by Seton, Cora
“Colt, do you know her?” Zane asked.
Colt pushed down the panic beginning to churn in his gut. “It’s Melanie,” he said, his voice tight. He turned to Heather. “The woman I hired to be my fake wife.”
Heather’s mouth dropped open. “You didn’t cancel…?”
“Oh, shit,” Zane said. “Colt—that’s Heloise pulling in behind her.”
Colt looked out the window again. Zane was right. Another truck had entered the driveway and he could see his aunt sitting in the passenger seat. Allen James, an old family friend, was driving. Colt watched in horror as Allen parked the vehicle and Heloise got out with an alacrity that belied her age. She leaned on her cane heavily when she walked, but she caught up to Melanie and the two women climbed the stairs together.
“What do we do?” Heather hissed. “Why didn’t you tell her not to come?”
“I did tell her. She didn’t listen!”
“We don’t have time for this.” Zane gripped the handle when one of the women outside knocked.
“But—”
“Just play along,” Colt told her, but he knew her panic must be reflected in his eyes. He nodded at his brother and Zane opened the door.
“Hi, Heloise, come on in. You’re up early on a cold winter’s morning.”
“I’m no lie-abed if that’s what you mean.” She pushed her way past him into the crowded entryway. “Having a party, are we? I see I wasn’t invited to this one, either. Come along, whoever you are,” she said to Melanie. “Don’t dawdle on the doorstep like an encyclopedia salesman.”
“Isn’t James coming in? Here, let me take your coat.” Zane held out a hand for it, but she waved him off.
“I won’t stay long enough for that. James will wait for me in the truck. I just came to find out why I haven’t been invited to my nephew’s wedding! I had to hear about it in town. What do you have to say for yourself?” She poked Colt in the arm.
Colt didn’t think things could get any worse. His only hope was that Melanie would keep quiet. He couldn’t meet Heather’s eye. “I haven’t sent out any invitations, Heloise.”
“Haven’t sent them out? Two weeks before the wedding?”
Melanie looked from Heloise to Colt, and suddenly exclaimed, “It’s all rather last minute, isn’t it?” She flashed Heloise a thousand-watt smile, took Colt’s arm and leaned her cheek against it, as if she’d decided she’d better step straight into her role in order to save the day. “I told Colt here we should wait at least three weeks, but you know him. Always so slap-dash and devil-may-care!” Heather made a kind of sputtering noise. Colt only just stopped himself from shaking Melanie off. Slap-dash and devil-may-care? He had to stop her before she ruined everything.
“Who is this?” Heloise gave Melanie a look-over that could have stripped paint off the side of a house.
“I’m Melanie. Colt’s fiancée! I can’t believe I’m finally here, darling! Can you believe it?” She stood on tiptoe and planted a big kiss on Colt’s mouth before he could answer. Colt stifled a groan. How the hell was he going to fix this now?
Heloise’s expression hardened. “I wasn’t told about any Melanie.” Her gaze scoured the small room. “Heather, isn’t that a ring I see on your finger?” When Heather didn’t respond, she turned back to Melanie. “Where’s yours?”
Melanie looked to Colt. “You said we’d get it as soon as I arrived, didn’t you, honey?”
Colt could only stare at her. Zane signaled to him from behind Heloise’s back to say something, but what could he say? He’d always prided himself on his quick thinking, but nothing in his life had prepared him for this.
“Uh… yeah, I guess so.”
“I thought Heather was your fiancée. Well?” Heloise demanded when he didn’t answer. “Which one are you marrying?”
“Uh… It’s…”
“I thought I made it clear I wouldn’t be toyed with again,” Heloise snapped. “Obviously, none of you took me seriously. Two brides. That’s ridiculous even for you, Colt.” She turned to go.
Colt thought fast to come up with an answer, but he was trapped. How could he deny that Melanie was his fiancée when she was leaning all over him? But if Heloise had already heard Heather was his fiancée, he couldn’t acknowledge Melanie even if he’d wanted to. Which he didn’t.
