The Pirate & The Adventurer & The Cowboy

make his decisions. He's getting soft." Rafe chuckled. "Not in bed, I'll grant you, he's holding up just fine there. But when it comes to business, he's falling apart. Going to shoot himself in the foot if he doesn't get back on track."

    "He's falling in love with the heroine and that love is causing him to change," Margaret snapped.

    "It's causing him to act stupid."

    "Rafe, for pity's sake, it's just a story. Don't take it so seriously."

    "Real life business doesn't work like that."

    "It's a story, Rafe. A romance."

    "You know," Rafe said, looking thoughtful as they walked out of the mall into the furnace of the parking lot, "your dad was right. It's a good thing you got out of the business world, Maggie. You're not tough enough for it."

    "My father said that? I'll strangle him."

    "He said it during one of our early conversations and I agree."

    "You're both a couple of turkeys."

    "Maybe women in general just aren't hard enough to make it in the business world," Rafe continued philosophically. "You've got to be willing to be ruthless, really ruthless or you'll get eaten by the bigger sharks. Women, especially women like you, just don't have that extra sharp edge, know what I mean?"

    Margaret came to a full halt right in the middle of the blazing parking lot and planted herself squarely in front of a startled Rafe. She was hotter than the blacktop on which she stood, her anger suddenly lashed into a fire storm.

    "Why you chauvinistic, pig-headed, redneck cowboy. I always had a feeling that deep down inside you didn't approve of women in the business world and now at last the truth comes out. So you don't think women can handle it, do you? You don't think we'll ever make it in big business? That we aren't ruthless enough?"

    "Now, honey, it was just an observation."

    "It's a biased, prejudiced, masculine observation. I've got news for you, Rafe Cassidy, one of these days women are going to not only make it big in the business world, but we're going to change the way it operates."

    Rafe blinked and reached up to pull the brim of his Stetson lower over his eyes. "Is that right?"

    "Darn right. You men have been running it long enough and women are getting tired of playing by your rules. We're getting tired of cutthroat business practices and vicious competition—tired of playing the game for the sake of some man's ego."

    Rafe shrugged. "That's the way it works, Maggie, love. It's a jungle out there."

    "Only because men have made it into one. I suppose that after you got civilized and no longer had the thrill of the hunt for real, you had to create a new way to get your kicks. So you turned all your aggressive instincts into the way you do business. But that's going to change as women take over."

    "Uh, Maggie, love, it's kind of hot out here. What do you say we go back to the ranch and continue this fascinating discussion in the swimming pool?"

    "Your sister is a good example of the new breed of female businessperson. And Sean Winters has shown the good sense to turn his stores over to her to manage. You could take a lesson from him."

    A small smile edged Rafe's mouth. His eyes gleamed in the shadow of his hat. "You want me to turn Cassidy and Company over to you?"

    "Of course not. I don't want anything to do with that company. I've got my own career in writing and I like it. But I swear to God, Rafe, if we have a daughter and if she shows an interest in the family business, you'd darn well better let her have a hand in it."

    Rafe grinned slowly. "It's a deal. Let's go home and work on it."

    Margaret stared at him in frowning confusion as he took her arm and steered her toward the Mercedes. "What are you talking about?"

    "Our daughter. Let's go home and get busy making one. I want to see this brave new world of business once the women take over. The sooner we get started producing the new female executive, the sooner we'll see if it's going to work."

    Margaret felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her. She struggled for air. "A daughter? Rafe, are you talking about a baby?"

    "Yeah. Any objections?"

    She cleared her throat, still dazed by the abrupt change of topic. A baby—Rafe's baby. A little girl to inherit his empire. Margaret recovered from her initial shock and began to smile gloriously.

    "Why, no, Rafe. I don't have any objections at all."

    R afe was feeling exceptionally good two days later when he walked down the hall to his study. He had no premonition of disaster at