of the marriage when everything had seemed so right.
You look cold, she remarked.
Frozen is more like it, Trey corrected dryly, a betraying stiffness in the
movement of his lips that lent credence to his words.
Why don t you change out of those clothes, Sloan suggested. I m not sure
you ll have time for a shower before dinner.
Probably not, Trey agreed, heading for the bedroom.
Sloan waited until he passed her, then followed him into the room. Sticking to
her carefully planned script, she said, You can put on those jeans from last
night. I left them on the chair for you.
As Trey scooped them up, he noticed the faint chalky line near the leg hems.
It s the dirty clothes basket for this pair. Looks like I got road salt on
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them.
When he turned toward the hamper, Sloan said quickly, Better check the
pockets first.
The first pocket he checked was empty. It was the second that contained the
handkerchief. Sloan watched his expression, but he seemed oblivious to the red
smears on it as he dipped a hand in first one hip pocket then the other.
Is that blood on your hankie? Sloan silently applauded herself for how
unsuspecting she sounded.
Trey checked the stain and shook his head. No, it looks like lipstick.
It can t be mine. I never wear red.
You know what? I ll bet it belongs to that redhead at The Oasis, Trey said
with dawning recollection.
And what s your explanation for her lipstick being on your hankie?
Quick to note the undertone of righteous anger in her question, Trey shot her
a quick look, puzzled and a little wary. It s not what you re thinking, he
said. Tank was with her. She gave me a peck on the cheek. That s all.
Of course. A cool skepticism coated her voice.
You ve decided that I cheated on you, haven t you? Trey demanded, his voice
low and heavy.
You wouldn t be the first man to look for sex outside marriage. Sloan made
it a flat condemnation of his gender. It s too bad I woke up when you got
home, isn t it? Otherwise I wouldn t have known how late it was.
I told you the roads were bad He started to say more, then checked himself.
Johnny would tell you the same thing, but you d probably think he was only
saying it to cover for me, wouldn t you?
Well, wouldn t he? Sloan countered with some defiance.
You want to believe that, don t you? You want to believe all of it. Why? The
frown he wore was dark with confusion.
Pride lifted her head, her chin tilting at a mutinous angle. I m not one of
those women who will turn a blind eye to her husband s philandering ways.
You don t happen to be married to a man who goes in for that, he stated
curtly. You re going to believe what you want. But that happens to be the
truth.
His words were too close to the ones she had used when addressing his family.
Which made it impossible for Sloan to dismiss them. As a consequence, she had
her first doubts about the conclusions she had drawn.
Maybe. She hesitated, still warring with her pride. Maybe I was wrong.
He stared at her for a tick of seconds, his features all tight and hard. Then
his broad chest lifted with the deep breath he inhaled. Briefly, he tipped his
head down and away from her, letting the indrawn breath rush from him in a
long sigh. When he looked at her again, the hardness was gone from his face.
Unhurried, Trey moved to her. I m told women in your condition can be highly
emotional at times. In this case, I think it s your imagination that became
overactive.
Just as yours is about Uncle Max, Sloan was quick to retort.
Now, wait a minute. Before we start another argument, let s clear up this one
first. His hands settled on the rounded points of her shoulders, a gentleness
in their touch. And I ll begin by saying there s nothing and no woman out
there better than what I have right here with you. I know, because I looked
before I ever met you.
But you were angry with me last night, Sloan reminded him, unable to let go
of all her suspicions.
That doesn t mean anything. You re the only woman for me, Sloan. I knew it
the first time I saw you. We can have all the arguments in the world and it
won t change that.
With only the slightest pressure, he drew her to him, looking down at her face
when she tipped it up. There was no smile on her lips, but they were parted
and waiting. When he kissed her, Trey felt again that rush of inexpressible
tenderness through him. He had to know if it was the same for her. But when he
lifted his head, the pull of her hands brought it back down, and he met her
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lips again. Somehow they never got around to arguing about Max Rutledge that
night.
Feet propped on the desk, Donovan rocked back in the old office chair,
ignoring its protesting squeaks. One muscled arm was raised over his head,
holding the phone to his ear.
I ve gotta hand it to you, Max. The word spread like you said it would.
What s it been a little over two weeks since I planted the rumor? Already I
have customers whispering to me about the marital problems Trey Calder and his
wife are having. For the most part, everybody s putting the blame on the wife,
either claiming that she can t stand the cold and isolation of Montana after
living in Hawaii or else that she married him for the Calder money but hasn t
been able to get her hands on it.
We can t let that continue, Rutledge stated. You d better arrange for one
of your girls to receive a very expensive piece of jewelry. And make sure it
gets known that it s from someone she met on the sly not at your place where
he would be recognized. The way people s minds work, it won t take them long
before they ll link one rumor to the other and conclude that Trey s got
himself a mistress on the side.
Consider it done, Donovan replied. By the way, my anonymous phone calls are
beginning to get to her. I ve been careful not to call too often, just once or
twice a week. The last time, though, she was really mad, demanding to know who
was calling and why I didn t speak. He gloated a little. I swear, nothing
makes a woman more suspicious of her husband than to answer a phone, hear
music and noises in the background, and have the caller hang up.
Keep it up, but get to work on the other, Max ordered. I don t want the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]