The Rancher's Surprise Marriage

by Susan Crosby

  “Okay. We’ll leave right after, though. Got some things to do at home.” Like make love to her in the broad daylight, something he hadn’t done before. Maybe they could just slip into the shower together and soap each other up—

  “Meantime, there’s this to finish,” his father said as the women rode their horses into the barn.

  “I remember being that hot to trot,” Tony’s brother Cal said as they installed the last gate. He’d been married twenty-five years. “Get it while you can,” he said, elbowing Tony. “Before they’re too tired.”

  “Maggie’ll never get tired,” Grady said, grinning broadly. “She’ll be off makin’ millions makin’ movies. Must be nice, livin’ the life of Riley like that, eh, brother?”

  Tony would’ve taken it in jest except that his father added, “Probably wouldn’t make a good ranch wife, anyway.”

  Tony went ramrod straight. “You don’t know her well enough to know that.”

  “You ever looked at her hands? Bet she’s never picked up a shovel.”

  “So what? She works hard at what she does. I thought you liked her.” Better than me, your own son.

  “I was just sayin’.” Hoyt’s jaw went rigid. “You got to admit, it’s a leap for a woman like that.”

  “You have no idea what that woman is made of. You think I’d choose someone frivolous?”

  “You have in the past.”

  Tony handed his wrench to Grady. He needed to get away before he said something that should come in private, whenever their big showdown happened. And it would happen sometime.

  He went straight to the barn, where Maggie was grooming the horse she’d ridden.

  “Let’s go,” he said.

  “What? Why? I need to finish with Buttercup. Plus, we’re all having lunch—”

  “Someone else can take over with the horse. Sorry about lunch, Mom. We’ll see you later.”

  “I have to get my purse from the house,” Maggie said, confusion on her face as she looked back and forth between mother and son.

  “Fine. I’ll meet you at the truck.”

  “What’d your father say this time?” Sue-Ellen asked after Maggie was out of sight.

  “It doesn’t bear repeating.”

  “He doesn’t know how to talk to you, son. Never has.”

  “Well, that goes both ways.” The old memory flared, from when he was twelve and he’d overheard his father—

  “He loves you.”

  “He tolerates me. Look, Mom, let’s just stop it here.” What made it harder was knowing his father would end up being right when his marriage to Maggie ended, as if he wasn’t man enough to keep her. The thought wore him down.

  There’s still time to get out.

  Nope. Never. He’d never been a quitter. Wasn’t starting now, either.

  He got to the truck the same time as Maggie. He held the door for her, stood perfectly still as she cupped a hand to his face.

  The ride to the Lucky Hand was quiet and tense.

  “What happened?” Maggie asked finally as they headed up the final road to the house.

  “Same ol’, same ol’.”

  “I figure it was about me.”

  He debated a bit with himself before answering. “No. It was about me. It’s always about me. I’ve never been good enough.”

  “How much of that is in your head, Tony?”

  He looked sharply at her. “Don’t be my analyst, okay? I know what I know.”

  She got an annoyed look on her face, but he had no intention of explaining anything. When he pulled up by the house, she hopped out and hurried into the house. Dino wandered over before Tony could follow.

  “Sadie and Leesa headed into Phoenix to shop,” Dino said. “Everything okay?”

  “She’s ticked at me.”

  “Good.”

  “Good? Why’s that?”

  Dino crossed his arms. “She never gets mad, at least not in front of anyone. If she’s showing you she’s mad, it’s healthy, I think.”

  “Interesting theory.”

  “I’ve been with her ten years. I know her pretty well. So, I can also tell you this—she doesn’t hold on to her anger.”

  So if he played his cards right, he could still get lucky. Still make love to her in the daylight. Especially now that the house was empty, and she wouldn’t be worrying about anyone hearing them.

  Tony clapped Dino on the shoulder. “Thanks.”

  “You planning on going anywhere else today?”

  “Nothing on the agenda. We’ll probably take a nap.” He started up the stairs.

