Hale stilled. “Because you asked him to?”
“No.” Her grip on the sheet tightened until a thread popped. “It just kind of happened that way.”
Hale let out a long breath. “So Mark ended up just like Dad.”
“What do you mean?” She turned her head in time to see Hale pinch the bridge of his nose with a grimace.
“They both slept on the couch.” He slid his hand to his chest and stared at the ceiling.
Danielle wondered if he’d divulge more. “Did your mother ask you father to sleep on the couch when they fought?”
“Yeah.” He went motionless, still as stone.
Their mother was one of the topics Cooper men avoided. Cancer claimed her when Hale was just thirteen. Danielle suspected if she survived, Hale’s mother would’ve stopped the rift between father and son. “Mark said your father was less grumpy when your mom was around. I wish I could’ve met her.”
Hale’s expression softened. “She loved books. Like you.”
Distracted by the large shadow sniffing the bedroom floor, Danielle broached a safer topic. “I’m a little worried your dog will inhale the carpet.”
“This is the first time Cocoa has been in your room. She’ll settle down once she makes sure there’s no food up here.”
Until Hale hauled a truckload of groceries into the kitchen, a crumb was the last thing any creature would find in her house. “If she’s hungry, the only edible thing around here is toothpaste.”
“Oral hygiene isn’t one of Cocoa’s priorities.” He chuckled when the dog trotted back to his side of the bed.
Her new husband seemed willing to chat and nothing more, which gave Danielle the courage to blurt the truth. “I’m scared, Hale. I’m scared we just made a huge mistake. I’m scared we won’t be able to make this farm work. And I’m scared you’ll reach for me and I won’t know what to do.”
“Don’t worry about any of those things. I won’t ask for something you can’t give.” His voice dropped to a husky murmur. “All I want is a chance to earn your affection.”
Surprise tightened her throat. For her, this marriage was a means to survive, not affection. Danielle bit her bottom lip, worried his expectations were different than hers.
Hale levered himself up to take off his hearing aid. The mattress heaved as he settled back down.
Danielle sighed. The weight of foreboding on her chest lightened now that she knew he wouldn’t press her for sex. Grateful for the reprieve, she touched her new wedding ring. The simple band felt solid and strong. Like Hale.
In the dark corner of the room, Cocoa thudded onto her cushion with a tired sigh.
A small spark of optimism boosted Danielle’s spirits. Perhaps she might survive this wedding night without any tears.
Her hopes took a sharp dive when Hale turned toward her and got up on one elbow. Shadows cloaked his expression as he smoothed the hair away from her face.
With a jolt, she realized that even though he wasn’t going to force himself on her, he never said he wouldn’t try to seduce her. “What are you doing?” she whispered.
He didn’t hear her. He couldn’t, not without his hearing aid.
Danielle shrunk into the mattress when he lowered his head until the tip of his nose touched hers. As his warm breath rolled over the rise of her lips, she smelled mint toothpaste. Strange to be close to a man who didn’t taste like whiskey. Danielle skewered shut her eyes. When had the stale scent of liquor become normal?
Clutching the covers under her chin, she jerked when Hale’s warm chest pressed against her forearm. He brushed a kiss in the hollow of her cheek, the slow tempo of his movements speaking volumes for his control. This was not a man who’d give into his raw impulses at the expense of her peace of mind. His big hand closed over hers, the dry heat of his palm radiating into her new wedding band.
As her eyes adjusted to the dark, she couldn’t help comparing Hale to Mark. His sandy blond hair glinted in the dim light thrown off by her electric alarm clock, whereas Mark’s dark features used to blend into the night. The biggest difference between the two brothers lay in their eyes. Mark rarely met her gaze, but Hale couldn’t seem to stop looking into her eyes. As they lay in the muddy darkness tenting their bed, he stared as though she lit up the room.
“Years ago, you were the only one who believed I didn’t set the fire. You gave me the courage to leave and find my own way,” he murmured. “Only fair I return the favor and set you free from the past.”
