obvious he thought she would be quite happy to settle for a celibate relationship that didn’t involve heart or body, but merely an overseer of his household. She felt annoyed and flattered at the same time. And still shocked. And beneath all her shock, his words echoed in her mind, Intelligent and strong and kind... The praise was astounding. She glanced at the sleeping baby.
“I don’t know one thing about a baby.”
“You don’t have to. You know calves and foals and how to run a ranch. You can hire a nanny. With you there, I won’t have problems with one. You and I can work out a damned good business arrangement if you stop to think about it. You’ll be gaining a lot of land—”
“So will you, actually.”
“Yes, I will,” he replied solemnly. “You don’t have any heirs. The danger, as I see it, is that you might fall in love someday and want to marry. We could annul the marriage and break the ranches back up. I would want a prenuptial agreement to protect Elizabeth’s inheritance. Also, I wouldn’t want you to bring any scandal to her, but I don’t think you would.”
“This is absolutely ridiculous! I’ll run an ad and hire you a nanny and you can forget marriage.”
He leaned forward another few inches, running his hand over his head. His fingers were long and blunt, the nails closely trimmed. She glanced at his face, and his dark eyes snagged and held her attention. “I know I’ve shocked you. I’m desperate and I’ve had time to think this over. You should give my proposal some thought. There are advantages to you. You have your grandmother to take care of. You’ve had a tough year, and your father’s illness ran up big bills. You’re still sending your sister Andrea to college—to medical school, from what I understand.”
Annoyed, Mattie frowned. “You’ve been snooping into my life,” she complained, only half thinking about what she was saying while his proposal spun in her mind. Josh Brand wanted her—Mattie Ryan, the Clayton County spinster—to marry him Impossible! Shock held her in a vacuum, and she had to force her attention to what he was saying.
“Everyone in these parts knows about each other’s business. This community is close. Everyone knows everyone. You know a lot about my life.”
“Maybe, but I don’t know you. We can’t marry. We’re strangers.”
“I’m not talking about a real marriage. If you want the physical side, I can do that, I suppose, but my heart is as numb as that desk.”
Agitated, she stood and went to the window to look at the rolling land that belonged to her. What Josh proposed was impossible. She couldn’t even imagine herself in any kind of marriage to him, even the most platomc relationship.
“Josh, I’m sorry, but I have my life.” She turned to face him. “I don’t know babies or how to be a wife. I’m flattered that you asked—”
“Mattie, I’ve been asking questions. Your dad mortgaged a large section of the Rocking R. You have some big debts.”
“Dammit! No one in this county can keep his mouth shut from the banker on down to—”
“Come over for dinner tonight,” Josh said abruptly, interrupting her. “Let’s get to know each other better.”
At a loss for words, she stared at him in silence.
“Just dinner, Mattie. Not scared of me, are you?”
“No! All right,” she answered, her heart fluttering. She felt lost. She had never dated seriously, never flirted or had casual relationships with boyfriends. She had worked with men all her life, but she had never had personal relationships with any man. Josh Brand was just the opposite. She could remember from school functions, football games and rodeos that Josh had had females fluttering around him since he was a little kid. And she remembered his beautiful, sophisticated wife.
“Good. I’ll come pick you up about seven.”
Elizabeth stirred and let out a wail. He turned and unbuckled her, then picked her up out of the carrier, talking softly to her. Mattie stared at him, watching the transformation of this man who was so masculine and tough. He cradled the baby, cooing to her as he jiggled her and tried to calm her. His voice gentled, his features softened; he looked incredibly appealing, no longer formidable. He fumbled in the diaper bag and produced a bottle, which the baby grasped and yanked into her mouth, her large brown eyes watching him constantly.
“There’s my girl,” he said, smoothing her hair. “Elizabeth, this is Mattie. Mattie, this is Elizabeth.”
“She’s sweet,” Mattie said perfunctorily. “I’ve never been around babies.”
“I hadn’t, either. They’ll put up with a lot,” he said without taking his gaze from his daughter.
“I really don’t think—”
He raised his head, his eyes focusing on Mattie with a look that made her pause. Without taking his gaze from her, he crossed the room, closing the distance between them. Her pulse jumped as she watched him stop only inches from her. He stood too close. She could detect the scent of aftershave, of talcum, of milk. The baby made soft sucking sounds while he held her bottle, and Mattie glanced at her. Elizabeth’s fingers were incredibly tiny and dainty, her dark lashes long and thick, and she had beautiful rosy skin. Mattie’s gaze lifted to meet Josh’s again, causing another leap in her pulse.
As he leaned closer, she noticed the faint stubble on his jaw, his thick black lashes. He shook his head. “Don’t act in haste,” he said in a low voice. “Come have dinner and we’ll talk some more. Think about what you have to gain...and what you have to lose.”
“I think you have the most to lose. You may fall in love again.”
His eyes were direct and unblinking as he shook his head. “Never again. I adored Lisa. With those marriage-hungry nannies, I felt as if a noose were closing around my neck. But I need someone for Elizabeth and if you agree to do this for me and for her, I’ll do right by you.”
“That’s easy to say now.”
“Think about what you want in a prenuptial agreement. You ask for high stakes, and you’ll see how sincere I am and how much I intend to stand by what I promise.” He stared at her a moment in silence while her heart pounded like galloping hoofbeats. “I’ll see you at seven.”
He turned, put on his hat and was halfway to the door before she realized it. As she looked at his broad shoulders, she felt dazed. He held the carrier and baby bag in one hand, the baby in the other.
“I’ll help carry something,” she said, catching up with him and taking the carrier and bag.
They walked outside to his pickup where he turned to take the carrier from her. His fingers brushed hers, and she felt an electric tingle from the contact. Why was she so aware of him? She watched him set the carrier on the back seat of the truck.
“Can you hold her a minute?” he asked, thrusting the baby into her arms without waiting for her answer. The moment the bottle left Elizabeth’s mouth, she screwed up her face and began to protest with a loud wail. He gave the baby her bottle, and her tiny hands closed on iL Mattie looked at the small, warm bundle in her arms. Two little dark eyes seemed to stare right through her with the same directness as her father’s.
When she looked at the baby, Mattie was frightened and uncertain. She couldn’t be responsible for this tiny person. Panic gripped her, and her gaze lifted from the infant to her father. Josh leaned into the car, his jeans pulling over his muscled legs while he buckled the carrier into the pickup.
Turning, he said, “Come here, Li’l Bit,” his usual nononsense bass voice changing again to a gentleness that made Mattie melt. He took the baby from Mattie. “I’ll pick you up tonight.”
After he strapped Elizabeth in securely, he strode around the pickup, climbed behind the wheel and was gone, roaring down the road, sending dust spiraling up behind the pickup while she stared in shock.
Marriage.