The Rancher’s Marriage of Convenience Page 7

  And now, Gideon was asking for her to become something she knew was almost impossible. A woman of faith. That was what he needed. Right now, thinking about what she would have to do to become such a wife, she was certain she would never be able to marry him.

  Sophie placed the coffee pot on the table and took her seat opposite Rosalind. "Do you want to tell me about it?" she asked while she poured two cups.

  Rosalind shook her head and then lifted the cup to her lips. "I don't know, Sophie. I feel bad that I took you away from Nathan. You both were having such a good time." She took a long sip of the sweet, black coffee and peered across at Sophie.

  Sophie frowned. "Nathan's going to be busy with other things," she said. "It's not only apple juice they serve at these shindigs."

  Rosalind thought for a moment. "Is it true about the Buchanans? That they might lose their ranch?"

  Sophie placed her cup down on the wooden table. "So he told you," she said.

  Rosalind nodded. "I guess he had to. He's that kind of man. He wasn't going to hold back the truth."

  Sophie's brows furrowed. "One thing about Gideon Buchanan. You won't catch him telling a lie. That's for sure."

  "I gathered that," Rosalind agreed. "So it is true," she added.

  Sophie nodded and frowned. "It's some kind of complication with the land grant. Caleb is furious about it."

  "Gideon's father?" Rosalind asked.

  Sophie nodded. "He's not the kind of man to take something like this lying down. He's a tough man. But he has a good heart," Sophie said. "Just like all of his children."

  Rosalind nodded and sighed. "I can tell that," she said. "Gideon seems very devout in his faith," she added tentatively. "I know you told me about that, but it was still a surprise to me."

  Sophie narrowed her eyes. "Did he talk to you about that?"

  "He did. I get the impression that he's looking for a wife with a similar strength of faith as him." Rosalind sipped her coffee and then placed the cup back down on the wooden table. "I've thought about this since we spoke." Rosalind sighed. "I'm not sure I'm up to it," she added.

  Sophie squinted at Rosalind. "Why?"

  Rosalind thought for a few moments, searching for an answer to that question. Was it simply that, having turned away from God, she couldn't see any circumstances which would persuade her to return to Him? Was her loss of faith permanent? Or could that wound be healed? And was Gideon the one person who could heal that hurt?

  "It's just me," Rosalind admitted. "When I think about what I would have to do, it worries me."

  Sophie seemed to consider her next words for a few moments. Rosalind could see the concern in her new-found friend's eyes. "Do you think that after tonight he might not be interested in marriage?" Sophie asked.

  Rosalind was slightly taken aback by the directness of the question. "We just had a slight misunderstanding," she admitted. "It wasn't that serious. But then, that man Calhoun came. And, somehow, Gideon and I just ended up disagreeing."

  "Calhoun?" Sophie asked looking suddenly grave. "What was he saying?"

  Rosalind shook her head. "Nothing serious. He looked like he just wanted to make mischief," she said.

  Sophie gaze darkened. "He's good at that," she admitted. "About the only thing he does know is how to cause trouble."

  "Gideon said he's the one interested in getting hold of the Buchanan spread. Is that right?"

  Sophie nodded. "I'm afraid it is," she admitted. "And he's just about the only one in town with the inclination and the means to do it."

  "He and Gideon didn't seem to like each other," Rosalind admitted. "And that's putting it mildly."

  "You should hear Gideon's father talk about Calhoun," Sophie joked. "It ain't pretty to hear."

  "So that's why it's so urgent that all the Buchanan brothers get married?" Rosalind asked.

  Sophie nodded. "I promised Caleb and his wife that I would do my best for their boys," Sophie stated. Her brows furrowed and she slapped a hand firmly on the table. "And gosh darn it, I will," she exclaimed. Rosalind saw Sophie's eyes darken with sudden determination.

  "Do you think Gideon will want to see me again?" Rosalind asked tentatively. "I mean, after tonight?"

  Sophie stared incredulously at Rosalind. "Do I think he'll want to see you again?" She shook her head and smiled. "What do you take me for, Rosalind? Of course he's going to see you again. If I have anything to do with it."

  And, as she looked across at Sophie, Rosalind could well believe that nothing on earth would prevent Sophie Cameron from making sure that Gideon Buchanan would pay another call on Rosalind.

  CHAPTER NINE

  It was the day after the dance, and Gideon was out on the rangeland, seated on his favorite roan, leaning on the pommel of his saddle, his hat tucked back on his head, watching the herd and trying desperately to lose himself in work. Trying to forget last night.

  He gazed idly at the ranch hands doing their best to keep the herd together. The sun was warm this morning and there was a fresh breeze in the air that he found refreshing. He breathed in deeply, feeling the coolness fill his lungs. His stomach was empty, but its emptiness only sharpened his senses, making his thinking more clear than usual. And he had thinking to do, he told himself.

