Wildfire in His Arms

by Johanna Lindsey

  She laughed. “You surely do like wasting your money, don’t you?”

  “Why? You might decide you like it there and want to stay.”

  “Me in a big city? Would you be staying?”

  “Probably not. I’m no longer suited to that life. But I suppose I can check on my family while we’re there.”

  Probably not wasn’t a no. Everything could change once he got there and saw his family again. She was the one not suited to his old life, not him. Maybe she should have left well enough alone. . . .

  They reached the farm and put their horses away. Walking to the house, Degan asked, “Do you think your grandmother is still up?”

  “I’m sure she’s dying to find out what Carl had to say.”

  Max was, too. With everything that had happened at Carl’s house, she still didn’t know what he and Degan had said to each other about the hunt for her, the guardianship decree, and the farm.

  Reaching the porch, she said, “I bet she’s in the kitchen with Johnny. Come.”

  She started toward the door and extended her hand to him. It was a natural mistake. She was in her home, back with the people she loved. It’s what she would have done with them. She didn’t even realize she’d done it until Degan put his hand in hers.

  It embarrassed her, how easily she was treating him like family, like a husband—and how easily he was accepting that role. She didn’t want him to feel trapped by his gallantry. He didn’t expect to stay married to her, he’d made that clear before the wedding. Then why was he taking her to Chicago? She’d like to think it was because he didn’t want to part company with her yet, but clothes shopping was a silly excuse. Unless they all needed to get out of Texas before more shooting started. His meeting with Carl could have gone badly. No, he would have said so immediately if it did.

  She let go of his hand in the kitchen when Ella rushed toward them. “I’m so glad you’re both safe! Johnny told me about the shooting. But I still want to know, is Carl going to leave us alone?”

  “That remains to be seen,” Degan answered as they sat down at the table. “I told him nothing definitive. It’s not my place to make decisions for you. But from a business perspective, I understand his motives. You are a roadblock for him. If a town doesn’t expand, it eventually dies. But you were also right, Max. Carl did still have hopes of turning you into a Bingham and even offered me a bribe to divorce you. The man is despicable.”

  “You won’t hear any argument about that at this table,” Ella said.

  Max turned to her grandmother. “Degan told Carl he would shoot him if he ever came near me again.” Ella smiled widely and Max added with a grin, “Yelling at that man tonight felt really good.”

  “I doubt he wants to marry you any longer after seeing tonight how well you can shoot,” Degan said. “But he is still desperate to have this farm. I didn’t promise him that you would sell it, but I told him what I would advise you to ask for it, including financial recompense for Max for what he did to her. I can get you enough from him to build a new farm anywhere you want, any size you want, or to live wherever you please. It will be enough so you can be more than comfortable and never have to work again.”

  “That might be nice,” Ella said. “As long as Max is with me or nearby and Johnny has a room for when he comes home to visit.”

  Max shot to her feet to protest, “But you love this place, Gran!”

  “I love you and your brother,” Ella corrected her. “And, yes, even the stuff that’s in this house that I’ve collected over a lifetime. But not the wood surrounding us, baby girl. The fact is, when the mayor first offered to buy me out all those years ago, I expected you to get married here one day and be living close by, and that’s why I told him no. I wasn’t going to move way out in the countryside where I’d barely see you anymore after you got hitched. Besides,” Ella added bitterly, “over the past two years I’ve lost my love for this town. So if you want to leave, just tell me when and I’ll start packing.”

  Incredulous, Max turned to Degan. “I guess that settles that.”

  He didn’t seem surprised. “You can come with me to Chicago to see how the other half of the country lives. There are many pleasant farming towns outside of the city you might like. I can also suggest other locations. I’ve come across some nice towns in my travels, some that are even quite peaceful.”

  “You mean after you’ve passed through them?”

  He actually chuckled. “And that don’t have mayors with grandiose schemes running them.”

  Johnny concluded with a chuckle of his own. “Sounds like a plan.”

