Gift of Fortune (17 page)

"All right then. I'm going to look at the horses. One of
the mares seems to be off her feed."

As soon as Quint was out the door, Aileen pressed the
can of root beer against her hot forehead. They were getting
married but nothing would change. Well, it hadn't been
bad. They didn't argue, or hardly ever. They did want the
same things for the ranch. So why did she feel so confused,
so uncertain, so sad?

Quint paused on the back porch and let out a deep sigh
of relief. He'd gotten Aileen to agree to marry him. Had
convinced her that marriage was the best way to save the
ranch. It was the best way. It was the only way.

Even though she had eventually agreed, she was as nervous and skittish as a mare facing her first saddle. He'd
have to proceed very carefully, very slowly, woo her without her noticing-or risk spooking her. That he'd been attracted to her from the very beginning, he'd been aware of.
That he liked her better than any woman he'd ever met,
he'd discovered driving home when the idea of marrying
her had hit him. Maybe liking was too tame a word for
what he was feeling. Maybe...

Whoa, cowboy. Don't get ahead of yourself. One thing
at a time. And time was on his side. Quint cast one last
look at the kitchen window before he took the porch steps two at a time. Whistling some half-forgotten song about
sunshine and love, he headed for the barn.

Aileen studied the ring on her finger. She twisted it, admiring the bright, golden sheen of the band that branded
her a married woman.

"What's the matter? Doesn't it fit?" Quint asked, pulling
out of the courthouse parking lot.

"No, it fits just fine."

"Don't you like it? You said you wanted a plain gold
band."

"I like it. It's just right: not too wide and not too narrow.
Only it feels strange because I'm not used to wearing a
ring. That's all."

She looked at his left hand where she had placed a
golden band during the ceremony. Quint had told her that
on workdays he wouldn't be wearing the ring. A man he
knew got his caught on a wire and nearly lost the finger.
It sounded plausible, but Aileen knew she would look at
his hand to check for the band whenever they went somewhere together. She frowned. Since when had she become
so distrusting? So possessive?

She picked up the small bouquet of delicate pink rosebuds and baby's breath that Quint had ordered for her. She
had been deeply touched by the gesture. Not only that, but
the flowers had added a small, magical touch to the brief
ceremony, had made it more meaningful, and had made her
feel more like a real bride. Or how she imagined a traditional bride would feel.

Aileen wanted to touch her lips where she still felt the
imprint of his mouth. Quint had kissed her when the justice
of the peace had said he could. She had expected a perfunctory kiss. Instead, Quint had kissed her tenderly, with just a hint of heat that had made her insides quiver. Raising
the bouquet, she inhaled the exquisite scent of the roses.

"Are you sure you won't change your mind and go out
to dinner? I could make reservations somewhere nice. You
don't have to cook on your wedding day," Quint said.

"Thanks, but I'd rather eat at home." Aileen felt Quint's
gaze on her, but she looked straight ahead through the
windshield. She would rather he didn't know how nervous
she really was. At home, in her own kitchen, she might
manage to eat without spilling food on her new, powderblue silk dress.

"Quint, I just thought of something. Please pull into the
service station up ahead." Aileen consulted her watch and
nodded, pleased.

He glanced at her but did as she asked. "You sound
excited. What did you think of?"

"I want to invite a few people to dinner. You know,
make it a small celebration. Do you mind?" She watched
his face carefully to gauge his true feelings.

"That's a great idea. Who do you want to ask?"

"Martha and Bob, of course. And Dora. They're the closest thing to a family I have. And my friend Jennifer and
her husband. Is there anyone you want to invite?"

"My buddies are either on the rodeo circuit or in the
western part of the state. Your guest list sounds okay to
me."

"I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner," Aileen
said, shaking her head. Actually, she did know why. All
week she had been terrified that the school board would
send for her and fire her. She had never been dismissed
from any of the jobs she'd held, and the idea of getting
fired was both scary and humiliating.

Then she had worried and second-guessed her decision
to marry Quint until restful sleep had been impossible. When it had finally been time to leave for the courthouse,
Aileen had been apprehensive as well as relieved. She had
never thought that she'd approach her wedding day with a
let's-get-this-over-with attitude. Was there ever a bride
who'd anticipated her nuptials with such mixed emotions?

Suddenly she remembered the story her mother had told
her of the first young wife on the Triangle B. She had been
a mail-order bride, arriving in Wyoming Territory from
Vermont to marry a man she had never even seen. Aileen
glanced at her new husband. She not only knew what he
looked like-breathtakingly handsome in a dark gray suitbut she knew his basic character, his plans, hopes, and
dreams.

"Here we are," Quint announced.

Here we are? Aileen looked at him again. Quint never
stated the obvious. Did that mean he was nervous too? If
he was, he hid it well. He opened the door for her and
extended his hand to her to help her out of the car. Even
though she was no longer unfamiliar with the slightly rough
feel of his hand, the touch still sent a small ripple of shivers
through her.

In the back of the combination service station and convenience store, Aileen used the pay phone to make her
calls.

Quint filled the tank with gasoline and then joined her.

"Can they come?" he asked

"Everyone except Jennifer's husband. Andy is a truck
driver and won't be home till Friday."

"Do we need to buy anything for the dinner?"

Mentally Aileen reviewed the menu she had quickly put
together. "Only a bag of charcoal. We have great steaks in
the freezer. Let's grill them. It's a lovely day."

"Sounds good to me." Quint picked up a large bag of briquettes, paid for it, and held the door for Aileen to precede him to the car.

When they were underway again, he asked, "What are
you going to tell everyone tonight?"

