For His Brother's Wife

Not knowing much about what little kids needed, Cole nodded. “I guess it’s important for them to feel that security.”

“I think we all need that,” she agreed, smiling sadly. “But especially after the tornado tore up everything familiar to us.”

“How are you doing?” he asked, barely resisting the urge to put his arms around her for a comforting hug. It had to be extremely hard for her to lose her husband at such a young age and in such an unexpected way.

“I’m okay,” she said, her gaze straying to the distant horizon. “In the past several years, Craig had had to go out of town on business a lot, so I’m used to spending time alone. But I always knew he would eventually be coming back home.” Turning to meet his gaze head-on, she added, “It’s knowing that won’t ever happen and that I’m truly alone in the world that’s the most difficult to deal with.”

“I know it’s been a big adjustment.” Cole stated the obvious.

He wasn’t sure what kind of business Craig had been involved in that would require a cattle rancher to make frequent trips out of town. But then he didn’t know much about his brother’s life beyond the fact that he belonged to the Texas Cattleman’s Club—the same as Cole and most of their friends. Cole had even convinced Aaron to join the Dallas chapter after they had become friends and gone into business together. The connections they had made through their involvement with the TCC, as well as their reputation for excellence in quality and value, had helped propel R&N Builders to become one of the premier construction companies in the state.

They remained silent for several long moments before Paige glanced toward his truck. “Did you bring your things with you?”

“No, I’ll just stay at the Cozy Inn,” Cole answered, shrugging. “I have to get up pretty early and I wouldn’t want to disturb you.”

When he’d returned to Royal six months ago, Paige had offered for him to stay at the ranch while he was in town, but he had declined. He’d told her that it would be easier for him to stay close to the job sites where his construction crews worked. But the real reason he had stayed in Royal instead of at the ranch was due to the attraction he still felt whenever he was around her.

Paige gave him one of those looks that a woman gives a man when she thinks he’s being overly obtuse. “Think about it, Cole. I live on a working cattle ranch. I get up before dawn every morning to give the hired hands a list of things I want done for the day.”

“Don’t you have a foreman to do that?” he asked, frowning.

“I do, but he’s still dealing with his injuries from the tornado.” She shook her head. “He was in the barn when the storm moved through and it’s a miracle he survived. I assured him that he would have a job once he recovered, so I’m taking over for him until he’s able to return to work.”

“Couldn’t you have one of the other men act as foreman until he recovers?” Cole asked.

“I could have, but with Craig gone I need to stay busy,” she answered. “Besides, I want to learn more about managing the ranch since I’m going to be running it alone.”

“You could always sell out and move into town,” he suggested.

She looked directly at him. “I did think about it. But this is my home now and I prefer the country quiet over the sounds of a busy town.”

Cole couldn’t fault her for that. He had grown up on the ranch and when he’d gone away to college, it had taken him most of his first semester to get used to the noise of a bustling campus. Now, living in Dallas, he spent most of his weekends in a fishing cabin on a nearby lake just to get a little peace and quiet.

“Living in town would be closer to the charities you’re involved in,” he said, shrugging.

He hadn’t discussed anything about her future plans with her since Craig’s death. For one thing, he had made sure not to spend too much time with her once it became clear he was still attracted to her. And for another, it really wasn’t any of his business what decisions she made or where she lived.

“And staying here at the ranch instead of driving back and forth to the Cozy Inn would be closer for you while your work crew rebuilds my barn and makes the repairs to the outbuildings,” she shot back. “You said yourself that you liked to be close to the job sites you’re in charge of overseeing. You couldn’t get any closer to the job than staying here.”

He hadn’t expected her to turn the tables on him and use his excuse not to stay at the ranch against him. “I wouldn’t want to impose,” he hedged.

She shook her head. “That’s ridiculous, Cole. This was your home long before it was mine.”

Cole didn’t want to go into the fact that he really hadn’t missed the home he grew up in. He had too many memories of the altercations he had been in with Craig to be overly sentimental about it.

“But it’s your home now,” he countered.

“And I’m inviting you to stay here,” she said, giving him a smile that caused every one of his male senses to go on high alert. “It will give us the chance to catch up.”

As he stared at her, Cole realized that he’d run out of plausible excuses. He couldn’t tell her the real reason behind his reluctance to stay at the ranch with her. She would probably think he was crazy, and to tell the truth, he really couldn’t say she would be all that far off the mark. It was absolutely insane to be so damned attracted to his late brother’s wife.

Resigned, he finally nodded. “All right.” He turned toward his truck. “I’ll bring my things with me tomorrow morning when we start the job.”

“Would you like to stay for dinner?” she asked, walking beside him.

