Part 9 (1/2)
He smiled. ”Don't thank me until you see what we find for you.”
After they walked along the stream for a short while, they returned to the horses and mounted up. The ride back was easier, not as tense-as if they'd come to an understanding.
When they arrived at the barn, there was a message for Reed to call Zane. Mallory said, ”Go ahead. I'll walk the horses.”
Reed hesitated only a moment, then went inside.
Using the phone by the tack room, Reed watched Mallory through the open barn door. d.a.m.n, if she didn't look just as good on a horse as on the ground. Riding behind her had brought back all the sensations of last night. That bit of a bathing suit she'd worn in the lake had made him crazy, and he'd had to remind himself he was the one who'd suggested the swim. Then when he'd gotten her close, held her against him, all he could think about was the satisfaction that he knew would be good. When she kissed him back as if she wanted it, too- He thought about Stephanie and his engagement to her. Stephanie had never aroused him the way Mallory did. All Mallory had to do was smile, walk across a room, brush her hair back, and he wanted her more than he had ever wanted any other woman. It didn't make sense to him. He'd planned a life with Stephanie. He'd felt deeply committed to her. But now, it was as if Mallory was the only woman who mattered.
The sound of Zane's voice jolted Reed back to the present. After listening to his cousin's plans, Reed told Zane he'd get back to him. Then he left the barn, jogged over to Mallory, and took Spirit's reins from her hand. ”Zane wants us to go out with him and Gwen tomorrow night.”
”Do you want to?” she asked.
If they did, he and Mallory would have to act like newlyweds for the evening. On the other hand, being cooped up in the cabin together wasn't much better. He shrugged. ”You could see some of San Antonio if we do. We could go to a restaurant along the Riverwalk. On a Friday night, it will be lively.”
”I've been reading about the Riverwalk. I'd love to see it.”
So she'd realize what they were getting into, he warned, ”We're going to have to pretend we're on our honeymoon.”
Her expression changed and she didn't look quite as enthusiastic. But then she said, ”It'll be good practice. Lily told me they're having a barbecue on Sunday and it sounds as if they've invited a lot of family.”
”I guess it will be our first Texas-style barbecue.”
When she smiled up at him, he was glad they were going to have at least this ”first” together. ”So we're on for tomorrow night?” he asked.
She nodded. ”We're on.”
When she said it, there was a longing inside him for more than a Friday night date. Last night, Mallory had asked him tough questions about Stephanie. He was beginning to have lots of questions himself about his engagement, but he was afraid if he looked too closely at it, he might not like the answers. But whether he liked them or not, some answers might find him.
Colorful umbrellas and tables dotted the patio of the bistro along San Antonio's Paseo del Rio-the Riverwalk. Mallory tried to take it all in as she and Reed walked along a portion of the scenic three miles with its limestone bridges, bald Cypress-edged walk-ways, hotels, cafes, shops and restaurants. Reed was quiet tonight. They'd worked at being friendly the past two days. Last evening he'd taken her for a drive, and they'd had a late dinner along the way. Both yesterday afternoon and today, she'd gentled foals with Hank.
River barges cruised up and down the waterway and Mallory thought a ride on one of them would be a lot of fun. But as she and Reed approached a bistro, she spotted Gwen and Zane waiting for them. Zane motioned to them and after they all exchanged greetings. Reed held Mallory's chair for her and pushed her in as she sat. After working in the corral this afternoon, she'd gone back to the cabin, showered, and changed into a colorful, flowered sundress in turquoise and yellow. Reed was wearing bush shorts and a cream polo s.h.i.+rt, and it was the first she'd seen him in anything other than jeans...or without clothes. Tonight, wearing moccasins without socks and without his Stetson, he looked casually s.e.xy. Anytime she got within a foot of him her hair stood up on her neck and tingles ran through her body.
They'd kept up casual conversation in the truck on the way here as Reed pointed out landmarks, and she told him how much she enjoyed working with the foals. But now as he sat close beside her, his arm brus.h.i.+ng hers, his thigh mere inches from her sundress, she wondered if playing newlyweds tonight would disturb him as much as it disturbed her.
Gwen and Zane sat close together, their shoulders comfortably brus.h.i.+ng. After the waitress handed the four of them menus, Zane remarked, ”The crawfish are great.”
”The salmon's delicious, too,” Gwen added.
