“I know it’s none of my business, but does this mean that things are going well at home? I can see that you and Heath are two peas in a pod, but does your happiness happen to derive from another source?” Eliza arched her eyebrow suggestively. Layla’s cheeks heated, and she just knew that the blush on her face was a scarlet shade.
“Oh, ho,” Eliza said before Layla could answer. “It seems that you are quite content with your situation. Tell me all about it.”
Layla shook her head fervently. “There’s nothing to tell, Eliza. Heath and I are getting along well, and he is making so many strides. This morning, in the stables, he waved at Jack, and yesterday, he called Markda.”
“That does sound very nice,” Eliza said, raising her glass again for another sip. Draining the glass, she returned to her post behind the counter. “But I’ve got to tell you, Layla, in my experience, a lady doesn’t blush when she talks about children. No, no,” she shook her head teasingly. “Ladies only get all flustered as you did just now when they are thinking about the man in their lives.”
Layla’s cheeks burned crimson again. She brushed the back of her hand against her hot cheek, a little exasperated by her body for betraying what she hadn’t yet processed.
“Things are fine with Mark,” Layla said. “We had a good day yesterday, and I think we will be able to get along much better in the future.” His help with the bath yesterday had been a step in the right direction, and she was hopeful that this behavior would continue.
“Fine?” Eliza placed her elbows onto her knees and leaned in conspiratorially toward Layla. “Come on, Layla. I fell in love with Jack when I was practically a baby, so I never courted anybody else. We didn’t even go courting that much as we got married the moment it was possible. Tell me something, anything.” She must have realized that Layla was not about to budge, so she tacked on, “Please.”
Layla shook her head but couldn’t stop the smile from spreading to her face. “All right. Fine. I’ll tell you something about my relationship with Mark.” She inhaled deeply. “I like him. I like him very much, in fact, but—” She wasn’t sure that she should proceed. It was one thing to confess that she had feelings for Mark. It was another thing to talk openly about their situation, especially to Eliza. While she felt very comfortable with her new friend, she wasn’t sure if she should tell so much as Eliza as connected to Mark and the ranch through Jack.
“Yes?” Eliza inched even closer to Layla. “What?”
“I like Mark,” Layla repeated, “but I can’t seem to get him to open up to me. Some days, like yesterday, he can have a lovely afternoon and be perfectly pleasant. But other times, his mood shifts, and he is irritable and irascible. I don’t understand what he is thinking or feeling when he behaves that way.” She sighed, “I wish he would talk to me about it. I feel like I could help him if I could understand him better.”
“Amen to that,” Eliza said, sitting back in her chair.
Layla cocked her head. “What do you mean?”
“I think all women feel the same way from time to time. We all wish we could understand our men better, and we pray that they will tell us what they’re thinking. I find that most of the time, I have to drag Jack’s thoughts and feelings out of him, and I’ve known him for ages.” She waved her hands willy-nilly in the air. “Sometimes, when he comes home from work, he wants to talk about everything. He tells me all about the horses and the stables. He tells me everything Mark said and did that day. But, other times, he won’t utter a word. I have to beg him to tell me what’s wrong, but he won’t do it.”
“All men behave this way?” Layla asked, scanning the store until she located her father and Heath playing near the back with a ball of bright yellow yarn, letting Heath squeeze and tug on the soft material.
“I don’t know,” Eliza replied thoughtfully. “I think it’s so, though. I remember my own Pa being rather closed-off.” She shrugged. “I figure men like to keep some things to themselves, but I don’t really understand how they decide what to talk about and what they decide to keep secret.”
Layla laughed. “You don’t really think Jack has any secrets from you? You’ve known each other for years, and you married right away. How could he keep secrets?”
Eliza looked at her critically. “Everybody’s got secrets, Layla. At the very least, we all have things we don’t want to talk about.”
“Just as I didn’t want to talk about my feelings for Mark?” Layla chuckled under her breath.
“Precisely.” Eliza’s mouth went into a tight smile, and Layla could tell she was trying not to laugh.
“Then, I guess it’s lucky for me I have a friend like you who can pull my secrets out,” Layla said, nudging her playfully.
“Lucky, indeed,” Eliza replied, nodding for good measure.
***
Layla made sure to pay close attention to the sun during this trip to the general store. A few hours later, she and Heath said goodbye to Eliza and Emmett and set off toward the ranch. Layla was relieved when she rounded the bend and caught sight of the red adobe house. Every time she carried Heath in a sling for extended amounts of time, like now, her back ached. She was eager to get the baby out of the sling and into his chair, so she could prepare dinner.
Just as she and the baby were mounting the porch steps, Mark flew out the front door. He met her on the second step, a hard rage flashing through his dark eyes.
“Mark? Is everything all right?” she asked tentatively.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Mark roared. “Where did you go?”
Layla startled visibly. As she was still standing on the stairs, her balance wobbled. She tried to move to the next step, but Mark blocked her way as his large frame towered over her.
“Mark, what’s wrong? Has something happened?” Layla asked, trying to keep the fear out of her tone. She had seen Mark agitated before, but never had he been this angry.
“Has something happened?” he repeated in a mocking tone. “You left with my son!”
At the loud shouts, Heath cried, lifting his little head to wail pitifully.
