Meant for Each Other Page 10

  "No."

  Hating herself for lying, she tried to roll away from him. But he covered her mouth with his own, immersing her once again in mindless sensation. Finally he allowed her to pull away from him, and she stood up from the bed as fast as she could.

  "That's odd," Laurel muttered, still outside her door. "I wonder where he is. Kathryn?"

  "Maybe he left something in the boat and is out in the garage looking for it," Kathryn suggested. She felt distinctly light-headed; Wade had gotten up from the bed and came to stand behind her, wrapping his arms around her. Their bodies were so close she could feel every breath he took, every strong heartbeat.

  "Maybe. I'll look. See you in a minute."

  As Laurel's footsteps retreated, Kathryn shivered in reaction and his arms tightened. "Let me go," she whispered in a shaky voice. Another minute and she wouldn't have the strength to deny him anything.

  "On one condition." He spoke in that familiar authoritative tone.

  "Alice is waiting!" she cried. Somehow she managed to wrest herself from his embrace and turn around so she was facing him. It was safer that way.

  "Let her," he fired back, unmoved. "We have to talk. Alone. I'll come by for you tomorrow evening after work.”

  "Aside from the fact that we have nothing to say to each other, the family won't understand."

  "We were saying so much to each other on my bed just now, it's a miracle we even heard Laurel. As for the family, when I tell them I want to show you the ranch, they'll think it's only natural."

  She shook her head. "What about Amy?" "She won't be there."

  "Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about.”

  "I'm afraid you're the one who takes top honors in that department. I'm going back to the ranch now and Allie will tell Amy where to find me."

  Kathryn bit her lip in anguish. "Please, Wade," she implored frantically. "Don't make everything more difficult than it already is." She took a deep shuddering breath. "How can you treat Amy this way?"

  His features hardened. "Surely that's my business. Now, what's your answer?"

  Her hands tightened into fists at her sides. "I wouldn't put it past you to make a scene, so, yes, I'll be ready when you come by for me tomorrow. But I think you're despicable!"

  "That's not the message you were sending before Laurel interrupted us," he reminded her, moving aside to let her open the door. As she darted from the room, his warning trailed after her. "Don't even think of breaking your promise to drive out to the ranch with me tomorrow...."

  She was still weak and disoriented from their passionate interlude when she came down the stairs. She'd taken a few minutes in the bathroom to run a brush through her hair and apply fresh lipstick.

  Wade had managed to get downstairs ahead of her, because he was standing at the front door talking to Alice, their heads bent together in concentration. Though Kathryn tried to slip unobtrusively from the foyer, she didn't miss the searing glance he sent her. Ignoring it, she headed for the kitchen, where the girls were snacking on pizza.

  Just when she thought things couldn't get much more out of control, a distraught-looking John came in through the back door. He stopped short when he saw everyone. "Hi! When did all of you arrive?"

  "A little while ago," Laurel mumbled between bites.

  "How long has Wade been here?"

  "I don't know. You'll have to ask Mom."

  He said something unintelligible under his breath and went right back out again. Kathryn hurried after him.

  "John?" she called as he was getting into his car. He wheeled around. "What is it?"

  "If you feel like talking, I'm available."

  His handsome face screwed up in pain. "This isn't something I can discuss, but thanks, anyway."

  He was polite enough, but his words cut like a knife. Perhaps, like his father, John had seen Wade come to her tent that night in the Tetons and had drawn his own conclusions. If that was true, then she couldn't blame him for thinking she and Wade had betrayed Amy, as well as everyone else.

  While Kathryn mulled over that very real possibility, John drove off, leaving her standing there as bereft and torn as she'd ever been in her life. It was all growing so ugly she didn't have the faintest idea how anything could be resolved―without destroying the entire family in the process.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  "THANK HEAVENS it's closing time!" Laurel exclaimed as she shut and locked the shop door after the last customer. Kathryn's nerves were stretched to the breaking point. All day she'd been fearing this moment―fearing it and waiting for it. Fortunately Laurel hadn't seemed to notice, because they'd been busy since early morning; a steady stream of vacationers had made personal conversation impossible.

