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“No new wardrobe. From now on, I’m only buying what I need.”
“Oh?” His eyes widened. “You’ll save him a bundle then.”
She let out a breathy laugh…or what she hoped sounded like a laugh. “I’ll save him more than that. I’m not getting married after all, Rafe. I couldn’t go through with it.”
His eyebrows rose. “Oh?”
“My parents married for the wrong reasons, and I can’t do it. I won’t marry unless it’s for love. And I can’t fall in love in two months.”
She couldn’t fall in love because she was already in love. In love with a man who was married to someone else. The man standing before her now. But she couldn’t tell him that. He’d never know.
In a flash, his demeanor changed. Still no smile, but he grabbed her shoulders and his dark eyes came back to life. “Could you get married if someone loved you?”
“No.” She shook her head. “Frank loves me. Or he’s at least infatuated with me. He has been for years. But he deserves a woman who loves him.”
“Most men do,” Rafe said. “And I agree with you. Getting married for the wrong reason, no matter what the circumstances, is a mistake. Believe me, I know.” He touched her cheek oh-so-gently. “Angie, would you listen to me? Would you let me tell you about my…my wife?”
His touch seared her. But she steeled her strength against her need for him. “I don’t see what purpose that would serve at this point.”
“It would serve many purposes, the most important of which is that I want you to know the truth. It’s important to me.”
She sighed. Fine. What could it hurt? It didn’t matter now anyway. She’d lost the ranch. More importantly, she’d lost Rafe.
She’d never love again. She’d resigned herself to spinsterhood. She’d find her calling, make it on her own. And live out her days alone. She found herself smiling. Maybe she’d live out her days with her widowed mother.
The widowed mother she’d decided to forgive.
She’d wasted too much of her precious life being petty. Life was too short to hold grudges. Love was too precious to let slip away. And she did love her mother. She might have been Daddy’s girl, but she’d always adored her Mama.
“Fine. Go ahead.”
“I’m getting a divorce.”
“Not on my account, I hope.”
“On my own account. I married for the wrong reasons, like you said.”
She widened her eyes. Was his marriage truly over? Did she dare hope? “What do you mean?”
She listened as he told her about the woman named Lilia who lived with his father. Who’d fallen in love with his father.
“But we figured it out. Dallas McCray talked to an immigrat
ion attorney in Denver, and I can get my divorce. I would have gotten it anyway, but the attorney fixed it so Lilia doesn’t have to go back to Mexico. She can stay here and keep her green card.”
“That’s nice, Rafe. I’m happy for her. And for you.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t help you save your ranch. The divorce won’t be final for six months.”
“No worries. There are more important things in life than the ranch.”
Strange words, coming from Angie Bay. But she meant every one. There were so many more important things. Like love. She regarded the beautiful bronze man who’d captured her heart. Could he have ever loved her?
“Yes, there are more important things than the ranch,” he agreed. “Like people.”
She nodded. Thirty-two was a late age to learn that valuable lesson, but at least she’d learned it.
“Would you marry for love, Angie?”
