Husband for a Year

by Rebecca Winters

  A shudder rocked Gabe’s body.

  All this time Stefanie had been on a secret mission for his father… Everything she’d said and done since Gabe had left Newport had been a lie. Only in his case, the ex-husband had been the last person to know.

  “Are you listening, son? Where in the hell are you, and what do you think you’re doing?”

  The time for complete honesty had come. Without mincing words, Gabe explained about the ranch. He repeated what he’d told Stefanie about his reasons for settling here.

  “I’m afraid any plans to make it to the White House are out, Dad. But then that was your dream for me and Stefanie. I can tell you right now, it’s never going to happen. However there’s always hope for her. She’s a free agent. There’s nothing to stop her from marrying a man who’ll take her there.”

  “Gabe—son—bring her back home and at least make a marriage with her.”

  “I live here now, Dad.”

  “But she doesn’t want another man.”

  “The hell she doesn’t!” Gabe was still reeling from her rejection of him half an hour ago. “You’ve been her mentor all along. Surely you can find her a man with the right stuff. As you’ve so often told me, she can’t wait to be the First Lady.”

  His father chuckled nervously, which was totally unlike him. “Gabriel—you know your old dad. I only said that to get you thinking.”

  “Come again?”

  “It’s no secret I wanted the two of you to get together.”

  He gripped the receiver tighter. “So what are you saying exactly?” When his father didn’t answer right away Gabe blurted, “Are you telling me you lied about that?”

  “At the time it seemed harmless,” his father answered quietly.

  Then that meant—

  Gabe’s heart almost exploded out of its chest cavity.

  “I’ve got to go, Dad.”

  “Wait— Son— Tell Stefanie I apologize for being so hard on her.”

  What else had his father done he didn’t know about? Only Stefanie had the answers.

  “Gabe, darling?” His mother must have been listening the whole time. “Call again soon. We love you.”

  “We do,” was his father’s muffled rejoinder.

  “I love you, too.”

  He hung up the receiver with an excitement he couldn’t control. Finally he was going to have the confrontation with Stefanie that had been destined for what seemed like a lifetime…

  Before he did anything else, he checked her bedroom on the off chance that she’d slept in. Disappointed when he found the nursery empty, he decided it was for the best. After being up all night he needed to shower and shave.

  Twenty minutes later he and Clover hurried down to the kitchen. Marva served him breakfast. Apparently she hadn’t seen Teri and didn’t expect her until the afternoon. That meant Stefanie was hard at work in the barn. He took off in that direction.

  “Hi, Mr. Wainwright!”

  “David? How’s it coming?”

  “Really good, sir.”

  “Glad to hear it.” He chatted with a couple of the boys mucking out the stalls. There was a definite improvement in their mood. The party last night had done wonders for morale. “You’re doing a fine job.”

  He walked back outside where Mack’s assistant was getting ready to shoe one of the horses. “Good morning, Will.”

  “Gabe? Heard you had yourself some birthday party last night.”

  “It came as a total surprise. I’d like to thank Ms. Jones since she was in on the planning end.”

  “I haven’t seen her this morning.”

  He frowned. “What about Mack?”

  “Some cows got out and strayed up the blue ridge. He took off to repair the fence. I don’t expect him back till late.”

  “Thanks, Will.”

  Maybe John Wrigley had asked Stefanie to sit in on a session with Clay and his mother this morning. She couldn’t have left the ranch because he hadn’t unlocked the main gate yet.

  Growing impatient, his gaze swerved to the paddock. He could account for every horse, but there was no sign of Molly. Galvanized into action, he returned to the barn. The mare wasn’t in her stall!

  When Gabe had walked out on Stefanie earlier this morning, he’d left her in a distressed state. There was no other word for it. He’d never seen her so utterly devastated. But his own agony had propelled him out of the room before he lost total control. Evidently she’d turned to riding to deal with her turmoil.

  Mack was always up early. Surely he would have seen her at the barn.

  Gabe whipped out his cell phone to call his foreman. To his relief he didn’t have to wait too long to hear the click.

  “This is Mack.”

  “Mack? It’s Gabe. Did you see Teri this morning? Molly’s gone.”

  “As a matter of fact she rode with me as far as the river pasture. She wanted to check up on Lucky. I told her I’d swing by there again on my way back later. Is everything okay, boss?”

  A heaving sigh escaped. “It is now. Thanks, Mack. I’ll be headed that way in a minute. Stay in touch.”

  He put his phone away and dashed out of the barn. “Will? If anyone asks, I’ve gone to the river pasture.”

  The older stockman nodded.

  While Gabe saddled Caesar, he noticed thunder-heads building. There would be fireworks by late afternoon.

  As imperative as it was that he get the truth out of Stefanie, his first priority had to be her safety. If he rode hard, he could have her back home before the storm hit. Then he’d take her someplace private and…

  Dear God. He couldn’t think beyond getting her alone, holding her, loving her like he’d done for those brief minutes in her bedroom this morning.

  Those memories were all that sustained him as he made the ride to the meadow in record time. But his heart dropped like a stone when he galloped close to the herd and couldn’t find her.