  Kathryn rang out the cash register to account for the day's receipts. "From the looks of it, business has never been better. Clyde ought to be thrilled."

  Laurel paused in her task of replenishing one of the shelves with heavy-duty flashlights. "I know. But he's too worried about Wade to care about anything else right now."

  Her comment jolted Kathryn, and she made an error in addition, which necessitated starting the whole process over again. Before long she would be alone with Wade, and the mere thought produced so many conflicting emotions she couldn't respond to her niece. "Don't you think Wade's been acting weird lately?" Laurel pressed. "I can't begin to figure him out!"

  "Like your folks said in the car, he has a lot on his mind.''

  Laurel shook her head. "I just don't get it." "What?" Kathryn asked casually, hoping to hide her inner turmoil.

  "It's obvious he isn't in love with Amy." "You don't know that, Laurel."

  "I know Wade. He treats her like he treats me." "I thought he treated you like royalty."

  "He does, but you know what I mean. John acts a hundred times more amorous around her than Wade does. I'm afraid Wade's going to marry her and then end up divorced like you and Uncle Philip. It makes me sick just thinking about it."

  "It's his life, honey." She had to say something, anything, to distract her niece, who was far too insightful for Kathryn's peace of mind.

  "He's bored already. I can tell."

  "Who's bored?" a familiar voice countered from the back of the store. Kathryn's heart plunged to her feet for the second time in two days. Neither of them had heard Wade come in.

  Laurel's face turned scarlet. She flashed Kathryn a signal of distress: "Don't you know it's not nice to eavesdrop on people?" she snapped.

  "Then you shouldn't gossip so you can't be found out," he quipped, and tousled her dark curls lovingly. He must have come directly from the ranch, be cause he was wearing an old T-shirt and jeans he'd obviously been working in all day. He was still unshaven.

  Yet for some reason Kathryn found him every bit as appealing as she had last night, when he was perfectly groomed. She longed to rub her cheek against the faint shadow covering his jaw and chin, and felt her palms moisten at the thought.

  "What are you doing here?" Laurel sounded uncharacteristically sharp.

  "I came to get some supplies I need and I thought maybe Kathryn would like to drive back to the ranch with me. She hasn't been out there yet." He pinned Kathryn with a level gaze Laurel couldn't see, daring her to defy him. "How about it? Would you like a personal tour?"

  Kathryn was grateful that Laurel would never know the real reasons for his seemingly innocent and spontaneous invitation. "I thought you'd never ask," she teased to cover her chaotic emotions, wanting to shake that self-satisfied expression from his face.

  "Am I invited, too?"

  Wade gave Laurel an engaging smile. "I thought you were going to the county fair with Cindy to night."

  "I am," she muttered. "I forgot."

  Kathryn could feel her niece's curious glance and studiously avoided it by turning off the register.

  "Think you can close up here by yourself, kiddo?" Wade asked.

  "I've done it for years now," Laurel said ungraciously.

  Kathryn felt an
awkward silence and walked over to put an arm around Laurel's shoulders. "Thanks, honey. I'll help you out whenever you want to get away early. Tell Alice to expect me home in about an hour. I'll help her pack for their trip in the morning." "Make that three hours," Wade interjected smoothly. "We're stopping for groceries so I can fix dinner. Let's get going."

  This time Laurel's gaze was definitely speculative as she watched Kathryn follow Wade to the back of the store. Once they were outside, Kathryn hurried ahead and got into the cab before he could assist her. She didn't take another breath until Wade drove the truck onto the highway.

  "Relax,” he admonished, as if this was an every day occurrence.

  "You shouldn't have come while Laurel was still there,” she said angrily.

  "Since when is it a sin to walk into the family store for a chat?"