“Heloise, you’ve made a mistake,” Heather blurted just as the old woman’s hand grasped the doorknob. “If someone told you I’m marrying Colt, they’re wrong. He’s engaged to… Melanie.”
Colt heard running footsteps behind him, turned his head in time to see Richard bolt back down the hall. When he turned back Heather’s face was white, but she stood her ground. He wanted to chase Richard down and tell him it was all a mistake, but Zane’s presence reminded him why he had to stand right here. The fate of all of them rested on what happened next.
“Then who are you marrying?” Heloise demanded of Heather.
Heather paused only a second. “George Buckley from Silver Falls,” she said in a rush. Colt didn’t know whether to be grateful or horrified that Heather had intervened to save his skin. Every second this farce went on, they were digging themselves deeper into a trap they wouldn’t be able to get out of.
“I’m not familiar with the name.” Heloise didn’t sound convinced, but she turned her focus to Melanie. “What’s your story?”
“I’m Melanie Munroe.” She held out her hand and shook with Heloise. “I’m not surprised you haven’t heard of me. Colt and I have had a difficult road. We fell in love with each other back when he first went to basic training, but I knew I couldn’t be a military wife and Colt couldn’t bear to leave the Air Force. We tried to forget each other but it didn’t work. Each time we met again it was as if we’d never been apart. Finally, Colt made the ultimate sacrifice and gave up his career for me.”
Colt wanted to throw up his hands. Could Melanie be more theatrical?
Heloise snorted. “If he’d made the ultimate sacrifice, he’d have come home in a casket.”
Tears filled Melanie’s eyes. Colt blinked, somewhat impressed. “Don’t even say that! Your nephew put his life in danger countless times while he served his country. If he’d been killed, it would have killed me too. But he didn’t die. He came home to me and now we’ll spend the rest of our lives together.” She gestured to Colt. “I love everything about this man.”
“What about Colt’s son? Do you love him, too?”
He had to credit Melanie; she barely blinked before saying, “Of course I do. I intend to raise him like my own.”
Heather made a strangled noise and Colt couldn’t even look at her. She must be livid. How had everything gone off the rails so quickly? He knew Heather meant to help him when she’d blurted out her explanation, but now he’d been backed into a corner he couldn’t get out of. He didn’t want to marry Melanie, but he couldn’t tell the truth, either. All he could do was follow Heather and Melanie’s lead.
“It was like this, Heloise,” Colt began. “When I got home and found out about Heather and Richard, I thought I should marry Heather instead and be a father to Richard, but after a while, I…” He didn’t know what to say. “I guess I…I guess I realized that wasn’t going to work. Melanie’s the one for me.” It killed him to say it, but he pressed on. “Anyway, we’ll be married in a couple of weeks.”
“Well, this is a fine kettle of fish.” Heloise tapped her finger on her cane. “But I guess if that’s the way it is, then that’s the way it is. Heather, congratulations on your upcoming wedding. Colt, well… I hope like hell you know what you’re doing.”
With that, she headed for the door, but she stopped with a hand on the knob. “But if I think for a minute that you three are lying to me, there’ll be hell to pay.”
“We know, Heloise,” Colt said wearily. “You’ll give the ranch to Darren.” He didn’t know what satisfaction she’d get from it. His cousin had once been their biggest rival for the property, but several months ago, Darren had confided
to Colt’s brothers he didn’t even want it.
Colt brightened a little. Maybe Heloise should give it to Darren and then he could pass it on to them.
As if she’d read his mind, Heloise said, “To hell with Darren; he point blank told me he’s done with ranching. I’ll sell it to those nice men from Chicago who approached me last month about developing the property.”
“Developing it? For what?” Zane demanded. He’d been quiet since Heloise came in, but now his alarm was all too clear.
“A housing tract, they said. Claimed Chance Creek was due to expand soon. Something about minerals up north. Showed me plans and everything. Over a hundred houses to be built in three stages.”
“You can’t build houses on the ranch!”
“She wouldn’t do that. She’s just trying to scare us,” Colt told his brother.