“Thanks for the offer, but Stella has a town council meeting and I promised I’d meet Aaron for dinner at the TCC clubhouse to discuss business.” He felt guilty when he noticed the disappointment she couldn’t quite cover with her smile.

“Okay, then I’ll see you tomorrow morning,” she said, turning toward the house.

“I’ll be here for the next couple of weeks or so,” he felt compelled to tell her. Maybe knowing it wouldn’t be just a night or two would change her mind about having a houseguest for such an extended period. “Before I leave to go back to Dallas, you’ll probably get tired of looking at me over the dinner table.”

His words didn’t seem to discourage her. If anything, her smile brightened. “I’ll plan on making something special for dinner tomorrow evening to welcome you back home.”

Cole’s guilt at avoiding her the past six months increased tenfold as he watched her walk up the back porch steps to enter the house. He knew Paige had to be lonely. Her parents had both passed several years ago, and with Craig gone, charity work could only go so far to fill in the empty hours of a day. She was obviously anticipating having someone to talk to for a change.

Climbing into his truck, Cole started the engine and drove down the lane to the main road. The next few weeks were going to be a true test of his fortitude. From the time he’d seen her walking down the hall at Royal High School all those years ago, he had wanted nothing more than to make her his girl. But it was too late for that. She had married his brother and, even though he and his twin had never gotten along and hadn’t spoken in more than ten years, Cole wasn’t about to disrespect Craig’s memory or his marriage to Paige.

* * *

The following morning when Paige got out of bed, she found that she looked forward to starting her day for the first time in longer than she cared to remember. What she had told Cole yesterday afternoon had been all too true. Craig had been away on business several nights out of each month for their entire marriage, but she had always known he would be returning home. And even though they had stopped sharing the same bed a few years ago due to Craig’s restlessness while he slept, she had taken comfort in the fact that she wasn’t alone—that he was just down the hall in the master suite. But the finality of his death not only forced her to face the fact that she had been lonely for a very long time, but also made her realize that their marriage had never been what she had wanted it to be.

She sighed as she walked into the bathroom for a quick shower. Maybe their relationship would have been different if circumstances had been less stressful when they’d gotten married and she hadn’t lost the baby. But she’d had very little control of the situation. The minute Craig’s father had learned she was pregnant, he had insisted that Craig do the right thing and marry her immediately. Her parents had been older and very conservative and the news of their only child being pregnant out of wedlock had broken their hearts. That was why when they urged her to accept Craig’s awkwardly worded offer of marriage—she hadn’t wanted to disappoint them further and agreed.

Unfortunately, only a few short weeks after she became Craig’s wife, she’d lost the baby and had been unable to become pregnant since. She supposed she could have requested they end the marriage and go their separate ways. But she had made a lifetime commitment when she’d recited her wedding vows and she had been determined to be a good wife to Craig, even though they hadn’t been in love.

As she finished drying her hair, Paige decided not to dwell on the past. Craig was gone and, although they might not have had the closeness she had always wanted for their marriage, they’d had a comfortable life together and gotten along well. That was more than some couples could say.

She went downstairs to the kitchen and started the coffeemaker. As she looked out the window above the sink, she noticed that Cole’s truck was parked close to where the barn used to be. “When he says he gets up early, he means it,” she murmured aloud. The pearl-gray light of dawn hadn’t fully given way to the rising sun and Cole had already arrived and was ready to start work.

When the coffeemaker finished, she poured two cups of the steaming brew and left the house. She walked down to where Cole stood looking at a set of blueprints. “I thought you might need some of this,” she said, handing him one of the cups.

“Thanks.” He smiled as he took it from her. “Since most of the jobs I’ve been in charge of are on the opposite side of Royal, I couldn’t see any sense in driving all the way across town and back every morning for coffee at the diner.” Taking a sip, he nodded his approval. “This is the best coffee I’ve had in the past six months.”

“Doesn’t the Cozy Inn have coffeemakers in their rooms?” she asked.

He grimaced. “They do, but either I’ve been doing something wrong or they need to find a different brand of coffee packets.”

“Well, you’ll at least have decent coffee while you’re here at the ranch,” she said, taking a sip from her own mug.

“About that...” He hesitated. “I’m not sure it would be appropriate for me to stay here.”

She frowned. “Why on earth would you say that? There’s nothing improper about you staying here. This ranch has been in your family for five generations.”

He stared at her for several long moments before he finally nodded. “I guess you have a point.”

“I know I do,” she stated firmly. “Did you check out of the Cozy Inn?”

“I have to go back into Royal to meet with the crew working on rebuilding the hospital wing that collapsed during the storm.” He shrugged. “I’ll check out then and bring my things with me.”