Aileen looked at him, surprised. "I don't think we need
to say anything except that we got married. That's explanation enough."

"Won't they ask questions? This wedding did come out
of the blue."

Aileen thought about that for a few seconds. "How about
saying that in light of the school board's position, we decided to get married now instead of waiting until August."

"August? Why then?"

"Because it would have taken that long to plan a traditional wedding."

"You think they'll buy that?"

"Why not? They'll think you swept me off my feet and
we're crazy about each other."

Taken by surprise, Quint jerked the steering wheel, making the car swerve onto the shoulder of the road. Quickly
he brought it under control. "Sorry," he muttered.

In the silence that followed, Aileen studied her bouquet
in a seemingly nonchalant manner.

"So, I swept you off your feet," Quint said, his tone
musing.

"Why not? It sounds believable. I'm sure you've swept
any number of women off their feet."

"But never a woman like you."

Aileen turned to look at him. The hot glint in his eyes
took her breath away.

"It's reassuring to know that you think I could sweep
you off your feet."

"I didn't say that exactly. I meant that the others will
think so."

"You have doubts I can do it? I see I have my work cut
out for me. But then I've never shied away from work or
from a challenge."

His voice was silky, his grin cheeky, and it occurred to
Aileen that unless she put on boots of lead and steel, sweeping her off her feet wouldn't be much work, or much of a
challenge for him at all.

Aileen stuck pink candles into the hurricane lamps, replaced the glass cylinders, and stepped back to look at the
table.

"Looks nice. Festive," Quint said, entering the screened
porch at the back of the house.

"Thanks. It's such a pleasant evening, I thought we'd eat
out here." She fluffed the chintz pillows of the wicker
chairs that flanked the glass-topped table. "Mom often
served dinner on the porch. I loved eating here."

"You miss her," Quint observed.

Aileen nodded.

"Especially today," he added softly. "Of course, if she
had lived, the ranch probably would never have gotten into
a financial mess, and you wouldn't have had to marry me."

"Or you me. This works both ways," she reminded him.

"True, except I don't view this marriage as quite the
disaster you seem to think it is."

Aileen stared at him, struck mute.

Quint reached out and smoothed back a strand of hair
that had escaped the Spanish comb holding it off Aileen's
face. The touch loosened her tongue.

"I haven't said anything that could lead you to think I
view our marriage as a disaster. Where did you come up
with that idea?"

"You haven't said so, but your hand trembled when I
held it during the ceremony."

Aileen's mouth nearly dropped open. "And that led you
to this...this strange conclusion? I was nervous! Is that
so surprising? I've never gotten married before." She
turned toward the door. "Sh. Someone's coming." The
crunching sound of footsteps on the gravel walk alerted
them that the first of their guests had arrived even before
Martha and Bob rounded the corner.

"Hey, there," Martha called out. "I know you said I
didn't need to bring anything, but the first of the spinach
was ready to be picked. I know how much you like spinach
salad."

"That's wonderful! Come on in. I've got some mushrooms in the fridge and walnuts in the pantry. I may skip
the steak and eat only salad."

"Speaking of steak," Quint said to Bob, "let's go check
the meat." The men went outside.

Although Aileen noticed that Martha kept flicking curious glances at her, she chose to ignore them. No way did
she want to answer the storm of questions that their announcement was going to elicit twice. She only hoped that
Dora, who was usually the most punctual of women,
wouldn't be late today, of all days.

When Martha opened the refrigerator, she did a double
take. "You sure have been busy. You even baked a cake.
I know it isn't your birthday. Is it Quint's?"

The question stopped Aileen in her tracks. She didn't
even know her new husband's birth date. What else didn't
she know?

"I just felt like baking a cake," she said quickly. "Would
you put the rolls in the oven to get warm, please?"

Martha place the foil-wrapped rolls next to the scalloped potatoes in the oven. Then she crossed her arms over her
chest. "Aileen, what's going on?"

Mercifully, the doorbell rang. "Our other guests have arrived," Aileen said. She hurried out of the kitchen, glad to
escape Martha's questions.

Aileen greeted her new guests and escorted them to the
porch.

"What a lovely bouquet," Dora said. Taking in the candles, the lace tablecloth, and Ruth's good china, she added,
"This doesn't look like an ordinary dinner."

"That's what I said," Martha chimed in. "Aileen even
baked a cake. Her special coconut cake with the lemonlime filling. She only bakes that cake for special occasions."

By now all eyes were focused on Aileen. She looked at
Quint, who nodded. He came and stood beside her.

"You're both right. This is no ordinary Wednesday night
supper," Quint said, and draped his arm over Aileen's
shoulders.

The gesture of support heartened her. Here goes, she
thought, and took a much-needed breath. "Quint and I got
married today." The silence that followed her stark announcement was absolute. The only sound she heard was
the tumultuous beating of her own heart. Drat. She hadn't
meant to blurt the words out quite so bluntly.

The first sound to break the shocked quiet was Jennifer's
delighted squeal.

"I knew it! I knew this was going to happen the first
time I saw you two together." Jennifer jumped up and
hugged Aileen and then Quint.

Aileen couldn't tell who came forward next, for everybody seemed to be hugging and congratulating her and
Quint simultaneously. Questions and comments came faster
than either could answer them.

"Hold on, folks." Quint finally managed to make himself
heard over the voices. "Let me just say that Jennifer was
right. Aileen and I...we were sort of inevitable. So, we
decided to get married right away."

When Quint paused, Aileen said, "Since you're all the
family that either of us has, we didn't see the need for a
big, traditional wedding. You're here now to help us celebrate."