He gave her hand one more squeeze before rolling onto his back, leaving an imprint of warmth along her fingertips.
She closed her eyes and rubbed her thumb against the back of her wedding band, soothed by the smooth texture.
Her new husband had done everything possible to make their wedding day special, like providing the rings, filling the house with food, and promising to make things right. Later in the evening, he gamely engaged her boys in conversation while she sat in stunned silence during their take-out pizza dinner.
For all he did today, and now this sweet pledge tonight, she’d done nothing in return. She hadn’t even given him a simple smile.
Self-pity rose, making her long for what could have been. If her parents were alive, she could’ve turned to them for help when Mark died. Instead, she pulled Hale into this quagmire. Regret seared through her. In light of how gracious he’d been, she wished she hadn’t acted so poorly in return.
She could still redeem herself. Reaching to her nightstand to flick on the lamp, she turned toward Hale.
A furrow formed along his brow and his mouth was set in a tense line.
“Thank you for feeding my boys,” she told him.
“Sorry. What did you say?” He studied her mouth as she repeated herself and then nodded in understanding. “You’re welcome.”
When he started to reach for his hearing aid, Danielle put her hand on his arm to stop him. “I just wanted to say thank you. For everything.”
Propelled to do something right before their wedding day ended, she leaned down and placed her lips against his in a soft, grateful kiss. Her long gold hair fell forward, curtaining their faces from the bright lamplight. She caressed his hard jaw as a hot tear rolled down her cheek. Thanks to him, she was no longer alone. Somehow, she’d find a way to thank him for coming back when she needed him most.
She broke the kiss, but not before she learned his unique taste. A small voice in the back of her mind whispered Hale wouldn’t hurt her like Mark had.
As soon as the thought formed, she felt him pull the heavy silk of her hair from her face. He gazed at her in sober contemplation before tracing the wet trail of her tear with his thumb.
Danielle had to remind herself this would be her new reality for the next few months. He might not hear her, but his sharp eyes would see everything
even the translucent evidence of her sorrow.
“We need you more than you know,” she whispered.
Surprise flickered in his gaze when he read her lips, and the rigid muscles along his jaw relaxed.
Turning off the light, she rolled onto her side to stare at the blue glow from her clock. Guilt rose out of the darkness, sinking its fangs into her morose unease.
Judging by Hale’s questions a few minutes ago, he wondered about her marriage with Mark. She suspected her oblique answers only served to heighten his curiosity.
Closing her eyes tight, she worried what Hale would do if he ever discerned the part she played in his brother’s downfall?
Chapter Five
The nightmare returned. Hale was inside the barn, trying to stamp out the fire creeping across the oak floor. Every effort to snuff the yellow flames fanned their appetite, like some ravenous monster with a bright yellow tongue. The fire licked at his jeans as he pulled a bale of hay out of the way. The heat was stifling.
With no way to extinguish the blaze, he sprinted for the door. He stumbled outside in time to see a familiar figure running from the barn, but it was too late to call for help. The damage was done.
Hale awoke with a start, disoriented and heart pounding. The purple hue of dawn seeped into the room. A swirl of gold spread over the pillow beside him.
Danielle. His
wife
.
Her hair looked like corn silk, the color of summer. Six years ago, she used to let him touch her hair. So far, that hadn’t changed. Remembering how the cool strands felt last night, he fingered a silky wave cascading off her pillow.
His body thrummed just because he was touching her hair. If something this simple affected him so profoundly, no wonder he had trouble falling asleep after the shy way she kissed him last night. The sweet pressure of her mouth against his tempted him to deepen the kiss, but he doused the impulse when he noticed the unmistakable trail of a tear glistening on her cheek.
Was she crying because she had to marry him to regain her footing? Or did she miss Mark? Hale suspected her sadness was a combination of the two. At least, she needed him. That was enough, for now.
