“Melanie, getting back to the reason I called, has Garrett indicated in any way if he intends contacting those, uh, men?”
“Dad’s other sons? Not to me, he hasn’t. He seems troubled, though, and I have a strong hunch that he’s giving the situation a great deal of thought.”
“Hmm, no telling how this could end up.”
“At this point, I’d have to agree.”
“If anything changes, would you please call and tell me about it?”
“Mom, I really don’t want to conspire behind Granddad’s back.”
“Gracious, I’m not asking you to do anything criminal. You know I’m not that sort of person, Melanie. But as your and Collin’s mother, I feel that I must look out for your best interests. I’m not sure that either of you will do that even though you’re right there under your grandfather’s nose. When you have children of your own, you’ll understand my concern.”
Melanie had heard similar remarks before. Only when you have children of your own will you truly understand the joys of motherhood…or the worry…or what a parent goes through or gives up for his child. And it’s for life, Melanie. A loving mother doesn’t stop worrying about her child just because he or she has grown up.
“Yes, Mom,” she said with a soft sigh.
“May I count on you, then?”
“If something of consequence takes place, yes, I’ll phone you,” Melanie conceded.
“Thank you, dear.”
Melanie put down the phone feeling like an awful liar.
Irma stuck her head in the door, and Melanie noticed that the housekeeper did not appear to be her usual upbeat, chipper self.
“Do I offer congratulations or what?” Irma said.
“You know?” Melanie got up and walked around the desk. “Who told you?”
“No one told me. I overheard Garrett’s announcement at breakfast.”
Melanie’s jaw dropped. “He told everyone? At the breakfast table?”
“You seem so shocked. Was it supposed to be kept a secret?”
“Uh, no, I suppose not,” Melanie mumbled. “I just didn’t expect…”
Irma moved close enough to take Melanie’s hands in hers. “Child, did you know Eli before you came here?”
“No,” Melanie admitted reluctantly.
“Oh, Melanie, you don’t know him any better than the rest of us do. Unless he’s told you things he hasn’t told anyone else. Has he? Has he talked about his past? His family? Where he hails from? Maybe even the reason why he’s so unusually closemouthed?”
Melanie drew a deep breath. “No, he hasn’t.”
“Oh, mercy,” Irma said worriedly. “Melanie, far be it from me to rain on someone else’s parade, but I can’t for the life of me figure out why your grandfather permitted you to marry a man you’ve known little more than a week. Even if you and Eli believe with all of your hearts that you can’t live without each other. I know that love can be a powerful force, but you’re so young, honey, and a little time doesn’t destroy love if it’s the real thing.”
Melanie felt like the lowest form of life at that moment. Irma’s personal ethics were obviously of the highest standard. Never would she understand a young woman’s having sex with a man just to satisfy normal biological needs. In Irma’s day, good girls kept themselves chaste until their wedding night. And Melanie realized, sadly, regretfully, that dear Irma thought of her as a good girl.
The most confusing part of this conversation was that Melanie had always thought of herself as a good and decent woman. Having sex with a man didn’t make a woman a bad person. Some women went too far, of course, and had a different man in their beds almost every night. But there were men who did the same, and Melanie went out of her way to avoid that sort of man just as, she was sure, a lot of men avoided women with tarnished reputations.
But she could explain none of that to Irma, no more than she could ever explain it to her grandfather. There were some areas of life where the generations would never see eye to eye. Sex was one of them.
“Thank you for your concern,” Melanie said gently as she was truly moved by Irma’s caring nature. “But you mustn’t worry about me, Irma. Eli, either. Everything is going to be fine, I promise you.” Oh, yes, just as soon as I get that annulment, everything will be back to normal and just fine. But why in heaven’s name did Granddad have to make that announcement at breakfast? It’s hardly anyone else’s business, is it?
Irma looked at Melanie, and after a long moment, she sighed. “I do wish you the best, Melanie. Please don’t misunderstand.”
