Gus had been best friends with Charles Lassiter for years and it was only natural that he would defend him. And Chance had to admit that being out on the rodeo circuit had probably been lonely for his father without his family with him. But as far as Chance was concerned there was no excuse for infidelity. When a man committed himself to a woman, he didn’t go looking for relief in another woman’s arms.
That’s why Chance had made the decision to remain single. Finding out a couple of months ago that a man like his father hadn’t been able to resist temptation was enough to make Chance question a lot of things about himself. With the exception of his college girlfriend, he’d never been in a relationship for any real length of time. He’d always thought that was because he hadn’t met the right woman. But could it be a clue he was incapable of committing himself to one woman? He wasn’t sure and until he knew the answer to that question, his best bet would be to avoid getting too deeply involved with anyone. He certainly didn’t want to run the risk of causing any woman the emotional pain that he was certain his mother had gone through.
He shook his head as he walked into the barn. He didn’t know why he was giving anything Gus said a second thought. Gus had never been married and to Chance’s knowledge the old guy hadn’t had a date in more than twenty-five years. That wasn’t exactly a glowing recommendation for Gus’s advice on matters of the heart.
Besides, there were too many differences between Chance and Fee for anything to work out between them. She was a city girl who loved spending a day at the spa or in a boutique on Rodeo Drive, while he would rather go skinny-dipping or attend a rodeo. And then there was the matter of their jobs. She had a nice clean office in a climate-controlled skyscraper in downtown L.A. and his job required being out in all kinds of weather, doing things that most people considered dirty and thoroughly disgusting.
He took a deep breath and faced the facts. When Fee had to go back to L.A., he would tell her to get in touch with him whenever she was in town, kiss her goodbye and let her go. That was just the way it would have to be. But what he couldn’t figure out was why the thought of her leaving made him feel completely empty inside.
* * *
“Chance is amazing with animals,” Fee said to Jenna Montgomery-Lassiter after they enjoyed lunch at her new husband’s restaurant. Chance and Dylan had gone into the office to discuss an increase in the amount of beef the Big Blue supplied to the Lassiter Grill chain, giving the women time for a little girl talk.
“Colleen and I have come to the conclusion that all of the Lassiter men are pretty amazing,” Jenna agreed, grinning. “They aren’t necessarily easy to love, but they are more than worth the effort.”
“I’m sure they are,” Fee said, smiling. “But I’m not in love with Chance.”
Jenna gazed at her for several long moments. “Are you sure about that?”
Fee nodded. “We’re just friends. I’m trying to talk him into helping me with the PR campaign to improve the Lassiter public image.” Laughing, she added, “And he’s trying to talk me out of it.”
She felt a little guilty about not applying more pressure in her arguments to get him to agree to be the spokesman. But she sensed that the “hard sell” approach wouldn’t work with him. If anything, it would make him that much more determined not to take on the job. And then there was the distraction he posed. Much of her time had been taken up with thinking about how soft his kisses were and how his touch made her feel as if she was the most cherished woman in the world.
“I’m sure Chance has been very persuasive,” Jenna commented, her smile indicating that she knew something Fee didn’t.
“What do you mean?” Fee couldn’t imagine what her friend was alluding to.
Without answering, Jenna reached into her purse, handed Fee a small mirror, then tapped the side of her own neck with her index finger.
Looking into the mirror, Fee gasped and immediately pulled her long hair forward to hide the tiny blemish on the side of her neck. “I... Well, that is... We...” She clamped her mouth shut. There wasn’t anything she could say. The little love bite on the side of her neck said it all.
To ease her embarrassment, Jenna smiled as she reached over to place a comforting hand on Fee’s forearm. “It’s barely noticeable and I probably would have missed it completely if I hadn’t had one myself when we were on our honeymoon in Paris.”
Her cheeks feeling as if they were on fire, Fee shook her head. “I haven’t had one of those since I was a sophomore in college.”
“The Lassiter men are very passionate,” Jenna said, her tone reflecting her understanding. “It’s one of the reasons we love them so much.”
“I told you, Chance and I aren’t in love,” Fee insisted.
“I know,” Jenna interrupted. “But I’ve seen the way you look at each other.” She smiled. “If you two aren’t there yet, it’s just a matter of time.”
Fee wasn’t going to insult Jenna’s intelligence by trying to deny that she was having to fight to keep herself from falling head over heels for Chance. “We’re so different. I’m completely out of my element on the ranch, the same as he would be in a city the size of L.A.”
“Differences are what makes things interesting,” Jenna replied. “Heaven only knows, Dylan and I had our share. But if you really care deeply for someone, you work through the issues.” She paused a moment. “I was certain that the implications of my father’s illegal activities were going to tear Dylan and I apart. But we worked through that and our relationship is stronger than ever. If we can get past something like that, a little thing like distance between you and Chance should be a piece of cake to work out.” She smiled. “You could always move here.”
Fee stared down at her hands folded on top of the table for several seconds before she met Jenna’s questioning gaze. “It’s not just the distance of where we live that we’d have to work around,” she said slowly. “I have a career that I won’t give up.” She sighed. “I won’t bore you with the details, but my mother gave up a very promising career as a financial adviser because she fell in love with my father. After he left us, she’d been out of her field for so long, she decided it would be impossible to catch up.” She shook her head. “I don’t intend to give history the opportunity to repeat itself.”
“I can understand wanting to maintain your independence,” Jenna said, nodding. “But I don’t think Chance would ever ask you to give up your career. He just doesn’t impress me as being that type of man.”
They both fell silent before Fee decided it was time to lighten the mood. “Enough about that. Tell me about your honeymoon. I’ve never been to Paris. I’ve heard it’s beautiful.”
“It is,” Jenna said, her eyes lighting up with enthusiasm. “Dylan spent a lot of time there when he was traveling through Europe and couldn’t wait to show me all the little-known places he had discovered.”
While her friend talked about the sites her husband had shown her in Paris, as well as the delectable French cuisine, Fee’s thoughts strayed to Jenna’s observations. If others could see how she felt about Chance, she probably was beginning to fall for him. He was a wonderful man and no matter how much she might deny it, she cared more deeply for him with each passing day and especially after making love last night.
But she couldn’t allow herself to fall in love with Chance. Besides the fact that he had made it clear he