  Chapter Fifty-Two

  THE MAYOR ACTUALLY ENLISTED a good portion of the town to come over and help them pack up. Max saw it as Carl’s wanting them out of town as quickly as possible. Ella saw it as his attempt to make amends. At least he didn’t come to bid them good-bye as most of the townspeople did. As long as Max didn’t have to see Carl Bingham again, they could depart without further incident. She went to the bank and gave Wilson Cox back the money he’d erroneously given her, as well as a tongue-lashing. The ornery coot took back the money but other­wise ignored her. Still, getting that old irritation off her chest left her in a good mood for the trip.

  There were some tears. Ella’s. She’d come to Bingham Hills when there had been no more than one short street. She knew everyone in town by name, and that was a lot of names these days. Max started to have misgivings about taking her away from the place where she’d lived for so long, until Ella hugged her and whispered that she was excited about living someplace new and getting to visit a city as big as Chicago was reputed to be—and she was looking forward to painting again. Which made Max guess that Ella might not want another farm after all, not after Degan had mentioned she was rich enough now never to have to work again.

  When the stagecoach reached Fort Worth, they had to spend an extra day there to wait for the two wagons to catch up. Max had thought they would need more than two, but Ella had decided to leave all her furniture behind, giving it to a young family who had been especially kind to her during Max’s absence from home.

  Not until that overnight stay in Fort Worth, when Max was sharing a room with her grandmother instead of Degan, did it finally hit her—the threat from Carl Bingham had ended. She didn’t have to wait until she was twenty-one to get her marriage annulled. Degan was probably going to take her to a lawyer to get the process started as soon as they got to the city.

  She cried herself to sleep that night. She managed to do it silently so Ella wouldn’t know. Somehow she got through the rest of the trip without letting on just how miserable she felt. Johnny’s excitement helped. Degan had apparently taken him aside for a talk and convinced him that he could go to sea anytime, but now was the better time to further his education if he had any inclination to do so.

  Chicago was amazing. It was like nothing Max could have imagined—the bustle, the endless stream of people, and the buildings, some five stories high! Degan took them straight to a hotel. She was disappointed. She’d thought she was going to meet his family while they were there. Then she was surprised to see that Degan was going to stay in the hotel, too, but really surprised when he escorted her to her room and came inside to put his valise down in it.

  “I think I would have changed hotels if I couldn’t get three rooms this time,” he admitted.

  “This time?”

  “We had to improvise in Fort Worth. They had only two rooms available.”

  Max felt relieved and happy. She’d thought he hadn’t slept with her in Fort Worth because he wanted to quit being her husband right then. But they were still married in more than just the legal sense, and she was going to enjoy every minute of it until they weren’t.

  But then he headed toward the door again.

  “Where are you going?”

  “We are going to take your grandmother to a bank to set up an account and find you both a seamstress.”

  “But we just got here!”

&
nbsp; “It takes time for clothes to be made. And thieves in the city aren’t as easy to spot as they are in the West. I’ll feel better when Ella’s money is safely deposited, and I’m sure she will, too.”

  Max laughed. “I don’t think she knows you carried it here.”

  “I wasn’t going to leave it in Bingham’s bank. While the sale was legal and the documents are signed, he still paid a hundred times over what that property is worth. He might regret that eventually, if he doesn’t already.”

  “Just desserts and small recompense for what he—”

  “Did you want me to kill him?”

  “Would you have?”

  “You already know the answer. He is a politician and a ­businessman—who doesn’t carry a gun.”

  “And you are armed with a business education.” She laughed. “Possibly a more deadly weapon to use against him. I bet he wasn’t expecting that from a gunfighter.”

  “No, he wasn’t.”

  They went to the bank first. For such a huge city with thousands of people in it, Max was dumbfounded that every single employee at the bank greeted Degan by name. All of them were deferential, a few were even friendly, too, but none of them were nervous even though he hadn’t yet put his gun away or changed his clothes to look more citified.

