A/N: Okay, this is a sort of spoiler... and a sort of preview. It’s a one-shot. Here’s basically what it is:

One, it’s a one-shot, which I already mentioned, and it’s a preview of both the next LLC story (because there are going to be more – five, to be exact) and the current story. This means that you’re going to see this excerpt somewhere later in the story, though it may be slightly modified.

Two, it’s a preview of the next story in that you will be able (hopefully) to figure out the characters that the next story (still untitled) will center on, although Sasha and Alex will still be there, don’t worry. Does that make any sense? Well, even if it doesn’t, here it is.. If you don’t like spoilers or anything close to them, don’t read it.. But if you want something to make you curious and basically put you on the edge of your seat, read on!

Note: I don’t own Wrangler Jeans. And also, if you don’t remember, Nate is one of Sasha’s many cousins. The other seven are, in order of youngest to eldest (Nate is the youngest of them all): Craig, Robbie, Jake, Tom, Paul, Dally and Danny. Finally, Vi (short for Violet) is Sasha’s mom.

Life’s Little Chances

“Sneak Peek”

Wake-Up Call

The Great Divide Ranch. Chestnut Grove, Alberta. Early morning (about six-thirty). Sunday, April first.

Nate tossed back the rest of his orange juice and flashed his Aunt Vi a grin that was ridiculously boyish for his thirty-eight years of age. “Thanks for breakfast, Aunt Vi. Guess I’ll be headin’ outside.”

She gave him a mockingly stern look, pushing tangles of frizzy red-blond hair back over her shoulder. “Yes, I suppose you will be,” she drawled, mocking his slow speech before saying in her normal voice, “Get yourself outside this minute, Nathaniel Miller, or I’ll tan your hide with the same spatula that just made you breakfast. There’s work to be done, and you won’t let your brothers do all of it, do you hear me? I don’t care if you’ve gone and broken another bone in your arm. You can still carry buckets of water, bales of hay, and lead horses.”

He grinned at the absurdity of what his aunt had suggested and stood. “Yes, ma’am.” He set his dirty dishes in the sink and went upstairs, brushing his teeth and shaving the night’s worth of stubble on his cheeks in the little bathroom near his bedroom with his right hand, his other arm tightly bound into a sling at his chest and encased in plaster. His seven brothers slept in the bunkhouse in the yard and had since their parents had died, but Nate had always been comfortable with his room in the big old ranch house and had seen no reason to make the move.

He loped back down the stairs in his sock feet just as a quick, impatient knock came at the door. He moved to the door and his aunt called from the kitchen, “Get that, Nate, and make yourself useful for once, will you?”

He was chuckling when he opened the door. He’d thought one of his brothers might have locked himself out – Nate himself had been known to do so – but the instant he looked through the screen door ahead of him he knew that wasn’t it. That wasn’t it at all.

The woman stood on the wraparound porch – a verandah, his aunt insisted on calling it – with her arms crossed, one foot tapping, looking down the winding, kilometre-long laneway at the cab that was slowly rolling down it with dust floating up in its wake.

The second she heard the door open she whirled around to look at him through the mesh of the screen door, and Nate took in her looks with the careful consideration and unflinching objectivity of a man that was simply in the habit of doing so.

She was tall, damned tall, was the first thing he noticed. He himself stood six-three in his sock feet, and this woman had to be at the very least close to that, though he saw that her height was partly due to the three-inch fuck-me heels on her feet. He had to admire her for wearing them; it was early spring, and the ground was still soft, but she seemed undeterred.

Without the heels he judged her to be at the very least five-eleven, and with her height aside, she was slim, small-boned, but with curves where they mattered, and with jet-black curls tumbling loose over her shoulders and eyes that were as deep a blue as any ocean he’d ever seen and held the same depth and complexity that a horse’s did.

She was wearing a business suit, and while he’d seen them worn before, Nate had to admit that he’d never seen a woman wear one quite so well. He knew he shouldn’t be thinking like that, because she was probably at least ten years younger than he was, but he couldn’t help it. Her suit was dark blue, like her eyes, with lighter pinstripes of colour running up it. She wore a traditional buttoned-up navy blue jacket with a white blouse peeking out at the sleeve edges and at her throat, and she paired it with a skirt that could only be called part of a business suit if one admitted that its purpose was to distract men from their business. It ended two and a half inches above her knees, leaving the rest of her long legs covered by pantyhose.

