Cinderella's Convenient Husband

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“Things are never that simple. I need more details.”

No way, she thought. She wasn’t going to tell Seth Connelly that she’d fallen for blue eyes, blond hair and an all-American smile. That she’d mortgaged her property so that Ronnie would stay with her instead of moving on to Los Angeles and the promise of bigger investors. That she’d given her soul to a man without one.

“You mortgaged the land to get the capital to invest?”

She nodded.

“Where did he invest your money?”

“Supposedly on Wall Street.”

“Supposedly?”

“It seems I fell victim to a con man.”

He cursed.

“I know it sounds unbelievable but it didn’t at the time.”

“It never does. What have you told Matt?”

“Nothing. His job is very risky. I don’t want him thinking about me and the ranch instead of his assignment. I can’t bury another member of my family, Seth.”

“I know,” he said, caressing her jaw.

Silence fell and they both stared at each other.

“What’s the plan?” Seth asked.

“I’ve been working double shifts at the diner and have been boarding horses for the folks who live in town. I’ve got about five thousand I can give the bank today. I’m hoping that will be enough to buy me some time.”

“What are you going to do with the time?”

“Find a buyer for the outer land. I hate to give up even an acre of the property, but I can’t lose the house.”

The thought of anyone other than the McCoys owning the land seemed like sacrilege to him. But at the same time her dilemma was his way out of what he owed her family. It was ironic that he’d visited the ranch as a boy with no money and he’d returned a wealthy man. The solution seemed obvious to Seth.

“I’ll pay off your loan and you can pay me back.”

She smiled at him, and it was the saddest expression he’d ever seen. If he’d had a heart, he thought it would have broken. Her deep violet eyes were wide and watery as she tried to keep from crying.

“Seth, that’s so sweet. But I…no.”

Lynn shouldn’t look like this, he thought. She should be riding her horse across the same land she’d ridden as a child. Never should anyone else own an acre of land that had been the McCoys since pioneers had first settled in the West.

“Lynn, be reasonable.” If she took the money, he could leave and not be tormented by images of the two of them making love in her bed. Or, he thought, leaning closer to her in the front of his car, if he put the seat back, she’d fit nicely in his lap.

She’s your best friend’s little sister, he reminded himself. But his body didn’t care about that.

“Reason has nothing to do with this. I can’t take your money. If Matt were here, he’d do the same thing.”

Seth struggled to remember that he wanted her to take the money so he could go. Returning to Chicago wasn’t what he wanted right now, but it seemed safer than staying in Montana and tempting himself with a woman he knew was off limits.

“Matt would pay the loan off himself or take my money.”

She considered the idea for all of a second. “It’s not Matt’s debt to pay nor yours. Don’t suggest it again.”

“The next time a woman tells me how hardheaded men are, I’m going to direct her to you.” Her jaw clenched and she didn’t look as if she was going to cry anymore. Slug him maybe, but not break down.

“I’m not stubborn just—”

“Proud,” he said. He couldn’t blame her. If he were in her shoes, he’d do whatever he had to—on his own. He wasn’t a team player and he knew it. He was more the alpha wolf leading his pack, and now he wanted to protect one of his own. Because whether Lynn knew it or not, she was definitely his.

Where had that come from? He didn’t know, but it made an odd sort of sense. Taking care of Lynn the way her family had taken care of him in those summers long ago would fill something in him that had been empty too long.

“I believe in paying my own way,” she said. “I made this mess and I’ll be the one to clean it up.”

She was so close he could smell the sweetness of her perfume and the underlying scent of woman. He closed his eyes. It’s about money, man. Keep your mind there.

“How about if I make you a loan and you can make payments to me?”

“Seth, be serious. You’re never going to take my family’s land.”

She was right. He’d deed the land back to her as soon as the paperwork was finalized. But he was in a position to give a gift that huge if he wanted to. And he wanted to. He thought it might be more of a need because he was so hard right now, if they didn’t compromise on the bank soon he was going to try putting his seat back and pulling her across his thighs. And that was something he shouldn’t do.

