Country Bride

by Debbie Macomber

  “That’s a real pity,” came Devin’s softly drawled response. He reached for his hat, then paused by the door. “I don’t suppose Luke knows you’re going out tonight, does he?”

  “There isn’t any reason to tell him.” She tried to act nonchalant. But she desperately wanted to avoid another showdown with Luke. Pleadingly, she raised her eyes to her father. “You aren’t going to tell him, are you?”

  “I won’t lie to him.”

  “Oh, I wouldn’t expect you to do that,” Kate murmured. She blew at the dark-red polish on her nails, trying to dry them quickly. With luck, Eric would arrive soon and she could make her escape before she encountered Luke.

  Kate should have known that was asking too much. She was standing at the kitchen window beside the oak table, waiting for Eric’s headlights to come down the long drive, when Luke walked into the house.

  Kate groaned inwardly, but said nothing. Her fingers tightened on the curtain as she changed her silent entreaty. Now she prayed that Eric would be late.

  “You’ve got your coat on,” Luke observed as he poured a mug of coffee.

  “I’ll be leaving in a couple of minutes,” she said, hoping she didn’t sound as tense as she felt. Then, a little guiltily, she added, “I baked some oatmeal cookies yesterday. The cookie jar’s full, so help yourself.”

  He did exactly that, then sat down at the table. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were waiting for someone.”

  “I am.”

  “Who?”

  “A...friend.” Her back was to him, but Kate could feel the tension between them.

  “Are you upset about something?”

  “No. Should I be?” she asked in an offhand manner.

  “You’ve been avoiding me all week,” he said.

  He was sitting almost directly behind her and Kate felt his presence acutely. Her knees were shaking, her breath coming in short, uneven gulps. She felt light-headed. It had to be nerves. If Luke discovered she was going to dinner with Eric, there could be trouble. Yes, she told herself, that explained the strange physical reaction she was experiencing.

  “Kate, love—”

  “Please,” she implored, “don’t call me that.” She released the curtain and turned to face him. “I made a mistake, and considering the circumstances, it was understandable. Please, Luke, can’t you drop this whole marriage business? Please?”

  His look of shocked surprise didn’t do anything to settle her nerves. A strained moment passed before Luke relaxed, chuckling. “I’ve broken stallions who’ve given me less trouble than you.”

  “I’m no stallion.”

  Luke chuckled again, and before she could move, his arms reached out and circled her waist to pull her onto his lap.

  Kate was so astonished that for a crazy moment she didn’t react at all. “Let me go,” she said stiffly, holding her chin at a regal angle.

  He ignored her demand and lightly ran the tips of his fingers along the side of her jaw, stroking downward to cup her chin. “I’ve missed you this week, Princess.”

  A trail of warmth followed his cool fingers, and a foreign sensation nibbled at her stomach. Kate didn’t know what was wrong with her—and she didn’t want to know.

  “I’ve decided to give you a chance to think everything through before we contact Pastor Wilkins—”

  “Before we what?” she flared.

  “Before we’re married,” he explained patiently, his voice much too low and seductive to suit her. “But every time we’re together, you run away like a frightened kitten.”

  “Did you stop to think there might be a perfectly logical reason for that?” She’d told him repeatedly that she wasn’t going to marry him, but it didn’t seem to make any differences. “I’m sorry, I truly am, but I just don’t see you that way.”

  “Oh?”

  He raised his hand and threaded his fingers through her hair. She tried to pull away, to thwart him, with no effect.

  “That’s not the feeling I get when I kiss you.”

  She braced her hands against his shoulders. “I apologize if I’ve given you the wrong impression,” she said, her voice feeble.

  He cocked his eyebrows at her statement, and his lips quivered with the effort to suppress a smile. That infuriated Kate, but she held on to her temper, knowing an argument would be pointless.

  “It seems to me,” he continued, “that we need some time alone to explore what’s happening between us.”

