by Sara Orwig
“I’m looking,” he said, his gaze roaming over her.
She put down the spatula and tied her robe. He laughed and walked away to pour himself some coffee. “I’m leaving, but I’ve been having breakfast by myself at the wrong time of the morning. I’ll have to change that.”
“And I’ll have to dress for breakfast.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. We’re married.” He walked up to her to put his finger beneath her chin and tilt her face up. “Sooner or later we’ll consummate this union.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Oh, yes, I do,” he said, looking into her wide blue eyes and seeing a blush turn her cheeks rosy. “You know it, too. And you want it, too. Gives us both something to look forward to. We miscalculated when we agreed on no sex. We didn’t know about the attraction that would spring to life between us. We know it isn’t a serious one and it isn’t going to last. You still have your agenda and I have mine. But you do like to kiss and so do I.”
“You don’t know that we’ll succumb to passion. We might and we might not,” she said in a haughty tone that made him grin.
“We definitely will and you know it or you wouldn’t be blushing. Want me to prove it to you right now?” he asked, walking toward her.
“No, I don’t,” she answered quickly, moving out of his reach.
“I think I just did,” he said, laughing. “I’ll see you tonight, darlin’.”
Smiling, he left, but his thoughts stayed on the moment when he held her in his arms. The flimsy cotton robe and pajamas might as well have been nonexistent. She had been warm and soft. That image would be with him for the day. He couldn’t resist pursuing her and she liked it when he did.
He realized he was already looking forward to being with her tonight. That was something new in his life, which, little by little, she seemed to be changing for the better. He hadn’t expected to even be aware of her once they were on the ranch and each doing their own thing. Had he ever been wrong. He couldn’t shake her out of his thoughts now, and that startled him. She was turning his life upside down in her own quiet way.
It occurred to him that he might miss her later, when she was gone. He shook his head as if to chase away that thought. She was a tiny, brief part of his life. He wouldn’t miss her. He would go back to life the way it had been before he had brought her to the ranch. After all, that was the deal they’d made. And Marc Medina was a master of the deal.
* * *
Lara had showered and dressed in jeans and a blue knit shirt. Her hair was in one long, thick braid. She was sitting and studying when she heard a pickup, and in minutes a door slammed.
“Hi, sweetie. Your lover’s home.”
She had to laugh at his corny greeting. “I’m in here, in the great room.”
He came through the door seeming to bring sizzling energy just by walking into the room. He had dust on his face. He had already shed his hat and jacket and wore mud-spattered jeans, muddy boots and a long-sleeved blue shirt that had some smudges of dirt and a tear.
“You look like you fell out of the pickup.”
He crossed the room to her and pulled her up. “Well, you look beautiful and absolutely irresistible,” he said, wrapping her in his arms and kissing away her protest until she responded in kind.
He finally released her slightly to look at her. He smelled like hay and his tousled hair fell on his forehead. He had a dark shadow of stubble on his jaw.
“Well, now I’m dusty, too,” she said. “I can’t get used to this marriage thing. We’re sort of half-married. You kiss like it’s the real thing, but then we turn around and it definitely isn’t the real thing.”
“It is the real thing. We had a real ceremony and we are very legally wed.”
“For a little while and there’s not one shred of love in this deal. And it’s better that way, so back off, cowboy, before you get us both in deep trouble.”
“You are really killing the fun,” he said.
“Maybe so, but you’ll thank me when you get to thinking about it.”
She sat back down. “What about your grandfather? Did they bring him to the ranch today?”
“Change of plans. He’s coming tomorrow morning, instead. At ten o’clock. That’s why you didn’t hear from me or see me today. I was getting their place ready.”
“I’ll go with you in the morning if you’d like. I can say hello to your grandmother.”
“That’s another thing I like about you,” he said, suddenly sounding as if he meant what he said. “You’re considerate.”
“I understand the importance of family and losing family. I went through it with my mother, don’t forget. You try to be as kind and loving as you can while you have them.”
He hugged her. “There are a lot of facets to you.”
“That’s a new one,” she said, laughing and wiggling away from him. “You did manage to kill all the cleanliness from my shower.” She brushed dirt off her blouse.
“It just makes you a little earthy and sexy.”
“Somehow I find cleanliness sexy.”
“I’ll remember that.” He waggled his eyebrows at her, then tossed an envelope on the table near her. “The wedding pictures were in the mail today,” he said.
She dropped everything and rushed over to pick up the envelope.
“I love pictures. I want to see. Want to come look with me?”
“Oh, sure,” he said, too quickly and eagerly.
She regarded him shrewdly. “Why do I suspect your motives for looking at pictures with me?”
He grinned and she knew she was right. She shook her head as she sat on the sofa and he sat close beside her, putting his arm around her shoulders. “I can’t wait to see them,” he said.
“Maybe we should do this after you shower.”