  It was the middle of the morning and, so far, he'd succeeded in steering clear of his family members. And, most importantly of all, he'd avoided any awkward questions about the very interesting newcomer who'd been seen with Gideon at the dance. Not to mention what they'd been seen talking about in the garden.

  Usually Gideon would have shared breakfast with his parents and brothers. But, this morning, he'd saddled up and ridden out before anyone had gotten out of bed.

  Gideon thought about Rosalind's sudden departure last night and frowned. Had he literally scared her off with his talk of marriage, his faith, and his family's problems? Or had it been Calhoun's presence which had been the final straw?

  When Gideon had left Rosalind's side and went in search of his brothers Reese and Micah, he'd assumed that she would still be there when he returned. But, when he'd gone in search of her, he'd been told by Nathan that Rosalind and Sophie had gone back to the house. Before Gideon had been able to get more information from Nathan, the sheriff had been called to deal with yet another scuffle which had broken out between some men to one side of the dance floor.

  So, Gideon had passed some time at the dance, wondering just what he should do. Reese and Micah had teased him, claiming that this was yet another example of Gideon's unique way of charming young ladies. Gideon had definitely not been in the mood for laughing, so he'd excused himself and left the dance.

  As he'd ridden home, in the dark of the night, alone beneath the clear, starry sky, he'd concluded that the whole evening couldn't have gone any worse than it had. He realized he'd messed up when he'd talked with Rosalind in the garden. Big time.

  And, to make matters worse, the seeds of discontent had been sown by Calhoun and his curious remark about where Rosalind had come from on the day of her arrival in Inspiration. Gideon wondered what Calhoun had meant when he'd said that. Gideon recalled the way Calhoun had tried to interfere in Zane's courtship of Johanna, and wondered if Calhoun intended to do the same to him.

  Courtship.

  That single word made Gideon sit up straight in his saddle. He felt a chill race up the length of his spine. Gideon dragged in a deep, calming breath. He tried to ignore the consequences of that momentous word, but he found he couldn't, no matter how hard he tried.

  Was that what he was doing? Was he really courting Miss Rosalind Grover? Up until last night, he'd been able to convince himself that maybe he was just going through the motions. That perhaps Rosalind would prove somehow unsatisfactory. Even that she wouldn't like him. And so Gideon would be able to delay what he knew to be his unavoidable obligation. To marry.

  Maybe this was just pretend. A game he was playing to convince people he was doing what he was supposed to do. And, in any case, perhaps Rosa
lind didn't really like him that much.

  But, last night, during the dance, and later in the garden, he'd seen plenty of evidence that both of those negative expectations were false. Gideon had to admit that, for some reason he couldn't fathom, he was most certainly interested in Rosalind. And he believed that the same held true for her when it came to any affections or interest she might have in him.

  He'd seen it in her eyes. The way she'd looked at him when they'd been dancing. And he'd heard it in the garden, in her own words, as they'd spoken of their lives, sharing the details of their past.

  So, where did that leave him, now? Nothing had changed since last night. He still had to find a bride. Fast.

  And, he was sure that, in spite of their misunderstanding last night, despite his own hesitations, there was some promise, some possibility, in his newly-found acquaintance with Rosalind.

  But, there was one lingering problem. Rosalind had confirmed what Gideon had suspected from his first meeting with her. They may have shared the beginnings of a mutual attraction, he told himself. But, they did not share a mutual faith.

  There was a barrier between him and Rosalind. Possibly an unbreakable barrier. An insurmountable one.

  Gideon sighed heavily and leaned back on the pommel. He felt a sudden weight on his shoulders, a sense of the responsibility that he had taken on to do the right thing for his family. To make a sacrifice for them. His brothers and his parents. He was being called to lay aside thoughts of himself and find someone to marry, even if that person did not fit Gideon's own exacting demands.

  Emotion whirled through Gideon at that moment. He was filled with uncertainty and doubt. And, just as he'd done so many time before when faced with such doubts, he closed his eyes, lifted up his heart, and began to pray. Silently seeking guidance, searching for the will of Him who laid out the path for Gideon to follow.

  Long moments passed. His thoughts moved easily, as if guided. Gideon listened. And in attending closely, he began to discern what he must do. What he was being called towards.

  Acceptance grew within him as the moments passed, just as it had done so many times before when he had sought answers. A feeling settled inside him, a sense of what he ought to do. What he must do.

  Doubt was pushed aside, to be replaced by clarity. Gideon nodded and smiled ruefully. He gazed out toward the distant mountains, marveling at the beauty of the world, at the brightness of the colors.

  He considered the understanding he'd just been led to, and told himself that it made perfect sense. But then he'd known it would, even before he'd started to pray.

