Just Married

  He strolled to the viewpoint and was surprised to discover he wasn’t alone. Carl sat on the concrete bench, staring into space. Zane sat at the opposite end.

  Neither seemed inclined to speak.

  “If I asked you to, would you shoot me?” Carl asked.

  “Shoot you?”

  “At this point it would be a kindness.”

  His friend was talking in riddles. “Is there a moral to this story?” Zane asked.

  Carl wiped his hand down his face. “I keep telling myself this is a nightmare and I’ll wake up and it’ll all be over.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing that a good horsewhipping wouldn’t cure.”

  Zane braced his elbows against his knees. “I’m feeling much the same way. I just made a colossal fool of myself.”

  “You, too?” Carl muttered.

  “It must be something in the air.” Zane leaned back. “Is there any particular reason you’re looking to stand before a firing squad?”

  “Yeah. I’m seriously thinking I’m going to marry that little she-devil.”

  Chapter Ten

  THE ATMOSPHERE AT the breakfast table the following morning was decidedly cool. Eyeing Lesley wearily, Zane pulled out the chair across from his wife and poured himself a cup of coffee.

  Lesley ignored him. He would have willingly apologized the night before if she’d been awake. But by the time he’d climbed into bed, his wife was curled up in a tight ball on her side of the mattress, fast asleep. Or so she wanted him to believe. Zane knew otherwise, but in this instance the old adage about letting sleeping dogs lie seemed appropriate.

  Zane reached for a piece of toast and evenly spread Mrs. Applegate’s strawberry preserves over the surface. “It looks like there’s going to be another wedding soon,” he announced to no one in particular.

  Mrs. Applegate delivered a plate of scrambled eggs to Zane.

  “Carl and Candy?” Lesley asked. Those were her first words to him all morning.

  Zane nodded.

  Mrs. Applegate smiled broadly. “I was wondering about those two. I imagine marriage will greatly improve that man’s disposition.”

  Zane didn’t mention that Carl seemed downright miserable at the prospect of becoming a husband.

  His housekeeper chuckled softly and murmured, “You know, the first baby can come anytime, but the rest take nine months.” Having said that, she returned to the kitchen, the door swinging in her wake.

  Lesley’s gaze found his. “What did she mean by that?”

  Zane shrugged. He’d given up trying to decipher his housekeeper a long time ago.

  “Could Candy be pregnant?”

  “I doubt it,” Zane said automatically. Carl wasn’t foolish enough to get physically involved with a woman without using protection. But on second thought it made a crazy kind of sense. Carl had mumbled something about shooting himself for being so stupid.

  “Maybe she is.” He revised his earlier statement. Laughter tickled Zane’s throat. He had a difficult time picturing Carl as a doting father, but guessed that once his friend became accustomed to the idea, he’d like it just fine.

  Zane searched his wife’s face. She looked pale and drawn and he acknowledged that his jealousy had hurt her. He silently cursed himself for behaving like an idiot. He wasn’t a man accustomed to apologizing. Even though he recognized he’d been in the wrong, the words didn’t come easy.

  “About what I said last night…” he muttered, prepared to eat dirt if necessary in order to repair the damage. “I was wrong.”

  Lesley seemed to find it important all at once to smooth the napkin in her lap. When she did glance up, he noticed the pain in her eyes. His insides twisted with regret.

  “Is that an apology?” she asked.

  He didn’t hesitate. “Yes. I realize now that you’d never have married me if you loved Larabee. I don’t make any excuses for the question. Plain and simple, I was jealous.”

  “And…” she prompted.

  “And?” He frowned, not understanding what she wanted from him. Whatever it was, he’d say it, do it, buy it, but he had to know what it was.

  Lesley scooted back her chair. “I have to be in the office early this morning.” Zane was well aware she was using that as an excuse to leave him and avoid his question.

  She stood, put down her napkin and walked out of the dining room.

