Page 21 of Willing to Wed the Rancher
He’d brought along only a couple of his favorite volumes, both in German. And although he didn’t necessarily need any books to teach, it would make the lessons easier.
The nameWorth’s General Storewas painted in bold, black letters on the false front above the door. The big front window was spotless, showing a display of sturdy boots, leather gloves, and a matching leather coat.
As he peered past the items, his gaze snagged upon a woman with blond-red hair in a long braid down her back. Although the woman was facing away from the window, there was no mistaking Clarabelle. From the elegant line of her neck to the slender waist to the long legs hidden beneath her skirt, her body was as beautiful and perfect today as it had been yesterday.
The image of her face was at the front of his mind—the sweetness of her smile, the bright green of her eyes, and the gentleness in every curve of her chin and cheeks.
His gut tightened with that same need that had been building since meeting her—a need that still defied rational explanation, that burned through him and couldn’t be extinguished. Not that he’d tried to extinguish it. In fact, with all his thinking about her over the night, he’d probably only made the flames inside hotter.
She was standing in front of one of the counters, opening the glass containers on the top—jars of various sizes filled with an assortment of colorful candy.
With the heat swelling in his gut, he opened the door and stepped into the store, the tinkle of a bell as well as the scent of cinnamon and sugar welcoming him. Several customers were milling about the floor-to-ceiling shelves that lined the walls as well as a double-sided set of shelves at the center of the store.
A middle-aged man wearing an apron stood at the rear of the store, conversing with one of the patrons. He nodded a friendly greeting to Franz but didn’t cease his discussion.
That was all right with Franz. The purchase of books could wait. All he wanted to do at the moment was see Clarabelle and talk with her. Maybe he would even suggest accompanying her back to the farm when she was done with her shopping.
He wasted no time in approaching her, and a part of him wished he’d thought to pick her a bouquet of wildflowers from the smattering of flowers he’d noticed behind the hotel this morning when he’d looked out his window.
Instead, he quieted his tread. As soon as he was behind her, he snaked his hands around her head, covered her eyes, and leaned in. “Guess who?” He was so happy to see her he didn’t care that his voice reflected his pleasure and was slightly breathy.
Clarabelle stiffened, and her hands on the jars froze.
He couldn’t hold back his grin.
“Should I know you?” she asked with a curious ring to her voice.
“Yes.” She hadn’t forgotten about him overnight, had she?
“Hmm...” Her voice turned playful. “I don’t know. Are you a secret admirer?”
“Do you want me to be?”
“Of course. I’d never turn away a secret admirer, especially one who smells as good as you do.” She sniffed at his coat sleeve.
He almost cringed at her strange observation and behavior, but he held himself back. He had put on an extra pat of aftershave this morning after completing his grooming. Maybe the scent still lingered on his hands.
“You look enchanting this morning.” He dropped his hands away and took a step back.
“I do?”
“Very.”
She released the candy jars and turned to face him. The magnetic energy that had charged the air yesterday between himself and Clarabelle was gone. Not even the tiniest electron was sparking.
Strange disappointment wafted through him. He should have known she’d been too good to be true and that what he’d felt with her was too powerful to be real. As pretty as she still was, the spell that had held him captive yesterday had broken.
He ought to be relieved. The very idea of loving her so quickly had been difficult to believe anyway.
She was sweeping her gaze over him much more boldly than she had before, her eyes holding frank appreciation. “You look enchanting, too, Mr....?”
Obviously she had forgotten about him. “Mr. Meyer? Franz?”
As she propped a hand on one of her hips, she lifted her shoulders, as if she was conscious of how beautiful and womanly she was and was waiting for him to notice her again.
But today, he wasn’t interested in looking at her. His lust was locked away where it belonged.
As her lips curved up into what he could only describe as a seductive smile, he noticed a smattering of freckles on her nose that hadn’t been there yesterday as well as a scar on herchin. And her skin. It wasn’t as pale but was instead a tanner complexion.