  “I take it you used to come here often?” she asked as they walked through the large building to the manager’s office.

  “Yes.”

  Then the manager rushed forward, exclaiming, “Thank goodness you’re home, Mr. Grant. Your father hasn’t attended a board meeting for years, and your brother has so little interest in them that he simply accedes to the majority vote.” And then in a whisper: “I don’t think he realizes that he is the majority vote.”

  “I’m not here for a board meeting, I’m here to set up an account for Mrs. Dawson. Attend to it for me.”

  “Certainly, sir.”

  “And quickly.”

  “I understand.”

  Max pulled Degan back as the manager escorted Ella into his office. “You own this bank?”

  “It’s one of several my family founded, yes.”

  “You couldn’t warn me?”

  “Why? Would you have picked another? This one is solid. And despite the apparent lack of leadership recently, the board members have a vested interest in keeping it that way.”

  It sounded to Max as if Degan had been needed here, though he didn’t appear surprised to find that out. Allison Montgomery must have told him something about his family that he hadn’t shared with her. And now Max was more curious and interested in meeting his family than ever. But she ended up spending the rest of the day at the elegant shop of a French seamstress who had a small army of assistants.

  Degan left her there with her grandmother, telling her, “Follow their advice. They know exactly what is needed.”

  Needed by whom? Certainly not by her. This was a frivolous waste of money as far as Max was concerned. But Ella was having fun, and although Max wouldn’t admit it, she was, too, after a while. They were even served lunch! A cart was rolled in from a restaurant across the street, and the waiter actually remained to serve them. She had so many choices to make, though she didn’t realize it could have been much worse if she had been taken to the stockroom. Instead, swatches of material were brought out to her, only a few per dress. But an argument ensued when the seamstress suggested that velvet only be used as a trim. Max fell in love with that material and wanted all of her new clothes to be made of it.

  The seamstress flatly refused. “It is for winter, madam. Return in the fall and we will show you all of the velvets.”

  “What if I’m not here in the fall?” The seamstress didn’t have an answer to that, so Max added, “Just make me one velvet dress or I’m leaving.”

  She won the argument, but Ella tsked at her as soon as the woman left the room. “She’s right, you know. You will swelter in a velvet day dress in this weather.”

  “I was wearing doeskin and leather in this weather just a few weeks ago, Gran. Anything is cooler than that. But why did she concede to use it for nightwear? I don’t want to sleep in it.”

  “An evening gown isn’t for bed. Relax, baby girl. City folk are accustomed to wearing clothes for each part of the day, morning gowns, day gowns, walking gowns, evening gowns.”

  Max masked her surprise and simply said, “How silly.”

  And then the bonnets arrived. . . .

  Chapter Fifty-Three

  THE NEXT FEW DAYS in Chicago were a whirlwind. Degan kept Max so busy she didn’t have time to wonder when he was going home or if he’d already been there. He drove her around the city in an open carriage, pointing out sites of interest. She was sure she could live there for months or more and still not see everything there was to see.

  He took her to restaurants that featured foreign food that she refused to comment on, though at a few of them she had to drink a lot of water after the meal. They rode through parks he used to frequent, even went to a horse race at a large track, though they didn’t stay for all the races. Too many people recognized him and plied him with questions he wasn’t willing to answer. He got good use out of the word undecided that day.

  Was he really undecided about going home, about staying in Chicago, about taking her to a lawyer? He still hadn’t mentioned any of that, and she was hesitant to bring it up when they were sharing the same bed again and not just sleeping in it. Max looked forward to lying down beside him every night, feeling the warmth and strength of his big body, looking up in the darkened room and seeing his face so close to hers. She loved touching him and the way he touched her, and all the kissing they did. Inevitably, it got both of them hot and led to lovemaking that still surprised her with all its different kinds of sensual delights. She couldn’t bear to think about giving all that up. But they were going to have to talk about it, and soon. Ella had already confided to Max that she was enjoying her first trip to a big city, but she’d be uncomfortable settling down here. Max felt the same way, but she would stay if Degan was going to stay—if he wanted her to stay.