  Stunned, Zane sat at the table, wondering what he’d done wrong now. He’d never been good at dealing with women, and he seemed at an even greater loss when said woman was his wife.

  Tossing his napkin aside, he stood and followed her. “Lesley,” he shouted, stopping her at the front door. “Tell me, what did I do now that was so terrible?”

  She shook her head, as if she didn’t know herself. “Nothing,” she whispered with such misery that Zane felt his heart twist.

  “Tell me what it is you want me to do,” he ordered. “Just tell me.” Heaven knew he’d walk over hot coals if she asked, if that was what she wanted from him.

  “I…thought—hoped—you had something you wanted to say to me,” she whispered miserably.

  “Like?”

  She shook her head. “If I have to ask you, then it means nothing.”

  It dawned on him then. She was looking for him to say he loved her. Heaven knew he did, although this was something of a disaster, in light of what he planned. The words burned his lips, but he found it impossible to speak.

  She recovered quickly, and offered him a weak smile. “I’m sorry,” she mumbled. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. You apologized…That’s enough.”

  Candy pregnant.

  Carl didn’t know how many times he’d repeated those words. Each and every time, no matter how often he said them, an electric shock bolted through him.

  He hadn’t slept a wink. How like a woman to deliver the most devastating news of a man’s life and then toss him onto the street. Carl had been too stunned to ask a single question, and before he could react, he had found himself standing bare-chested on her front porch, dusting off his Stetson. It was a good thing he’d moved when he did. Another second or two and her front door would have re-broken his nose.

  By heaven that woman had a temper. If ever he’d seen a woman who needed taming, it was Candy Hoffman. Carl sincerely doubted there was a man in town capable of handling that little hellion. He was probably the only male in a three-county area up to the task.

  She’d given him an ultimatum. Marriage. The word alone was enough to make him cringe. Well, he’d played her little game to the end. With anyone else, it would have been over the minute she’d hinted at a wedding band.

  He didn’t mean to boast but he figured he could have any woman he wanted. That was the problem. He only wanted Candy. Every other female he knew paled in comparison.

  She had her faults, that was for sure. Never in all his days had he met a more unreasonable cuss. She had a temper that went off like a firecracker. She was stubborn and irrational, and that didn’t even begin to describe her.

  But then she had her good points, and he wasn’t talking about her physical attributes, either. Candy had one of the quickest minds he’d ever seen. She was both intelligent and knowledgeable, and that was only the tip of the iceberg. Sexually he’d never had a woman satisfy him the way Candy had. The one and only time they’d made love had been a frenzy of need on both their parts. Sweet heaven, they hadn’t even made it to a bedroom.

  Talk about a responsive woman. If their lovemaking was this good in her laundry room, Carl could only imagine what it’d be like in a bed.

  But marriage?

  That seemed like a drastic price to pay for the pleasure of bedding a woman. But if that woman was Candy, it just might be worth it.

  Now it seemed, on top of everything else, Candy was pregnant. Despite the shock, Carl found himself smiling. He’d had her only the one time. He wondered what the odds were of impregnating a woman after one time, and knew they were too h
igh for him to calculate. Although he’d be the first to admit it was crazy, Carl felt a certain amount of pride in the fact she was carrying his baby. The two of them were good together. A man wasn’t likely to stumble upon that kind of chemistry again. Candy could well be woman enough to keep him satisfied the rest of his life.

  It went without saying that he’d prefer forgoing the marriage business. But if that was the price he was required to pay, then he’d best do it. It didn’t seem that his squawking was going to change her mind.

  Carl experienced a small sense of pride in the fact Candy wasn’t selling herself short. She’d set down her price and hadn’t wavered. He hadn’t liked it, wasn’t sure he did even now that he’d decided to accept her terms, but he was agreeable.

  He rode into town and bought a diamond ring before noon. He tucked it inside his jeans pocket, then stopped off for lunch at the local cafe.