  “I’ll see you aren’t disturbed.”

  Tony glanced back as he opened the door, hearing a touch of humor in Dino’s voice, but he’d turned away.

  Tony steeled himself for battle. She was a woman, after all, and would want to “fix” things, get him to see his father’s point of view or something.

  He didn’t find her in the kitchen. She wasn’t in the bedroom, either. He headed into the master bath and found her bare naked next to the shower. She leaned into it and turned on the faucets.

  “Took you long enough, cowboy.”

  She was every fantasy he’d ever had come to life. She didn’t move but just watched him undress, dropping his filthy clothes in a heap on the floor then approaching her, aware of his sweat and dirt. Dino knew her well. She’d left her anger behind—or was delaying further discussion.

  “I guess you’re happy to see me,” she said pertly.

  “Always.”

  “I’ve noticed. I’m flattered.”

  “Sadie and Leesa are gone for the day.”

  Her brows rose. “Are they?”

  He nodded. They came body to body. “You can make all the noise you want,” he said, dragging his lips along her jaw, up to the perfect shell of her ear. “I know you were holdin’ back last night.”

  She gasped a little as he tickled her ear with his tongue. “How would you know that?”

  “Those teeth marks you left in my shoulder.” He moved her into the shower with him, reached for the bar of soap. “You still mad at me?” he asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Good.”

  “Good?”

  He ran the bar over her breasts. “Yeah. It’ll make things even more intense.” He thumbed soap around her hard nipples.

  She closed her eyes and groaned…

  It was the beginning of a long, glorious afternoon.

  Chapter Thirteen

  When Tony awoke the next morning, Maggie was gone. He looked at the clock—5:25—and noticed that no lights were on in the bathroom. He climbed out of bed, headed for the living room then remembered he needed to wear something, since Leesa was in the house.

  He pulled on his jeans. Barefoot he made his way through the living room into the kitchen, the smell of fresh coffee drawing him, but that room was empty, too.

  Where was she?

  He poured a cup then went out on his front porch, noting that the door was unlocked. No Maggie there, either.

  He stepped off the porch and went around the side of the house to Dino’s RV. The door swung open before he knocked. Dino was fully dressed.

  “Have you seen Maggie?” Tony asked. He’d never been witness to anyone going into full-alert mode like Dino did right then.

  He hurried down the stairs and looked around. “You lost her?”

  “I wouldn’t go that far. She’s not in the house, but she made a fresh pot of coffee. She probably went for a walk.”

  “Aren’t you going to go look for her?”

  “Not sure I should,” Tony countered. “Apparently she wants to be alone.” Or she would’ve awakened me and told me she was going—or invited me to come along.

  Leesa stuck her head out the guest-room window. “What’s going on?”

  “Maggie’s missing,” Dino answered.

  “What? When? How?”

  “She’s not missing, exactly,” Tony said, almost laughing. “She’s just not in the house.
I figure she’s out for a walk.”

  “Well, there’s nothing else to do in this place, so you’re probably right,” Leesa said with a yawn.

  Tony had been wondering how Leesa was dealing with living so far from the city. He knew she didn’t have much to do now that filming was over. She sounded bored. “I’ll get dressed and see if I can catch up with her,” Tony said.

  “I’ll go, too,” Dino added.

  “And I’m going back to bed.” Leesa shut her window.

  A few minutes later, Tony and Dino met out front, debated about whether to drive or walk, then set out on foot down the hill toward the barn and other outbuildings. Dino had already contacted his men, who roamed the land by Jeep, and no one had seen her.

  Tony refused to worry.

  They got within sight of the stables, could hear someone singing. Sort of. “Who’s that?” Tony asked, afraid of the answer.

  “Your lovely bride-to-be.”

  “No wonder she’s never done any musicals.”

  Dino laughed, but Tony could tell he was relieved. So was Tony, although more annoyed than relieved.

  “You can go back,” Tony said.