  The new clothes had begun trickling in as well as boxes of shoes. Max hadn’t even noticed that her feet had been measured at the seamstress’s shop. And one round box for each of the bonnets was delivered. She’d bought them all! The dresses she could hang in the small wardrobe—well, until the rest of them arrived—but the hotel room was still getting crowded with all the boxes.

  Degan didn’t mind, but he did say, “We may have to move to my home just so you can have a room for all your purchases. Some dressing rooms are as big as a bedroom.”

  “No one needs that many clothes. I’ll manage just fine. But are you ready to go home?”

  He nodded. “We will visit my brother today. By now, he must have heard that I’m in the city. I don’t want him to think I’m avoiding him.”

  “And your father?”

  “He will likely be home, but I’d rather not subject you to that meeting. According to Allison, he’s developed an addiction to drink. While I’ve spoken to a few of his old friends, they didn’t confirm it, but they did say they rarely see him anymore, and one said he’d gone daft, obsessed with some business venture that couldn’t possibly turn a profit. So I’m not sure what to believe.”

  Max wanted to hug him so bad, but was afraid he’d see it as pity. She still said hesitantly, “I’m sorry. This should have been a pleasant homecoming for you.”

  “It was never going to be that. I only hope it’s not too late for my father to recover. But come here. Before you meet Flint, I should explain why the meeting might be hostile.”

  He was sitting in one of the two armchairs. He’d just put his boots on. She was already dressed in one of her new walking gowns, which Degan had had to fasten for her because the buttons were in the back. She’d planned to tell the seamstress not to make her any more like it until Degan had finished fastening the gown with a kiss on her shoulder. Maybe she wouldn’t mind asking him for assistance after
all.

  The dress was made of lovely lavender silk and was accessorized with a stylish purple jacket that formed part of the bustle, a lacy, purple parasol that she wasn’t sure how to open, and an adorable bonnet with a fluffy lavender feather on it. It was hard to tear herself away from the full-length mirror where she was admiring herself. If Bingham Hills could see her now, they would not recognize her!

  But she walked over to Degan, who drew her onto his lap. She wasn’t expecting that, and as usual when she got this close to him, her body began to respond, her thoughts flying away, and . . .

  “It’s not pleasant to remember what ended my engagement to Allison.”

  That name was like a dousing in cold water. “You don’t have to tell me if it’s still painful.”

  “It’s not and it hasn’t been for a long time. I thought the anger was gone, too, until Allison turned up like a bad penny and reminded me.”

  “Wasn’t she merely concerned about your family? That is the impression she gave for coming after you.”

  “Yes, I just haven’t figured out why. But the night that my world fell apart, I arrived late at the small dinner party my father had arranged at our home to celebrate my and Allison’s engagement to marry. I found out later he had been detained at the bank by business, and Allison’s parents had left early, angry that both my father and I weren’t present. I had no excuse for arriving so late.”

  “Then why did you?”

  “To be honest, I simply forgot about the dinner. And if I hadn’t had a few drinks with a friend before I got home, that night might have ended quite differently.”

  Max went very still. She was guessing ahead and realizing that Allison must have been angry, too, that he could overlook something as important as their engagement dinner. But to retaliate by cheating on him? Wasn’t that spiting herself more than him? Unless . . .

  “Good grief, you didn’t actually tell her you forgot, did you?”

  His sigh was drawn out. “No, when I arrived home, it was later than I thought. The dining room was empty. Most of the servants had already gone to bed. And then a scream echoed down the stairs. I panicked, thinking it was Allison, that she’d waited for me, but someone had broken into our house and was hurting her. It wouldn’t have been the first time we were robbed at night. So I grabbed one of my father’s pistols and raced upstairs and shot the man who was attacking her. I thought I was saving her, but I wasn’t. Her screams had been from pleasure.”