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“Later, I thought I’d go to the McLean Ranch and take a sample from Black Magic. Even though I cannot prove who the foal’s sire is, I can prove which horse isn’t the father.”
Dropping his head into one hand, Ivan whispered, “You already know.”
So it was true. Her stomach quaked. “Oh, Dad, why?” she cried, tears filling her eyes. She heard the rumble of a truck in the drive, and she knew instinctively that Colton had returned. What could she say to him? How would she explain? Setting her cup on the table, she noticed Katherine’s ring on her finger. Her lungs and eyes burned.
“I did it for you,” Ivan said.
“Me?” she cried. “No . . .”
He studied his thumb. “It was wrong, I know, but the way I saw it, the McLeans had it coming. All they’d ever caused us—you—was heartache.”
Colton stepped through the door, his jaw set, his eyes blazing.
Ivan didn’t look up. “I wanted the best for you, don’t you see? And I couldn’t afford it. I’d borrowed everything I could to help you through school, to get you away from here and all those memories.”
“Oh, Dad—”
“Vince came to me with a plan—and it wouldn’t really hurt anyone. We’d just borrow the horse, use him to service our mares and then put him back. Improve our herd and give old John McLean fits. It worked, too.”
A muscle jumped in Colton’s jaw, but he didn’t cross the room. He lifted one foot to the seat of a chair and leaned forward, his gaze set on Ivan.
“Then, this year, Vince says we should do it again. I wasn’t too crazy about the idea—John was dead.”
“But I was around,” Colton surmised.
Sighing, Ivan nodded, his neck bowed miserably. “It was a mistake from the beginning. All it did was get you riled up and stomping over here.” He cast the younger man a weary glance. “I wanted to keep you and Cassie apart, but the whole thing backfired.”
“What about the disease?”
Ivan’s old head snapped up. “That was an accident.”
“Was it?”
“Vince brought in a mare he’d bought down south somewhere. She developed a fever right after she’d been bred to Black Magic. That’s when I brought him back.” He glanced at Cassie. “None of our mares had even gotten near him. Thank God.”
“Damn it all to hell, Aldridge, do you hate me that much?” Colton demanded, kicking at the chair and sending it across the room.
“I did.”
“And where did you hide the horses?”
“That was the beauty of Vince’s plan,” Ivan explained. “They never left your land, except for the ride. They were up on the ridge—up in a shack in the old silver mines.”
“You old bastard!” Colton roared.
Cassie couldn’t take her eyes off him. His expression changed from love to hate, to pity, to disbelief. When he turned his gaze her way, she recognized his anger ... and his pain. “You could’ve told me,” he accused. “Last night, Cass. At the party. You knew most of this.”
“I wanted to talk to Dad first.”
“That’s the problem, isn’t it?” Colton muttered. “You never have been able to face me with the truth. You put things off—delude yourself into thinking you’ll confide in me, but you wait until the timing’s right. Well, when would it have been right this time? Today? Tomorrow? Or after the wedding? Tell me, Cassie, were you planning to dupe me again—trap me into marriage?”
“No!” She shook her head vehemently. “No! No! No! You can’t think—”
“I don’t know what to think,” he snarled, his fists curling, his eyes black with fury.
“Leave her be!” Ivan shouted. “She had nothing to do with this! I already called the sheriff’s office. They’re sending a man over.”
“What?” Cassie shrieked, bolting from her chair. “What do you mean?” she demanded.