He’d tried one time to bridge the gap between them and he’d ended up leaving Montana and hurting Lynn in the process. He wouldn’t hurt her again.

“What do you suggest?”

She closed her eyes and bowed her head, looking defeated. That was the one way he’d never wanted to see this proud woman. She should be standing tall.

“Going to the bank and talking to Cochran. Which, by the way, we should be doing now.”

“I’m not driving anywhere until we find a solution that has at least a fifty-fifty shot of working.”

He’d never met a woman who didn’t look out for herself first, to the exclusion of anyone else. Lynn was totally different from his mother. A woman who’d used his birth to milk his father’s family for more than money. But there was a part of him that believed she’d do the thing that would keep her in comfort.

“I guess this is stalemate.”

“I’m not going to stop at anything short of complete surrender.”

“Why?” she asked, glancing up at him.

“This place was my saving grace, Lynn, and I won’t let anyone, even you, throw it away.”

“I can’t take money from my brother’s best friend.”

“Who can you take money from?”

“Matt.”

“It seems we’re back to the beginning.”

“Let’s go into town and let me meet with Cochran. He might agree to my plan. Or perhaps he’ll agree to take the land and leave me the house.”

“I don’t want your land in anyone’s hands other than yours.”

“I’m always going to remember how noble you were about this, Seth.”

“I’ve never been noble but I do know right from wrong, and what you’re proposing doesn’t feel right.”

“It’s the only way.”

He didn’t say another word, just turned forward and started the car. He drove into town, his mind swimming with possibilities. He’d let Lynn try to work her deal with the bank, and if that didn’t work, he’d arrange for one of the banks that he used in Chicago to buy the loan. He knew there was a way to manipulate the banks and the system for it to seem as if Lynn were still making payments to the institution, when in reality she’d be making payments to him.

Part of him chafed at the thought of deceiving this woman to whom pride meant so much, but another part realized that there were times when the situation called for desperate measures. As the thought entered his head, he wondered if his mother had ever justified using him by just the same thought.

Lynn left the bank with a heavy heart and anger pulsing through her veins. She’d never met a person she couldn’t out-stubborn until this morning. Cochran wanted her land—but he wanted all of it and he wanted her out of the house in less than ten days.

Seth leaned casually against the hood of his car. Give him a cigarette and a leather jacket and he’d look the same as he had fourteen years ago. Her heart pounded a little faster at the sight of him, but she knew that nothing could come of it. Men were bad news for her.

“What did he say?” Seth asked, straightening as she approached.

She tried to utter the words, but her throat closed and she had to wrinkle her nose to keep the tears from falling. Instead, she just shook her head.

“Take my money,” he said to her.

Never in her life had her pride stung more than at that moment. She wanted her ranch, but taking money from Seth Connelly was something she simply couldn’t do. “I can’t.”

Anger crossed Seth’s face, but she sensed it wasn’t directed at her. “I’m going to talk to this man. Give me your notes.”

“I don’t think it will help. He’s a barracuda.”

“I’m a lawyer, sweetheart. We’re known for being sharks.”

“I don’t want to think of you swimming in the same water as that man.”

“Wait in the car. I’ll be right back.”

“Seth—”

“Let me do this, Lynn. I owe your family a debt, and it’s the only option you’ve left me.”

“Okay.” She handed over the folder that held all of the paperwork on the ranch’s mortgage. She was careful not to let their fingers brush, remembering the sensation that had rocked her the last time. But more than anything, she wished she could lean against him. Rest against his tall, strong body and let her troubles recede if only for a few minutes. But Seth was a weakness she couldn’t afford.

He opened the Jag’s door for her and she watched him walk back into the bank. It was a cold, blustery day and the mountains in the distance seemed to look down on the little town of Sagebrush with wise eyes. She felt their stare and knew that the mountains weren’t really censoring her for giving her trust blindly. But realizing that her friends and neighbors would know how foolish she’d been didn’t make her feel confident that they wouldn’t look on her the same way.

She tried to weigh her options objectively. If Matt were here, would he take Seth’s money? She doubted it. Matt preferred relationships that were equal, and if he’d taken money from Seth, their friendship would be forever changed.