The Cowboy

then I was going to be real generous and take you back."
    "On your terms, of course."
    "Naturally."
    "It's a good thing you didn't hold your breath, isn't it?"
    "Yeah, I'd have passed out real quick because you sure as hell never came running back to me. At first I assumed that was because you'd gone back to your affair with Moorcroft."
    "Damn you, there never was any affair with Moorcroft."
    "I know, I know." He held up a hand to cut off her angry protest. "But I couldn't be certain at the time and I could hardly call up Moorcroft and ask, could I? He'd have laughed himself sick."
    "It would have served you right."
    "My pride was already in shreds. I wasn't about to let Jack Moorcroft stomp all over it."
    "Of course not. Your pride had been a lot more important than whatever it was we had together, hadn't it?"
    He turned to face her. "I'm here tonight, aren't I? Doesn't that say something about my priorities?"
    She eyed him warily. "It says you're up to something. That's all it says. And I don't want any part of it. I learned my lesson a year ago, Rafe. Only a fool gets burned twice."
    "Give me a chance to win you back, Maggie. That's all I'm asking."
    "No," she said, not even pausing to think about her response. There was only one safe answer.
    He watched her for a moment and Margaret didn't like the look in his eyes. She'd seen it before and she knew what it meant. Rafe was running through his options, picking and choosing his weapons, analyzing the best way to stage his next assault. When he moved casually back to the white chair and sat down, Margaret instinctively tensed.
    "You really are afraid of me, aren't you, Maggie, love?"
    "Yes," she admitted starkly. "You can be an extremely ruthless man and I don't know what you've got up your sleeve."
    "Well, it's true there are a few things you don't know yet," Rafe said softly.
    "I don't want to know them."
    "You will."
    "All I want is for you to leave."
    "I told you when you opened the door tonight that you don't have to be afraid of me."
    "I'm not afraid of you. But I have some common sense and I will admit I'm extremely cautious around you. I definitely do not intend to get involved with you again, Rafe."
    He turned the glass in his hands. "What I had in mind was a little vacation for you."
    That alarmed her. "A
vacation
? I don't need or want a vacation."
    "At the ranch," he continued, just as if she hadn't spoken.
    "Your ranch in Arizona?"
    "You never had a chance to see it. You'll like it, Maggie."
    "No, absolutely not. I don't want to go to any ranch. I hate ranches. If I wanted to go on a vacation, I'd choose a luxury resort on a South Sea island, not a ranch."
    "You'll like this one." Rafe swallowed the last of the Scotch. "It's just outside of Tucson. I grew up there. Inherited it when Dad died."
    "No."
    "You don't have to worry," Rafe said gently. "You won't be alone with me. My mother will be there."
    "I thought she lived in Scottsdale."
    "She does. But she's paying me a visit. My sister, Julie, is going to drop in on us, too. She lives in Tucson, you know. I thought you'd feel more comfortable about going down there if you knew you weren't going to be completely alone with me."
    "Look, I don't care who's going to be down there. Rafe, stop stalking me like this. I mean it."
    "There'll be someone else there, too, honey."
    "I just told you, I don't care who's there. In case you didn't realize it, knowing your mother will be around is not much of an incentive for me to go to Tucson. She undoubtedly hates my guts. She thinks the sun rises and sets on you. She made her opinion of me clear that one time I met her last year and I'm sure she thinks even less of me after what happened between us. I'm sure she blames me for your losing Spencer Homes to Moorcroft. I wouldn't be surprised if your sister feels exactly the same."
    "Now, Maggie, love, you've got to allow for the fact that people change. My mother is looking forward to seeing you again."
    "I don't believe that for a minute and even if it's true, I'm not particularly anxious to see her."
    "You'd better get used to the idea of seeing her," Rafe said. "She's going to marry your father."
    "She's
what
?" Margaret felt as if the world had just fallen away beneath her feet. She clutched at her brandy glass.
    "You heard me."
    "I don't believe you. You're lying. My father would have said something."
    "He hasn't said anything because I asked him not to. I wanted to handle this my own way. He's the other person