His Brother's Wife (7 page)

Jesse raised an eyebrow at
her. “Huh?”

“Isn’t. There isn’t
anything he can do about it.” She turned to look at him and noticed
the frown on his face. “What?”

He shook his head and
said, “Nothing.”

She took one last glance
out the window before grabbing her towel and wetting it. She had
too much cleaning to do to worry about what Rafe and his surly
neighbors were up to.

When Jesse moved to the
back door and went outside, she put the men out of her mind. She’d
have time later to ask questions about them. At the moment, she had
other things to worry about.

* * * *

Rafe listened to Ben with
barely contained rage. The man had some nerve coming onto his
property and demanding anything. Let alone trying to threaten him.
He’d had about enough of the man’s hollow threats, too. He almost
wished he would act on all those promises he made. Whether the
marshal had legal rights to check Ben’s property for his stolen
cattle or not, there wasn't a doubt in Rafe's mind that they were
there.

And Ben knew there wasn’t
anything he could do about it. Without proof, it was a lost
cause.

Jesse came around the side
of the house. Ben, and the men flanking him, smiled and sat up
straighter on his horse. When Jesse reached them, Ben tipped his
hat at him. “Morning, Jesse.”

“Ben.”

“I was just telling Rafe
here that I thought some of my cattle might have wandered onto your
property. You wouldn’t know anything about that, now would
you?”

Jesse straightened and
narrowed his eyes at Ben. “No. Why would I?”

Ben chuckled. “No reason,
I don’t guess. Just thought maybe you’d seen some strays
around.”

Jesse looked at the other
two men with Ben before smiling. “I seen some strays but they
looked like nags to me, not cattle.”

Rafe rolled his eyes. His
brother showed his age at the most inopportune times. He cleared
his throat and gained Ben’s attention. “I’ll ride the fence line
today, see if there’s a breach somewhere. If I find any of your
cattle, I’ll steer them your way.”

“I’m obliged, Rafe. I’ll
do the same.”

I’m sure you will
.
Rafe wasn’t a fool. He knew Ben had his cattle and one way or the
other, he’d find a way to prove it. Just as Ben said his goodbyes
and turned to leave, they were all distracted by the sound of the
front door slamming against the side of the house.

Grace stepped out onto the
porch, coughing and mumbling to herself while surrounded by a cloud
of dust. She threw the rug she was carrying to the ground and waved
her hands in front of her face while grumbling to herself. When she
looked up and saw them, she straightened, raised a hand to tidy her
hair and smiled. “Gentlemen.” She actually curtsied before turning
around and reentering the house, shutting the door behind her. Rafe
stared at the closed door for long moments before turning to face
Ben. Just as he suspected, the man was still staring at the spot
Grace had been standing.

Ben grinned at him when he
turned his attention back to him. “She’s new. Finally decide to
take another wife, Rafe?”

“She’s mine,” Jesse said.
“As soon as the preacher comes back to town, we’ll be
married.”

Ben and his two men stared
at Jesse with wide eyes before they all three started laughing.
Rafe watched Jesse’s face turn three shades of red before the kid
started after Ben. Catching him by the back of his shirt, he threw
him a warning look before shaking his head. “Let it go, little
brother.”

If possible, Jesse’s
entire face morphed then. “I told you to stop calling me little.
I’m a man full grown!” He jerked away and stomped off to the
laughter of Ben echoing across the yard.

Rafe sighed and watched
him run to the barn before turning back to face Ben. Their
amusement would fuel them for hours from the looks of them. When
they’d settled, Rafe stared at them, hoping they’d just go. The
less they knew about Grace, the better off they’d all be. Of
course, that wasn’t going to be the case.

“Please tell me he’s
joking.”

Rafe blew out a frustrated
breath. “No. He’s serious.”

Ben grinned and glanced at
the men at his back. “Well, I’ll be damned.” He chuckled again and
shook his head. “And how the hell did he get a woman to agree to
marry him?”

It galled Rafe to even
have a conversation with Ben, let alone answer questions he’d
rather not. Staring up at him, he narrowed his eyes. “I have things
to do, Ben. I’ll check those fence lines this evening. You
gentlemen have a good day.” He turned and left them in the yard and
made his way back to the barn. He hoped like hell they took the
hint and left.

When he reached the ladder
propped against the barn, he glanced back over his shoulder. He
sighed in relief when they turned their horses and started to ride
away.

The tension he felt seeped
out of his shoulders then and he glanced to the house. If Grace
hadn’t come outside he wouldn’t have felt so edgy. He didn’t put
anything past Ben and with him knowing Grace was here, it just made
things worse. Not only would he have to watch his herd, he’d have
to watch her too. If there was one thing he knew about Ben Crowley,
it was the fact the man had little regard for the law. He took what
he wanted and damned the consequences. He just hoped Grace wasn’t
one of the things Ben decided he wanted.

Chapter Seven

Rafe found Grace hurrying
across the kitchen once again when he entered that night. He hung
his coat and hat on the peg and gave the room a good look. It was
clean and smelled of fresh bread.

She glanced up at him and
smiled and the sight nearly stole his breath. For a moment he let
his past miseries fade away, to forget they existed and pictured
her as his. A woman who had looked forward to seeing him step
through that door, greeting him with a beautiful smile and promises
in her eyes that told of secrets she’d share later in the darkness
of their room.