“I know you do.” Melanie smiled. “Now, I’m close to perishing from hunger. I have got to eat something.”
Irma looked appalled. “Of course you do! And here I am keeping you talking when I should be feeding you. Let’s go to the kitchen and see what we can scare up.”
As hungry as Melanie had thought she was, when she sat down to eat she could hardly put a bite in her mouth. Her stomach had turned queasy and nothing tasted good. It’s my nerves, she decided. They’re shot all to hell today, and why wouldn’t they be? I’m married! I’m really married and my husband wants his conjugal rights, and I lied when I told him that I had my libido under control, because Eli and I might have nothing else in common, but there’s no denying the chemistry between us. He’s right. How are we going to share the same bed night after night and do nothing but sleep?
Finally, with such nerve-racking questions gnawing at her, Melanie could not pretend to be enjoying her food a second longer. “I’m sorry, Irma. I guess I wasn’t nearly as hungry as I thought.” She got up and brought her plate to the sink. “I think what I really need is some fresh air.”
Irma patted her hand. “It’s only natural for you to be a bit jittery today. Melanie, if you, uh, have any questions…I mean…about, uh, men and women…or rather a husband and wife…and, er, what he expects to happen at night…”
“You’re a dear, Irma, but my mother explained everything to me some time ago.” Since she couldn’t shock Irma to death by telling her that she knew through firsthand experience not only what a man expected from a woman but also what a woman expected from a man, Melanie figured that was the best way to allay Irma’s well-meant concern.
“Oh, that’s good,” Irma said, obviously relieved. “Well, shoo, then. Go outside and get some fresh air.”
Melanie was working with Sassy when she spotted someone at the fence out of the corner of her eye. Her heart skipped a beat, but when she turned to look, it was Collin she saw, not Eli. Leaving Sassy alone for a few minutes, Melanie walked over to the fence.
“Hi,” she said quietly, noticing the worry in her brother’s eyes. First Irma, now Collin, she thought unhappily.
“Mel, are you all right today?”
“Collin, I don’t want you worrying about me so much,” Melanie said.
“How can I help worrying? I don’t know what got into Granddad yesterday. He’s just not himself these days. I think he’s so upset over Dad’s shenanigans that he isn’t thinking straight, but still, making you marry Eli…” Dolefully, Collin shook his head.
Melanie laid her hand on her brother’s arm. “Collin, it’s going to turn out okay, but you can’t tell Mom about it. You haven’t talked to her already today, have you?”
“No, but why don’t you want her to know? Mel, you can’t hide something like this. You’re married!”
“I know the situation, Collin, far better than you, and…” It occurred to Melanie that her annulment plan would proceed much more smoothly if no one but her and Eli knew about it. “You simply have to trust me on this, Collin. You’re not as close to Mom as I am, and I’m afraid of what it would do to her if she was told on the phone that I got married in a civil ceremony. You see, she’s always wanted me to have a big wedding with all the trimmings. Whenever she sees a wedding dress in a magazine, she studies it closely, and if she thinks the style might be right for me, she cuts out the picture and adds it to what she calls her hope c
hest.”
“Jeez, Mel, I had no idea.” Collin looked miserable. “What’re you going to do? She’s got to be told sooner or later.”
“I plan to handle it when the time is right. Just promise me you won’t say anything if you talk to her.”
“I won’t, I swear I won’t.”
Melanie felt miserable, too. “I’m sorry to involve you in this. You shouldn’t have to lie for anyone, least of all your sister.”
“I won’t lie, Mel. I just won’t talk about it.”
“Collin, why do you think Granddad told all the men about it this morning at breakfast? Irma overheard the announcement and she was still shook up over it hours later when I came downstairs.”
“I’m sure he told the men because of Eli, Mel. I doubt that it really had anything to do with you. But those men work for Eli, and Granddad probably felt they should know why he moved his things from the bunkhouse to the main house.”
“Yes, I see what you mean,” Melanie murmured. “I didn’t think of it that way.”
