the room was plain; even the windows had no cover. If he didn’t know better he would have thought this room belonged to someone who always woke and watched the dawn and who spent very little time there.
He could hear the Watsons talking as he passed one of the bedroom doors but didn’t really care what they were saying. Soon he’d be gone and none of the people would be on his mind, except maybe Em. She’d stay in his thoughts for a long time.
In the great room he poured himself a brandy and played with the cards, as he had thousands of hours before. His mind didn’t need to stay clear tonight. The other two men were gone. There was no competition and no one to court.
Not that there really was anyway. Bethie only seemed to have eyes for Davis, and Rose was no more interested in him than she seemed to be in Boyd. Lewt had been an idiot to risk the one true friendship he had in this world for a chance to court a rich woman. Duncan had been his friend for years. They’d helped each other out of a dozen scraps and covered the other’s back in more than one fight. Now he’d go back to Austin without a wife and probably without a friend. Lewt had a feeling when the ranger found out what Lewt had done, at the least it would be the end of the friendship; at the worst the ranger would call him out for a fight.
Lewt shrugged, knowing if the worst happened he’d step out with an unloaded gun strapped to his hip.
He poured himself another drink. He’d honestly thought all three women would have fallen in love with him at first sight. All the saloon girls seemed to. The reality that none of them even flirted with him hurt his pride. He felt like he’d paid dearly for the lesson learned. Even the woman he’d kissed this week had told him a dozen times that she never planned to marry. He was just someone to learn something unknown with, not someone to mold a life with.
When he looked toward the door, he noticed Em leaning against the frame watching him.
“You look down,” she said, without moving into the room. “Like a man who has just lost a friend.”
He lifted his glass. “I thought I’d drawn the last thought of a dream I had.”
“To marry a rich woman?” Her smile seemed somehow sad.
“That and to have a regular family. I never had one growing up. I thought it would be nice to have a wife to come home to. Someone to talk about the day with, but I guess that’s not an option for people like me.”
She watched him but didn’t say a word. Maybe she figured he’d be gone soon and she had no need to know any more about him.
“I did learn a great deal this week, thanks to you, Em. I think when I get back to Austin, I’ll buy a horse, a good one, and go riding. I have a feeling I’ll still hear your lessons echoing in my ears.”
“I learned something too,” she said. “I learned what a kiss was like, and I thank you for that. I still know marriage is not for me, but at least I have a nice memory. I never dreamed the touch of a man’s lips could make a warmth go all the way down my body.”
He picked up the cards. “You want to play another hand?”
“For what?”
He smiled slowly. “For one last kiss.”
She laughed. “One good-bye kiss.”
“Fair enough.” He dealt the hand without either of them taking a chair. He played it straight and won.
When she dropped her cards on the table, she stepped into his arms. His hand cupped the back of her head and held her just the way he liked to kiss her, leaning down only slightly, turning his head one way as he moved hers the other.
Tomorrow everyone would be getting ready for the party and he’d probably have to stay around, but for this one quiet moment he wanted to give her a kiss they’d both remember.
He’d meant it to be a sweet farewell kiss, but the memory of her shadow filled his mind and he pressed against the length of her. He knew this woman. Not only the taste and feel of her; he knew how she lived and felt and talked. She was as honest as the land she worked all