Marrying O'malley

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“Since he was getting on in age and he wouldn’t let anyone but you ride him...”

Wolf shoved his chair away from the table, his appetite gone. “He had him put down, didn’t he?” he growled around the lump in his throat. “Katherine must have been pleased.” Before either Sarita or Luis could respond, he rose and strode out of the room.

Since returning to the kitchen, Sarita had begun recalling the man Wolf had been before he’d been in the crash. By twenty-two, he’d grown cold, harsh, cynical and distant. And although, for his sake, she was glad he hadn’t been enticed back into Janice’s arms, she was beginning to wonder if he was capable of caring about anything or anyone other than finding ways to antagonize Katherine.

Now she knew she was wrong. The man was capable of caring a great deal. The pain she’d seen in his eyes told her that. Racing after him, she caught up with him in the hall. Grabbing hold of his arm, she forced him to stop. “Blue Thunder didn’t get put down. Abuelo and I took him. He’s in the canyon enjoying his old age.” Feeling his shudder of relief, she realized she was still holding on to him. Releasing him, she was surprised when her hand continued to remain warm from the contact. Shoving both hands into the pockets of her jeans, she took a step back, putting distance between them. “And seeing that you’re back, you can reclaim him. But you don’t have to worry about moving him right away. He can stay in the canyon as long as you like.”

“You kept him?” he asked, finding this turn of events difficult to believe. “Luis was always complaining about his attitude, and Thunder bit you.”

“So he’s high-strung. A lot of horses are. My abuelo understands that. As for the bite, Thunder and I made peace after that.”

Seeing Luis approaching, Wolf’s gaze traveled between them. “I’m grateful the two of you didn’t let him be put down.”

“You’ve got Sarita to thank more than me,” Luis said from behind her. “Not that I like seeing any horse put down. But there’s expenses in keeping one. A man in my position has to be practical. But Sarita said she’d pay for any maintenance, and she made it clear my life would be hell if I didn’t let her have her way.”

Wolf’s gaze returned to Sarita. She was proving to be more complicated than a Chinese puzzle. “Why?”

Sarita shrugged. “I don’t know for sure,” she replied honestly. “I guess maybe I figured I did owe you and him thanks for finding me that day.” Not wanting to continue this discussion, she gestured toward the kitchen with a twist of her head. “I suggest we finish our dinner while it’s still hot”

Wolf smiled crookedly. “That’s as good a thank-you as anyone could deliver. And I will reimburse you for your expenses.”

Again experiencing a curious, uneasy curl deep within, Sarita frowned. “It doesn’t mean I forgive you for that endless lecture.”

Wolf shook his head. “You’re as prickly as barbed wire. Always have been and looks like you always will be.”

“Comes from being raised by two men,” Luis said, leading the way back to the kitchen. “She didn’t have anyone to teach her how to be soft and feminine.”

“I can be just as feminine as the next woman when I want to be,” Sarita snapped. Catching the skeptical look exchanged between the two men as they seated themselves at the table, she picked up her plate and glass. “I’m eating on the porch.”

Without a backward glance, she headed to the front door. Sitting in a rocking chair, her feet propped up on the rail, she glared out at the landscape as she ate. So maybe she didn’t know how to flirt as well as some, and she was no good at playing fragile and helpless—that didn’t make her any less of a woman.

She heard the screen door open, but refused to look to see who had come out.

“I’m sorry if I made you so angry that you weren’t comfortable sitting at your own table,” Wolf said, coming to stand where he could see her face. “Taking jabs at each other seems to come natural for us.”

She looked at him then. There was honest apology on his face. The frustration she’d been experiencing off and on all day bubbled to the surface. “I don’t know why it was so important to me to keep Blue Thunder or why I visited your grave. You’d think, considering our history, I wouldn’t have been affected by your passing. Maybe even thought ‘good riddance.’ Until today we’ve barely spoken since we were fourteen. So, maybe I did feel bad about not thanking you for finding me that day. As for Blue Thunder, I knew it was your stepmother who wanted him put down and I’ve never liked her.” But as she said this, deep down inside she knew that wasn’t true. She’d saved Blue Thunder because he had meant so much to Wolf. And another truth refused to remain ignored. She’d gone by Wolf’s grave because she’d missed him. It wasn’t rational but it was true.

Again Wolf noted that she didn’t appear happy about the obligations she’d felt toward him or Blue Thunder. But he owed her for keeping his horse alive, and maybe his crack about her femininity had been a little unfair. “As I recall, you don’t look so bad in a dress.”

Startled by this sudden change in subject, she stared at him in confusion as a slow curl of pleasure began to weave its way through her.

“Just my way of trying to make peace between us,” he said in answer to the question in her eyes.

The glow of pleasure died. His remark hadn’t been a compliment. It had been an appeasement. “Do you think that’s really possible?” she asked dryly.

“Could be that it’s not. Could be that your granddad’s right and we’re natural-born antagonists. But we could give a truce a try.” He held his hand out toward her. “Shake on it?”

She’d never enjoyed being at odds with him. The thought of making peace appealed to her. “My guess is that this will be an exercise in futility, but I’m always game for a challenge and this should be a big one.”

As his hand encased hers, his touch felt like fire, igniting concern. “Are you running a temperature?” she asked, setting her plate aside and rising so that she could press her free hand against his forehead. His temperature was normal. “I guess not.” Freed from the handshake and breaking the contact with his face, she frowned in confusion. “Your hand seemed so hot.”

“Could have been nerves. Us declaring a truce has got to have been a shock to your system,” he quipped.

“True,” she agreed, reseating herself and picking up her plate.

And mine, too, Wolf thought. Her touch on his forehead had felt incredibly soothing...an effect he’d never expected to experience from her. “Will you join your grandfather and me?”

“I’ll come in for dessert,” she replied, wanting a little more time on her own.

Figuring he’d done all he could to promote peace, Wolf nodded and headed to the door. But as he passed her chair, he had the most tremendous urge to give her pigtail a pull. Talk about residual childish urges, he mocked himself, recalling how in his youth he’d given in to that urge once and been rewarded with a punch in the stomach. I came to make peace not war, he reminded himself and continued inside.

“Sarita still mad at us?” Luis asked when Wolf entered the kitchen and again took his seat at the table.

“She’s agreed to a truce between me and her,” Wolf replied.

“Considering the way you two have bickered from the time you were tots, keeping that truce seems about as probable as a leopard changing its spots.”

So we’re all three in agreement on that point. A sour taste filled Wolf’s mouth, and he realized that he’d been hoping the truce would last. He was tired of the animosity between him and Sarita. Or maybe he was feeling a little desperate for allies. Mentally, he chastised himself. Katherine had taught him to stand alone. He didn’t need anyone but himself.