  Dino gave him a curious look but said nothing. He turned away and headed up the hill. Tony continued on to the stables, following her voice. She was messing up the lyrics so much he wasn’t even sure which song she was singing, some odd combination of “Home on the Range” and “She’ll Be Coming ’Round the Mountain.”

  “What are you doing?” he asked from the open doorway.

  She whirled around. Her cheeks were flushed already, but he thought they deepened in color. “Singing.”

  It wasn’t what he’d meant, but he went with it. “I take exception to that claim.”

  She leaned against her stall-fork handle. “So I’ve been told. I didn’t think the horses would mind.”

  He came up to her, plucked a piece of straw from her hair, then another. She looked as if she’d rolled out of bed and come directly to the stables. “What’s your natural hair color?” he asked.

  “Brown, but with a little more gold than the red it is now.”

  “Will you have to change it for your next role?”

  “I don’t know yet. Do you mind this color? I hadn’t thought I’d change it for the wedding.”

  “It’s fine.”

  “Fine? Now there’s a high compliment.”

  “You’re beautiful. I’ve told you that. What color your hair is doesn’t change that.” He looked around, checking out the horses, who didn’t look any worse for wear having listened to her singing, a sound that must’ve seemed strange to them. “You’re up early, Margaret.”

  “Couldn’t sleep.”

  “How come?”

  “I don’t know. I heard Sadie come in, and I got out of bed to see how she was feeling, because yesterday she wasn’t well.”

  It was the first he’d heard of it. “What’s wrong with her?”

  “Flu, maybe. Butch is taking her to her obstetrician today. He needs to be sure she can fly to San Francisco tomorrow. Anyway, I sent her back to bed. I told her I’d take care of the meals today.”

  “Yeah? What does that mean? That you’ll draft Dino or Leesa to take over?”

  She swatted at him. “Show up at seven o’clock and find out.”

  “Wouldn’t miss it.” He gestured toward the stalls. “So, what’s with the mucking?”

  “Felt the urge.”

  “You felt the urge to muck stalls?” He put a hand against her forehead, and she smiled. “You know you’re taking away from someone else’s job, right? Someone who depends on the income?”

  Color drained from her face. “No.”

  “Bopper. Kid from a neighboring ranch. He shows up at six. Takes care of things then heads to school.”

  “I’m so sorry. I’ll make sure to be here so I can apologize. I was just trying to be helpful.”

  “Helpful,” he repeated thoughtfully. “Actually, you didn’t take away any work from him, since we muck the stuff into a wheelbarrow, not onto the ground. Makes it easier to haul it over to the compost heap. He’ll still have to load the wheelbarrow.”

  She frowned but stayed silent. Tony looked around the stables, debating what to say, whether to tell her what was on his mind, then decided he would. “Why’d you leave without telling me? We had this discussion before. You promised you wouldn’t do that again. Even Dino didn’t know you’d gone.”

  “I wanted you to sleep in. And just how far do you think I would—or could—go?”

  “You sound irritated.”

  “Look, Tony, I was just trying to be helpful. Is there something wrong with that?”

  Her defensive tone gave him pause. What was really going on? “Nothing, except that we’re a pretty smooth-running operation. There aren’t a lot of jobs that need tending.” At least, not ones she could physically handle, more along the lines of tearing down and building structures, rerunning water lines or some such business. “Are you bored now that you’re not working? I realize you’re not in your own place, with friends around. Figure it’s hard on you.”

  She shook her head. “It’s not. I’m enjoying the break and the different way of life. I’m trying—” She stopped, turned away, taking her stall fork with her.

  “Trying what?”

  “To be a good ranch wife,” she muttered, hanging the tool up on the wall where it belonged.

  He followed. “Did my father say something to you?”

  She faced him, her arms crossed. “No. Is that what ticked you off yesterday? Did he criticize me?”

  “Nothing he says matters to me.”

  “That’s such a lie, Tony. What he says matters way too much to you.”

  Ice slithered through him like a deadly rattler. “When did you become the expert on my relationship with my father?”

