Fate's Intervention (7 page)

“
Well, there be a good possibility you
may
, since the
re be a
horse auction next month down in Lander
. You being
the head trainer,
you
is likely to go with the boss man.
”

“
True
, but how can we be certain that she
’
ll be there?
”

“
Been there every time, so why shouldn
’
t she this time?
‘
Sides which, I hear tell that her pa
’
s been really eager to marry her off, so the auction might be the best place to snare a man for her.
”

“
Maybe she is a little off the mark, if her pa
’
s that desperate for someone to take her off
his hands.
”

“
Not nuts, just old.
”

“
Old
?
”

“
Hear tell that the girl done passed her seventeenth year.
Ain
’
t
too many men going to be busting down the door for that one, no matter if she
’
s a looker
. It don
’
t help none that
she done rejected
b
oss
m
an Stanharbor
. That
’
s
likely
going to make things
harder
on her old man since he
’
s the one gotta find
her
a husband;
and
the boss
man
figured he
be
doing
her daddy
a favor by taking her off his hands. No, sir! It
ain
’
t
go
nna
be easy for Miss
Weatherman
now. The last woman that rejected the boss man had her reputation torn all to bits. He takes rejection personal-like.
”

“
So
it would seem. Still, if this girl
’
s such a looker, why hasn
’
t her
father
been able to find her a husband before now?
Attractive
looks go a long way in negating strange behavior, after all. Unless there
is
something seriously
mentally
wrong with her.
”
Matthew rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“
Since
I don
’
t know and can
’
t tell you nothing more, would you mind leaving me be and find the nearest watering hole to drown yourself in?
”

Matthew laughed and slapped
Adam
on the shoulder,
“
Sure
thing, and thanks for the information.
”

“
No problem.
”

Matthew stopped by his bunk and pulled some fresh clothes out of his duffel bag,
and
then
headed toward the river for a much-needed bath.

As
he walked along the overgrown path, his mind
tried to conjure a picture of
the woman
with
the gumption to reject
the p
owerful
Clifford Stanharbor.
Adam
had said she was a looker, but beyond that, he knew nothing else but what his mind fabricated.

So intent was he on attempting to draw a mental picture of the lady in question that he did not readily see the obstruction blocking his path until he nearly ran headlong into it.

Matthew came to a dead stop and then retreated a few steps, eyeing
Elizabeth
as if she was a rattler.
What in hell is she doing out here?
He thought in exasperation.

“
Miss Elizabeth,
”
he tipped his hat politely then made to sidle past her. He may have made it if the path wasn
’
t so narrow and
Elizabeth
seemed determined to occupy the entire breadth.

“
Matt,
”
she said and stepped into his way again.

“
The
name
’
s Matthew,
”
he corrected.
“
Since I
’
m in your
father
’
s employ, calling me anything but Matthew is not proper.
Even that is stretching the bounds of propriety. Best to call me Mr. Daragh.
”
He made to move around her, but she blocked his departure again, grinning widely.

“
I like Matt,
”
she whispered.
“
Do you mind if I call you Matt?
”

“
Yes, I do
!
”
Matthew
’
s
repl
y was deliberately
sharp. He
didn
’
t care if he
sound
ed
rude;
because
he wasn
’
t about
to
willingly give the little thirteen-year-old flirt an inch
with
which
to
grab hold.
“
Matthew
’
s my given name and I prefer that you not hack it in half, especially since we
’
re not well acquainted.
”

“
Well, perhaps we can remedy that. The well-acquainted part, I mean,
”
she said, moving to stand a little closer.

Matthew stiffened. Damn! He
’
d given her that inch after all and she was going to hold on to it and hack away until it was half an inch and then . . . he couldn
’
t let her get that close
–
m
entally, verbally, or physically. Still, he had to tread cautiously. The last child he
’
d rejected outright had her
father
fire him.

“
I don
’
t think that would be a good idea, Miss Elizabeth,
”
he hedged.