“Go ahead and believe that if it makes you sleep better,” Heloise said. She tapped the door with her cane and Zane opened it. “I’ll choose a housing development over lies any day. Besides, I’d like to be rich. They say it’s nice in Hawaii this time of year.” They watched her go.
“Careful on those stairs, Heloise,” Zane called after her.
“I know how to walk; I’m not senile yet!”
Zane shut the door behind her. “Well, that’s that. We’re going to lose the ranch.”
“We’re not going to lose the ranch.” Colt turned on Melanie. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“I came to marry you—just like I said I would. What’s going on? And who’s she?” Melanie pointed to Heather.
“My fiancée—the one I told you about. I e-mailed you and called everything off. Why did you still come?”
Color flushed her cheeks and Melanie closed her eyes. “Shit!” Opening them again she confessed, “I broke my phone this weekend while I was visiting my grandma. I figured I could get a new one here. Oh my God, Colt. Did I just ruin everything?”
“Yeah, you did.”
“It’s not her fault. It’s yours,” Heather said. “What were you thinking, having her come here?”
“I was making sure my family inherits this ranch. Like I said, I called it off.”
Zane shook his head. “I’m going to go get the others.” He strode away down the hall.
“Richard just heard everything, by the way,” Heather said. “I’d better go talk to him. You straighten this out.”
“I can’t straighten it out. Not now.”
“Well, you can’t marry Melanie!”
When the silence stretched out between them, Melanie dropped her hands and stared at them. “I’ll leave. I’ll leave right now.”
“It’s too late! That was my aunt Heloise who barged in,” Colt said, as much to remind Heather as to explain it to Melanie. “She’s the whole reason I placed that ad in the first place. She owns this ranch and she won’t hand it over until I marry. All three of my brothers have done their part to inherit the ranch. I can’t let everyone else down. We’ll have to go through with it.” He turned to Heather. “It’s only temporary—just for a few months. You know I wouldn’t do this if there was any other way.”
“You’ve got to be kidding.” When he didn’t answer she made a noise of disbelief. “You’re really going to marry her?”
“What else can I do?”
“I don’t know. There has to be another way!”
“Tell me what it is, and I’ll do it!” Colt waited, hoping like hell Heather could come up with a plan. He couldn’t see his way clear to one. All he knew was that he couldn’t be the one to lose the ranch for everyone else. He already had too much on his conscience.
Melanie shook her head. “I’m not going to go through with this. I won’t break up your relationship with your fiancée or hurt your son.”
“You don’t have a choice. None of us do.” Colt blew out a breath. “Come on, we’d better go find Richard and let everyone know what’s going on. Maybe someone else will have an idea. Heather.” He took her hand. “Look, I love you. I promise it’s all going to be all right.”
She only shook her head at him in disbelief.
He knew exactly how she felt. He led the way down the hall feeling like he was walking to his execution. A half-hour ago he thought he was about to step into the life he’d always wanted. Now everything was a mess. When they reached the living room, Richard stood alone in one corner, his arms folded and his face flushed with anger. Everyone else had gathered on the sofas and chairs, waiting for him.
Colt took one look at them and knew this wasn’t going to go well.
“You don’t understand everything that’s happened,” Heather said to Richard. She tried to keep her voice low and steady as she talked to him, but tears stung her eyes and she had to keep blinking them back. She hadn’t had time to process what had happened herself. All she knew was that she’d acted on instinct. Colt and his brothers were about to lose the ranch they’d fought so hard to win, and she couldn’t be the reason for that loss, even if it meant giving up her own chance at happiness.
Her decision to proclaim Melanie as Colt’s wife had been made in an instant and she’d regretted it just as fast, but there wasn’t anything else she could have done. Not with the ranch on the line.
“You’re supposed to marry Dad.”
“I know. It’s… complicated. Richard, you know that your dad and all his brothers have to marry in order to get Crescent Hall, right?”
He nodded once, but his expression didn’t change. He was fighting tears of his own and thirteen-year-old boys didn’t appreciate that kind of emotion.
