of my garage, and with the baby—” She broke off, smiled tightly. “It’s good to be independent, you know?”

“I do, and you’re talented.”

“Thank you.” Sadie took her phone back and turned it off, slipping it back in her purse. “I like being creative, and I love being my own boss.”

“How did you get it into it?”

“I’ve refinished furniture for years. I started back in high school.” She looked at him a moment, just taking him in, still amazed that they were sitting here together, talking about life and jobs as if they were a couple on a first date. But this wasn’t a date, and she had to be careful not to let her imagination run away with her. Much less her ridiculous idealistic heart. “What about you?” she asked. “What do you do when you’re not on tour?”

“Stop by my ranch, make sure it’s still there, and then check on my real estate, take care of any repairs that are necessary.”

“Doesn’t sound like you spend much time at your ranch.”

“Not if I can help it.”

“What’s wrong with it?”

“There is nothing wrong with it. But there’s nothing”—he shrugged—“right with it, either.”

“Why did you buy it?”

“I thought it’d be a good investment, but as it turns out, it was just okay. I’ve been more successful with rental properties. They’re solid. Tangible. I like putting my money into something I can touch.”

“Do you have a license?”

“No. And unless I’m buying at auction, I use a broker. I don’t like all the paperwork. Happy to give a commission to someone willing to handle that for me.”

“Is it rude to ask what you’ve bought?”

“A couple apartment complexes in Bozeman, another two in Missoula, I have one in Billings, and then some rental houses as well.” He leaned back as the busboy brought them two glasses of water. “It’s actually what brought me to Marietta this weekend.