Letty spent the rest of the day shelving books and helping a couple of people find research material.Then Bonnie Driver came in with a man in tow and the two of them sat in two chairs that were side by side and began reading.Letty supposed the man was Norm.He was a nice-looking man and appeared to be around Bonnie’s age.After a while Bonnie came to the desk to talk to her.
“That’s Norm,” she said, jerking a thumb at the man.
“I figured it was.He’s very handsome.”
“I suppose.He’s more tolerable than I thought at first.”
Letty smiled.“Don’t be too enthusiastic, Bonnie.”
Bonnie snorted.“I’m reserving judgment.Well, I’d better get back to my book.Don’t want Norm to get too far ahead of me.”
Something nagged at Letty about what Paula had said.Finally she realized she was jealous.She knew Riley had dated.Of course he had.And sure, she’d seen some of his women and yes, they were gorgeous.Tall, blond, slim, whereas she was short, brunette, and curvy.So why had he picked her?Because she was different than the usual?She wasn’t sure how she felt about that.
The bottom line, though, was that she had no right to be jealous.They were keeping it casual.A fling.One that would be over by New Year’s.So what if she wasn’t Riley’s usual type?And why was she suddenly doubting herself?She’d had enough of that years ago.She was a strong, independent woman who knew better than to let gossip concern her.
Wasn’t she?
*
For a change,Riley had left Letty’s place early the evening before.He never wanted to leave but leaving really late and getting up at his regular time—very early—was beginning to wear on him.Damn, I’m getting old.He remembered when he could go for days on very little sleep.Not so anymore.
He’d taken care of the horses, made sure the cattle were good, fed the dogs, and done most of his other chores, and now he was fixing the gaps in the fence and his dad was helping.As usual, a couple of his dogs, Pringle and Poppy, were with him.Val had named them what he thought were dumb names, but they’d stuck.
He could tell Jasper had something on his mind, but so far he’d been quiet.Which, of course, wasn’t unusual.
“I hope you know what you’re doing,” Jasper said, handing him the come-along.
Riley glanced at him.“What do you mean?”
“Letty.She’s not just some woman you can have fun with and leave.Letty’s special.”
He’d been expecting this for a while now.Like a lot of men of his generation, Jasper had different standards of behavior between men and women.Especially women related to him.
“I know she is.And that’s not what I’m doing.”
“Do you think I don’t know what’s going on?You’re burning the candle at both ends.Before long you’re going to have a wreck, falling asleep while driving home in the early hours.”
“Can’t be helped.I need to be here in the mornings.”
“Why don’t you stay with her and come back a little late?It’s not like we can’t handle the chores first thing.”
Okay, different standards.But still.“Are you kidding?You about had a heart attack over Val getting pregnant before she married Liam.There’s no way you’d be okay with me staying with Letty.”While Val had been pregnant with another man’s child, a man who wanted nothing to do with her or her baby, Liam had married her.He’d adopted the baby, and they were all very happy now.Jasper had eventually accepted what had happened but then, he’d always liked Liam.
“I didn’t say I approved.But you’re a grown man and you’re gonna do what you’re gonna do.I just hope you’re not leading her on, and planning to break her heart.”
He stopped what he was doing to stare at his dad.“Other way around, more likely.”
“What do you mean?”
“We talked about this before,” Riley reminded him.“I’m in love with Letty.I want to marry her.”
“Well, then.You said you were serious but you didn’t mention marriage.”Big smile.“What are you waiting for?”
“I’m waiting for her to realize she loves me too.At the moment she just wants to be casual.She’s scared to commit and I really don’t know why.”
“Hmm.”Jasper rubbed his chin.“You know, she had a hard time when her parents died.Your mother and I were right worried about her.”
Riley had been around when Letty came to live with them, but he’d been grown by then and busy with the ranch and taking business classes at a nearby college.
