He stiffened a moment before recovering himself, no doubt remembering a bribe of another sort—the one his father had offered for her to leave the Striker family in peace. Regret mingled with old anger.

“Real journalists, yes.” Retrieving the boot box, he stepped inside the sitting room. “Scandalmongers, however, accept them gladly. Especially the ones who didn’t think to pack the right shoes for a Montana spring.”

Still clutching the coat, she followed him to the couch, curious in spite of herself. “Is your staff already spying on me? My shoe collection isn’t really anyone else’s business.”

“No one is spying,” he assured her, removing his hat before dropping onto the leather seat beside her. “But I did make an educated guess that you left most of your boots at home based on the size of your suitcase when I happened to see it last night.” He toed the box closer to her. “Come on and open this. Tell me how I did choosing something for a renowned style influencer. Will the boots work? Or will you hashtag them ‘never in a million years’?”

Her defenses were harder to maintain when he was being charming. Her influencer status had dropped off significantly in the last years she’d been focused on her marriage, but she was trying to be a social media presence again. Picking up the box, she set it on her lap and pulled the top off. The scent of leather wafted up as she peeled aside the sheet of crisp tissue paper to reveal a pair of high-cut black riding boots with a distinctive blue cuff.

“They’re gorgeous,” she breathed reverently, running a hand over the sumptuous leather. “Now I can go riding, too.”

“That was my thinking.” He nodded, seeming satisfied as she unzipped the first boot. “You said you were interested in communing with nature while you’re in Montana. The boots will help.”

She was surprised he’d keyed in on that comment from the night before. She’d forgotten that he was a keen listener and observer.

While she slid her foot into the first boot, Gage was already prepping the second for her. “You’re being suspiciously accommodating today,” she observed as she slipped on the next one and zipped it up. Standing, she reached for the coat he’d given her, only to have him beat her to it. “It makes me wonder about your motives.”

Rising, he held out an arm of the coat for her. Chivalrous. Thoughtful.

Sexy.

“The sooner I show you around the ranch, and give you opportunities to find your story,” he said as he helped her into the other sleeve, “the faster you’ll learn there’s nothing here that will help you in your quest for answers about Alonzo.”