The Great Texas Wedding Bargain (3 page)

“Megan, I think it’s admirable that Rick wants to improve his home,” Faith said softly.

There was some kind of rebuke in her words because Megan’s cheeks turned red.

Rick rushed into speech. “I can’t do anything right now, but I’ve been thinking about the future. Unfortunately, you all will have to share that small bath if I move downstairs.”

“We’ll manage,” Megan muttered, not looking at him.

“Of course we will. We only have one bath now. Our house in Fort Worth was much larger, but—well, we’re glad we’re here.”

“When do you want to get married?” Rick asked, fearing Megan had changed her mind. She didn’t appear as determined tonight as she had earlier in the day.

At her mother’s surprised look, he feared he’d blown it. “You did talk to your mother about…I mean—”

“Yes, I know,” Faith hurriedly said. “I thought maybe Megan had explained that we need to handle this business right away.”

“We didn’t get very far in our discussion this afternoon,” he confessed.

“That’s because all you wanted to talk about was food,” Megan said, her chin in the air.

He couldn’t hold back a grin. “Now you see why. I’m not much good with domestic details.”

Megan rolled her eyes.

Faith was more sympathetic. “It’s hard to do everything. I think this arrangement will suit us well.”

“Megan mentioned the end of the month,” Rick began, relief filling him that he’d hadn’t blown the whole thing.

“Must we wait that long?” Faith asked.

“Mother, we’ve paid rent until then,” Megan inserted.

“I know, but that’s three weeks away. I don’t see any reason to wait.”

“You might even get some of your rent back,” Rick added, hoping Megan would agree with her mother. Home-cooked meals right away. He smiled.

“You’re thinking about food again,” Megan accused.

Damn, she was able to read him too easily. He felt a little unnerved.

“Megan, quit teasing Rick. He’s being most cooperative.”

Megan smothered her groan and dropped her gaze to her half-eaten meal. There was nothing wrong with the food. It had been excellent. But her appetite had dwindled as the evening had progressed.

She had promised to marry the man beside her? To share a house, if not his bed, for at least a year? To see him every day?

Already she was learning to read his thoughts, to feel sympathy for him, to want to help him. She had to remain apart from this man. She wasn’t going to fall into the trap that had claimed her sister.

“Today is Saturday. I think Wednesday would be a good day to be married,” Faith said, beaming at Rick. “We could move in Thursday, and, by next weekend, be all settled.”

“I think that sounds great,” he agreed.

He would, Megan thought to herself. He was thinking in terms of his comfort. Selfish man. Suddenly, she was filled with regret. He was providing what she’d asked for. It wasn’t his fault she was in the position she was in. She shouldn’t hold it against him.

“Okay, fine. Is there a justice of the peace in town who can marry us?”

“Megan, no!” Faith returned, alarm on her face.

“What, Mom?”

“Mr. Brown, the pastor of our church, will marry you.” She turned to Rick. “We can’t manage a real wedding, but a nice ceremony and then dinner at Jessica’s restaurant would make it a festive occasion.”

To Megan’s fury, Rick smiled at her mother and nodded agreement. “I think you’re right. It will make it nice.”

“Are you two crazy?” Meg asked, then realized her voice was too shrill and lowered it. “This is a business arrangement, not a romantic occasion.”

“But do you want the rest of the town to know that?” Rick asked calmly. “When the time comes for the court to decide who gets the children, do you want them to suspect that it’s a business arrangement? Or a romantic, love-at-first-sight marriage?”

Her mother and Rick stared at her, united in their decision, waiting for her response.

First round to them.

Megan lost a lot of battles in the next few days. Mostly with herself. She might have to pretend that her marriage was a love match, but she wanted to keep her heart whole.

Her sister had fallen for the entire package. Swept off her feet by a wealthy, charming man, she’d felt like Cinderella with her handsome prince. Less than six months after her fairy-tale wedding, Andrea had discovered the flip side of her romance. Prince Charming had grown more and more abusive.