  Alarm rose in Kate’s throat as she struggled to hide her response to him. The last thing she wanted was “time alone” with Luke.

  “I’m afraid that’s impossible tonight,” she said hastily.

  “Why’s that?”

  He was so close that his breath fanned her flushed face. It was all Kate could do to keep from closing her eyes and surrendering to the sensations that encircled her, like lazy curls of smoke from a campfire.

  His mouth found her neck and he placed a series of kisses there, each one a small dart of pleasure that robbed her of clear thought. For a wild moment, she couldn’t catch her breath. His hands were in her hair, and his mouth was working its magic....

  “No,” she breathed, her voice low and trembling. Any resistance she’d managed to rally had vanished.

  “Yes, my darlin’, Kate?”

  He sought her mouth then, and excitement erupted inside her. She clung to him, arms around his neck as his lips returned again and again to taste and tantalize her.

  When he buried his face in the hollow of her throat, Kate moaned softly. She felt nearly faint from the rush of pleasure.

  “Call Linda and cancel whatever plans you’ve made,” he whispered.

  Kate froze. “I can’t.”

  “Yes, you can. I’ll talk to her, if you want.”

  “I’m not going out with Linda.”

  “Then call whoever it is and cancel.”

  “No...”

  A flash of headlights through the kitchen window announced Eric’s arrival. With a burst of frantic energy, Kate leaped off Luke’s lap, feeling disoriented and bewildered. She rubbed her hands over her face, realizing she’d probably smudged her makeup, but that didn’t concern her as much as the unreserved way she’d submitted to Luke’s touch. He’d kissed her before and it had been wonderful—more than wonderful. But in those brief moments when he’d held her, at the wedding and then again the next day, she hadn’t experienced this burning need. It terrified her.

  “Kate?”

  She looked at Luke without really seeing him. “I’ve got to go,” she insisted.

  “There’s a man here.”

  Kate opened the door for Eric. “Hi,” she greeted him, doing her best to appear cheerful and animated, but suspecting that she looked and sounded as though she was coming down with a bad case of flu. “I see you found the place without a problem.”

  “Actually, I had one hell of a time,” he said, glancing at his watch. “Didn’t you notice I’m fifteen minutes late?”

  Well, no, she hadn’t. Not really.

  “Kate, who is this man?” Luke demanded in a steely voice.

  “Eric Wilson, this is Luke Rivers. Luke is buying the Circle L,” she said breathlessly.

  The two men exchanged the briefest of handshakes.

  Kate didn’t dare look in Luke’s direction. She didn’t need to; she could feel the resentment and annoyance that emanated from him like waves of heat. “Well, I suppose we should be on our way,” Kate said to Eric, throwing him a tight, nervous smile.

  “Yes, I suppose we should.” Eric’s gaze traveled from Kate to Luke, then back again. He seemed equally eager to escape.

  “I’ll say good-night, Luke,” she said pointedly, her hand on the back door.

  He didn’t respond, which
was just as well.

  Once they were outside, Eric opened his car door for her. “You said Luke is buying the ranch?”

  “Yes,” she answered brightly.

  “And nothing else?” he pressed, frowning. “The look he was giving me seemed to say you came with the property.”

  “That’s not true.” Even if Luke chose to believe otherwise. After tonight, she couldn’t deny that they shared a strong physical attraction, but that was nothing on which to base a life together. She didn’t love Luke; how could she, when she was still in love with Clay? She’d been crazy about Clay Franklin most of her life, and feelings that intense didn’t change overnight simply because he’d married another woman.

  When Clay and Rorie had announced their engagement, Kate had known with desolate certainty that she’d never love again. If she couldn’t have Clay, then she would live the remainder of her life alone, treasuring the time they’d had together.

  “You’re absolutely certain Rivers has no claim on you?”

  “None,” Kate assured him.

  “That’s funny,” Eric said with a humorless chuckle. “From the way he glared at me, I feel lucky to have walked away with my head still attached.”