  Never having proposed before, Carl wasn’t quite sure how to go about it. One thing was certain, if she expected him to get down on one knee and make a fool of himself by speaking all those fancy words, then she could forget it. He wanted her to know that he wouldn’t do this for any other woman. That should be good enough.

  A part of Carl hoped Candy would be out making deliveries when he stopped off at the feed store. It wasn’t until he parked outside that he was willing to admit he was nervous.

  Slim glanced up when he walked into the store. “Candy’s in her office,” the other man told him.

  Carl nodded, obliged at not having to make an excuse to linger until Candy showed.

  He found her sitting at a big rolltop desk that had been her grandfather’s. She held a calculator, using the eraser end of a pencil to punch in the numbers.

  Carl walked inside the compact office and closed the door.

  Candy glanced up and wasn’t able to disguise the surprise that rounded her eyes. She sighed heavily as if burdened with the mere thought of having to deal with him yet again.

  “What do you want now?” she demanded.

  “Is that any way to welcome me?” he asked, grinning broadly as he took a seat. He wasn’t fooled by her bravado. She was downright pleased to see him and he knew it.

  “You’re about as welcome as a rattlesnake.”

  He couldn’t help it; he laughed outright. One thing was certain—Candy was going to give him a run for his money. The way he figured, they’d move out to the ranch that weekend and be married the next.

  “You have something on your mind, or did you come just to make my life miserable?” The words were issued in her usual waspish tone.

  “Where’s a laundry room when I need one?” Carl muttered under his breath.

  “What did you say?”

  “I said,” he repeated loudly, “what we need is another laundry room.”

  Apparently this wasn’t what she wanted to hear. Candy shot to her feet and clenched her fists into tight balls at her sides. “How dare you mention that unfortunate incident to me.”

  “Unfortunate incident,” he repeated, doing a commendable job of holding in his amusement. The little hellion would take delight in scratching out his eyes, and he wasn’t about to offer her any further incentive.

  “I think it would be best for us both if you kindly left.” She sat back down, her chest heaving. She returned to the calculator, posting a long series of numbers.

  Although Carl wasn’t normally a patient man, he figured he had nothing to lose by staying right where he was. When he didn’t immediately obey her wishes, she forcefully expelled her breath.

  “We don’t have anything more to say to each other,” Candy insisted.

  “On the contrary. One doesn’t make the kind of announcement you made to me and leave it at that.”

  Her cheeks reddened at the mention of her pregnancy. “Don’t worry about it, Carl.”

  “Hey, weren’t you the one who so sweetly reminded me that it takes two? I can’t help but worry. That’s my loaf of bread you’re baking in your oven.”

  Candy tossed the pencil onto the desktop and stood up, slowly shaking her head. “My, oh my, you do have an eloquent way of phrasing things.”

  “It kinda makes one wonder, doesn’t it?” he said, leaning back in his chair and locking his fingers behind his head, striking a cocky pose. The more he thought about Candy being pregnant, the more smug he felt. Not that he was particularly interested in raising a passel of kids. Still the knowledge that he was so potent that all it took was one turn at the wheel didn’t hurt his ego any. After they were married, they were going to have to be careful, otherwise they might well be major contributors to the problem of overpopulation.

  “Wonder about what?” Candy asked.

  “I told you we were dynamite together, didn’t I?”

  “I told you not to worry about what I told you yesterday. It was a mistake.”

  She closed her eyes as though struggling within herself. Her chest heaved, calling attention to one of her finest assets. She was a fine specimen of womanhood, but she needed him to help her come to a deeper understanding of how beautiful she was.

  Standing abruptly, he walked over to the office door and lowered the shade.

  Candy gave him a look of horror and came out from behind the desk. “Just exactly what do you think you’re doing?”

  He grinned broadly. “Saving us both a lot of embarrassment.”

  She blinked as though she didn’t understand him. “If you so much as lay one finger on me, Carl Saks, I swear I’ll scream the place down.”