But by then she was already pregnant. She told Megan she had to stay for the sake of Victoria. Then she became pregnant with Andrew. After his birth, Andrea had hoped her marriage would change. It hadn’t.

Finally, she’d left Drake. Then he’d asked her to discuss everything with him. He’d picked her up, without her realizing he’d been drinking, and killed her in an automobile accident.

Megan wasn’t going to be swayed by romance.

Or hormones.

But it was an uphill battle. Rick Astin was definitely charming. He had a smile that could turn her heart upside down. And he was as handsome as sin.

At least he wasn’t wealthy, though he’d offered to foot the bill for the dinner reception at The Last Roundup. She and her mother had argued with him about that. After all, they weren’t paying him to marry Megan. They’d finally agreed to split the cost.

With that settled, her mother’s attention had turned to Megan’s dress. “We’ll go into Lubbock to shop.”

“No, Mom, we don’t have time. I have that cream-colored suit I bought last year.”

“But, dear, you should wear white. You’ll make a beautiful bride,” Faith said, a smile on her face.

Megan was glad her mother was doing better. She’d shown more energy and hope since Saturday night than she had in almost a year. But she was getting carried away.

“If we’re going to move to Rick’s place on Thursday, we need to do some cleaning out there,” she pointed out, knowing her mother would be distracted with their move. “You know he’s a terrible housekeeper.”

“Yes, the poor dear. He needs someone to make a home for him. Cal says he’s a hard worker. Everyone likes him.”

Megan ground her teeth. According to her mother, Rick was perfection. But then she’d thought the same thing about Drake at first, too.

“We’ve set everything up with Reverend Brown. We’ve made reservations with Jessica. I have something to wear. Let’s go to Rick’s and see what we can do to get the house ready,” Megan suggested.

She’d been right. Her mother fell for her distraction. “Yes. If we go now, we can put the kids down for a nap, giving us some uninterrupted time.”

“Actually, Florence’s housekeeper volunteered to keep the kids for the day,” Megan told her. Florence Greenfield, wife of one of the doctors, was an old friend of Faith’s, one of the ladies who had suggested Rick as a potential husband.

“How wonderful. I’ll call and see if we can drop them off right now.”

In the end, Megan found herself one in a small army of women. Her mother’s friends, Florence, Mabel Baxter, Ruth Langford and Edith Hauk joined them, as well as several of their housekeepers.

The old house began to come alive as lemon-fresh scent replaced dust, changing Rick’s disaster to a comfortable home. Folding a white T-shirt reminded Megan of Rick’s pink shirt Saturday night, and his embarrassment. It brought a smile to her face.

“You look happy,” Mabel said, catching her by surprise.

“Um, yes, of course,” she agreed, remembering the role she had agreed to play.

“I’m glad everything is working out. Now, we need to move Rick’s belongings downstairs. Why don’t you come direct the change?”

Megan swallowed. She didn’t want to make decisions for Rick. But she had no choice.

When it got late in the afternoon, the crew of women began to disperse. After all, they had their own homes and families to deal with. Megan wanted to hang the freshly washed curtains for Torie’s room before she left, and Mabel offered to take Faith to get the children and take them to their apartment.

“I should be finished in a few minutes, Mom, if you want to wait.”

“No, dear, I’m tired. I think I’d better go on with Mabel.”

“Okay,” Megan agreed, frowning. She hoped her mother hadn’t overdone it today.

As Mabel and her mother were leaving, Mabel said, “There’s a casserole in the oven. It needs to come out in half an hour.” Then she disappeared out the door.

Megan realized some of the women had brought in bags of groceries, but she hadn’t realized they’d cooked. She moved to the oven and opened it. A wonderful aroma filled the room.

With a grin, she realized Rick was going to be pleased. It was some kind of enchilada casserole. She checked to be sure the timer was set and closed the oven. She needed to finish her chore and get out of there.

Then she realized she couldn’t leave until Rick returned or the casserole would be ruined.

With a grimace, she went upstairs to hang the curtains. Surely he’d come in soon. It was almost six o’clock.

