"Isabel, you look like hell. Stop daydreaming and drink your tea before it gets cold."
She was jarred back to the present by his brisk order. "Has anyone ever told you how bossy you are, Douglas?"
"No."
"Then let me be the first. You're very bossy. Do you remember the night we met?"
The question was laughable. He shuddered every time he thought about it. "I'll never forget it."
The scowl on his face made her smile. "It wasn't that terrible."
"Yeah, it was."
"Was I difficult?"
"Oh, yes."
"I couldn't have been any worse than any of the other women you helped. I wasn't, was I?"
"I've helped lots of… females."
"Yes?"
He shrugged. "Yes, what?"
"Was I more difficult than the others?"
"Definitely."
"How?" she demanded.
"The others didn't try to strangle me."
"I didn't-"
"Yes, you did."
"What else did I do? It's all right. You can tell me. I promise I won't get mad." She picked up the teacup and saucer and took a long sip. "I'm waiting."
"I remember you accused me of a lot of crimes."
The glint in his eyes made it difficult for her to tell if he was being honest or not.
"Such as?"
"Let's see," he drawled out. "There were so many it's hard to keep them straight. Oh, yeah, I remember. You blamed me for getting you pregnant."
The teacup rattled in the saucer. "I didn't," she whispered.
"Yes, you did. You almost had me convinced too. Hell, I apologized," he added with a grin. "I wasn't responsible though. Trust me, sugar. I would have remembered taking you to bed."
Her blush was as red as her nose. She put the cup down on the tray but kept her attention centered on Douglas. He could tell she was trying hard not to laugh.
"What else did I accuse you of?"
"Being responsible for your agony."
"You already mentioned that one."
"Sorry. It's just kind of hard to get past it."
"Please try."
"Let's see. I was also responsible for the rain, and, oh, yeah, this one's a doozy. It was my fault you had an unhappy childhood."
"I didn't have an unhappy childhood."
"Could have fooled me. I apologized."
She burst into laughter. "You do love to exaggerate, don't you? I'm certain the other women you helped were just as difficult."
"No, they weren't."
"Who were these women? Saints?"
He moved the tray to the side table as a precautionary measure before he answered. "They weren't exactly women, at least not the way you're thinking…"
She stopped smiling. "Then what were they?"
"Horses."
Her mouth dropped open. Much to his relief, she didn't become angry. She laughed instead. "Oh, Lord, you must have been as terrified as I was."
"Yes."
"Did you have any idea what to do?"
He grinned. "Not really."
She laughed until tears came into her eyes, then realized the noise would wake Parker and quickly covered her mouth with her hand. "You were so… calm… and… reassuring about it all."
"I was scared."
"You?"
"Yes, me. "You got real mean. That was even scarier."
"No, I didn't. Quit teasing me. I remember exactly what happened. I was in control at all times. I do recall raising my voice once or twice so you could hear me in the other room, but other than that, labor wasn't bad at all."
"Isabel, are we talking about childbirth or a tea party you attended?"
"I've never been to a tea party, but I have given birth, and I want you to know that my little aches and pains were insignificant compared to the beautiful gift I received. He's wonderful."
"Who's wonderful?"
She was exasperated. "My son. Who did you think I was talking about?"
"Me."
She would have laughed again if she hadn't started sneezing. He handed her a fresh handkerchief, told her to rest, and finally left her alone so she could.
Much to his relief, she got better in a couple of days, and thus far, Parker still hadn't caught her cold. By late Monday afternoon, Douglas was exhausted. He was drifting off to sleep in the rocker with Parker cradled in his arms when he heard the distinct sound of horses approaching. Isabel was fixing supper. She had spotted the unwanted visitors at the same time that he had heard them, for they met by the table on their way to alert one another. She reached for her son and hurried to get ready.
Douglas went to the window to check their progress. He muttered every blasphemy he could think of while he watched Boyle and a stranger who he assumed was one of the hired men coming across the yard. Douglas made up his mind to personally greet the two men. No way in hell was he going to let Isabel go outside. The terror tactics were going to stop. He actually smiled as he reached for the doorknob.
She watched him draw his weapon. She didn't have to be a mind reader to know what he was planning to do. There wasn't time to say a prayer for the sin she was going to commit. " Douglas, we're going to have to let Boyle wait. You need to look at Parker. I think he has a fever. Let Boyle wait," she repeated in a much more forceful voice.
She waited until Douglas had bolted the door and gone rushing past her, and then she asked for God's forgiveness as she picked up the rifle and ran to greet Boyle. She had to get outside before Douglas realized she'd tricked him. He was going to be furious.
Boyle was just raising his gun to fire in the air when she stepped outside. She kept one hand behind her back on the doorknob, holding it closed, and propped the rifle under her arm. Her finger was on the trigger.
"What do you want?" she demanded.
Boyle grinned at her. Isabel could barely stomach the sight. The stranger sitting atop a black mount sneered at her. She couldn't see his eyes because the brim of his hat was pulled down low over his brow, but she could feel his gaze boring into her. Like Boyle, the stranger apparently didn't consider the rifle much of a threat. He had both hands stacked on top of his pommel.
"You ain't being very sociable, Isabel, pointing your rifle at me."
"Get off my land, Boyle."
"I'll go when I'm ready. I came here to tell you I'm going to be away for a spell. Don't go getting your hopes up 'cause I'm coming back. I'm going to my annual family get-together, and I expect I'll be away a good six weeks, maybe even longer. Now, I don't want you feeling lonely while I'm gone, so I'm putting my right-hand man in charge of you. His name is Spear."
He turned to his cohort, told him to tip his hat to his future bride, and then turned back to Isabel.
"Spear's going to watch out for you. I've put some of my men up on the mountain yonder to watch over you too. They'll be staying day and night. Are you comforted by my thoughtfulness? I wouldn't want you to think you had to leave while I was gone. Next year you'll be going with me. You understand what I'm saying, girl?"
The mockery in his voice infuriated her. "Go away," she shouted.
He laughed. "I expect you will have had that thing by the time I get back. Your figure should be nice and curvy again by the time we get married. Are you about ready to accept your future, honey bell, and start begging me?"
She answered him by cocking her rifle. Spear's hand went to his gun, but he didn't draw.
Boyle jerked on his reins and rode away. Spear followed. "Didn't I tell you she was full of spit and vinegar?" Boyle shouted. "She'll beg me though, and she'll do it in front of the entire town. Just you wait and see."
Isabel didn't hear Spear's answer. Boyle's laughter drowned it out. She stood there on the stoop for several minutes, watching them leave… and gathering the gumption to face Douglas again.