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“For your information, Mr. MacIntyre, I’ve developed quite a hunger during our discussion.” She motioned with her fork for him to push the plate more to the center of the table. “You may consider yourself lucky if you get more than a bite or two.”
He pushed the plate over, but his expression was anything but confident. “Anything you say.”
A lesser woman might have taken offense. She, however, felt like laughing in the face of his hang dog expression. He’d find out for himself soon enough. She hadn’t felt this hungry in years.
She took the first bite and let it melt on her tongue. Her stomach rumbled loudly, demanding more. Her fork clashed with Asa’s. She emerged victorious. As she triumphantly brought the choice piece of chicken to her mouth, she saw the realization that she was serious dawn on his face. From then on, it was a contest made more complicated by the laughter that kept getting in the way. By the time they got to the pie, it was an effort to keep the food on the fork for the shaking of their hands and bodies.
As Elizabeth took the last bite of pie, she looked across the table. Asa was doing his level best to keep a straight face while chewing the bit of apple he’d swiped off her plate. He was failing miserably in that and his attempt to appear innocent. He caught her stare and had the gall to wink. In a heartbeat, the truth broke upon her. Hell had surely frozen over because Elizabeth Coyote MacIntyre was falling in love for the first time in her life.
Chapter Fifteen
They rode double back to the ranch. Elizabeth’s shawl was no match for the falling temperature. She’d fought a bit, but, by applying sense to her practical side, Asa’d managed to get her to sit in front of him on the saddle. He’d wrapped his duster around her, and now they were both as snug as a bug in a rug. Asa grimaced as Shameless stumbled over a dip in the road. Elizabeth’s soft buttocks pressed harder against his erection. If he didn’t get a chance to adjust things soon, he was going to be permanently bent double.
Shameless whinnied to Willoughby who nickered back. Elizabeth stirred in his arms.
“Welcome back,” he said.
“I’m sorry.” She yawned, and pushed her hair back from her face. “I fell asleep.”
He could tell from the way she fussed with her hair and clothes, she was embarrassed. “No problem.”
She tried to sit up. The coat jerked her back against his chest. She sat there a minute, not sure what to do. To help her into acceptance, he hitched her back against him with the arm around her waist. She wasn’t going anywhere.
That prompted another second of stillness as she registered the state of his arousal. After a heartbeat, she relaxed infinitesimally against him. “How did it go at the bank?”
“Fair enough.”
From all her squirming, he guessed she was trying to twist around to see his face. “What do you mean, fair enough?”
He shrugged. “You know the Rocking C is in a pickle.”
“Yes.”
“Well, it’s going to take time to get the pickle out of the barrel.” A lot of time.
“But everything’s all right?”
“I’ve got it under control.” That wasn’t an outright lie. With his life savings, he’d managed to buy a month’s extension on the note. If he made the railroad beef contract, they’d be fine. If he didn’t…well, that was a line of thought he wasn’t pursuing.
Her struggles continued. He sighed, unbuttoned the coat, and lifted her up. She didn’t seem to get the hint. “Swing your leg over.”
“Oh.” She did as he instructed, wiggling and shifting until she was straddling his lap, facing him. As soon as she was settled, she all but dove back into his coat. She landed against his chest with a little sigh. He buttoned her in.
“I forget you’re so strong.”
“You’d best remember that next time you feel like getting sassy.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“Just a little friendly warning.”
“Uh-huh.”
There was a smile in her voice. He looked down. Her green eyes were shadowed. Impenetrable. “You got something to say?”
“You’re not going to provoke me,” she informed him.
“Who says I was trying?”
“I do, but—” She wiggled a hand up between them and touched the corner of his mouth. “This crease right here tells me you’re smiling, which means you’re not serious.”
He resisted the urge to nip her finger. “Can’t rightly see the sense of a man provoking his wife for no good reason.”
“I know.” She shook her head. Her gaze dropped from his. “It doesn’t make sense, which is why I’ve been trying to figure out the why of it.”
“Could be you think too much and there’s nothing more to it than I’m the ornery sort.”
Another snort, this time stronger, indicated she wasn’t buying that line. The finger she wagged under his chin stirred a little breeze. “I will figure you out.”