  She would, too. Carl knew better than to doubt her, but he also knew that, given the right incentive, she’d be a willing participant in what he had planned.

  “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about what’s happening between us,” he said, ignoring her threat.

  “Nothing’s happening,” she denied heatedly.

  He gave her a look that said he was disappointed in her lack of honesty.

  “All right,” she amended quickly. “Nothing’s happening from this point forward. I made a mistake…I’m entitled. Everyone’s allowed an error in judgment now and again.”

  “Sure,” he agreed readily enough as he slowly made his way toward her. She was backed against the desk, her rear butting up against the flat surface.

  An elongated moment passed before his mouth claimed hers. She could have stopped him at any point. Could have broken away or pushed him aside. Carl took pride in the fact she didn’t.

  The kiss was deep, long and near desperate. Carl couldn’t get enough of her and the feeling seemed to be mutual.

  Her hands were in his hair as she angled her mouth against his, giving as well as taking. It didn’t take long for their kisses to become more turbulent and their caresses more urgent. When he was desperate to breathe, Carl dragged his mouth from hers. “Candy.”

  “Yes?” she asked breathlessly

  The momentous moment had arrived. It was now or never. She was warm and pliable in his arms. His hands held her close to his heart. The odds of her accepting his proposal weren’t going to get any better than this.

  “There’s an engagement ring in my pocket.” It wasn’t an eloquent proposal, but she should get the message.

  Candy went stock-still. Carl noticed that he had her attention now.

  “An engagement ring,” she repeated.

  He nuzzled her neck with his nose, loving the smell and feel of her. It would take two lifetimes to properly love this woman.

  “To go along with the wedding band, darlin’.”

  He figured she’d burst into tears of happiness or react in some such womanly way. What he didn’t expect was for her to jerk herself free and glare at him as if he’d insulted her.

  “Why?” she demanded.

  “Why? You’re gonna have a baby, aren’t you?”

  She whirled around so fast that papers scattered from atop the desk. When she spoke, her voice was soft and low. He barely recognized it as hers. “Is the baby the only reason you want to marry me,
Carl?”

  “Yes. Of course.” He wasn’t going to lie about it. He probably would have reached the same conclusion in time, but the fact Candy was pregnant was a large part of the reason he’d decided they should be married now.

  “I see.”

  Carl frowned, not understanding. “Well,” he said, losing patience, “do you want the ring or not?”

  She turned around to face him then. Her eyes were blank as if she were looking straight through him.

  She was going to reject his proposal. Carl recognized the look in her eyes. By heaven, after making a fuss big enough to call in the United Nations to settle, she was going to refuse him.

  He removed his hat and slapped it against his thigh. “You know, Candy, I’m sick and tired of getting kicked in the teeth every time I try to do the right thing by you. You don’t want to get married, then fine. I told you before I wasn’t the marrying kind.”

  She lowered herself to the chair and brushed the hair from her face. He noticed her hands were shaking.

  “I’ve offered you everything I’m going to. If you don’t want it, all the better. It’s time I started searching greener pastures.” He started out the door, and then because it would have been too much of an embarrassment to return the diamond to the jeweler, he took it out of his pocket. It was a pretty thing, and had cost him plenty. He tossed it on the desktop. “Take the ring back if you want. I don’t want it.”

  Having said that, he walked out. He was finished with Candy Hoffman. As far as he was concerned, he never wanted to see her again.

  And this time he meant it.

  The alarm sounded and Lesley groaned in protest. She was exhausted. Zane scooted toward the irritating buzzer and flipped the switch, then cuddled her. Neither moved, content to be in each other’s arms.

  Lesley’s soft sigh was filled with appreciation until she remembered that this was the day Zane was leaving. Within a matter of hours he’d be on a plane. He’d told her so little about this trip, only that he’d be away for a week. She didn’t even know where he was going, although she knew he needed his passport.