He blinked and shook off
the thought, watching her take the plate sitting in front of his
chair and pile it full of another meal she’d cooked. He crossed the
room, pulled his chair out, and sat down without a word.

He’d avoided the house
much of the day because of her. Had even coerced Jesse into
bringing his lunch to the barn for him. His determination to put
Grace from his mind worked as long as he didn’t have to look at
her. Seeing her now, in her too fancy dress, dishing out food for
him and Jesse, was almost more than he could bear. This wasn’t what
a woman like her should be doing. He could tell that with a single
glance. Her life before coming to Willow Creek was a mystery but
he’d bet money she hadn't spent it cooking and serving food like a
common house servant.

When she settled into her
seat, the swish of her skirts loud in the silence in the room, he
glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. There was a smudging
of flour on her cheek and her hair, where it fell around her face,
was wet and stuck to the skin. He wondered if she’d ever sweated
before coming out here. For some reason, he doubted it.

He couldn't explain why
the sight angered him. He knew nothing about her but he'd bet the
ranch she deserved more than this. This sty of a house. She should
be surrounded by lace and satin, served off fine china by someone
paid to do nothing but see to her every wish.

He ate in silence, barely
tasting his food, listening to her and Jesse talk. Their
conversation ranged from the difference in weather in Boston and
Montana to what foods Jesse preferred to eat. When Rafe had cleaned
his plate, he pushed it away and stood, walking out of the kitchen
without a word. The silence that followed him was
deafening.

He entered the sitting
room and stopped at the sight of it. His chest tightened. It was
clean. Spotless, even. It was the first time he’d seen it so since
before leaving home at the age of eighteen.

There wasn’t a speck of
dust on anything. The fireplace was swept clean, the rock lining it
gleaming as if they had just been placed there. The floors shone,
the coverlets draped over the sofa and chairs bright and he
wondered how she’d managed to do so much in one day. He remembered
her flushed cheeks, her sweat soaked hair, and knew. She’d worked
herself ragged and cooked a meal fit for a king.

Shaking his head, he
headed to the small desk in the corner of the room. His papers were
stacked, the ledger laid on top of them, and the surface of the
desk had been cleaned as well. Grace hadn’t left a thing
untouched.

He fingered the hardwood,
remembering the times he’d seen his father sitting there going over
his ledgers. He wished again he’d been here when his parent's had
died. He couldn’t even imagine what Jesse had gone through having
to deal with all that by himself. He was a boy, regardless of the
fact he claimed to be a man, and having to bury his father and run
this farm alone had to have been terrifying for someone his
age.

The memories of his father
brought a profound sadness Rafe would never get over and the guilt
nearly drove him to his knees. He should have been here. It was his
place to bear the burdens of his family, not a fourteen year old
boy. Maybe that was why the kid hated him so much. Because he
hadn’t been here when they needed him.

The guilt ate away at him
daily and there wasn’t anything he could do to make the pain go
away. Nothing but get up every morning before the sun came up and
right the wrongs he’d done. To try and get the ranch back into
shape. To see it thrive as it once did.

It seemed almost hopeless
now. Much like his life. Maybe Jesse was right. Maybe he never was
around when the ones he loved needed him. Katie accused him of it
enough. It’s why she packed her things and ran off in the middle of
the night.

Rafe shook off his
melancholy thoughts and opened the drawer on the desk, rifling
through the papers until he found his father’s Will. He’d read it a
dozen times and Harland Samuels’ last thoughts were of his sons.
He’d left the farm to Jesse and himself, split evenly. There was no
mention of Ben or any sort of arrangement between the
two.

He read each line again,
looking for anything that would substantiate Ben Crowley’s claims
and saw nothing. Regardless of what that man said, his father
didn’t give him first rights to the grazing lands or the
cattle.

A noise behind him caught
his attention and he looked over his shoulder. Grace was there,
standing in the doorway staring at him. He ignored her, turning
back to the desk before pulling out the chair and sitting
down.

Her feet barely made a
sound as she walked across the room but her skirts swished as she
moved, the noise loud in the stillness surrounding him. He knew
when she was near without even looking. The scent of roses was
still strong on her skin. It was mixed with soap, soot from the
fireplace and plain ole’ dirt but he inhaled deeply regardless,
taking it all in.

She cleared her throat
before saying, “Is everything all right?”

He wanted to tell her no.
To tell her every problem weighing on his mind but doing so would
only cause more misery down the road. She wasn’t his, he reminded
himself, regardless of how much he'd like her to be. He stared at
the papers in his hand and said, “Why wouldn’t it be?”

“I don’t know. You seem…
distracted. You didn’t say anything at supper and you left without
a glance at Jesse or myself. I just thought maybe something was
bothering you.”

He was distracted all
right. With constant thoughts of her, a problem he needed to
correct if he wanted any kind of peace in his house.

If Jesse knew the sight of
Grace caused his pulse to leap and made him think things no
gentleman should, the kid would pitch a fit loud enough to be heard
all the way in Missoula. Jesse didn’t need another reason to hate
him and taking the bride he sent away for would do just
that.

Regardless of how many
times he told himself women were a distraction he didn't need, that
Grace, as beautiful as she was, would rip his heart out like the
others did, he had a hard time not thinking about her. He needed to
forget how good she smelled and how seeing her in his house doing
tasks as simple as sweeping the floor, cooking, and smiling at him
so prettily, made him want her for his own, damn the
consequences.