  It was the only way.

  Suddenly, he heard the sound of an approaching horse. Hooves thudded loudly on the earth from somewhere behind him. Gideon turned and saw a rider heading toward him. He recognized his younger brother, Micah.

  Micah drew his mount to a halt alongside Gideon. "You're wanted up at the big house," Micah stated. "There's visitors, and ma wants you there, right away."

  Gideon could already guess the identity of the visitors. "It wouldn't be Sophie Cameron and someone else, by any chance, would it?"

  Micah's dark eyes narrowed. He tipped his hat up high on his forehead and squinted at Gideon. "Say," he drawled. "How'd you know that?" he asked brightly.

  "I just know," Gideon replied. He twisted the reins in both of his hands and turned his horse to face the way back to the ranch house.

  "Let's go," Gideon said. Micah followed alongside Gideon as their horses made their way up the long incline of the hillside.

  "That girl Sophie brought today is sure pretty," Micah said enthusiastically.

  Gideon glanced across at Micah. "Miss Rosalind Grover, to you," Gideon said.

  "Is that the one who walked out on you at the dance last night?" Micah asked.

  Gideon frowned good-naturedly at his brother. "Who said she walked out on me?"

  "Reese did," Micah replied and smiled as if it was the funniest thing he'd ever heard.

  "Well, Reese is making things up," Gideon retorted, pretending to annoyed. "Miss Grover just had to go home early, that's all," Gideon added.

  "Sure," Micah replied, obviously not believing a word Gideon had said.

  Gideon felt like halting his horse and treating his brother to a lesson in how to be civil. It wouldn't have been the first time he'd done such a thing. Micah still retained the enthusiasm of youth, and he sometimes let his enthusiasm get the better of him. Despite the fact that he and Micah were both grown men, Gideon still felt obliged to keep his sibling on the straight and narrow. This time, however, he restrained the impulse to correct Micah.

  Gideon had other things to think about. Like the fact that Rosalind was making her first visit to the ranch. And that, the reason he'd been instructed to come back to the house was that Gideon's mother expected her son, currently courting the newcomer to Inspiration, as everyone already knew, was called upon to do the courteous thing and be available to show the visitor around.

  That was why he'd been sent for. He was sure of it. Earlier this morning, the prospect might have been something he would have resisted. He might have done everything in his power to avoid going to the house.

  But not now. Because, moments before Micah had arrived Gideon had been granted a crystal clear vision of what he was being called to do.

  It was nothing less than doing whatever he could do to reawaken the faith of Rosalind Grover, and in the process claim for himself the perfect wife.

  CHAPTER TEN

  Rosalind was perched on the edge of the sofa in the sitting room of the Buchanan ranch when she heard the heavy sound of boots out on the wooden floor of the hall. Hurriedly, she laid her cup of coffee down onto the small table in front of her.

  Rosalind exchanged looks with Sophie who was seated next to her on the sofa. Gideon's mother, Eugenie, was seated on a high-backed chair next to the empty fireplace. Eugenie gave Rosalind a reassuring smile and then shifted her gaze to the figure entering the room.

  Somehow, without even seeing him, Rosalind knew who was entering the large ranch house. And, sure enough, in walked the tall figure of Gideon. She saw that he was passing his hat nervously from one hand to the other as his gaze settled on the three figures seated in the room. He was dressed in his outdoor outfit of jeans, plaid shirt and dark waistcoat. The skin of his face looked slightly damp, as if he'd been out in the sun all morning.

  He smiled at everyone in the room. "Micah said we've got visitors," Gideon said. "I see he was right," he added. In the confines of the wood-paneled room, Gideon's deep voice resonated firmly. And, with the low ceiling of the room, Gideon seemed even taller than she'd realized.

  Eugenie stood and went to her son, taking him gently by the elbow and leading him to where Rosalind and Sophie were seated. "It took you long enough," Gideon's mother said and then smiled at Rosalind. "Sometimes he gets lost out there, on the range," she said, crinkling her nose mischievously. "Or maybe it's that he doesn't want anyone to find him."

  Rosalind could tell that his mother was teasing Gideon. He didn't react. Instead he nodded patiently and took a seat to a table by the window. "I'm mighty pleased to see you both, today," he said easily.

  "We just thought we'd pay a call," Sophie explained. "Rosalind was real interested in seeing the ranch," she added turning to Rosalind. "Isn't that right?"

  Realizing she was being prompted, Rosalind nodded quickly. "Sophie has told me so much about the ranch," she said, trying not to pay attention to the way Gideon was looking at her. "I couldn't wait to see it."

  There was something different about the look in Gideon's eyes, she told herself. She'd expected him to still be disappointed about what had happened the night before. Instead, he looked as interested in her as he'd done during his very first visit to the Cameron house.