“No. My brother and sister and their families live there. Buck lived there with Lucy, but I suspect that one of these days she’ll move back to Elko to be near her family. My house is on the other side of the lake.”
“Is it where you lived with your wife?”
“No. Like everyone else, Jenny and I began our married life in the ranch house.”
Though she hated asking the next question, she had to know. “How did she die?”
“A drunk teenager ploughed into her car one night as she was driving back to the ranch. She died instantly.”
Catherine’s face crumpled in pain. “I’m so sorry.”
She felt his eyes studying her. “After she was gone, I built a place of my own to get away from the memories. My sister Penny jokingly calls it the bachelor pad, but with your help we can make it family-friendly. I dare you to come and live in it with Bonnie and me.” He flashed her a rare white smile that turned her heart over.
Shaken by his proposal, she drew in an unsteady breath, attempting to keep her wits. “Supposing I were to say yes to this ludicrous idea of yours, and we get married only to learn that the judge turns down our petition?”
He gave an elegant shrug of those masculine shoulders. “Then we get an annulment. I’ll have my attorney put it in writing. But if we win Bonnie, our marriage is forever.”
Forever.
She reeled in place.
He paused at the door. “I’ll be by at six for your answer. If you’re not here, then I’ll know she isn’t your raison d’être after all.”
CHAPTER SIX
AT FIVE to six Cole pulled up in front of Catherine’s condo. He’d come early because, frankly, there was nowhere else he wanted to be.
Throughout his life he’d relied on gut instinct to get him through some rough moments. By asking him if he would let her visit Bonnie some times, she’d admitted defeat. It was the pain he’d heard in Catherine’s voice that had made up his mind for him.
Now it was a waiting game to see if she had the courage to do this outrageous thing and marry him.
“Coletrane-” he could hear his father “-whether you like it or not, you’re a natural-born leader. I’m depending on you to hold this family together after I’m gone someday. Buck bears watching, and Penny and John will always look to you, whether in good times or bad.”
Cole ground his teeth.
Watching Buck self-destruct despite many unsuccessful interventions on Cole’s part had turned him inside out. But he could do something for his brother now. He wanted to do it.
Already he thought of the baby as his little Bonnibelle. She was a fighter to have gotten through those first difficult five weeks. Nothing in life seemed more important than being a father to her. With Catherine helping him, they could be the family Cole ached for and Bonnie deserved.
He checked his watch. Five after six.
His chest grew tight. If he was wrong about Catherine and she couldn’t bring herself to marry him, not even for the baby’s sake, then he’d call out every favor to influence the judge to let him adopt Bonnie alone.
It might entail an all-out battle with the court. That was okay. He was ready for the fight, even if it meant pretending he’d been Terrie’s lover. A white lie God would under stand. His and Buck’s DNA would be a close enough match.
But he much preferred the thought of being Catherine’s husband.
Since the idea had come to him, it was all he’d been able to think about. She was a beautiful woman. Her haunting image had played havoc with his sleep. He couldn’t forget how careful she’d been to protect Buck, or how brave she’d been to stand up to Cole no matter what he threw at her.
They would have something going for them most newlyweds didn’t have-a ready-made child they both loved. In that regard he and Catherine shared an unassailable bond. It was what had brought them together. Who knew what the future might hold for them?
In two days she’d become so important to him he felt a stunning sense of loss at the thought of never seeing her again. Nothing close to this had happened to him before, except for the way he’d felt about Jenny when they’d first been introduced.
He knew for a fact that, having met Catherine, he would pursue her under any cir cum stances. But with the minutes ticking away, and no sign of her, he had to conclude she couldn’t bring herself to say yes to him, not even with Bonnie as the prize.
Cole unconsciously pounded the flat of his hand against the steering wheel. He could swear she was aware of the instant chemistry between them. Hell, he knew she could feel it. The tension between them was palpable.
But he had to remember Catherine had been deprived of her family from birth. She’d obviously struggled through her teens. Clearly she’d been let down by the man who’d impregnated her.
After the miscarriage she would have been devastated, yet she’d gone on to make a total success of her life. She couldn’t have achieved her goals without using her native intelligence to make unimpulsive decisions.
By proposing marriage, he’d asked something of her that meant she not only had to let go of old fears, she had to trust him and herself enough to face the unknown. Hopefully the possibility of raising Bonnie was reason enough for her to make that leap of faith.
Going on the hunch that she needed more time to make up her mind, he started the car and drove three blocks to a convenience mart he’d passed on the way.
Alighting from the seat, he went inside for a cup of coffee. Once back behind the wheel, he decided it was time to make the phone call he’d been putting off. Whether she was at work or home, he could reach her on her cell.
She picked up on the second ring and said hello.
“Brenda? It’s Cole.”
“At last- I know how much you’re hurting. I guess I was beginning to wonder if I’d hear from you before the weekend.”
This was the last time.
“Buck’s death has set me back, no doubt about it. But I’m dealing with another issue right now.” He paused. “I’m afraid it’s going to prevent me from seeing you again.”
“You don’t need to lie to me,” she said in a brittle tone. “I know I don’t measure up to Jenny. No woman does.”
Her comment didn’t faze him. Like a glorious rainbow over the Rubies following the most violent of storms, Catherine’s unexpected appearance had changed the entire landscape of his life.
But Brenda didn’t need to know that. He expelled a controlled sigh. “I’m sorry.”
“So am I. It’s been ten years. You should have gotten over her by now, Cole.”
The sound of the click came as a relief.
He finished his coffee, then backed away from the curb and headed for Catherine’s once more.
Bringing another colleague up to speed on the case coming into Girls’ Haven had taken longer than Catherine had realized. It was six-twenty before she turned the corner of her street so fast her rear wheels squealed.
She strained to discover if Cole’s rental car was parked out in front. When she couldn’t see it, her heart pounded sickeningly. He’d said six o’clock and it appeared he’d meant it!
Suddenly any misgivings she might still have been entertaining about the wisdom of marrying him vanished. She wanted Bonnie, and so help her she wanted Cole too, but it looked like she was too late!
He would have come for an answer. Not finding her here, he’d gone. For all she knew he was halfway to the airport and she’d never see him again-
Like a drowning victim her life flashed before her, giving her glimpses of the three of them living in that glorious piece of heaven. But the thrill of it only lasted a moment, because it was a dream she hadn’t reached for in time.