didn’t know where the idea had come from, but it seemed suddenly, inarguably right.
Kate smiled at him, her heart shining through her eyes. “It’s simple really. All I want you to do is marry me.”
Early the following day, Devin Logan walked hesitantly into the kitchen where Kate sat drinking her first cup of coffee. She smiled a greeting. “Morning, Dad.”
“Morning, Princess.” He circled the table twice before he sat down.
Kate watched him curiously, then rose to pour him a cup of coffee and bring it to the table. It was a habit she’d begun after her mother’s death several years earlier.
“Did you and Mrs. Murphy have a good time last night?” Kate asked, before her father could comment on the rumors that were sure to be circulating about her and Luke Rivers. She hadn’t seen Luke yet, but she would soon enough, and she was mentally bracing herself for the confrontation. What a fool she’d made of herself. She cringed at the thought of her marriage proposal and didn’t doubt for a second that Luke was going to take a great deal of delight in tormenting her about it. She suspected it would be a long while before he let her live this one down.
“Looks like rain,” Devin mumbled.
Kate grinned good-naturedly, wondering at her father’s strange mood. “I asked you about last night, not about the weather.”
Devin’s eyes flared briefly with some unnamed emotion, which he quickly disguised. His gaze fell to the steaming mug cupped in his hands.
“Dad? Did you and Mrs. Murphy enjoy yourselves?”
“Why, sure, we had a grand time,” he said with forced enthusiasm.
Kate waited for him to elaborate. Instead he reached for the sugar bowl and resolutely added three heaping teaspoons to his mug. He stirred it so briskly the coffee threatened to slosh over the edge. All the while, he stared blankly into space.
Kate didn’t know what to make of Devin’s unusual behavior. “Dad,” she said, trying again, “is there something on your mind?”
His eyes darted about the room, reluctantly settling on Kate. “What makes you ask that?”
“You just added sugar to your coffee. You’ve been drinking it sugarless for forty years.”
He glared down at the mug, surprise written on his tanned face. “I did?”
“I saw you myself.”
“I did,” he repeated firmly, as if that was what he’d intended all along. “I, ah, seem to have developed a sweet tooth lately.”
It was becoming apparent to Kate that her father’s experience at Clay and Rorie’s wedding reception must have rivaled her own. “Instead of beating around the bush all morning, why don’t you just tell me what’s on your mind?”
Once more, her father lowered his eyes, then nodded and swallowed tightly. “Dorothea and I had...a long talk last night,” he began haltingly. “It all started innocently enough. Then again, I’m sure the wedding and all the good feelings floating around Clay and Rorie probably had a lot to do with it.” He paused to take a sip of his coffee, grimacing at its sweetness. “The best I can figure, we started talking seriously after Nellie Jackson came by and told Dorothea and me that we made a handsome couple. At least that’s what I remember.”
“It’s true,” Kate said kindly. Personally she would have preferred her father to see someone who resembled her mother a bit more, but Mrs. Murphy was a pleasant, gentle woman and Kate was fond of her.
Her father smiled fleetingly. “Then the champagne was passed around and Dorothea and I helped ourselves.” He paused, glancing at Kate as if that explained everything.
“Yes,” Kate said, hiding a smile, “go on.”
Slowly Devin straightened, and his eyes, forthright and unwavering, held hers. “You know I loved your mother. When Nora died, there was a time I wondered if I could go on living without her, but I have, and so have you.”
“Of course you have, Dad.” Suddenly it dawned on Kate exactly where this conversation was leading. It shouldn’t have surprised her, and yet... Kate’s heart was beginning to hammer uncomfortably. Her father didn’t need to say another word; she knew what was coming as surely as if he’d already spoken the words aloud. He was going to marry Dorothea Murphy.
“Your mother’s been gone nearly five years now and, well, a man gets lonely,” her father continued. “I’ve been thinking about doing some traveling and, frankly, I don’t want to do it alone.”
“You should’ve said something earlier, Dad,” Kate interjected. “I’d have loved traveling with you. Still would. That’s one of the nice things about being a teacher,” she rambled on. “My summers are free. And with Luke watching the ranch, you wouldn’t have any worries about what’s happening at home and—”
“Princess.” His spoon made an irritating clicking sound against the sides of the ceramic mug, but he didn’t seem to notice. “I asked Dorothea to marry me last night and she’s graciously consented.”
After only a moment’s hesitation, Kate found the strength to smile and murmur, “Why, Dad, that’s fantastic.”
“I realize it’s going to be hard on you, Princess—so soon after Clay’s wedding and all. I want you to know I have no intention of abandoning you—you’ll always be my little girl.”
“Of course you aren’t abandoning me.” Tears edged their way into the corners of Kate’s eyes and a cold numbness moved out from her heart and spread through her body. “I’m happy for you. Really happy.” She meant it, too, but she couldn’t help feeling a sense of impending loss. All the emotional certainties seemed to be disappearing from her life.
Her father gently squeezed her hand. “There are going to be some other changes, as well, I’m afraid. I’m selling the ranch.”
Kate gasped before she could stop herself. He’d just confirmed all her fears. She’d lost Clay to another woman; now she was about to lose her father, and her home, too. Then another thought crystallized in her mind, a thought that had been half formed the night before. If the ranch was sold, Luke would be gone, too.
Clay. Her father. The Circle L. Luke. Everyone and everything she loved, gone in a matter of hours. It was almost more than she could absorb. Pressing her hand over her mouth, she blinked back the tears.
“Now I don’t want you to concern yourself,” her father hurried to add. “You’ll always have a home with me. Dorothea and I talked it over and we both want you to feel free to live with us in town as long as you like. You’ll always be my Princess, and Dorothea understands that.”
“Dad,” Kate muttered, laughing and crying at the same time. “That’s ridiculous. I’m twenty-four years old and perfectly capable of living on my own.”
“Of course you are, but—”
She stopped him by raising her hand. “There’s no need to discuss it further. You and Dorothea Murphy