“I’m already here against you and seated on the sofa. I can’t do more damage here, so let’s look.”
“I can’t argue with that logic,” she said and pulled out a few glossy pictures.
“You watch your hands,” she said, smiling at him, and he smiled in return. Her heart beat faster because she was certain he would kiss her again soon. She shouldn’t want him to, and she shouldn’t let him. If she could just keep her wits about her when she was near him.
She turned back to look at the pictures. She emptied the envelope of a thick stack of prints and began to go through them. She paused to study one.
“Marc, you and Gabe look exactly alike here. Your eyes are dark brown and his are blue, but the two of you could be brothers instead of friends.”
“People have told us that before,” he said casually.
“Surely you can see the resemblance.”
“I suppose.”
“I’m sure you’ve met his father.”
“Oh, yeah. Dirkson paid no attention to his sons. They might as well not have existed as far as he was concerned, from what Gabe always told me.”
“Well, Gabe looks nothing like Dirkson Callahan. I don’t think you’d know Gabe is related to him if he didn’t have that Callahan name.”
“That would probably suit Gabe just fine. None of the Callahan boys like him. That would be a hell of a note—none of your sons liking you, but it’s his own fault. They wanted to be a family and he disappointed them and hurt them time and again.”
“That’s sad. He can’t make it up now.”
“No, those years are gone. I’ll bet each one of the brothers is a fantastic dad to make up for the way Dirkson was. They never want to be like him.”
She shuffled through the prints then held one up. “Ah, here’s a fun picture. This one I want,” she said, holding out a picture of her dancing with Marc at the reception.
“You can have all of them.”
“You’re going to forg
et me and this marriage when I’m gone,” she said, laughing. “Thank you. I’ll be happy to keep these pictures.”
Startling her, he picked her up and placed her on his lap. “I’m not going to forget you.” His arm wrapped around her waist as he pulled her close and kissed her.
She wrapped her arms around him and clung to him as she kissed him in return.
“I’m not going to forget you or this marriage. I think you’re seeing to that hour by hour. That night when we went dancing, I had the best time I’ve had since Kathy passed away. That’s unique, Lara. I’m not going to forget that.”
He gazed at her solemnly as he talked and she realized he wasn’t teasing. Her heart beat faster. That was awesome and made her feel better, but it scared her, too.
“I don’t want to make this marriage permanent, Marc, because you never would. Don’t mess up my future plans.”
“We won’t. We just had a good time together, and that’s great because it means you’re getting me out of that terrible grief I’ve been sunk into since I lost her. Thanks for that.”
“I’m glad, Marc. There’s a time to move on from being steeped in grief.” As she gazed at him, she had the feeling that there had been a subtle shift in their relationship—that she had more influence on him now than she had had previously. She wasn’t happy with the discovery. She didn’t want to get too close to him or become too important to him. He wouldn’t change when they ended this marriage and he definitely would end it. She needed to always remember that. This was a temporary situation.
She got out of his lap and warmed up the casserole she’d taken out of the freezer that morning. They ate together, and after dinner she stayed in the great room instead of fleeing to her suite. She sat with her laptop, doing her studies, while Marc sat at the desk going over the ranch books and bringing them up to date.
She finally stood as the grandfather clock chimed out in the hallway. “It’s ten o’clock and I’m turning in.”
Instantly Marc stood. “I will, too.”
“I meant alone in my own room,” she said, smiling at him.
He smiled back at her. “I tried.” He shrugged. “I’ll still head to my room. Now, if you ever get lonesome or change your mind—”
“I know. I’m welcome in your bed.”
“Any time you want to be there. I just don’t want you to forget me.”
She had to laugh. “I’ll try not to,” she remarked. “So, what time will we go see your grandfather tomorrow?” she asked, carrying the envelope with the wedding pictures.
“Probably about eleven. If you change your mind, you don’t have to go. That’s not part of your duties.”
“I want to. He’s old and frail and he wanted this marriage badly, so I think it would make him happy to think that I’m part of the family.”
“That’s very nice.”
“Really, it’s the least I can do,” she said as they walked down the hall. At the door to her room, she turned to him. “Good night, Marc. I’ll see you at breakfast in the morning.”
“I hope you do. Wear the same pajamas and robe. I like them.”
She shook her head at him. He really was incorrigible.
He stepped close to embrace her, ending her protest when his mouth covered hers. He pushed her back against the wall and she clung to him, returning his kiss. She couldn’t say she was sorry to be trapped there. In fact, when he released her, she felt disappointed. Her breathing was as ragged as his.
“Some night you’ll invite me in.”
“We talked about that. I don’t plan on it.”
“Some night you’ll invite me in,” he repeated, running his forefinger down her cheek and making her heart beat faster.
She shook her head and stepped into her suite, closing the door. “Not if I have good sense, I won’t,” she whispered to herself, but her answer was for him. “I don’t want to long for you in my bed every night and that would happen if we started sleeping together.” She just prayed she wasn’t already getting too attached to him.