  Kate forced a laugh. “I’m sure you’re mistaken.”

  Eric didn’t comment further, but she could tell he didn’t believe her.

  After their shaky beginning, dinner turned out to be a pleasant affair. Eric took Kate to the Red Bull, the one fancy restaurant in Nightingale, a steak house that specialized in thick T-bones and fat baked potatoes. A country-and-western band played local favorites in the lounge, which was a popular Friday-night attraction. The music drifted into the dining-room, creating a festive atmosphere.

  Eric studied the menu, then requested a bottle of wine with their meal.

  When the waitress had taken their order, he placed his elbows on the table and smiled at Kate. “Your eyes are lovely,” he said, his voice a little too enthusiastic.

  Despite herself, Kate blushed. “Thank you.”

  “They’re the same color as my ex-wife’s.” He said this in bitter tones, as if he wished Kate’s were any color other than blue. “I’m sorry,” he added, looking chagrined. “I’ve got to stop thinking about Lonni. It’s over. Finished. Kaput.”

  “I take it you didn’t want the divorce.”

  “Do you mind if we don’t talk about it?”

  Kate felt foolish for bringing up the subject, especially since it was obviously so painful for him. “I’m sorry, that was thoughtless. You’re trying to let go of the past.”

  The bottle of wine arrived and when Eric had sampled and approved it the waitress filled their glasses.

  “Actually you remind me of Lonni,” he said, after taking a sip of the chardonnay. “We met when we were both in college.”

  Kate looked down at her wineglass, twirling the delicate stem between her fingers. Eric was so clearly in love with his ex-wife that she wondered what had torn them apart.

  “You were asking about the divorce?” He replenished his wine with a lavish hand.

  “If it’s too difficult, you don’t need to talk about it.”

  “I don’t think either Lonni or I ever intended to let it go this far,” he said, and Kate was sure he hadn’t even heard her. “I certainly didn’t, but before I knew what was happening, the whole thing blew up in my face. There wasn’t another man—I would’ve staked my life on that.”

  Their dinner salads were served and, picking up her fork, Kate asked, “What brought you to Nightingale?”

  Eric drank his wine as if he were gulping cool water on a summer afternoon. “Lonni, of course.”

  “I beg your pardon?”

  “Lonni. I decided I needed to make a clean break. Get a fresh start and all that.”

  “I see.”

  “You have to understand that when Lonni first suggested we should separate, I thought it was the right thing to do. We hadn’t been getting along and, frankly, if she wanted out of the relationship, I wasn’t going to stand in her way. It’s best to discover these things before you have children, don’t you agree?”

  “Oh, yes.” Kate nibbled at her salad, wondering what she could say that would help or comfort Eric.

  An hour and another bottle of wine later, Kate realized he’d drunk the better part of both bottles and was in no condition to drive home. Now she had to tactfully make him realize that.

  “Do you dance?” she asked, as he paid the dinner bill.

  He frowned slightly. “This country-and-western stuff doesn’t usually appeal to me, but I’m willing to give it a whirl, if you are.”

  Kate assumed all the wine he’d been drinking had quelled his reservations. When the band began a lively melody, Eric led Kate onto the crowded dance floor.

  Kate was breathless by the time the song ended. To her relief, the next number was a much slower one. She recognized her mistake the minute Eric locked her in his embrace. His hands fastened at the small of her back, forcing her close. She tried to put some space between them, but Eric didn’t seem to notice her efforts. His eyes were shut as he swayed to the leisurely beat. Kate wasn’t fooled; her newfound friend was pretending he had Lonni in his arms. It was a good thing her ego wasn’t riding on this date.

  “I need a little more room,” she whispered.

  He loosened his grip for a moment, but as the song continued, his hold gradually tightened again. Kate edged her forearms up and braced them on his chest, easing herself back an inch or two.