  “I listen. I observe.” She put her hand on his arm.

  He sloughed it off, moved back a little. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Okay.”

  “But this business about being a good ranch wife? It has nothing to do with the work you do on the ranch.”

  “That’s not what I heard.”

  “It counts, but it’s the least important. You already have a job. You bring in an income. That also matters, since ranching doesn’t turn much profit. The problem you would run up against—if you were going to truly be a ranch wife, not just filling the position temporarily—is fitting in. A good ranch wife’s social life is church on Sunday morning and the occasional potluck dinner followed by horseshoes. These folks around here have known each other all their lives, and in a lot of cases are related to one another, a lot by marriage. Cracking that circle can be tough.”

  She looked defeated. He couldn’t stand that. “I would face the same thing with your circle, darlin’. I wouldn’t fit in. Not by a long shot.”

  “I don’t think it’s a matter of you fitting in. You’d hold your own anywhere. It’s a matter of me not wanting you to even try. It’s not your kind of world. It’s barely my kind.”

  What was she saying? Should he read between the lines? Maybe—

  “Hey, boss. Something wrong?” Bopper, a tall, lanky teen sauntered in. He tipped his hat at Maggie then realized who she was. He looked at the ground, shifted from foot to foot. “Ma’am.”

  “Nothing’s wrong, Bopper—”

  “Oh, you’re Bopper!” Maggie exclaimed.

  That brought the boy’s head up in a hurry.

  “I’m so sorry,” she said, then gestured to the heap of manure she’d created. “I did some of your work this morning. I didn’t realize I shouldn’t, and maybe I even made your job worse. You’ll still get paid in full, no matter what. Or more, if it takes you longer.”

  Tony laughed quietly. She really was something else. As if he wouldn’t pay the boy what he was due.

  “Don’t you need to start fixing breakfast?” he asked her, wanting to get her away so that Bopper wouldn’t end up la
te to school. It was obvious the teenager wasn’t going to do anything but stare at Maggie.

  “Breakfast is under control,” she said, “but I could use a shower.” She extended her hand to Bopper. “It was nice meeting you. I hope I didn’t make you late.”

  “Yes, ma’am. I mean, no, ma’am.” He shook Maggie’s hand. “I’ll be just fine.”

  Tony and Maggie turned to leave.

  “Ma’am? Would you mind if I took a picture with you? My friends aren’t gonna believe it.” He passed his cell phone to Tony and showed him which button to push.

  Maggie slipped her arm through Bopper’s, angling her head toward him. Tony was impressed and a little amazed that she didn’t at least fluff her hair first. She wore no makeup, either, yet she let her picture be taken.

  “Thanks,” Bopper said, his grin wide as he tucked the phone in his pocket again. “Thanks a lot.”

  “I’ll be seeing you around, I’m sure,” she said, then moved out of the stables with Tony. They walked up the hill to the house. “Nice boy,” she said.

  “I suppose you’re used to males getting all tongue-tied and flustered around you, especially boys like Bopper.”

  “A little. Even big boys. Not you, though.”

  “I’m not a boy.”

  “I did happen to notice that manly detail, cowboy.”

  They walked without talking after that. He wondered at her silence, unusual for her.

  “So, what’s for breakfast?” he asked.

  “French toast, ham, melon and orange juice.”

  “Sounds great.” And uncomplicated, since French toast was something even he could make. “Want help fixing it?”

  “No, thanks.”

  More walking, more silence. “Leesa’s got cabin fever,” he said.

  “I know. I don’t know what to do about it. I can’t let her leave, not before the wedding, anyway. She’s handling a lot of the details regarding all the guests.”

  “And with my family. She’s very efficient.”

  “You can say that again. I don’t want to lose her, so I might just let her have the run of the Malibu house and we’ll work by phone until…Well, you know.”

  Until the marriage is ended. The timing of which they’d agreed was his decision. “You’re headed to New York in a few weeks.”