An hour and a half later, Megan was pacing the floor. It was almost dark. When was the man going to appear? What was he doing?

She’d called her mother to explain why she hadn’t arrived, but her mother hadn’t been surprised.

“Most ranchers work until the light goes, dear. He’ll be there soon. Why don’t you share his supper and then come home?”

“No, I’ll be home as soon as he shows up.”

“But we’ve already eaten—”

“I can take care of myself, Mom. I’ll see you in a little while.”

R
ICK HAD INTENDED
to cut his day a little shorter because he’d promised himself he’d give some time to cleaning the house tonight. Faith had asked if she and Megan could come out today to start moving in and he’d reluctantly agreed, telling her the house would be unlocked.

He should’ve cleaned on Sunday, but even Sundays sometimes required work. It was calving season. And today had been particularly busy. He was filthy and tired.

Next week, after his marriage, he would come home to a clean house and a hot meal. That idea brought a smile to his weary lips.

He parked his pickup near the backdoor and struggled out, ready to drag himself up the steps. He came to an abrupt halt, however, when he discovered a frowning Megan standing at the backdoor.

“Something wrong?” he asked, speeding up his walk.

“Where have you been?” she asked, instead of answering his question.

“Delivering calves.”

“You mean you were actually working?”

Her utter surprise irritated him. “Naw, I was sun-bathing by the pond in the back pasture.” He regretted his sarcasm as her cheeks flushed. “Why are you still here? Is there a problem?”

“No. I waited to take the casserole out when it finished cooking. Then, I thought it would be rude to leave, so I waited, thinking you’d be here any minute.”

He picked out the key word. “Casserole? You fixed dinner?”

“Not me. One of the ladies who helped us today.”

“Well, let’s eat. I’m starving.”

He started to move past her and saw her nose wrinkle in distaste. “Uh, I’ll grab a quick shower first,” he promised even as his stomach protested the wait.

She followed him into the house. “You go ahead. I’ll set out the food and then leave.”

“You’re not staying to eat?”

“No. I need to go to the apartment and help Mom put the kids to bed.” She didn’t meet his gaze, which made him wonder if she was lying, but he was too hungry to care.

“Okay.”

He was halfway across the kitchen when his surroundings pierced his fog of hunger and weariness. The room gleamed in the fading light and smelled great. “What happened?”

“To what?”

“The kitchen. Man, you must’ve worked all day to get it to look like this. Nice job, Megan.” He turned to smile at her, but she was still frowning.

“We had a lot of help. Mom’s friends, the ones who recommended you, came to help.”

“Ah, the matchmakers.”

“The matchmakers?”

“That’s what everyone calls them now, since they had a contest to marry off their sons. You know, Mac, Tuck, Spence and Cal.”

“They were just being helpful to me,” she muttered and turned her back on him. “Hurry and clean up before your dinner gets too cold.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said and bounded up the stairs, spurred on by his hunger.

The hot shower refreshed him, even though it was a quick one. He stepped out and grabbed a towel, doing a quick rubdown. Then, wrapping the towel around his waist, even though Megan was supposed to be gone, he hurried into his bedroom for clean jeans and T-shirt.

And found nothing.

His bedroom was spotless. And the chest of drawers was empty. He opened the closet. Empty. Obviously, the ladies today had taken over the entire house. Now that he thought about it, the bath was immaculate, too. Or it was until he’d showered.

Maybe they moved his things to the downstairs bedroom. He came down the stairs, reaching the bottom as the kitchen door swung open. Megan ran smack into him, her hands coming to rest on his bare chest.

“Oh!”

“Megan! I thought you were leaving.”

She backed away and he grabbed for his towel, afraid his modesty was about to disappear.

M
EGAN TRIED TO
look anywhere but at him, but her gaze kept returning to that magnificent expanse of chest. The muscles were big and brawny and coated with dark hair that tapered down to the white terry cloth towel.

“Are…are you eating without any clothes on?”

“No! At least, I hadn’t planned on it. But all my things are missing from the bedroom.”