He plucked his hearing aid off the nightstand, knowing he couldn’t fall back to sleep. The dream always unsettled him, but the memory of the ferocious flames bothered him even more now that Danielle lay beside him.
There was no way to tell her what really happened that night without inflicting more hurt. He’d do everything in his power to stop the cycle of pain haunting this farm. Careful not to wake her, he got out of bed and started working.
****
For the first time in her life, Danielle was married to a man who spent more time out of bed than in it. She marveled at Hale’s uncanny ability to wake up at five in the morning without an alarm clock. Rather than rely on a buzzer to jar him out of sleep, he seemed to wake with the early strands of sunrise. He was always out of the room by the time her alarm screamed at five-thirty.
Danielle used that solitary hour in the morning to start her chores. She fed the chickens, watered the garden, packed lunches, and made breakfast before getting the boys ready for school.
Once they were on the school bus, she showered, dressed, and drove to the university. After teaching class and meeting with students or faculty, she rushed home to greet Luke and Drew after school.
Thanks to the abundance of food in the kitchen, dinner preparation became a pleasure.
Without fail, Hale showed up at six to eat. After supper, he’d work in the barn until darkness drove him back to the house.
Once the boys went to sleep, Danielle retreated to her office to prepare lectures or do research. When she emerged around ten o’clock, bleary-eyed and exhausted, she often found Hale dozing on the couch after he lost his battle to stay awake. She’d climb upstairs, glad for the privacy as she got ready for bed. Shortly after she’d slip under the covers, he’d pad into the bedroom, strip down to his boxers, and join her. She didn’t have to wait long before the sound of his steady breathing indicated he’d again fallen asleep.
She loved the predictability of their routine. Life was peaceful, with none of the upheaval that used to bring her to tears or startle her boys into brittle silence.
As the days grew longer, the farm began to change. The jagged brown fields sprouted neat rows of thriving green plants. Hale was so adept at getting things to grow in this Pennsylvania soil, she began to wonder if mud flowed through his veins. For the first time in years, every spare inch of the four hundred acres surrounding her house boasted valuable crops.
The fields weren’t the only things transforming. The junk scattered around the property disappeared. Hale fixed the leaky faucet and repaired the broken cabinet in their bathroom. Best of all, he started inviting the boys outside for a game of catch after dinner. The moment the baseball thudded into their mitts, her sons’ quiet curiosity about him transformed into blatant adoration.
No wonder they liked him. He was unfailingly gentle, patient, and kind. Just as she feared, he seemed too good to be true. Did he have a dark side, like Mark? Danielle thought he must. Hale grew up with the same father, who hid his feelings under a veneer of tight-lipped reserve until he lashed out at the nearest target. Danielle suspected Hale had buried a wealth of feelings after being treated so unfairly by his family.
When would his hidden anger emerge?
They’d been married almost six weeks when the first heavy rainstorm rolled over the Allegheny Mountains and parked above the farm. A loud crack of thunder woke Danielle, but Hale slept undisturbed by the noise.
When the next boom shook the house, she wasn’t surprised when someone wearing Machine Man pajamas hurried into their room. Thanks to the glow from her clock, she could see the panicked distress on Luke’s dear face when he stood by her side of the bed.
“I’m scared, Mommy.”
To reassure him everything was all right, she squeezed his small hand. “Want to go downstairs with me? We can sit on the couch until the storm passes.”
“I don’t know,” he whimpered.
The dog whined and padded to Hale. Cocoa must have nudged him because he stirred and put on his hearing aid.
“You okay, Dani?” His voice was gravelly with sleep. He rolled toward her and spotted their visitor. “What’s wrong, Luke?”
A flash of lightning bleached the room, making Luke pale with fright. “I’m scared of thunderstorms. Can I sleep with you and Mommy?”
“Sure. Climb into bed.”
Hale’s invitation prompted Cocoa to jump onto the mattress and curl behind Hale’s legs.
Luke laughed as the dog rested her head on Hale’s thigh.