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In the two weeks since it had happened, he had reviewed and analyzed it to death and still couldn’t get it off his mind. Because of his stunned reaction to it, it hadn’t lasted more than a split second—just long enough for her fingertips to rake gently through the hair at his temples. But he considered it the most important caress he and Carole had ever shared—more important than their first kiss, than the first time they had made love… than the last time they had made love.
He reined in and dismounted beside a spring-fed stream that trickled down from the limestone hills. Scrub oak, cedar, and mesquite trees dotted the rocky ground. The wind was strong, out of the north. It stung his cheeks and made his eyes water. He’d left without a jacket, but the sun was warm.
That touch had surprised the hell out of him because it was such an uncharacteristic thing for her to do. She knew how to touch a man, all right. Even now, after all that had happened between them, memories of their earlier days together could make him hard with desire. Very skillfully, Carole had used touching to communicate when she wanted him. Whether she chose to be teasing, subtle, or downright dirty, she knew how to convey her desires.
This one had been different. He had felt the difference. It had been a touch of concern and caring and compassion. It had been untutored—spawned by a guileless heart, not a calculating mind. Unselfish, not the reverse.
Very unlike Carole.
The sound of a horse approaching brought his head around. Nelson reined in and dismounted with almost as much agility as Tate had minutes before. “Thought I’d ride out, too. Good day for it.” He tilted his head back and gazed at the cloudless, cerulean sky.
“Bullshit. You came to aid and abet.”
Nelson chuckled and indicated with a nod that they should sit on one of the bleached white boulders. “Zee spotted you taking off. She suggested it was time to call a break in the meeting. She served sandwiches to the others and sent me after you. Said you looked upset.”
“I am.”
“Well, get over it,” Nelson ordered.
“It’s not that easy.”
“We knew from the beginning that this campaign was going to be a bitch, Tate. What did you expect?”
“It’s not the campaign. I’m ready
for that,” he said with a determined jut of his cleft chin.
“Then it’s this business with Carole. You knew that wasn’t going to be a picnic, either.”
Tate swiveled his head around and asked bluntly, “Have you noticed the changes in her?”
“The doctor warned you that there would be some slight alterations in her appearance, but they’re hardly noticeable.”
“Not physical changes. I’m talking about the way she reacts to things.”
“Can’t say that I have. Like what?”
Tate cited several instances when Carole’s eyes had registered uncertainty, insecurity, fear.
Nelson listened to every word, then ruminated for a long time before saying anything. “I’d say her anxiety was natural, wouldn’t you? Her face was torn up to a fare-thee-well. That would make any woman uncertain, but a woman who looked like Carole—well, the thought of losing her beauty would be enough to shake her confidence.”
“I suppose you’re right,” Tate muttered, “but I would expect rage from her before fear. I really can’t explain it. It’s just something I feel.” Absently, he recounted Mandy’s first visit to Carole. “I’ve taken her back three times, and during each visit Carole cries and holds Mandy against her.”
“She’s thinking how easily she could have lost her.”
“It’s more than that, Dad. One day while she was still at the hospital, when we stepped off the elevator, she was sitting there in the hall in a wheelchair, waiting for our arrival. It was before her teeth were replaced. Her head was wrapped in a scarf. Her leg was propped up in that cast.” Perplexed, he shook his head. “She looked like hell, but there she was, bold as brass. Now, is that something Carole would do?”
“She was eager to see you, to show off her ability to get out of bed.”
Tate considered that for a moment, but it still didn’t gel. When had Carole ever put herself out to please someone else? He could have sworn that despite her inability to smile, she was beaming at the sight of Mandy and him when the elevator doors opened. “So you think it’s all an act?”
“No,” Nelson said hesitantly. “I just think it’s—”
“Temporary.”
“Yes,” he said flatly. “I face facts, Tate. You know that. I don’t mean to butt into your personal life. Zee and I want you and Jack and your families to stay here on the ranch with us. And because we do, we’ve made it a point never to interfere with your private business. If I did what I felt inclined to, I’d see to it that Dorothy Rae got professional help for her problem and I’d blister Fancy’s butt for all the times it should have been blistered and wasn’t.”
He paused before continuing. “Maybe I should have said something before now, but I was hoping that you would take the initiative to set your marriage straight. I know that you and Carole have sort of grown apart over the last couple of years.” He held up both hands. “You don’t have to tell me why. I don’t need to know. It’s just something that I’ve sensed, you know?