They all ordered seafood, then Gwen smiled at Mallory. ”So, how do you like San Antonio?”
”I haven't seen much of it yet, but I love the vibrancy and the mixture of cultures.”
”The weather's quite a change from San Francisco, I'd imagine,” Zane remarked.
Mallory nodded. ”No fog.”
They all laughed. As Gwen snuggled closer to her husband, he draped his arm around her. ”Zane told me you two met at the Golden Spur in Reno. Was it love at first sight?” she asked.
After a moment of tense silence when neither she nor Reed seemed to know what to say, Reed filled the gap. ”The Golden Spur is a busy place. I offered to share my table with Mallory and she accepted.”
Zane's eyes narrowed. ”And then?”
Mallory felt heat rus.h.i.+ng to her cheeks and she cast a quick glance at Reed. ”There's really not much to tell.”
Zane's gaze held questions. He exchanged a look with his wife, but before he could probe further, a waitress came to the table with a bottle of wine he had ordered. After he smelled the cork and tasted a few sips, he moved to pour some into Mallory's gla.s.s, but she quickly put her hand over it. ”No, thanks, none for me. That's how I ended up...married,” she trailed off, sorry she'd said the thought aloud.
Zane's brows arched.
As Reed s.h.i.+fted in his seat, she looked over at him. He wore a scowl.
”Oh,” Zane joked. ”Reed plied you with tequila until you said yes.”
”Um, not exactly,” Mallory responded.
”Maybe I should have tried tequila instead of champagne,” Reed said, his voice rough. ”It doesn't have bubbles to go to your head.”
Sometimes Mallory got the feeling that her lack of memory about that night really bothered him. Because he'd gotten into this situation and now regretted it? Both Gwen and Zane were examining them closely.
”I don't handle champagne very well,” Mallory explained, wis.h.i.+ng she could remember everything that had happened, especially their wedding.
”You know...” Zane poured wine for Gwen and then for Reed. ”It would probably be a good idea if you two took a few days for a honeymoon. I'm surprised you came back from Reno so soon.”
Mallory couldn't tell if he was fis.h.i.+ng or just making conversation, but neither she nor Reed responded.
Gwen nudged her husband. ”We can go dancing later. Or if you want to do something really romantic, we can take a ride on a river barge after dark. Even Zane and I haven't done that yet.”
Needing to change the direction of the conversation, Mallory said, ”Tell me about your children. How old are they?”
As Gwen's attention easily turned to descriptions of her children, Reed's mind remained on Mallory. He wished he'd never ordered that bottle of champagne at the Golden Spur. Yet...
If he hadn't, he wouldn't be married to her, and for some reason that was becoming more and more important each day. It shouldn't be-because they had nowhere to go. She wanted to start a life here in San Antonio. He was going back to Australia. She was a virgin who wanted to have their marriage annulled and a city girl who probably wouldn't like her displacement on a ranch for long. Maybe she liked to ride and spend a little time around horses, but there was a lot more to it than that. Even more to the point-she wasn't the type of woman to follow a man around. If she hadn't been independent and on her own before, she intended to be now.
What rankled most was that she was locked into this marriage of convenience against her will. She hadn't chosen to be married to him. She hadn't chosen to live with him or spend time with him, and he'd better well remember that fact. Just because the curve of her smile made his heart race and the brush of her skin against his aroused him was no reason to get involved. He'd keep her safe until Dawson returned and then any responsibility he felt would be over.
As her arm lightly brushed his elbow when she reached for her gla.s.s of water, he stiffened. Her gaze met his briefly. Zane asked her a question about San Francisco and she quickly turned her attention to his cousin. Reed picked up his gla.s.s of wine but then set it back down. He didn't want his inhibitions to be blunted in any way, shape, or form. Somehow he had to play the part of being a new groom without being affected by it.
Reaching down by the side of her chair, Gwen picked up a leather carrier. ”Do you mind if we take some pictures?”
”She's become a real shutterbug since we got married,” Zane remarked with a patient smile.
”I just want to make sure we remember all our special moments.”
Her husband squeezed her hand.
Reed knew that, at one time, Zane had been a confirmed bachelor. He'd gone from one woman to the next enjoying himself, not knowing he was missing something. Watching Zane and Gwen together, Reed craved something he'd never had, an unshakable bond that time and circ.u.mstances couldn't break or end. But craving it and finding it were two different things. Zane was just d.a.m.n lucky.