  Kathryn didn't bother to answer. On the surface, there was no explanation that made sense, and if he refused to acknowledge the reason for her guilt, what more could she say? She preferred to remain quiet during the short drive to the ranch, staying in the truck while he went inside the local grocery store for supplies. For once, Wade seemed to be of a similar mind and didn't torment her with a discussion of what had happened the night before. But she knew it was only a matter of time.

  After leaving the highway north of town, they traveled almost a mile along a dirt road lined on both sides by flowering meadows. Eventually they came to a gate with a large wooden sign welcoming visitors to the Circle M Ranch. It signalled the beginning of Wade's property.

  He reached for a remote control above the sun visor and pressed a button. The gate swung open; as soon as they'd driven through, it clanged shut again. She heard its echo inside her head, underlining the fact that for the first time in her life she was alone with Wade on his own territory. And as long as that gate remained locked, no one could disturb them. A thrill of fear coursed through her veins because she knew she'd passed the point of no return.

  Before long she spied a cluster of log cabins, which appeared in immaculate condition, and a little farther on, a prosperous-looking barn with the Circle M insignia painted in red, black and white beneath the eaves. When they drove past it she gasped softly at the sight of a rustic home made entirely of logs and built in a stand of jack pines. The Salt River was visible in the distance. Puffy clouds sailed overhead, frosted a pale pink by the late-afternoon sun, which was just beginning to dip below the horizon. Kathryn couldn't imagine a more idyllic setting.

  "Your house is beautiful! And it's so much larger than I'd imagined."

  "I plan to have a big family one day." His voice was even and matter-of-fact, but his statement conjured up visions in Kathryn's mind she knew she shouldn't entertain. But the desire to have Wade's baby had been her secret obsession for five years.

  He pulled to a stop alongside stacks of timber, insulation and myriad other building materials. "The main floor is pretty well finished, except for the painting. The upstairs rooms and the basement still need drywall, and that'll take until next summer to complete."

  Kathryn jumped down from the cab, eager to explore on her own. "Is the front door locked?" she called over her shoulder.

  He shook his head. "No. Make yourself at home while I unload the truck."

  She felt his eyes on her back as she picked her way through the obstacle course to the porch stairs. Once inside, the first thing she noticed was a huge stone fireplace that dominated the large living room. She presumed the area to the left of the foyer was intended as the dining room, but there was no furniture as yet.

  She walked through a set of double doors into a spacious modern kitchen furnished with every conceivable device, from a microwave to a pasta-maker. Wade certainly hadn't stinted on anything. She smiled at the ancient-looking card table and chairs placed at the far end of the room.

  From the kitchen she wandered down a hall and came to a bedroom with an adjoining bath, which he had commandeered. She would have known it blind folded, by the clean familiar scent of his soap.

  Realizing where her thoughts had wandered, she retraced her steps to the living room and discovered a study behind it with built-in bookshelves, another fireplace and a picture window that revealed the flowering meadows in their summer glory. There were file cabinets, a desk, a computer and printer, everything he needed to manage his accounts.

  An oil painting of the Tetons hung above the stone fireplace. Curiosity made her walk over to the mantel where half a dozen photographs of the family stood displayed. But her eyes were riveted on one picture in particular. It was of her, alone, taken on a family outing in the Tetons that summer five years ago.

  With unsteady hands, she picked it up and studied herself. She barely recognized the smiling curvaceous woman who was posing for Wade as he snapped pictures along the trail.

  Quickly she put it back in place, afraid to reminisce about a time that could never come again. It suddenly occurred to her that there were no pictures of Amy. Most likely Wade kept some in his bedroom, Kathryn told herself. She hadn't noticed any when she'd peeked in there earlier, but then she hadn't searched his room thoroughly for fear of being caught.

  The sound of footsteps heralded Wade's entrance, and she wheeled around to see him standing in the doorway watching her with a sober expression. "Well, what do you think?"

  She drew in a deep breath. "Your home is sensational."

  "I'm rather partial to it myself, but I've got a long way to go."

