Perfect Partners

M-word.”
    Letty lifted one shoulder in an elaborate shrug and concentrated on her highly spiced rice noodles. “Well, you have to understand that it does require a drastic adjustment in my old-fashioned midwestern notions of propriety. Back where I come from it’s still considered appropriate to get married before one starts a family.”
    “A
family
.” It was Joel’s turn to go into shock. “Are you telling me you’re pregnant? You couldn’t possibly be pregnant. We’ve been careful.” He thought about that first time in the barn and winced.
    “I’m not pregnant.” She smiled. “Yet.”
    “Don’t go making wild statements like that. It’s not good for my heart.”
    “Don’t you want a family, Joel?”
    He thought about Letty having his baby, pictured her pregnant, imagined her holding an infant. It was not the first time the image had danced fleetingly through his mind, and each time it appeared, it did odd things to him. It made him want to use the M-word himself, for example.
    But he could not marry Letty so long as she owned Thornquist Gear and that was that.
    “Eventually,” Joel said. “Yeah, sure. Eventually I want kids.”
    “You shouldn’t wait too much longer, you know. Maybe we should start working on it. What do you think? I mean, now that I’m getting the hang of having an affair and am able to be totally blasé about it, maybe there’s no need to get married at all. This isn’t the Heartland. This is the West Coast. The fast lane.”
    Irritation flared in him. “We’re not having kids until we’re married, and we’re not getting married as long as you own Thornquist Gear. That’s final, Letty. Absolutely final.”
    She studied him coolly. “You want me to give up my inheritance before you’ll consider marriage?”
    “I never asked you to give up a damn thing. I’m asking you to sell it to me. I’ll give you a fair price. Hell, you’ll make more off the sale of Thornquist Gear than you’d make in twenty years of working as a librarian.”
    Letty considered that with a dark frown. “That sounds suspiciously like buying myself a husband.”
    “Damn it, you wouldn’t be buying me. You’d be selling Thornquist to me. There’s a big difference.”
    She chewed reflectively on her lower lip. “What if you changed your mind after the sale?”
    “Jesus. What are you talking about now?”
    “What if you decided you didn’t want to marry me after I sold Thornquist to you? There wouldn’t be any way I could force you to keep up your end of the bargain.” Letty shook her head. “No, I think it’s too big a risk. Let’s just continue with the affair. I’m getting accustomed to it. There are certainly some exciting moments.”
    He stared at her. “You’re in a weird mood, aren’t you?”
    “It’s been a weird day. First I dump a plate of oysters and fries over the one man who has actually made me an honorable proposal of marriage. Next I find myself trying to offer aid and comfort to your ex-girlfriend. Then I get caught in an extremely inappropriate position in your office, and now I’m eating food that’s hot enough to set fire to the plate.”
    “As I said back at the beginning, you’re not in Kansas anymore.”
    “Indiana.”
    Joel fell into a brooding silence after that exchange. He had to admit he had counted on Letty finding the affair uncomfortable after a while. He had suspected from the start that her quest for wild, illicit passion and pizzazz would not last long. Old virtues and values would quickly reassert themselves. When that happened, Joel had reasoned, she would start talking about marriage.
    Once he knew he had her hooked, he could negotiate. He fully intended to marry Letty. He was not quite certain when that decision had crystallized in his brain, but it was rock solid now. However, he intended to do so on his own terms.
    No one was going to accuse him of marrying her in order to get his hands on Thornquist Gear.
    He had not counted on Letty coming to the conclusion that a permanent affair would be acceptable. Nor had he anticipated that she would actually start talking about having children without marriage. Things were getting out of hand.
    Letty seemed in a far more upbeat mood by the time she had finished her noodles. Joel got to his feet, paid the bill, and led her out onto the street. A thought struck him as they turned to start up First Avenue to her apartment.
    “Clean shirts,” Joel said abruptly.
    “What about