“Mel, if you don’t love Eli and he doesn’t love you, why are both of you letting so much happen? I mean, now you’ll be sleeping together every night. Next thing you know, you’ll be pregnant.”
Melanie shook her head because she was taking a very reliable birth-control pill. And besides, she was going to do her level best to keep the nights uneventful. She could acknowledge—to herself—the chemistry between her and Eli, but she certainly had enough willpower to keep it under control.
“That’s not going to happen. Trust me,” she said again.
Eli automatically headed to the bunkhouse for his usual before-dinner shower, then he remembered where his clean clothes were. He felt foolish and changed direction. He entered the Kincaid house quietly, at first feeling like an intruder. But then, in the mudroom, he hung his hat on a hook and told himself that he was now part of the family, welcomed into it by Garrett himself, and that he should relax and make himself at home.
The arrangement was a long way from perfect, however, what with Melanie keeping him at arm’s length and talking about an annulment. But she still had almost two weeks on the ranch if she stuck to her original plan, and an awful lot could happen in that period of time. It would be best, of course, if he knew exactly how he wanted the whole thing to turn out and could therefore decide on a definitive course of action.
But other than aching to make love to Melanie and wanting her to want him, as she’d done before they’d sworn to love and honor each other for the rest of their lives, he really didn’t know how he felt about her.
Truth was, they simply didn’t know each other. She’d flirted; he’d responded. He’d made a pass; she’d responded. And he’d never experienced hotter, more exciting sex. Maybe because of that, his mind had remained below his belt since that day at the lake, and he hadn’t given himself the chance to know Melanie.
It could be the same with her, he mused as he passed by the kitchen doorway and saw Irma standing at the stove stirring something in a large pot. If she heard him, she didn’t let on, and he was glad because he’d rather not talk to her right now. He’d seen enough raised eyebrows and knowing looks for one day. In fact, he was just a little bit grouchy because the men who’d razzed him the most about marrying the boss’s granddaughter were the ones he’d always liked the least.
On his way up the stairs, he couldn’t help wondering if Melanie was in their bedroom. Their bedroom. What an erotic term that was, bringing forth images of sexual delights that would warm the coldest heart, and his was already overheated. Maybe tonight she would let him touch her, hold her, caress her.
“Don’t get your hopes up,” he muttered just as he pushed the door open.
Melanie was sitting on a chair, dressed for dinner in a pretty floral-patterned skirt and rose-colored blouse. “Can we talk?” she asked flatly.
“I don’t know. Can we?” Eli shut the bedroom door and spotted his clothes, still in the pillowcase, probably wrinkled and crushed beyond redemption.
“I never did feel wifely,” Melanie said when she saw the direction of his gaze.
“Should I be surprised?”
“No, you shouldn’t. And neither should you sound annoyed or irritated. Even if this was a real marriage, I wouldn’t be jumping up and down at your command. You’ve taken care of your clothes without my assistance for, I expect, a good many years. I’m sure you’re quite capable of continuing to do so.” Melanie stopped for breath. “Now, let me start by saying that, like it or not, we’re in this mess together and we’re not going to get out of it unless we agree on a solution.”
“An annulment.” Scowling, Eli took the loaded pillowcase over to the closet and started hanging up jeans and shirts.
“Do you have a better idea?”
“Sweetheart, I’ve got all kinds of ideas, and the funny thing is that before we called on Judge Joseph you would have loved every one of them.”
Melanie flushed. “You think you know so much about me, and you don’t.”
“But what I do know would melt the polar ice cap, sweetheart.”
Jumping up from the chair, Melanie raised her voice. “Stop calling me sweetheart in that insulting tone of voice! I know I behaved badly with you, and I don’t need any reminders!”
Frowning, Eli turned from the closet. “You never behaved badly. Why would you say something like that?”
“Don’t patronize me, Eli.”