“
Why?
”

“
Well, for many
reasons
, but the two that pop into my head right now is your age and that you
’
re the boss
’
s daughter. Those are mighty powerful incentives to not be standing here alone with you, so I
’
m going to head on to the river and wash up.
”

“
My birthday
’
s tomorrow,
”
Elizabeth
blurted out, moving again between him and the river.
“
A
re
you coming to my party?
”

“
No,
”
Matthew said between clenched teeth. Damn! She
’
d be fourteen tomorrow
–
the
ac
cursed age. Old enough to marry, but not smart enough to know what to do with a man even if he came with detailed instructions. Some men liked that naive innocence, liked to be an instructor. Not him. When his blood started boiling, he wanted a woman who could ride that passion with him to the end.

In all fairness to Elizabeth and all the other young women, there may be a virgin with that kind of ardor out there somewhere
; h
owever, since he tended to avoid virgins and all the encumbrances that came with them, he was not likely to ever meet one and most assuredly never bed one.

She was standing there, eyeing him expectantly. Well, she could stand there until the end of time and wouldn
’
t get what she expected, and if she didn
’
t move out of his way soon and let him pass, he may very well have to haul her aside
–
physically, if need be
. He already would have, if touching her was a looked-forward-to experience
–
which it wasn
’
t
–
and if he didn
’
t think she
’
d run and tell her pa that he
’
d manhandle her
–
which she would.

“
Carney
is making me a birthday cake
–
chocolate with strawberry icing,
”
she said suddenly, as if the thought of something sweet would alter his decision.

“
Carney
?
”

“
The
cook, silly.
”

Matthew sighed. She meant Carnation. He wondered if Carnation felt the same way he did about this little twit hacking her name in half. It appeared to him that fate had earmarked Elizabeth for silliness
–
uninvitingly abbreviating everyone
’
s name like a two
y
ear
o
ld.
It kind of reminded him of his neighbor
’
s child back home. She was
one
years old and called him
‘
chew
’
. He expected that from a young child whose age prevented her from getting past one syllable.

He wondered, however, if Elizabeth did it intentionally or whether her brain simply
operated monosyllabically.

“
Well, Miss Elizabeth, I appreciate the invite, but I have
work
to do tomorrow and being a
hired hand doesn
’
t put me at the top of your
father
’
s list of party guests.
”

“
You
’
d be
my
guest,
”
she insisted, annoying Matthew further. Either she was the
densest
female to walk the earth or she was deliberately missing his subtle hints.

“
I
’
m thirty
two years old, Miss Elizabeth,
”
Matthew said.
“
I
’
d hardly think that being the guest of a thirteen, going on fourteen-year-old, girl would be appropriate.
”

“
I
’
m not a girl. I
’
m a woman,
”
Elizabeth
said. She pouted her lips exaggeratedly causing Matthew to groan inwardly. He closed his eyes for a moment to regroup, and wished he hadn
’
t.
T
aking advantage of his sightlessness,
Elizabeth
flung her arms around his
neck,
and kissed him full on the mouth.

Matthew
’
s eyes flew open and his gaze came in direct contact with hers. She hadn
’
t closed her eyes when her lips met his and awkwardness warred with anger. He had not a doubt that his gaze reflected not only shock and ire,
but also
repulsion at her ineptitude.

On top of his mixed emotion, he was finding it hard to believe that the little chit was ready to prostitute herself the day before her birthday. Didn
’
t she know that
her
offering would ruin all marriageable prospects? He certainly
did not intend to marry
her.

Once his shock passed, he reached his hands behind his neck and pulled her hands free, surprisingly with ease. He expected her to balk
, to
resist his efforts to get away, but she didn
’
t. He stepped back, waiting for her next move. Would she burst into tears at
his
reject
ion
? Would she scream at him for some perceived affront and
threatened
to have him fired? He
’
d heard it all before, and wasn
’
t thrilled with the idea of
defending himself
again against
juvenile
behavior.