Big Sky Rancher Read Free Page B

actually had no position to hold. She would be his wife. But the man was in for a few surprises.
    Jennifer Alston was a lady, born and bred, with no working knowledge of keeping a house or tending to a man’s needs, in any way, shape or form. And that included cooking and mending, the two things Lucas had specified in his request for a wife.
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    S HE’D GIVEN IN almost too readily, Luc decided, a finger of disquiet running the length of his spine. But, he’d never looked a gift horse in the mouth before and he’d not do it now. With one hand at her waist, he ushered her up the steps and into the front hall of the parsonage. The preacher’s pretty wife greeted him and opened the doorway into her husband’s study, following them inside.
    â€œI’m to be a witness,” she explained to Luc. “Our neighbor, Ida Bronson, will serve as the second. Unless you’ve made other arrangements.”
    â€œNo, that’s fine with me,” he said. “So long as it’s official and legal, I don’t care about the particulars.”
    A fussy little female, probably well past middle age if her white hair was any indication, slid through the doorway and waved her fingers at Jennifer. Her smile was broad, her short, squat figure matronly and her excitement apparent.
    â€œI simply love weddings. Especially when the bride andgroom seem to be so well suited and pleased at the prospect of being married.”
    If Jennifer’s sour look was anything to go by, she disputed the neighbor’s assumptions, but he wasn’t about to have a set-to in front of the rest of the wedding party. He nodded, smiled and looked to the preacher for guidance.
    The words were short and to the point, the ceremony over with in minutes, and when the instruction was given to kiss his bride, Luc bent his head and sought the warmth of Jennifer Alston’s mouth. Her lips were clamped shut but still lent a pleasurable glow to the whole event.
    She was not willing to press her mouth against his, but he’d remedy that in short order, he decided, once he got her home and into his bed. He’d been told more than once that he had a way with women, and this one would be no different than the rest of the female sex.
    They left the parsonage in a flurry of well-wishes and he lifted her to the wagon seat once more, tucking her skirts around her, even as she pushed at his hands in a futile gesture of denial of his right to do so. Delivering one last pat on her knee, he was the object of her anger as she scorned his smile and brushed away the traces of his touch.
    He set off at a fast clip toward the big farmhouse outside of town, the place he’d bought with her in mind. Not that he’d known then who he would wed, only that there would be a woman in his home, a comfortable female to make his life pleasant and his bed more welcoming.
    He’d sent for the remnants of his parents’ belongings once he’d settled in, unwilling to admit, even to himself, the pleasure he gained from their presence in his home.
    The gold he’d mined was safely deposited in the bank, andthe rich vein he’d uncovered seemed to be endless. The woman didn’t know how well off she was, marrying the founder of Thunder Canyon, a man with a tidy bank account and the deed to a piece of prosperity known as a gold mine. The mine was shared with his partner, but there was plenty there for two men, and he had the utmost faith in the honesty and integrity of Alexander.
    Probably more faith than he had in the woman he’d just committed himself to.
    He glanced over at Jennifer now, caught a glimpse of her taut jaw and the frown she wore, and looked ahead once more. The backside of his team of horses was more welcoming than the woman he’d wed, and that thought didn’t set well with him.
    Getting married was a necessity. Having a wife was more of a needful thing than something he’d looked forward to as a