“When’s that gonna be?” Silas persisted. “You know the longer you wait, the bigger the chance of somebody tellin’ her for you.”
“The chances of that happening are slim,” Blake said confidently. “The men have been leaving before daylight to make sure the fences are ready for the herds when we bring them down from the summer pastures. And I know I can count on you not to say anything.”
“It ain’t my place to tell that little gal,” Silas said, sounding affronted that Blake even mentioned the possibility. “But what are you gonna do when you take her over to the Rusty Spur for that barbecue day after tomorrow? What if one of the Laughlins says somethin’ about it? What are you gonna do then?”
“I’m going to call Eli and fill him in before we go over there,” Blake stated. “Neither Eli or Tori will say a word about it.”
He’d given it some thought on his and Karly’s ride back to the house and he knew he could trust his friends not to mention that Blake owned the ranch, or pass judgment on him for wanting to keep that fact from Karly. Eli Laughlin and his wife, Tori, had their own unorthodox tale of how they’d met and married, not to mention the obstacles due to secrets of Tori’s past and Eli’s trust issues that they’d had to work through.
Tired of arguing with the old cowboy, Blake decided it was time to bring the conversation to an end. “Go ahead and set the table. We’ll be over in about fifteen minutes.”
Ending the call before Silas could come up with more of his endless questions, Blake took a deep breath. He might be irritating as hell, but Silas was right. Karly had married him because she wanted to, not because she thought she could get something from him. And even though they were headed for a divorce, it was becoming more difficult to defend his stance on not telling her.
A sudden thought stopped him dead in his tracks. Could she have rejected him and their marriage because she thought just the opposite about him? When she got back to Seattle, had she decided that he didn’t make enough money to support her and the kids he had hoped they would one day have?
Blake shook his head as he climbed the back steps and started into the house. Either way, he needed to find out what her reasoning had been for ending things with him. Once he knew that, he could put this marriage fiasco behind him. Until then, he’d simply wait and see what he could find out.
* * *
When Blake drove his truck up the asphalted driveway toward the huge log lodge, Karly caught her breath at the sheer size and beauty of it. “This is absolutely gorgeous,” she said, falling in love with the way the home and the rugged landscape complemented each other so perfectly. No other style of house would have looked as natural with the vastness of the land surrounding it. “Can you imagine living in a place like this?”
“You like it?” he asked, staring straight ahead as he parked his truck in front of the porte cochere covering the entrance to the house. Made with the same huge logs as the main structure, it provided shelter from the weather as well as added to the grandeur of the home.
“Who wouldn’t love this?” she asked, noticing a small waterfall cascading over boulders not far from the stacked stone steps. It emptied into a little pool by the bottom step and looked so natural that it took a moment for her to realize it was man-made. “Everything about it is perfect.” She frowned. “But shouldn’t we be going through the back entrance?”
“Why would we do that?” he asked, sounding confused.
“It’s not like we’re invited guests,” she said, shaking her head. “The owner—”
“He isn’t staying here right now and even if he was, he wouldn’t care.” He grinned as if finding something humorous about her question. “He’s a pretty easygoing guy.”
She had a hard time believing anyone would want an employee and his guest taking advantage of their good nature. “And you’re sure he won’t mind us just walking in like we own the place?”
He laughed and shook his head as he got out of the truck and walked around to help her down from the cab. “Take my word for it, sweetheart. He doesn’t have any problem at all with us making ourselves at home while we’re visiting the main house.”