What did that mean?
Don’t be foolish. He yanked out a sack he’d set aside under the cot for the purposes of packing his meager possessions to move to the boardinghouse. He knew exactly what it meant.
His feelings for Deirdre weren’t something he’d imagined.
They were real, and they’d been there all along. It was almost gratifying to know she felt the same. Except . . .
It could never work.
Jeremiah set the full sack aside and glanced around the room. They’d have to hire someone else to be here with Fred at night.
They.
He smiled at that thought. It wouldn’t be long before he had the funds he needed to be a partner in this business. And he couldn’t have asked for a more perfect woman to meet his parents and help convince them than Deirdre. She was sweet, friendly, and competent, having grown up with a father who had run a business. He could easily picture her winning over his own parents.
And then he would let her go.
The thought carved out a piece of his heart at the same time it set his mind at ease. They could go back to what they had—an easy friendship. One in which her brother wouldn’t wish him dead.
Satisfied with his plans, Jeremiah pulled the door open and stepped out. He decided he would check on the horses in the corral and then take a look at the new wagon Roman had bought to rent out.
Outside, the bright sun blinded him for a moment. When his vision cleared, he spotted someone by the corral.
Not justsomeone.
Deirdre had changed into a plain flower-sprigged dress, and she stood there, scratching his horse’s nose.
“Hello,” she said brightly when she heard him and turned around.
He stopped, suddenly feeling uncertain in the one place where everything had always made sense to him. “What are you doing here?”
She raised her eyebrows for a half a second before smiling at him. “I grew bored at the Darbys’. All the girls have gone out to work for the day, and I didn’t bring much in my carpetbag to amuse myself. I thought I’d come here to be of some use.”
He nodded, any rebuttal he had dying on his lips. This was what she did most days. He didn’t know why he suddenly expected her to act differently.
Except that now her presence made him mighty uncomfortable.
“I . . . I have some things I need to take to the boardinghouse,” he said quickly.
Deirdre dropped her hand from Robin Hood’s nose. “I can do that for you if you have work here that needs doing.”
Jeremiah resisted the urge to pull at his collar. The thought of Deirdre handling his clothing made him feel even more self-conscious. And the way she looked at him with those bright eyes, and that sweet smile, eager to help . . .
What had he done?
Suddenly, he had to leave. If he was in her presence one more second, he’d turn into a blubbering fool and either kiss her or declare the entire thing over.
“I’ll do it,” he managed to say before turning quickly and striding back inside.
Grabbing the sack, he lifted a hand at Roman as he left, not daring to stop. He didn’t register seeing a single person as he made his way down the road and across the railroad tracks to the boardinghouse. He fumbled for the room key, and once he was safely inside, he dropped the sack and let out a breath.
He had to pull himself together. This marriage with Deirdre needed to last for only a few weeks. And it wouldn’t last that long if he kept indulging in wild feelings that resulted in quick exits and undone work.
Jeremiah tossed his hat onto the bed and went to the chest of drawers that held a pitcher and basin on the top. Miss Darby had thoughtfully filled the pitcher, and Jeremiah poured some of the water into the basin. He reached in and splashed some of the water onto his face. It dripped into his eyes and down his shirt, but it calmed his thoughts.
He rubbed his face and then closed his eyes.
Three weeks. That was all he needed. His parents would be gone by then, and he could take Deirdre to ask for an annulment. With any luck, her brother would still be in Denver, unaware of any of it.
