The Marine's E-Mail Order Bride (Heroes of Chance Creek Book 3) (8 page)

Austin chuckled. “We used to fool people all the time.”

“You’d better not try to fool Storm,” the woman by his side said teasingly. “Hi, I’m Ella.”

Storm’s eyes widened. “Ella Scales?” Zane hadn’t recognized the actress when he’d first met her, but Storm was evidently more of a movie buff. Ella was pregnant, too, but not showing yet.

“Ella Hall now.” Ella smiled. “I’m done with Hollywood. I’m glad there’s another California girl in town, though.”

“Austin served in the Special Forces,” Zane added. “But he’s retired, too.”

“And you all planned to retire this year—before you knew about the ranch?” Storm asked.

“Pretty much,” he told her, grateful for the way she’d taken on her new role. No one looking at her would think she’d only met him the day before—or that she’d just been crying at her own wedding. “Of course Colt doesn’t ever plan to retire.”

“We’ll see about that,” Mason said and Zane knew he was thinking about Richard, the boy they’d discovered recently was Colt’s son. How would his younger brother deal with finding out he was a father? Zane wasn’t sure. Colt was a hard one to pin down.

“Let’s get Storm inside so she can relax,” Regan said, leading the way.

“Go on and get Storm settled in. We’ll meet up again at lunch,” Mason said. “Come down when you’re ready.”

Zane led the way up the steep stairs to the second floor and then down the central hallway to the large bedroom he’d stayed in since he got home. It was a comfortable room with two tall windows overlooking the yard, one door that led to a closet and another to a bathroom. A large dresser stood between the windows, and an easy chair and a queen-sized bed rounded out the furniture.

He crossed to the window to show her the view, but when he turned back to gesture her over, he realized Storm’s attention had been arrested by the bed. If her expression was anything to go by, they’d just hit another snag.

He came to stand by her. “What’s wrong?” Personally, he couldn’t wait for night to fall so they could climb between the sheets.

“Nothing. Just—”

“After yesterday I didn’t think you’d mind that we’re sharing a room, or a bed. I thought you’d realized—”

“Of course. I mean, I should have. It makes sense. It’s just—I can’t get too attached to you.”

He pulled back. “Why not?”

“This is temporary, right? That was the agreement.”

Zane stared at her in shock. “The original agreement. I thought after yesterday—” He cut off and turned away. Storm touched his arm.

“I know what you mean. I feel it too, Zane, but—”

“Then stop talking about temporary.” He turned to face her, crossed his arms and smiled a sudden, wicked smile. I give you my word I won’t touch you—unless you want me to.”

Unless she wanted
him to? She rolled her eyes at his knowing grin. Of course she wanted him to. Hadn’t she made it loud and clear yesterday how much she was attracted to him?

“What are you thinking about?” He moved nearer. This close, Storm had to lift her chin to meet his gaze.

“Nothing,” she said.

“I don’t buy that. I think you’re thinking about
this
.”

As he bent to kiss her, Storm found herself rising on tip-toe to meet him. His mouth on hers had her whole body straining toward him. She rested her hands on his chest and felt his heart beating. As he tugged her closer, she allowed herself to settle against him, aware and appreciative of every hard contour of his body.

“Well?” he asked when he finally pulled away.

“Well, what?”

“What do you think?”

“About you?”

“About all of it. Think we can have some fun together these next few weeks?”

A wave of heat washed over her. Heck, yeah, she thought they could have fun together. Maybe he was right; maybe she should focus on today and to hell with tomorrow. She should view this interlude with him as time out of time—a chance to live the life she’d never get to live in the real world. She met his gaze, searching for reassurance. Could she trust this man if she took that path? She thought she could. “Yes, I bet we can.”

“Good.” He bent to kiss her again.

‡

A
nyone watching them
would think they’d been in love for years, Zane thought later as he led her through the rest of the house. He kept a hand on her throughout the tour as they climbed up to the third floor where the old servant’s quarters had been and back down to the main floor where there was a large kitchen, a formal dining room, a living room, and an office that Mason had taken over. He liked touching her, he realized. Guiding her through a doorway. Taking her elbow. Putting a hand on her waist. He wanted to belong to Storm like this. He couldn’t wait until they went to bed tonight.

When they stepped out of the Hall’s back door into the yard, Storm looked vastly out of place in her skirt and strappy sandals, though. It was late September and a fresh autumn breeze swooped down from the distant mountains, flooding his heart with old memories of past autumns when he was a child and his father was still alive. He could see Aaron walking back from the barn at dinner time, all four boys rushing out of the house to dogpile on him in an impromptu wrestling match. They’d been so young then—four, five and six, maybe. So full of fun. So ignorant of the hard times to come.

Storm shivered even though she wore her jacket, and he came back to the present.

“Are you cold?”

“Yes. I guess I should have brought something heavier.”

“Here.” He shucked off the jacket he’d thrown on and placed it around her shoulders. After a moment’s hesitation she threaded her arms through the sleeves and pulled it tight around her. Its rough material clashed with her skirt, but she still looked heartbreakingly beautiful in it.

“Thanks. I’ll need to buy a few extra things, I guess.”

“I’ll take you into town soon for a shopping trip. How about right now we go see the cattle?”

What would his father have thought of his marriage to Storm? Aaron wouldn’t have liked the lie it was based on, that was for sure. What would he have counseled Zane to do about it?

“Meet the situation honorably,” he could almost hear his father say. “You pledged to love her, so do your best to do just that. Be willing to be true to your vows. Let time take care of the rest.”

