She was flustered to see him grinning at her. “Well, I only assumed….”
“You can’t get close to Slade, Sharisse. No one can, not even Billy, who knew him in those years he lived in the wilderness. We’re not as close as we were as children, twins or not.”
“You mean you’re look-alike twins?”
“That’s right.”
“My goodness. There were a couple of twins at school who looked alike. They even dressed the same, and it was almost impossible to tell them apart. Is it that way with you and your brother?”
“Well, we don’t dress alike, but I guess if you stripped us down you couldn’t tell us apart.”
“Oh, dear,” she said. “I guess I can be thankful then that he doesn’t live here. I have enough new things to cope with without having to worry about which of you is you.”
His expression turned inscrutable. “Oh, I don’t think you’d have any trouble telling us apart. We look alike, but we’re as different as night and day.”
“I don’t see how—”
“If you meet him, honey, you’ll know what I mean,” he replied cryptically, closing the subject. “Is there any other bit of curiosity I can satisfy for you?”
“Not at the moment,” she said, smiling her thanks. She stretched. “After such a long day, I think I’d like nothing better right now than a nice warm bath before I retire.”
“The buckets are over there.” He nodded toward the sink.
“But—” She was aghast. “You mean I have to carry them?”
“If you want a bath.”
“But yesterday—”
“—I took pity on you because you were exhausted after your long trip. But you can’t expect me to continue carrying water for you. That’s women’s work.”
Her shoulders sagged in defeat. “I see.”
“You might want to move the tub in here,” he suggested. “It’s closer.”
“A bath is no longer quite so appealing,” she said in a tiny voice.
It was all Lucas could do to keep a straight face. She looked so forlorn. He almost took pity on her again, but it would defeat his purpose to pamper her, even if he wanted to.
“I think I’ll just heat some water for the washbowl and go on to bed,” Sharisse sighed. “Can I heat some for you, too?”
“I washed up in the barn. But I’d appreciate some hot water in the morning, if you get up early enough.”
Another of her chores? She nodded woodenly, then rose and went to the stove. Lucas finished another shot of whiskey, his eyes following her thoughtfully.
“You know, Sharisse, there’s a pool up in the mountains about four miles from here. The water there should still be pleasantly warm. We’ve got a full moon. Care to go for a moonlight ride?”
How wonderful that sounded! But it was cruel of him to suggest it.
“I told you I don’t ride,” she said.
“Not even double?”
“Not any kind of way. I’ve never been on a horse in my life.”
“It was just a thought. It’s still early, after all. But you’ll have to learn eventually, you know. There’s no way out of this ranch except on a horse.”
“You could purchase a buggy.”