She cleared her throat pointedly and he looked up to see her unreadable expression as she demanded, “Where’s Sasha?”

His cousin was sleeping upstairs, and Nate, for one, wasn’t about to let this woman – whoever she was – bother her. He’d heard her crying again last night and knew she hadn’t slept well. His thought was that she should be left alone.

“Who wants to know?” he asked lazily, leaning against the doorjamb and making himself comfortable.

She’d been fidgeting non-stop since he’d opened the door, but now she went still, setting one hand on her stuck-out hip and studying him in the same critical way he’d studied her, with her head tipped to the side.

He wondered despite himself what she was thinking. Normally he found people as easy to read as books, but this woman was a puzzle already. Not a good sign, he thought with a frown.

On the other hand, he already knew what she was seeing: six feet, three inches and two hundred pounds of muscle well earned by life as a horseman, with sandy blond hair and eyes as light and vivid a blue as hers were dark and stormy. He was seemingly permanently tanned by life working outdoors, and the tan only made the eyes stand out more. He was dressed in the typical work clothes that could be found on every one of the eight men on the farm: a plaid flannel work shirt and well-worn Wrangler jeans. He was wearing only socks on his feet at the moment, but in his defense, he’d been about to put on his usual work boots.

Finally she spoke again, her voice dry. “Let me guess. You’re Nate.”

Now he was well and truly startled. It was one thing that the woman would know Sasha’s name – after all, his cousin had written for a newspaper that made its home in Canada’s largest city. It only made sense that she would know people from the “big T.O.,” but how in hell would she know his name? Sure, he helped people in the area with their horses from time to time, but a few things set her aside from that category.

One, the business suit. People looking for his help with horses typically dressed like horsemen and -women.

Two, the fact that she’d been looking for Sasha first.

Three, she’d arrived by cab. Unless the horses were too ill, injured or unstable to be brought out to the Great Divide, people usually came with a horse trailer in tow.

He had no idea who this woman was, and he wasn’t giving an inch until he knew.

“Maybe,” he eventually replied, answering at his own leisure.

She rolled her eyes heavenwards. “Sasha was right. You’re as annoying as she said you were.”

He lifted his eyebrows slightly. “And how annoying did she say I was?”

One corner of her mouth quirked upwards. “About as annoying as three old mules with three legs each when you’re trying to get them to walk three kilometres up a dusty gravel road.”

Nate couldn’t help a chuckle. “That sounds like something Sasha’d say, all right.”

When she isn’t crying all the time.

“So since you know I’m not some freak, you’ll let me in?”

He was about to say “not likely”, but his aunt – all five feet, two inches if her – appeared at his elbow and tried to shove past him. “Nathaniel, what on earth is taking so long? It’s answering the door, not preparing for the next millennium!”

The woman on the doorstep suddenly grinned, eyes dancing. “Vi! Get your pain in the ass nephew out of my way, will you?”

Vi ducked under the aforementioned pain in the ass nephew’s arm and flung the screen door open, smiling broadly. “Nora! Goodness, come in! Honestly, Nate, let the girl in,” she added, “and then get to work.”

“Doing what?” he asked slyly as he stood to the side to let Nora pass. “I kinda need my arms – both of them – to work, Aunt Vi. Besides, you heard Danny this morning. He very kindly told me not to get in the way.”

His aunt bristled. “Well, you’re getting in my way here.” She studied him a moment, then sighed and said, “Fine, you can stay in the house, but you’d best not wake your cousin or–”

“Don’t worry, Vi, I’ll do that,” said the woman – Nora – firmly, mouth set in a stern line. “Is she in her usual room?”

Vi nodded and Nora began to head to the stairs – Nate couldn’t believe she could actually walk in those damned shoes of hers – clearly set on waking Sasha. Vi headed back into the kitchen; Nate caught his aunt’s arm with his good hand and hissed, “What’s she doing?”

“Giving your cousin a wake-up call,” said Vi sternly. “We’ve done all we can – it’s time for Sasha to start caring for herself again, especially with that baby to care for.”

Nate leapt back into the hallway, swearing under his breath, and caught Nora’s arm. She whirled immediately, eyes flashing. “Don’t touch me!” she snapped, pulling away.

