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“Please explain. I like to understand my rejections.”
Suddenly he moved away from the post and sat next to her on the swing, setting it to dipping and swaying with his weight. One firmly planted boot took control of the motion and began the gentle rocking movement again.
“I was married before, for two years. You’re like my first wife in a lot of ways. She was a city person. She liked the entertainment and variety of a big city. She’d never been on a ranch before, and thought it was romantic, just like a movie—until she realized that most of a rancher’s time is spent working, instead of having a good time. She was already restless before winter came, and that just put the frosting on the cake. Our second year was pure hell.”
“Don’t judge me by someone else, Reese Duncan. Just because one woman didn’t like it, doesn’t mean another won’t.”
“A man who doesn’t learn from his mistakes is a damn fool. When I marry again, it’ll be to a woman who knows what ranch life is like, who’ll be able to work with me. I won’t risk the ranch again.”
“What do you mean?”
“This ranch was once one of the biggest and best. You can tell by looking around you that it used to be a lot more than what it is now. I had the two best breeding bulls in four states, a good insemination program going, over four thousand head of beef, and fifty people working for me. Then I got divorced.” He lifted his arm and rested it along the back of the swing. She could see only his profile, but even in the darkness she could make out the bitter line of his mouth, hear his bitterness in his voice. “April’s family had a lot of influence with the judge. He agreed that two years as my wife entitled her to half of my assets, but she sweetly decided that a lump sum settlement would do just fine, thank you. I nearly went bankrupt. I had to liquidate almost everything to buy her off. I sold land that had been in my family for over a hundred years. That was seven years ago. I’ve been working my ass off since then just trying to keep this place going, and this year it looks like I’ll finally make a profit again. I want kids, someone to leave the ranch to, but this time I’ll make a better choice of woman.”
She was appalled at the cause of his circumstances, but still said tartly, “What about love? How does that fit into your plans?”
“It doesn’t,” he replied in a flat tone.
“What if your wife wants more?”
“I don’t plan to spin her a pretty story. She’ll know where I stand from the first. But I’ll be a good husband. I don’t stray, or mistreat women. All I ask from a wife is loyalty and competence and the same values I have.”
“A
nd to be ready to stand as a broodmare.”
“That, too,” he agreed.
Disappointment so sharp that it felt like a knife stabbed into her midsection. He was going to marry someone else. She looked away from him and reached deep for the control she needed. “Then I wish you luck. I hope you have a happy marriage this time. Do you have any more applicants?”
“Two more. If either of them is interested in ranch life, I’ll probably ask her to marry me.”
He had it as cut-and-dried as any business deal, which was all it was to him, even though he would be sleeping with his business partner. Madelyn could have cried at such a waste of passion, but she held on to her control. All she could do now was cut her losses and try to forget him, so she wouldn’t measure every man she met against him for the rest of her life.
The darkness hid the desolation in her eyes as she said, “A jackrabbit can run as fast as a racehorse—for a short distance, of course.”
He didn’t miss a beat. “A group of bears is called a sloth.”
“The Pacific Ocean covers almost sixty-four-million square miles.”
“The safety pin was invented in 1849.”
“No! That long ago? Zippers were invented in 1893, and it’s a good thing, because wouldn’t you hate to get caught in a safety pin?”
SHE WAS QUIET on the drive back to Billings the next morning. The evening had ended well, with the hilarity of their mutual store of odd facts, but the strain had told on her in the form of a sleepless night. She couldn’t bear the thought of never seeing him again, but that was the way it was, and she was determined to keep her pain to herself. Nothing would be gained by weeping all over him, which was exactly what she felt like doing.
He looked tired, too, and it was no wonder when she considered how early he’d had to get up for the past two days, and how much driving he’d done. She said, “I’m sorry you’re having to go to so much trouble to take me back.”
He shot her a glance before returning his attention to the road. “You had a wasted trip, too.”
So she was categorized under “Wasted Trip.” She wondered wryly if her other dates had merely been flattering her all these years.
It was only about half an hour before her flight when they reached the airport. He’d timed it nicely, she thought. She wouldn’t have to rush, but on the other hand, there wasn’t time for a lengthy goodbye, and she was glad. She didn’t know how much she could take. “You don’t need to park,” she said. “Just let me out.”
He gave her another glance, but this one was strangely angry. He didn’t speak, just parked and came around to open the door for her. Quickly she jumped out before he could catch her by the waist and lift her out again.
Reese’s mouth had a grim set as he put his hand on the small of her back and walked with her into the terminal. At least the skirt she was wearing today was full enough that she could move freely, but the way it swung around her legs was just as maddening, in a different way, as that tight white skirt had been. He kept thinking that this one would be even easier to push up out of the way.
Her flight was just being called when they reached the gate. She turned with a smile that cost more than she could afford and held out her hand. “Goodbye, Reese. I wish you luck.”