Storm kept quiet as they walked and Zane didn’t try to force a conversation. Instead, he tried to plan a course of action for the weeks ahead of them. He would honor his vows and he would definitely stay open to all possibilities, including the one in which Storm would stay when her six weeks were up. Meanwhile, there were all sorts of things they could do in between his chores—even things that didn’t involve making love. Horse-back riding, for example. Campfires, hikes, heck, even a little mountain climbing if she felt like it.

As they approached the wire fence that surrounded the closest pasture, the nearest steer ambled over to check them out.

“He’s wondering if we have any food.”

“Are you sure he isn’t wondering if we
are
food?” Storm held back, looking alarmed.

Zane chuckled. “Nah. If he was a bull, we might want to keep our distance, but this big boy’s as gentle as a lamb.” He reached out and patted the beast’s neck a time or two.

Storm still held back. “I didn’t realize they were so big.”

“They’re bred to be big.”

“So people can eat them.”

“That’s right,” Zane said carefully. “This is a cattle ranch. We raise beef here.”

Storm put a hand out tentatively and touched the steer’s neck with her fingertips. After a moment, she smoothed her hand down its hide. “Hello, beastie.”

The steer shook its head and she pulled back.

“It makes me sad to know he’ll die,” she said. “I don’t think I’ve ever met my food before.”

“It’s sad that anything has to die,” Zane said softly. “But that’s the way this world goes. We don’t slaughter the animals here. You’ll never have to see it. What we do is keep them well fed and well-tended through their lives.”

“And then you cut those lives short.”

“I’m not going to apologize for what I do, Storm. This is me. This is who I am.”

She pulled his jacket more tightly around her shoulders as if she was still cold, and Zane got a glimpse of how all this must seem to a California girl. Alien. Ugly, even.

He didn’t like that characterization of his life.

“Let’s go back to the Hall.” Maybe they’d find Regan there. Regan was a vegetarian, and somehow she’d made peace with the family business.

“What’s that way?” Storm asked, pointing down the track.

“Chance Creek. Want to see it?”

She shrugged. Zane took that as an affirmative. He led the way, but this time he didn’t take her hand. The chasm between them suddenly yawned so wide he didn’t know how to bridge the gulf.

They walked on, and the quiet of the ranch washed over him. There were cattle in the pastures, and there was the buzz of machinery somewhere in the distance, but between him and the far-off Absaroka Mountains was a world of space that stretched endlessly. He relaxed, breathing in the smells of home. After his years in the military, he appreciated it all the more. There was room out here. Space in which to dream. Storm would get used to the way things worked here.

He hoped.

When they reached the Creek, it was low in its banks, but burbled along merrily. “It’s a bit late in the year for swimming,” he told Storm, “but if we get an Indian summer, maybe we’ll get a chance for a dip.” He led her to a bend where the water formed a deep pool. “In July and August it’s a piece of heaven.”

Storm looked at it askance.

“I guess it seems small compared to the Pacific Ocean,” Zane said, suddenly seeing it from her point of view.

“It would be hard to surf in,” she affirmed.

He allowed himself to chuckle. She’d regained her humor and he was glad for that. “Hungry? I’ll bet it’s almost time for lunch.”

“Sure.”

As they walked back toward the Hall, she grew silent again. Halfway back Zane stopped her. “I’ve got to know. Are you having second thoughts?”

“No, just…”

He waited. She was so beautiful with her hair gleaming in the sun she nearly took his breath away.

“Thinking about home,” she finished lamely. “It’s so different here.”

“Give it time, okay?” He took her hand and began to walk again. “Crescent Hall will grow on you, I guarantee it.”

Crescent Hall was
already growing on her. Or rather, a certain Marine who lived here was.

A Marine who would share her bed tonight.

As much as she tried to keep her thoughts on the straight and narrow, she kept thinking about his promise not to touch her… unless she wanted him to. She wanted him to touch her again. And kiss her. And do a lot of other things, too. The hours they’d spent making love the day before had made up the most exciting sexual experience of her life. What would they do tonight to top it?

“Tell me more about you,” she said as they walked back toward the Hall.

“We’ve covered a lot of ground. What else do you want to know?”

“Everything.”

“Everything, huh? That’ll take a while.” He suddenly changed direction and veered off toward a stretch of woods that edged the expansive yard around the Hall.

“Where are we going?” She had to jog to keep up with him.

“I’m going to show you something that will tell you almost everything you need to know.”

Storm wondered what that could possibly be, and she was more than a little surprised when she made out what looked to be two sets of climbing bars just inside the edge of the woods. They reminded her of the monkey bars at her elementary school growing up. “What are these for?”

“This is what made me the man I am today.” He pointed past the climbing equipment toward a wall constructed of wood. “It’s an obstacle course,” he said. “My dad built it when we were just kids. We ran this thing every day. Competed against each other, against ourselves, against him.”

Storm understood suddenly. That’s why there were two sets of bars. It was a double course—two people could run it at once.

“Did he want you to join the Marines?”

“No, he just wanted us to be strong. He wanted to give us something to do, too. And it came in handy when he got mad at us. ‘Five times around the course!’” he mimicked in a fatherly voice. “When we were really in trouble he gave us a time to beat. A really hard time. A few times I ran it for three days straight before I got it.”

“That’s awful!”

“That’s what gives you muscles like these,” he retorted and pulled off his shirt. He posed for her. “What do you think?”

“Apart from the fact you’re an astounding show-off? I don’t know.” She reached out and traced a finger over his bicep. “Those are pretty impressive,” she admitted.

“I bet you’ve got some pretty impressive muscles, too.” He touched her arm. “Show me.”

Storm panicked and pulled away. Her muscles were adequate—after all, she’d surfed for years and she did yoga most mornings. They weren’t the muscles of a seasoned mountaineer, though.

“Come on.” Zane reached out again.