He ignored her, tightened his grip on her arm instead. “Leave Sasha alone, you hear me?”

“No way. I’ve left her alone for close to a month now. It’s time for her to come to her senses.”

“In that case, you’re just gonna come on outside with me.” He started for the door, pulling her with him. She yanked hard away from him.

“Get bent, Miller,” she snapped.

He rolled his eyes, glad that he’d at least stalled her. “That’s hardly a nice thing to say when you’re in my home.”

“I’m a guest.” She gave him a sweet-as-sugar smile, acid dripping beneath the words. “Is it too much to ask for you to leave me the hell alone, or do you still have some evolving to do before you get that civilized?”

He let out a quick, booming laugh. “That’s real nice of you. Usually, guests are polite.”

“I’ve never been polite in my life, and I don’t plan on starting now. Especially not with you.”

He would have loved to continue the argument, but instead he swore under his breath again as she spun on her heel, quite literally, and marched off up the stairs. His aunt had come to find the source of the commotion, so all he could do was follow helplessly as Nora set off up the stairs, then turned immediately to the left. Nate’s mouth fell open a little as he watched her throw the door open, stride into the room and yell “Hello, Sunshine – this is reality calling! Time to get up, get past the moping, and get on with life!”

All this was said in a brisk, business-like voice as she sent the blinds sailing up over the window and brought early morning sunlight streaming into the room, breezed over to the bed, and yanked the blankets off Sasha’s bed.

He’d thought she was being heartless, but as Sasha opened groggy green-gold eyes, Nate thought he saw a flicker of sadness, a twinge of pity, in those deep blue eyes, thought he heard her inhale sharply as she took in her friend’s sleepy, half-conscious state of mind.

Sasha half-sat, one hand on her stomach, which was just beginning to show the signs of her almost four months of pregnancy. Nate sucked in a little breath, watching the protectiveness with which her hand seemed to cover the spot where her baby nestled.

Sasha, blinking a few times, eventually asked, “Nora? Is that you?”

“Yep.” Nora breezed over to sit on the bed, gently covered Sasha’s free hand with her own. “How are you, honey?”

Sasha bit her lip, looked down to hide the tears. “I’m... okay.”

Nate had lost his voice, but now he found it again. “Sasha, that’s a damn lie,” he told her, not unkindly, as he, too, sat down beside her – away from Nora, of course – and slid his arm about her shoulders. “You’re miserable.”

Sasha chewed harder on her lip, one lone tear trickling down her cheek. “I’ve been better, I suppose,” she finally said quietly.

Nate reached out and brushed the tear off her cheek, feeling his own eyes burning, and said nothing.

Nora gave Sasha’s hand a little squeeze. “Why’d you leave, sweetheart?”

She gave a sad little shrug. “I didn’t want to be there when... when Alex found out.”

“He misses you, you know,” said Nora in a low voice, lifting Sasha’s head with one hand to force her to meet her eyes. “Alex. He only went back to Boston yesterday, and from what Noah told me before I boarded that plane last night, he’s messed up. He can’t think why you left.”

Sasha’s eyes closed, a low, pained sound slipped past her lips, and she folded in on herself slightly, as though to keep the pain in. “It’s my fault,” she whispered. “God, I should have known I would mess things up...” Tears welled in her eyes and slid through her closed lids.

Nate shot Nora a dirty look over the top of Sasha’s head as he pulled his cousin into his arms. “Hey, hey, stop that...” he murmured as he ran a hand over her hair, his eyes prickling again at the choked little sobs slipping past her lips. “It’s not your fault, honey.”

Nora looked upset, and bit her lip, though she still returned Nate’s glare. “Sasha, it’s not your fault,” she echoed softly, moving closer to lay a hand on her friend’s shoulder; clearly, she didn’t trust Nate enough to get close enough to offer a hug.

Sasha eventually lifted her head from Nate’s shoulder, sniffled a bit, and wiped her eyes. “You guys go on downstairs,” she said quietly. “I’ll be there in a minute.”

Nate nodded, kissed the top of her head, and stood to go. Nora, on the other hand, paused at the door and turned back. “Sasha?”

Sasha looked up. “Yeah?”

