They stood like that for a couple of minutes until Madelaine pushed away from him. She didn’t look at him as she rushed toward Simon and Belle on the other side of the bed, pulling both of them into a tight embrace.
“I apologize for what I said,” he finally caved. “You didn’t deserve that.”
Madelaine ignored him, turning her back to him, fiercely hugging her siblings, rocking them back and forth to soothe the two sobbing children.
Luke could have given them the privacy they needed, but he also needed to reassure his own racing thoughts. There were still so many questions circling in his mind. “What happened between you and Evelyn after your little trip to the store? You obviously had some kind of disagreement…?”
Madelaine didn’t immediately answer. She took her time before she did, and then her tone of voice sounded stone-cold. “A man in the general store was watching me. I feared that it might be one of Phineas’ men, so I urged her to hurry up with the order. She got mad because I didn’t answer any of her questions afterwards. I couldn’t lie to her any more than I already had. Irushed her, trying to protect us. I couldn’t risk being dragged back to the ranch…”
Luke stood there motionlessly as he contemplated everything he’d heard. Then, he remembered something she’d said previously. “You mentioned a Timothy? Your father’s friend?”
Madelaine turned her head to the side, but she didn’t look at him. “Yes. Timothy Richards. Do you know him?”
Luke froze when he recognized the name. “Yes. I do,” he began slowly.
Madelaine turned around, then, and looked at him with obvious hope in her reddened eyes. He squashed that hope when he shook his head.
“I haven’t seen him in years. I don’t know where he is, now,” he said truthfully.
Luke didn’t want to know. He didn’t hate the man, but he didn’t care for him, either.
Madelaine’s shoulders visibly sank as she exhaled a long, heavy sigh. “He was my only hope to sort out this mess. I don’t know what else to do…” she whispered almost inaudibly.
As angry as he felt about all of this on a personal level, Luke realized on a professional level that Madelaine and her siblings were in need of protection from whatever situation was going on at her parents’ ranch. Looking at the three of them huddled together, embracing each other so tightly again, he racked his brain to come up with a better solution.
Then, little Belle lifted her head and looked straight at him with her big, blue, now red-rimmed watery eyes, and for reasons Luke couldn’t explain, he felt overly protective over this little girl. His own daughter, Elisa, had been three when… he shook his head.
Maybe it was the whiskey talking, but suddenly, an interesting thought popped into Luke’s mind. It was merely an idea, not really well thought out, but it might work. People did this all the time because sometimes something like this had to be done purely out of convenience, and in their case, it would ensure their safety.
Looking back at Belle, all sniffily and wet-nosed, Luke made a decision. He was all too aware that it was not only outlandish due to the current situation involving all of them, but it was also completely unexplainable and irrational. Yet, he was convinced.
“We should get married,” he blurted out.
Chapter Thirteen
“What?” Madelaine was so stunned at what Luke had just said she could hardly speak.
Luke was seemingly still mulling it over, most likely regretting his astonishing outburst, because he had taken off his Stetson and now absentmindedly scratched his thick dark-brown curls. Then, she saw him slowly nod. He fixed his Stetson back on top of his head and straightened his broad shoulders. Madelaine noticed how tall and strong he looked in that moment, but her pressing question needed an answer. “Luke!”
“Yes. Yes,” he announced, his face emotionless. “We should get married.”
She was so stunned she didn’t even know what to say, gaping at him like an imbecile. Despite the undeniable similarities, Luke’s proposal felt very different from the one Phineas had confronted her with weeks earlier.
“It will ensure your safety,” Luke explained, finally. “First and foremost, I want to protect the children,” he added. “And just so there’s no misunderstanding, it will be a marriage of convenience. Nothing more.” He nodded, putting emphasis on the last sentence.
“But…” Madelaine tried to make sense of his change of heart after he had yelled at her only minutes ago, calling her out on her deception. “How…?”
“I am still very angry,” he declared, raising his chin and looking down his nose at her, which made her shrink back a little. He had every right to be. “Truthfully, I am extremely disappointed. I don’t like being lied to, Madelaine, and I can’t promise you that I will forgive you for what you’ve done. Unlike your God, I don’t believe in forgiveness.”
That stung. He continued with authority, not an ounce of emotion in his voice, “All I expect is your honesty. So, if you accept my proposal, it will be purely on paper, nothing else. But it should give the three of you the security you need to move forward with whatever plan you have to solve the issues at your parents’ ranch.”
Hearing all he was saying, there was something else lingering in the air. Something unspoken. Madelaine was unsure of what it meant—she couldn’t put her finger on it, but at least it didn’t make her uncomfortable. Most noticeably, it was nothing like her previous reaction to Phineas’ proposal, which had made her nauseous on the spot.
This one hadn’t.
Luke raised a single eyebrow, which prompted her to nod.
His face appeared just as shocked as she was. Had she just agreed to marry him?
