She shook her head. “I’ve never seen this side of you, Judas. It’s refreshing. Forthright. I appreciate that.”
Oh, if she only knew. “Does that mean you’ll allow me to court you?”
She tilted her head to the side and studied him. “Yes, I believe it does.”
“How about this evening?” No time like the present. The sooner he could secure the lovely lady in marriage, the sooner he could work his way into the family business and add it to his empire.
“I don’t think I can tonight. I’m about to take Peter—Dr. Cameron—back out to the village with more supplies. I’m not sure how long I will be gone.”
He reached forward and took one of her hands. This time, she didn’t pull away. “I will eagerly watch for your return then and ask again.”
“Thank you, Judas.”
She released his hand and pulled her hood up over her head.
Judas turned––and found Cameron frowning at him.
Perfect.
The dogs were having a heyday out on the trail, but even with their eagerness and chipper barks, Peter couldn’t dispel the dark cloud of his mood.
All he could think about was hearing Whitney agree to court to Judas Reynolds. Didn’t she see what kind of man he was? Good grief, she’d known the man more than a decade. Had he really pulled the wool over all of their eyes?
His hands fisted in his lap. He should tell her to pull the sled over so he could give her a piece of his mind on the subject.
But he wouldn’t do that.
One, because that was simply his temper talking.
Two, because he didn’t understand what to do with the feelings he was having at the moment.
Yes, he cared for Whitney. She was his patient. He caredfor her whole family. But somehow ... those feelings had deepened into something more with her. The how and when were beyond him.
Plain as the nose on his face, though, he had to admit they were there. No getting around it after he’d watched her with Judas.
He was jealous.
The thought was ridiculous. Yet true.
And he wanted to hit something. Which he couldn’t deal with at the moment. Why was he angry? Because he didn’t think he’d care for anyone after Charlotte? Was he betraying her in some way?
Or was it because he despised Judas so much?
Or maybe ... because he’d hoped Whitney would turn the despicable man down?
The lead dog stumbled through a drift, which caused the rest of the team to come to a halt as the sled slid sideways. Thankfully, they hadn’t been going full speed.
Whitney appeared at his side. “The snow has been blown over the trail we broke yesterday. Sorry about that.”
He hopped out of his seat in the sled. “Can I help with anything?” Maybe physical work would help his attitude.
“Sure.” She shrugged. “It’s like the other day. We’ve got to break trail. But first we have to dig them out.”
They worked together in silence, and Peter found that petting the dogs as he dug them out was good for his foul mood. It didn’t make him feel better about Whitney, though. These new emotions were dangerous. If he had feelings for her, why didn’t he open his mouth and tell her?
Probably because he hadn’t realized it until this moment. Or didn’t want to admit it.
If it was the latter, he had some serious soul searchingto do. Keeping his feelings locked up in a little box wasn’t healthy, no matter how much he tried to convince himself it was best.
