Page 39 of The Texan's Baby Proposal

Her secretarial work had been fine with him, but to devote herself to a demanding career that took extra hours of work, he had made it clear many times before that he didn’t like that. And she didn’t want an emotional entanglement with another man who didn’t agree with her life choices.

“I didn’t say I didn’t like it.”

She pressed him. “Do you want to be married to someone going to medical school? To a doctor?”

He ran a hand through his dark curls. “It’s beside the point because we’re not staying together forever. If you want an answer, no, I wouldn’t want my wife to be a doctor. I’ve had that all my life with my mother tied to her work. You’re blowing this out of proportion. I just asked you to move in with me.”

“If I did, we would have this conversation down the road.” She sat up, feeling the chill that came with leaving his arms. “Sorry, Marc, I’m not moving in with you.”

She drew in a deep breath and looked down at him. “We’re just not compatible. Look how we’re arguing now. Right after we’ve made love all night. No, moving in with you will just cause more problems and interfere in our futures.” Her voice echoed the dejection she felt. “Marc, there is no love in this, don’t you see? You’re not in love with me and I’m not in love with you. And we’re getting divorced eventually. You’re still planning on a divorce, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I am.” He paused and his gaze deepened, his eyes roving over every inch of her face, as if to memorize her. “I’ve got your answer—you’re not moving in. So why, after all that, do I still want to kiss you?” He pulled her down to him, but she placed her hands against his chest.

“Are you paying attention at all? We should be putting distance between us instead of staying in bed and kissing.”

“Why don’t you forget that divorce for ten minutes?”

He looked at her mouth and against every shred of good judgment she felt her insides tighten. He brushed her lips with his, lightly, yet her heart surged. Every part of her knew this was wrong, but she couldn’t stop it, the desire she felt when his mouth settled on hers. His tongue stroked hers and, as if of their own volition, her arms wrapped around him and she kissed him back. With one kiss she forgot their conversation and all her arguments.

* * *

It was midafternoon when they finally packed and returned to the ranch. As they entered the house, tempting smells of a pot roast filled the air.

“Ah, come meet my cook,” he said, putting their things by the door. He took her arm as they walked to the kitchen.

“Penelope, I’m home and I want you to meet my new wife.”

A short woman with curly red hair turned and smiled. She wore a blue cotton apron that covered her from her neck to her ankles. Her blue eyes filled with curiosity.

“Penelope, this is Lara Medina. Lara, meet Penelope Wendell.”

Lara offered her hand. “I’m glad to meet you. It smells wonderful in this kitchen.”

Penelope’s smile widened as they shook hands. “Pot roast for supper tonight. It will be ready about six.”

“That’s great,” Marc said. “We’ll eat about seven, so just leave it and we can get it on the table.” He turned to Lara. “Penelope has been with us for fifteen years. She worked for my grandparents first. She’s been with me the past four years. She works in Dallas or here on the ranch.”

“I’m anxious to taste that pot roast,” Lara said. They talked briefly and then left to take their things upstairs.

As they walked down the hall, she asked him, “Why do you want to return to the corporate world? Why don’t you stay on the ranch? You seem way happier and more relaxed since you’ve been here. The problems you have here don’t seem to get you down as much as the ones at the Dallas office.”

“I like making money in the corporate world. I like the challenges. Maybe I am happier here. I hadn’t really thought about it. I didn’t have you in my bed before, so maybe that’s making me happy.”

She shook her head at him. “Marc—”

But he quickly changed the subject. “This afternoon I’m going to see my grandparents.”

“I’ll go if you think they’d like to see me.”

“I think they would. As far as they’re concerned, you’re part of the family now. A pretty lady is sure to cheer up my grandfather. You know, in her day my grandmother was a beauty. At least, she looked quite pretty in her pictures.”

Lara smiled at him. “Let me get cleaned up. I don’t want to go like this.”

“Want to shower together?”

She laughed as she shook her head. “I don’t think we would ever get there if we shower together first.”

“Meet you here in...what? An hour? Half an hour?”

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