Nora met her friend’s red-rimmed green and gold eyes, looked at the slight bump her stomach made in the T-shirt she wore to sleep in – one of Alex’s, if she wasn’t mistaken – and felt a sharp pang go through her. It wasn’t right, that Sasha should suffer like this in one place while Alex suffered somewhere else. Nora, always a meddler, resolved to do something about it – and soon.

“I don’t know if you’ll believe me, but I think he loves you. And I know you love him.”

With that, she turned and went downstairs.

- . - . - . -

Nate handed the lead to Danny, turning Nobody’s Girl, the two-year-old filly he held, over to him. His eyes were clouded in thought, his motions as he petted the horse absent-minded; his mind was still on Sasha and Nora, back at the house.

“Got something on your mind, little brother?” asked Danny, between grunts, as he tightened the cinch on the filly’s saddle. They were lunging her under tack today, letting her get a feel for a saddle on her back.

Nate looked up and met his eldest brother’s patient gaze. “That woman who showed up this morning,” he admitted as he steadied the prancing young horse.

Danny’s weather-beaten face creased into one of his rare smiles. “Nora? Yeah, she’s something, all right.” He finished fastening the cinch and straightened. “Any particular reason why she happens to be on your mind?”

Nate shrugged and clipped the lunge line onto the special lunging bridle the filly wore. “Do you know what she did? She marched right up into Sasha’s room, opened up all the curtains, yanked the blankets off her bed, and told her to get on with life. Said she was giving her a ‘wake-up call.’”

“Well, I’d say that’s a good thing, Nate,” commented Danny as he led Nobody’s Girl to the center of the ring. “Sasha needs it. She’s gotta get back on track if she wants to raise that baby of hers right.” A frown marred Danny’s features. “Call me old-fashioned, but I think she’d be better off with a man there to care for her. She don’t take to men easy, Sasha doesn’t, so this man here – I figure he must be special.”

Coming from the usually taciturn Danny, that was a mouthful. “Don’t I know it,” replied Nate as he moved to the outside of the ring, leaving Danny space. “It’s a damned foolish idea and I know it, but I want to find the guy, ask if he even knows she’s pregnant.” He paused, then added, “According to Nora, he hasn’t got a clue.”

Danny shook his head. “It’s a damn shame, Nate, but there ain’t much we can do. This is between the two of them. We’re Sasha’s family – we can help her out when she needs it, but that’s about it.”

Nate frowned. “I wouldn’t be so sure,” he muttered under his breath.

- . - . - . -

Nora found Nate sitting outside on the verandah after supper, when the sky had filled with stars and the moon had come out to cast its pale glow on all it touched. She drew in a breath, put her shoulders back, and approached him where he sat on the porch swing.

He didn’t look at her, didn’t so much as turn her way, as he said quietly, “Beautiful night, isn’t it?”

His words made her pause and look at the sky above them, and for a moment she was distracted from her purpose. “It is,” she admitted. Then she drew another deep breath and went on, “Look, there’s something I wanted to ask you.”

Now he did look at her, with his eyebrows half-raised curiously. “Shoot.”

Nora wrung her hands together, wondering how best to start, and finally said in the voice she reserved for editors she was pushing to hire her, “I can tell you want to help Sasha out. So do I. That’s why I want to know if you would fly out to Boston with me sometime soon.”

Now his eyebrows did go straight up, and the electric blue eyes held a glimmer of suspicion. “Boston?”

“Yes, Boston,” she confirmed. “It’s where Alex – the man who, I think, Sasha is in love with – lives. Apparently he needs a wake-up call, too. Care to help out?”

Nate was silent, considering. It wasn’t as though they’d miss him on the ranch – with one arm in a cast, he wasn’t much help. Besides that, there was his own personal interest to take into account, too. He wanted to meet this man, the man who’d fathered Sasha’s baby and who, according to Nora, loved her. Wanted to see if he was worthwhile, if he deserved the suffering he was apparently enduring.

Yes, he definitely wanted to meet the man. But a five or more hour flight to Boston with Nora? He wasn’t so sure he could stand that.

“I’ll think about it,” he eventually answered.

Nora nodded briskly and went back inside.

End of Sneak Peek

A/N: So, there it is. Keep in mind, this will eventually appear as a chapter (or part of one) in the current story. What did you think? Did I give too much away?