  He contacted Mack on the cell phone once more. “There’s no sign of Teri.”

  “Maybe she got nervous and decided to join me. I’ll ride back the way I came and meet you halfway.”

  His foreman’s plan made good sense. “See you soon.”

  But when they met each other a half hour later without either one of them having found her, Gabe felt a pit the size of a crater in his gut. The wind had started to pick up. She would notice the drop in temperature.

  “I’ve got to find her, Mack.” His lids closed tightly. “After all we’ve been through, if anything were to happen to Stefanie before I could tell her how I feel…”

  “Boss— I know we’re talking about Teri, but just now you called her Stefanie.”

  Gabe eyed his foreman. “Stefanie’s my ex-wife.”

  “That explains it,” Mack murmured. “I never saw a man so crazy about a woman in my life! What in the hell are you doing letting her sleep alone every night?”

  “There are things you don’t know.”

  “I don’t need to know them,” he retorted. “I don’t care what caused the divorce. The chemistry’s there. It’s powerful. I’d give anything to have my wife back!

  “Don’t you know how lucky you are to be loved by a woman like Stefanie? She worships the ground you walk on.”

  “I want to believe that, Mack.” His voice shook.

  “That’s why I have to find her. I need to hear her say those words.”

  “She’s around here somewhere licking her wounds.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I rode with her this morning. She had all the signs of a brokenhearted woman. We’ll find her, boss. I already alerted the hands. They’re making a sweep now. Where do you want to look?”

  “The other night we stayed at the old fire watchtower. I told her that’s where the stockmen go if they need shelter. Maybe she got so frightened, she headed there. I pray she’s not lost. I’m going to search that area first.”

  “I’ll swing around the other way.”

  “Mack—thanks for bei
ng my friend.”

  “Ditto. By the way, it’s nice to be back in your good graces again.”

  Gabe had turned his horse to get going, but he stopped long enough to look over his shoulder at Mack. “What do you mean?”

  “For a man who always seems to have everything under control, you’re downright scary when you’re jealous.”

  From the vantage point of the fire tower porch, Stefanie watched the cloudburst do its worst. She could have made it back to the ranch before the storm broke. But knowing Gabe would already have talked to his parents, her fear of his reaction was so great, she’d chosen to hide from him a little longer.

  To her shame she hadn’t considered anyone else when she’d made that rash decision. Last night Clay had run off and Gabe had gone looking for him. Tonight he would be looking for her, compounding a never-ending, explosive situation between them. Guilt smote her when she realized he would have summoned every hand on the ranch to comb the property for signs of her.

  Rather than the violence of the elements, it was his state of mind that had her body trembling with fear. If her cell phone batteries hadn’t died on her, she would have phoned the main house to let them know she was all right.

  Intermittent sheet lightning, punctuated by thunder, illuminated the inside of the tower. Between episodes, the darkness would have been daunting if not for the light from the butane lantern. She set it next to the cot while she made dinner out of the rest of the food she’d brought.

  Molly was tied under a huge cluster of pines where Stefanie hoped the horse would stay the driest. Lightning struck trees, so it was probably the wrong place to put her, but she couldn’t just let the horse stand in the open and take the full brunt of the rain.

  If Stefanie were a more experienced outdoors-woman, a more experienced anything, she would head back to the ranch as soon as the storm passed over.

  En route she might even bump into some stockmen who would not only be out looking for her, but were taking shifts through the night to help with problem deliveries of the new spring calves.

  On the other hand, it was possible she wouldn’t see anyone in the darkness. If she got lost, she could get into serious trouble. It would be better to stay here and start out tomorrow under the clear sky of day.

  After she finished eating, she sat huddled in the middle of the cot with the blankets drawn around her. She used another blanket to try to dry her hair.

  A strong gust of wind had blown her hat away before the downpour began. By the time she’d climbed the ladder, her wig was shot. It lay on the floor in a dark, sodden heap.

  That was the way she felt right now. All washed-up and black with despair.

  She’d never thought beyond Gabe. It hadn’t been a part of her consciousness to consider existence without him.

  Get used to it, Stefanie. This is the way it’s going to be from now on.

  While he attempted to quell the furious pounding of his heart, Gabe studied Stefanie from the doorway of the tower.

  Once he’d spotted Molly beneath the pines, the frantic beat should have subsided out of relief that he’d found her. But such wasn’t the case.

  Now that she was within touching distance, his adrenaline had gone haywire. Too much energy suppressed for too long couldn’t be held back any longer.

  Huddled under the blankets with the thunder rolling in, it was little wonder she hadn’t heard him climb the ladder. No matter how he announced his presence, it was going to frighten her.

  “Stefanie?”

  At the sound of his voice she scrambled off the cot, leaving the blankets in a pile. With her glorious blond hair in seductive disarray and her damp shirt and jeans molded to her breathtaking body, he didn’t know where to look first.

  Every inch of her reached out to him, so vital and alive he wanted to absorb her essence into his being where she would live forever.

  He moved closer, obeying the siren call of those eyes more beguiling than blue flame. A hand went out, as if to hold him off. She took a step backward.

