agree on.” Amazing how a simple quirk of his mouth transformed him into a normal human.
Whatever. “Perhaps.”
“I’ll keep it brief. I’m sure it’s been a long day.”
“Yes.”
“Depending on your point of view and the circumstances, Swenson men are either cursed or blessed. When we fall in love, it’s a done deal. It’s been that way for generations. We’re one-woman men. If your woman feels the same about you, it’s a blessing. There have been a few unfortunate males in our family who weren’t lucky enough to have their feelings reciprocated. I’m sure they considered it a curse. I made a serious mistake when I married my first wife. Natalie and I were friends but we weren’t in love. You haven’t been here long so you might not be aware. Do you know Merrilee and Bull’s story?”
“No.” Her throat felt tight. Uttering the one-syllable response was a challenge.
“Bull met Merrilee twentysomething years ago. He was one of the first people to move here when she founded the town. He was in his late forties and had never been married. He took one look at her and he knew. He was done. They were together from that day forward, but she wouldn’t marry him. He bought a ring and held on to it for twenty-five years. There had never been anyone else for him then and there never will be anyone else. That’s how I feel about Tansy. I’ve just learned that Dirk’s been in love with Natalie for years. If I’d known, I’d have never looked twice at her because it means Dirk’s been left to wander alone. And now there’s you and Lars. Regardless of how you feel about him, he’s stuck with you.”
“That’s not very flattering.”
Liam shrugged, unrepentant. “Sorry, but that’s just calling it what it is. I’m stuck with Tansy. It’s the way we roll, as Dirk would say.”
Liam continued. “Making the buttons was a dumb move on Lars’s part, but it was a desperate move. For God’s sake, don’t pretend to feel anything for him that you don’t. In the end, that doesn’t do anyone any good. However, his heart will always be yours for the taking.”
And without further comments or pleasantries, he headed for her door. His hand was on the knob when Delphi spoke. “Thank you for coming.”
“I came for Lars. My brother’s hurting. I didn’t come to plead his case. I came to give you the facts, so you can make an informed decision.”
“I didn’t want him to fall in love with me.”
“It doesn’t matter. You didn’t have any more control over it than he did. And trust me, if we could choose who we fall in love with, don’t you think Tansy would’ve done better? I’m not exactly a lovable guy but my wife sees something in me.” He grinned and shook his head. “I’m one lucky son of a bitch while she got the short end of the stick. But it is what it is.”
Her mouth was still sort of gaping over him saying that Tansy wouldn’t have voluntarily fallen in love with him. Maybe Liam wasn’t so bad after all. But he did scare the hell out of her. He didn’t have Lars’s slight outrageousness.
Liam’s little talk cast a whole different slant on Lars’s button campaign. He hadn’t been trying to humiliate or ride roughshod over her. Well, maybe he was trying to ride roughshod a bit, but it was because he would always approach a problem with ingenuity. The man thought outside the box. That was what it took to defuse bombs. And to sweep her off her feet. He was the kind of man who would love her for the rest of his life whether she ever came to her senses or not.
They’d have to talk about that toilet seat. There was a lot they needed to talk about. But as he had very wisely pointed out, and she’d been too scared to listen, talking could take care of a lot of things. If that was the case, then he was the master handler, because he could certainly talk.
And what she had to do now had never been clearer.
* * *
SO, THAT HAD BEEN a bust. He’d been across the street talking with the Native guide Clint Sisnuket when he spotted Delphi coming in from the clinic. One look at her face had said it all. His button campaign was a fail.
It was more than a fail. She wasn’t just angry—she was humiliated. It was a calculated risk, which