Seven
The next morning Marc was in the great room waiting for Lara, looking out at his patio, pool and, beyond the fence, the endless vistas of the ranch. His grandfather was coming home today. Marc felt certain the old man was hanging on to see the land once more and to take his last breath on the ranch he loved.
Marc realized that life was short and that family was what was important. He thought about Lara and how she had already changed his life for the better. He hoped he had changed hers for the better, too, and enabled her to do what she wanted when they parted.
She was his wife—so far, in name only. One minute he intended to change that and the next minute he thought that if he did, he might make everything worse for both of them. He didn’t want that to happen. He wanted her, but common sense warned him to stick to their original plan so no one got hurt when they parted ways. And they would part; he knew that for certain.
He heard her high heels on the hardwood floor and he stood as she swept into the room. His heart thudded. She wore a cheerful, bright-red dress with a straight skirt that ended just above her knees. She had on red high-heeled pumps and her hair was scooped up on either side of her head and pinned to fall freely in the back.
“You look gorgeous.” He crossed the room to her, drawn without conscious thought. “I just can’t resist, Mrs. Medina,” he said, reminding her of her marital status as he wrapped his arms around her, leaned over her and kissed her.
Her eyes flew wide and then closed, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, pressed against him and kissed him in return, making his heart pound. She could be instantly responsive, and when she was, it set him on fire. He wanted her with all his being. He’d spent a restless night, tossing and turning, dreaming about her, waking and being unable to go back to sleep for a long time, arguing with himself about pursuing her.
“If we didn’t have to go see my grandparents,” he said, raising his head, “I would carry you off to bed.”
She opened her eyes and had a dazed look that made his pulse jump another notch. “We have to go,” she stated, but there wasn’t any conviction in her voice. Her mouth was red from his kiss and desire filled her blue eyes.
He pulled her up to whisper in her ear. “One day I’m going to make love to you for hours and you’ll want me to.”
She froze in his arms and he wasn’t sure what her reaction would be. Finally, she turned her head slightly and looked into his eyes. Her emotions were unreadable. She didn’t pull away. Instead, she cupped his cheek in her hand and softly said, “We both know that’s not the sensible thing to do. We need to get back on a safe track until we say goodbye. Goodbye is still in our lives, Marc. Now, I think we were going somewhere,” she said, smoothing her dress and shaking her head to get her hair to fall back in place.
He wanted her with all his being. He was amazed by the effect she had on him. She was changing his life, hour by hour, day by day, bringing him back to life. “Marrying you was the smartest thing I ever did.”
She smiled, her blue eyes getting a twinkle. “Is that so? I’m very flattered. Then I have to say, we have a good bargain.”
“Yes, we do.” And he needed to remember the terms of that bargain.
“Let’s get going. My grandpa awaits.” He put his hand on the small of her back as he ushered her out of the great room. “You know, my grandpa does like beautiful women. You’ll make him happy today.”
“I hope so. Your grandmother, too. Will your mom be here?”
“No, because she knows I’ll handle it and she’ll be at the restaurant, making sure everything is running smoothly there the way it has each day it’s been open for the last thirty years.” Then he paused. “At least, as far as I know, she won’t be there. She surprises me sometimes.”
He took his pickup, awa
re it was one of the few times he’d been in the truck in a suit and tie.
They arrived before his grandfather, but within ten minutes an entourage came up the road with the ambulance in the lead. Marc and Lara went out to meet the car carrying his grandmother, and Marc took her arm to help her into the guest house. Lara walked along with them, with a nurse on the other side of his grandmother.
Medics brought his grandfather in and took him to the room that Marc had made sure was ready.
Finally, Marc and Lara went to see him. Marc brushed a kiss on his grandfather’s forehead and came back to stand by Lara, who greeted his grandfather.
His grandfather smiled. “You look beautiful, Lara,” he said in a raspy voice.
“Thank you,” she said, smiling at him. “We’re glad you’re home.”
He nodded and folded his hands.
Marc told him about the ranch, and while he talked, he stood beside her with his arm around her waist. She was sure they looked like happily married newlyweds.
They didn’t stay a long time, once they’d finished talking to his grandfather and made sure his grandmother was settled in and needed nothing. Then they said their goodbyes.
“He’s happy and it was nice of you to come. He told me I married a beautiful woman,” Marc said as they got into the pickup. He smiled at Lara. “He’s right.”
“Thank you. But I’m not sure he can see very well.”
“He can see well enough. Your red dress is perfect. That would cheer up a skeleton.”
“I hope I don’t have to do that,” she said, laughing at him.
“Hey, the guys are going out again tonight. Want to join them?”
“Sure. That was a fun evening last time.”
“I hoped you’d say that. Seven tonight, then?”
“Seven it is.”
When they got back to Marc’s house he went inside to change to go to work.