  “Excuse me, please.” A harsh male voice that was all too familiar came from behind Eric. Kate wished she could crawl into a hole and die the instant she heard it.

  “I’m cutting in,” Luke informed the other man, who turned his head and looked at the intruder incredulously.

  Without a word of protest Eric dropped his arms and took a step in retreat. Neither man bothered to ask Kate what she wanted. She was about to complain when Luke reached for her hand and with a natural flair swept her into his arms. The immediate sense of welcome she experienced made her want to weep with frustration.

  “Why did you cut in like that?” she demanded. She felt disheartened and irritable. Everything she’d worked for this evening was about to be undone.

  “Did you mean for that city slicker to hold you so close?”

  “How Eric holds me isn’t any of your business.”

  “I’m making it my business.”

  His face was contorted with anger. His arms were so tight that Kate couldn’t have escaped him if she’d tried. Judging by the looks they were receiving from the couples around them, they were quickly becoming the main attraction.

  The instant the music ended, Kate abruptly left Luke’s arms and returned to Eric. Her date stood in the corner of the room, nursing a shot glass filled with amber liquid. Kate groaned and hid her displeasure. Eric had already had enough wine without adding hard liquor.

  “I thought you said there was nothing between you and Luke Rivers,” he muttered, when she joined him.

  “There isn’t. We’re just good friends.”

  “That’s not the impression I’m getting.”

  Kate didn’t know how to respond. “I apologize for the interruption. Do you want to dance?”

  “Not if it’s going to cost me my neck.”

  “It isn’t,” she promised.

  Another lively song erupted from the band. Eric took her hand and she smiled encouragingly up at him. As they headed for the dance floor, Kate tried to ignore Luke’s chilly glare.

  Midway through the song, Eric stopped dancing. “I’m not very good at this fancy footwork,” he declared. With that, he pulled her into his arms, tucking her securely against him.

  “This is much better,” he whispered, his mouth close to her ear. Once m
ore his hold tightened.

  “Eric, please. I’m having trouble breathing,” Kate told him in a strangled voice.

  “Oh, sorry.” He relaxed his grip. “Lonni and I used to dance like this all the time.”

  Kate had guessed as much. It was on the tip of her tongue to remind him that she wasn’t his ex-wife, but she doubted it would make any difference. Eric had spent much of the evening pretending she was.

  At the moment, however, her date and his ex-wife were the least of Kate’s problems. Tiny pinpricks moved up and down her spine, telling her that Luke was still glaring at her from the other side of the room. She did her best to act as though he wasn’t there.

  She smiled up at Eric, she laughed, she talked, but with each breath she drew she could feel Luke’s eyes on her, scrutinizing every move she made.

  When the music stopped, Eric returned to their table and his drink, swallowing the remainder of it in one gulp. The music started again and he pulled Kate toward him.

  “I think I’ll sit this one out.” She hoped that would appease Luke, who looked as if he were about to rip Eric in two.

  Her gaze fell to her lap and she folded her hands, concentrating on not letting him know how much a single glance from him affected her.

  “How much have you had to drink, Wilson?”

  While her eyes were lowered, Luke had come over to their table. His voice was controlled but unmistakably furious.

  “I can’t say that’s any of your concern, Rivers.” For his part, Eric seemed nervous. He leaned back in his chair, balancing on two legs, and raised his empty shot glass.

  “I don’t agree,” Luke countered, moving closer. “From what I can see, you’ve had plenty. I’m taking Kate home with me.”

  “Luke,” she protested, “please don’t do this.”

  “Your date’s in no condition to drive.”

  It was all Kate could do not to stand up and defend Eric. Unfortunately Luke was right. She’d known it even before they’d finished dinner, but she wanted to handle things her own way.

  “I can hold my liquor as well as the next man,” Eric said, daring to wave his glass under Luke’s nose. It was apparent to everyone that his courage had been fortified by whiskey. Few men would have taunted Luke in his present mood.