  “Y-you don’t need to say a word, Gabe. I know what I’ve done. The rain is letting up. If we leave for the ranch now, I’ll get in my car and go away for good. I swear it.”

  Gabe hadn’t been able to get to the tower fast enough. But now that he’d found her and could see that she wasn’t injured or ill, a great calm had come over him. His body relaxed. She was hoping for a quick retreat. She obviously didn’t understand the rules of war.

  “There was a time not too long ago when I trusted you with my life, Stefanie. But your presence at the ranch after I arrived, combined with certain information my father brought to light at four this morning, has led me to believe your oath is about as enduring as a garment in a hot furnace.”

  He tossed his hat aside, then removed his gloves and jacket.

  “Don’t say that!” she cried out, her eyes swimming in liquid. “I can explain everything. There were compelling reasons why I followed you out here.”

  “I’ve already heard them, so let’s not waste time covering the same ground again.”

  He’d always found those reasons suspect. Now was the time to wring every ounce of truth from her. The trouble was, he wanted to touch her so badly, he had to keep his arms folded.

  “Why don’t you start at the point where I drove away in the limo and you ran straight to my father to receive further instructions.”

  A hand fluttered to her throat. “It wasn’t like that, Gabe.”

  “Then enlighten me.”

  While he waited breathlessly for her next explanation, he reached for the air mattresses and started to fill them using an old bicycle pump.

  She followed him. “You seem to have this idea that your father and I were in league together in some great conspiracy.”

  His head reared back. “Shall I tell you how it looked from my vantage point? Throughout the year leading up to our marriage, you two were so tight, I suspected you of having an affair.”

  He saw her throat working. “You don’t really mean that.” She sounded aghast. When he didn’t say anything else, she cried, “You do mean it. Gabe—”

  She sounded close to hysterics as she knelt by him, clutching his arm. “I swear nothing could be further from the truth!”

  Recalling those gut-wrenching suspicions brought back in full force the excruciating pain he thought he’d buried long ago.

  “You have a poor memory, Stefanie. Didn’t we just establish that your word hasn’t necessarily been your bond?”

  The peaches and cream color drained out of her face, making her beauty more ethereal. “You have it all wrong,” her voice trembled. “Totally and completely wrong.”

  He wanted to believe her, but the old demons were still driving him. “You mean he was hoping for an affair with you, but he was only a senator, and you were playing for higher stakes?”

  CHAPTER TEN

  “MUCH higher stakes,” she whispered.

  A bleak look entered his eyes. “That’s probably the first honest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

  “Gabe—” She found his hand and grasped it in both of hers. “I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love you with all my heart. Do you know after I went to work for your father, I started keeping a scrapbook on you?”

  Gabe pulled his hand away and rose to his full, intimidating height. “Don’t lie to me, Stefanie.”

  Stunned by his reaction because so much damage had been done, she got to her feet. “I’m not lying, darling.”

  Her endearment caused him to pale. She refused to let him put distance between them. Before this night was over she was determined he would learn how much he was loved.

  “When we get back to the ranch, I’ll show it to you. It’s so full I really need to start another one. The magazines and newspapers were always full of stories about you. Every week I cut out a new clipping to add to my precious collection.”

  She saw him rub the back of his neck absently. It meant he was listening.

  “
You’ll probably laugh when I tell you that the day I met you on your father’s yacht, I made up my mind that one day when I was all grown up, I was going to marry you.”

  Silence followed her confession. Maybe she was starting to get through to him. He hadn’t accused her of lying to him this time.

  “After I’d been working for your father for a while, I asked Daddy why the last Wainwright son had stayed a bachelor. He said you were probably still single because you had a brilliant political future ahead of you. Any man rumored to be a future candidate for president of the U.S. would choose his wife more carefully than most men.”

  Gabe searched her eyes. “I had no idea.”

  “I asked him if he thought I could be that woman. Like a loving father, he told me any man would be very lucky to get me for a wife. It was sweet of him, but it wasn’t the answer I was looking for.

  “I begged him to be serious for a minute. What did I need to do to attract you?

  “He studied me for a minute, then he said, ‘You’re thirteen years younger than he is. That’s all right as long as you can be his intellectual and emotional helpmate.’

  “I took what he said to heart, but to my dismay I rarely saw you around campaign headquarters. It seemed your brothers were much more involved in politics than you were. I—I was crushed.”

  Gabe shook his head, as if he still couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

  “When your father’s assistant came down with bronchitis and had to take time off, I was asked to be her replacement. It was a great opportunity, but deep down I couldn’t help hoping I would get to see more of you.

  “He warned me I would have to work all hours of the day and night. I assured him that was fine. Your father seemed pleased with that answer. I worked hard and received my reward when his assistant came back and he gave her another position instead.

  “Your father and I worked well together. That made me proud, but he never knew my love for you had a lot to do with my job satisfaction. Little by little he confided private things to me.

  “Early on I learned how much he loved you, what great hopes he had for his youngest son to sit in the White House one day. All I knew was that I loved you, too. It was the love affair over you that bonded your father and me. Nothing else.