Gabe didn’t remark on it and never once did she feel the sensation of being stared at.
There were advantages to being ignored and this was one of them. But under the circumstances, Gabe’s continued silence, his skepticism and his obvious lack of interest in conversation, seemed to emphasize how little interest he had in any potential apology from her. It was as if he was only biding his time with her, but why? Why put up with her at all if he wasn’t interested in the reason she was here or what she had to say?
Lainey made another attempt at her meal, but finally gave up and sat silently, her hands clenched together out of sight in her lap. The mantel clock at the side of the room above the river stone fireplace ticked off the endless seconds. Hundreds of seconds, thousands of them, billions.
And then Elisa came in with a small tray of dessert. The pedestal dessert glasses were filled with chocolate mousse and topped with a crinkly dollop of whipped cream. Chilled, the outside of the stout glasses were already beginning to fog over as Elisa removed Lainey’s picked over plate and replaced it with the dessert.
Normally the treat was Lainey’s favorite, but her appetite reacted no better to the sight of it than it had to the fine meal. Nevertheless, she couldn’t refuse it so she picked up her spoon to dig in. At least the mousse would slide down more easily than the steak and vegetables had.
She’d managed two bites before the rich chocolate flavor touched off her appetite. Focused on the rich dessert, she was able to keep from glancing toward Gabe. But then she heard a soft sound of movement and glanced his way in time to see him lift his untouched chocolate and set it next to the one she’d nearly finished.
“Fill in those empty places,” he said, his voice low and gravelly with a kind of masculine gentleness that caught her off guard and sent a tidal wave of emotion through her.
“But don’t you—”
“Your favorite, not mine.”
His dark gaze was probing again, but with less force than before. Now it dawned on her that he might have made a special request to Elisa to prepare the dessert. If so, why had he been so harsh with her during the meal? Was this sudden generosity some sort of apology?
Leery of rejecting what might at least be a small offering of thoughtfulness, she made herself murmur a soft thanks. She’d eat the second dessert if it killed her. Though it went down slower than the first one, she managed the task but when it was gone, she set her spoon down and waited tensely for what would happen next.
“Elisa’s taken our coffee to the den.”
Lainey’s momentary relief that the meal was finally done was swallowed up by renewed anxiety as she eased back her chair to stand. Apparently Gabe meant to let her have the talk she wanted, but now that the time had come, she was back to worrying that he’d reject everything she had to say.
Lainey stood and then paused, glancing up at him. “I need to get my briefcase.”
The dark flicker in his gaze held hers. “If it’s papers, I’m not interested.” The dark flicker vanished because his gaze shifted and he waited for her to precede him out of the room. Once they were through the doors she hesitated, not certain where the room was.
As if he’d remembered that, Gabe directed her along the edge of the large living room to a hall in the east wing that brought them quickly to the den. French doors on the outside wall opened to a wide patio that was ringed with enough trees to shade the patio stones in the heat of the day.
All the other walls in the room were lined floor to ceiling with built-in bookcases. Among the books and stock magazines neatly stored on the many shelves were Native American artifacts and pieces of cowboy art. The furniture was heavy and masculine, and a few brightly colored Mexican throw rugs lay on the floor atop a carpet made up of a small variety of dark shades that wouldn’t show much of what might get tracked in during a workday.
Lainey might have felt comfortable in the large room and taken several minutes to more closely examine several of the pieces in the bookcases if anyone but Gabe had owned the room. Hesitantly she sat down on one of the two leather wing chairs he indicated in front of the big desk. The coffee tray was on the small table between her chair and his, so she looked over at him as he was sitting down.
“Pour for both of us, if you like,” he said, and settled back to watch her fill their cups.
She handed the first cup to him, then poured one for herself to soothe her dry mouth. When she’d finished, she slid back only slightly in the big chair to take a sip before she set the cup back down on the table. Weary of the wait but so anxious about it that she was on the verge of losing her nerve, she plunged in.
“I’m not sure where to start, but there are several things you deserve to hear.”
Now she braved a look at him and saw him leaning back calmly, studying her face. “Start with your plans for July.”
The gravelly request caught her off guard. He’d made it sound like a request, though he’d worded it as a demand. July was the month they’d been married five years ago. According to her father’s will, July was the month that sole control of Talbot Ranch would revert to her if she’d stayed married to Gabe for a full five years.
“I’m not here about who’ll control Talbot Ranch or what will happen in July with this marriage. I’m here to apologize and, if you’re interested, to explain why I’ve acted the way I have.”
“I’m not interested in pretty apologies. What I’m interested in are your plans for July. Will you file for divorce?”
Lainey couldn’t mistake the iron will beneath his words. Or the fine thread of anger mixed in. But why would divorce even be a question after what she’d done to him all these years? As far as she was concerned, divorce was a given. What Gabe didn’t know was that she’d found out about what he’d done for Talbot Ranch and she planned to do something about it.
“I’ve just recently found out that Talbot Ranch was virtually bankrupt when you took over,” she began, “and it looks like you saved it single-handedly in spite of what I did to you. I suspect you covered my inheritance taxes out of your own pocket when I thought they’d come from my father’s investments.”
She paused, but his stony expression told her nothing. “And since the quarterly checks I thought were from profits due me from Talbot Ranch must also have been paid out of your private accounts, I owe you a substantial amount of money in addition to a complete apology.”
Lainey finished briskly with, “On the subject of July, I’m certain you can’t possibly want to stay married a second longer than you agreed to.”
“Why’s that?”
The sudden comeback was unexpected, and she sat there a moment until she realized why. This was the opening for her to finally make the “pretty apology” he kept referring to so skeptically.
“As I’ve said—”
“I made a vow,” he said, bluntly cutting her off, “‘till death do us part.”’
The quiet words were like a sudden blow and Lainey felt the punch so vividly that it stole her breath. Her brain registered the shock, then she felt a new one when she belatedly realized the significance of what he’d just said.
I made a vow…
A