“I’m not! It’s just that I admired your free spirit and sense of fun from the first day you got here, and I’d hate to think now that you’ve chalked up everything you’ve done to bad behavior.”
“Only because it lets you off the hook,” she said.
“Then I misbehaved, too?” Eli began walking slowly toward her.
“Oh, for heaven’s sake, we both did! And now we’re paying for it, aren’t we?” Noticing how much closer he was to her, she moved away. “And if we don’t do something about it, we’re going to keep on paying…and paying…and paying! Don’t you get it? Hasn’t it sunk in? We’re married, and I don’t want to be married!”
Eli felt stabbed, and it took a second for the unexpected pain to abate. “I don’t want to be married, either,” he said gruffly. “Get the annulment whenever you want. Would you rather I moved back to the bunkhouse?”
“No!” Melanie’s eyes became huge. “Everything has to stay the same until I go home.”
“For God’s sake, why?”
Melanie began pacing back and forth. “The reason I came to Montana was to get to know Granddad. My father died, and I will forever regret not knowing him, no matter what kind of man he was. If the same should happen with Granddad, I would never forgive myself. Only, just before I arrived, he found out about Dad’s other children and he’s been too busy to spend any one-on-one time with me. I will not have any more vacation time coming for another year, and besides, if I went home early I’d have to lie to my mother. And she’s a very bright lady who seems to have a sixth sense about lies.” Melanie threw up her hands. “It’s just a big fat mess, that’s what it is.”
Eli grasped about half of Melanie’s frantic explanation. But he said politely, “It appears to be a lot more complicated for you than I could have guessed. Certainly it’s much worse for you than it is for me.”
“You’ll help me, then? For sure?”
“Absolutely.”
She startled him by flying across the room and throwing her arms around his neck. “Oh, thank you, thank you!”
Then, realizing that an embrace was not the best way for her to thank him, she pulled back. “Sorry, I promise that won’t happen again.”
“Forget it. It didn’t mean a thing to either of us.” Eli was clenching a plastic hanger from the closet in his hand so tightly it was a wonder it didn’t break. It didn’t mean a thing? You damn liar!
“You’re right, it didn’t,” Melanie said with a bright cheerfulness that was so phony she nearly gagged on it. Backing away, she added, “Well,
I’m going downstairs. The bathroom’s all yours.”
“Thanks. See you at dinner.” Alone in the room, Eli stumbled to a chair and fell into it. Melanie, his gorgeous, sometimes witless, sometimes brilliant wife, was too much woman for a mere man like him to deal with. She’d managed to extract a promise from him that he’d never intended making.
An annulment meant no lovemaking, and he’d agreed! God help him.
Ten
Melanie was taken aback in the dining room. The men, whom she’d certainly not seen as romantics, had changed the seating arrangement at the table so she and Eli would be eating right next to each other. With a weak little smile, she accepted their congratulations and sat in her new place—on Eli’s right. Collin was almost directly across from her now, and his smile wasn’t much happier than hers. His eyes conveyed worry, disappointment and disapproval, all but breaking Melanie’s heart.
She tried to bolster her spirits by telling herself that he was no more disappointed or disapproving than she was herself, but it was a pretty lame effort when down deep she knew that she was a hundred percent to blame for her dilemma. Eli was an accessory to her crime—if any crime had been committed—but he hadn’t been the instigator. She had.
And even though the result of her outrageous flirting was a marriage she didn’t want, she could not admit—even to herself—that she regretted the lovemaking. Actually, neither did she regret her flirtatious teasing with Eli because it had been fun, loads of fun.
No, she thought with a sigh. In all honesty, the only thing she regretted was getting caught, and even that would have been tolerable if it had been anyone but her grandfather who’d walked in on her and Eli.
She sent Garrett a sheepish little glance and saw him eating with his eyes on his plate. It struck her that his expression was sorrowful, and he seemed separate somehow, not one of them tonight. Oh, what pain his family has brought him! First Dad, then me!
The Kincaid Bride Page 13