  "But that's part of the excitement, isn't it? To see it all come together, bit by bit?" Taking a calculated risk, she asked, "Does Amy love it?"

  His brows met in a forbidding frown, and she knew immediately she shouldn't have mentioned his fiancée. "I didn't bring you here to talk about Amy. If you want something to do while I shower, I've brought in the groceries."

  After he left, she stood there with her arms folded, trying to calm the quickened beat of her heart, wondering how she was going to make it through the rest of the evening.

  Deciding she'd go crazy if left alone with her thoughts, she found her way back to the kitchen and emptied the grocery sacks. Among the purchases were a couple of steaks and the ingredients for a green salad. She took severed potatoes from the refrigerator, scrubbed them and put them in the oven to bake. Then she got busy preparing the salad.

  Some time later, as she was checking on the steaks in the broiler, a clean-shaven Wade, wearing off-white jeans and a cream shirt, strode into the kitchen. As usual, the second she felt his presence, her body reacted to him-a reaction she couldn't hide. And Wade knew it.

  Without a word, he slid a tape into the portable tape player sitting on the counter and instantly the room was filled with the mellow, late-night sounds of a jazz quartet. The saxophone rose plaintively above the other instruments, and for Kathryn, the music was almost too sensuous, even painful, to listen to.

  "D-dinner is ready," she stammered.

  "So I see," he murmured somewhere behind her. "Why don't you sit down and I'll take over from here."

  Thankful to escape his proximity, she seated herself at the card table. She struggled to present an unconcerned facade while he waited on her and poured her a glass of wine. She felt a curious sense of isolation, sitting in Wade's house in the middle of a meadow as the evening darkened around them.

  At the same time she experienced a piercing joy at sharing these precious moments, because they were all she would ever have of him. As she'd prepared dinner, she'd vowed never to be alone with him again. And when Clyde and Alice returned from Canada, she would leave Afton forever.

  Since Wade seemed disinclined to talk, they ate their meal in silence. The music should have provided a needed distraction, but she could hardly function, let alone enjoy her food, with Wade seated so close, rarely taking his eyes off her.

  Finally she gave up the pretense and excused herself to get a glass of water. But that was a mistake, because while she was standing at the sink, Wade's arms suddenly came around her waist. "Let's
dance," he whispered in a husky voice, molding his hands over her hips. The growing insistence of his movements created a sick excitement inside her.

  "Please don't do that," she begged feverishly, feeling herself succumb a little more with each caress. "No one can see us, if that's what you're worried about." He had swept away her long fall of hair and his lips dropped to the heated nape of her neck.

  "This is wrong," she cried helplessly, but his touch had weakened her resolve, sapped her will to fight.

  "How could it be wrong when we're attracted to each other? I know you're in love with someone else; but I also know your body melts whenever I touch you. It was that way five years ago, and if anything, time seems to have made us more physically attuned than ever. Even though I fought it, I wanted you the moment I saw you at the airport. And you wanted, me."'

  "No!"

  "Yes. I could tell by the way you reacted. It isn't something you can hide, Kathryn. You're a sensual woman, yet you seem to be embarrassed by it. You shouldn't be―it's nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, it's a gift the right man would sell his soul to receive."

  "But you're not that man." She had to say it and keep on saying it until he believed it! And until she did ...

  At her words, his hands tightened almost painfully around her upper arms. "For tonight I could be. Stay with me. I need you, Kathryn. I need this." His voice shook with emotion as he turned her in his arms and lowered his mouth to hers.

  In the early days of their doomed marriage, Philip had kissed her with passion, but nothing in her experience had prepared her for the onslaught of Wade's demands. His kiss, hot with desire, created a longing to love him fully, completely.

  But she knew she'd never be satisfied with one night of his lovemaking. She couldn't give in to her needs now, no matter how much she ached for him.

  "No, Wade." She managed to sound in control as she wrenched her mouth from, his and pushed her hands against his chest. "It's no use."

  The finality of her words must have gotten through to him. He didn't try to kiss her again, but she was still. locked in his arms.