“Sorry, I should’ve told you. We moved you to the downstairs bedroom. You said—”

“That’s fine. I just hadn’t realized the extent of your efforts. The house looks great, by the way.”

She couldn’t look him in the eye. She was acting like a teenage girl who’d never seen a man’s body before. She was a nurse, for heaven’s sake. “You’d better get dressed.”

“Okay. Did you decide to stay and eat with me?”

“No, my car won’t start. I wondered if you could look at it.” She hated asking, but she’d called the one mechanic in town, and he couldn’t come out until morning. Her mother had the children already in bed, and Megan had decided the only practical thing to do was ask Rick for help.

“Before I eat?” he asked, his voice filled with despair.

“No. No, I’ll eat with you, if you don’t mind. Could you look at it after?”

“Sure. Be glad to. Now that I don’t have to do any cleaning tonight, I have lots of time,” he agreed, giving her a smile that sped up her breathing.

“Okay,” she agreed, turning her back on him. “Dinner will be ready when you’re dressed.” She had to get away from the near naked man before she reached out to touch that warm flesh again.

He reappeared only a couple of minutes later, taking a deep breath as he came through the door. “That smells like enchiladas.”

“One of the ladies made it after I mentioned you liked enchiladas. It’s some kind of enchilada casserole.”

Megan was surprised when Rick held her chair for her. She hurriedly slid into the seat, then he took the chair across from her.

He offered no conversation until after he’d eaten at least half of his helping of the casserole. Megan remained silent also. He’d put in more than a twelve-hour day and she knew he must be exhausted.

So when he finally spoke, it shocked her. “This is great. Great food, and the house looks wonderful. You must’ve worked hard today.”

She smiled her thanks. “Not as hard as you. If delivering calves is anything like babies, you must be very tired.”

“There were a couple of hard deliveries. Have you ever pulled a calf?”

“No. And I think I’m glad. That doesn’t sound pleasant.”

He grinned. “Maybe not, but a healthy newborn is worth the effort. The crop today looks good.”

“Congratulations, then.” She remembered something she wanted to ask him. “When we cleaned and everything, I noticed all the computer equipment in your bedroom downstairs. Are you sure you’ll have enough room?”

“Yeah.” He continued eating, apparently unconcerned.

“Mother and I can share a room, leaving you the master bedroom.”

He stopped eating and frowned at her. “That’s not necessary. I want you to be comfortable. If today’s any example, you and your mother are going to make me a lot more comfortable.”

“We’ll try.”

“Think you could get this recipe?”

She rolled her eyes. The man thought with his stomach. Her gaze dropped to that flat, muscular area of his body. When she lifted her gaze again, it slammed into his. “Uh, probably.”

“Good.”

She struggled for another topic of conversation. “Uh, you must like computers.”

His fork stopped halfway to his mouth.

Megan raised an eyebrow when he glared at her before taking a bite. “Is something wrong?”

“No. I like computers, okay?”

His aggressive attitude bothered her. “I didn’t mean to intrude. But you’ve got a lot of expensive equipment in that room. Maybe you shouldn’t leave the door unlocked.”

“No one locks up out here in the country.”

“Oh. Do you…do you spend a lot of time on the computer?”

He put his fork down. “Not now. In the winter, I do a little—that is, I work at the computer. I’m developing a system that helps me keep track of things here on the ranch.”

Relief flooded Megan, surprising her. She hadn’t realized how worried she’d been. After all, she was going to marry the man. “Oh, good. That could be helpful to a lot of people.”

“Yeah,” he assured her with a grin. “But I don’t have time for much right now. Not with calves being born day and night.”

“At night? Are you going back out again tonight?”

He rubbed the back of his neck, then shrugged his shoulders. “I brought a couple of cows in for the night. I’ll check on them later.”

“What about the vet?”

His brown eyes looked puzzled. “What about him? Are you interested in him?”

“No!” Megan returned, her cheeks flushing. “I meant did you call the vet to help with the calves.”

“You don’t know much about ranching, do you?”