“Before your Dad and I talked it out and decided to marry, he didn’t think he’d be able to find a wife, so he put up an ad and met Melanie. I think they came to an agreement to marry temporarily.” She heard herself speak as if from a distance and was amazed by how calm she sounded. Inside she was anything but calm.
“Temporarily?” Richard put a teenager’s scorn into the word.
“That’s right.” Heather did her best to make it sound reasonable. “Just long enough to get the ranch.”
“So he was going to lie to Aunt Heloise?”
“He was going to… Yes, he was going to lie to her.” There was no way to soften the truth. A fresh rush of sorrow nearly overwhelmed her, but she forced down all thoughts of the future. She had to concentrate on the now, which meant she needed to forget she’d have to postpone her own wedding to Colt.
“You always get mad when I lie!”
“I know.” There was nothing else she could say.
“What if she won’t go afterward?”
“You mean Melanie?” She’d never considered that possibility, but Richard was right; conceivably Melanie could refuse to divorce Colt. She could drag things out in court, or ask for more money than he’d offered in the meantime.
What if she angled for a piece of the ranch?
“I don’t know. I don’t know any more than you do right now, okay? We’re all going to have to figure this out together.”
“I’ve already figured it out.” Richard pulled away from her. “And it sucks!”
“Richard!”
He stormed across the room, but Colt collared him. “Have a seat.”
“No.” Richard tried to push past him, but Colt wouldn’t let go.
“I said, sit down! Heather, are you ready?”
She nodded and came to sit on one of the sofas. After another brief struggle, Richard tore away from Colt and took a seat on the edge of one of the easy chairs, looking poised for flight. Colt straightened. “I’m glad everyone’s here. I’m sure you’ve all figured out what’s going on. This is Melanie.” He quickly explained the situation. “Now Heloise thinks she’s my fiancée,” he concluded.
“You have to tell her the truth,” Regan said firmly.
“If he does that, we could all lose out,” Austin countered.
“Austin’s right,” Colt said. “She’s not talking about giving the ranch to Darren anymore; she says there’s a d
eveloper interested in buying Crescent Hall. They’ll carve up the ranch and build houses here.”
“She’s got to be lying,” Mason said.
“Are we willing to take that risk?” Austin asked. “Heather, you know what’s going on here. You can wait for Colt, can’t you? This ranch is going to be your and Richard’s home, too.”
“It’s too much to ask for her to wait,” Storm said.
“But it’s only temporary,” Mason countered. “We’d all do what we can to make it bearable.”
“I don’t think we should put that on Heather,” Ella said.
“I think we have to let Heather decide.” Zane sat forward. “Heather?”
This was exactly the moment Heather had dreaded. Everyone waited for her answer. Colt stood with his arms crossed, his expression betraying nothing, while Melanie watched her with a concern that was all too evident.
Richard watched her, too, his face like thunder, but she knew underneath his anger lay disappointment. He loved his father and he loved Crescent Hall. She couldn’t take either of them from him.
Most of all she was afraid of what would happen if she said no.
If Colt threw off Melanie and married her, everyone else would lose the home they’d worked so hard to get. She didn’t think she could stand that. And if Colt didn’t back down—if he went ahead and married Melanie—she’d have lost him forever because of her pride.
“Of course,” she made herself say. She didn’t know how she could watch him pledge his love to another woman, though. Even if everyone but Heloise knew it was a lie, he’d have to act like he loved Melanie and she’d have to stand by and watch.
Richard jumped to his feet and rushed down the hallway. A minute later the front door slammed shut.
Heather stood up. “I have to get Richard to school.”
“Wait a minute. We have to get our stories straight,” Austin said.
“Maybe you all do, but I don’t,” she countered. “I’m late.” She hated the tone that had crept into her voice and if she didn’t leave soon, she’d lose her cool.
“I’ll walk you out,” Colt said.
“Heather, please know I am so, so sorry for how I’ve messed things up,” Melanie said as she passed. “I had no idea—”
