An Uninvited Bride on his Doorstep by Ava Winters
Chapter Six
Jay’s face turned the color of a ripe tomato and he grinned stupidly at her, like a child become bashful in front of a pretty schoolmarm. Logan brought a hand to his face and massaged his temples. He remembered being Jay’s age and collapsing into an awkward mess around pretty girls, so he couldn’t quite blame his brother for his reaction. It just couldn’t have come at a worse time.
He looked up to see Winona staring at him. She smiled sweetly at him when he met her eyes and though he reddened with irritation, he couldn’t help but feel grudging admiration for her. She’d set her mind to marrying one of them and she knew that getting Logan’s brothers on her side would force him to at least consider it.
He wasn’t ready to give in yet, however. “All right, boys,” he said to Gregory and Jay. “Outside. We need to talk.”
“I’m talking to the lady,” Jay replied indignantly, puffing out his chest. Winona flashed a stunning smile at him and a mischievous one at Logan, and Logan sighed. He reached out and grabbed Jay’s shoulder, dragging the protesting youngest brother out of the room. As he passed Gregory, he called over his shoulder, “Don’t make me come back for you, Gregory.”
Gregory smiled and bowed to Winona, then followed Logan and Jay outside.
He walked several dozen yards from the house. Jay continued to struggle and protest the whole way and when Logan released him, he stood inches from his face and glared at him. Logan met his eyes and after a moment, quietly said, “You want to try it Jay, you go right ahead.”
“Now, now, boys,” Gregory interrupted. “It’s not polite to fight in front of a lady.”
Logan looked at him and Gregory nodded toward the house. Logan turned to see Winona watching them through the parlor window. She smiled and waved at him, and he glared back angrily for a moment before turning back to his brothers. “Guys, this is crazy. You can’t honestly be thinking of marrying her.”
Jay pulled his eyes from Logan and glanced toward Winona. The anger in his face softened into wonder and infatuation. “You can’t honestly tell me you’re not thinking about it.”
Logan opened his mouth to answer, then shut it. In fact, he was thinking about it. Winona’s argument sounded insane on the surface but there were actually several good reasons to consider it. As little sense as it made, people would talk about Winona’s presence on the ranch, especially if Dr. Caraway was right, and it was several days before she could leave the house.
People were foolish that way, especially in high society. The truth didn’t matter nearly as much as appearances mattered and a weeklong stay in a strange man’s bed, with or without the company of said strange man, could indeed cast a black stain on Winona’s reputation that may never wash away.
Dr. Caraway and Logan could shout until they were blue in the face that she was there out of medical necessity and for no other reason, and people would still believe she was up to no good. Of course, with care and counting on the silence of Logan and his brothers, Audrey and Heath could prevent these rumors from spreading, but if they failed her reputation would be ruined.
On top of that, having a woman to manage the house and assist in running the smaller pieces of the ranch, like the garden and chicken coop, would allow Logan to focus all of his energy on the horse breeding business. With his energy fully devoted to the ranch, they could grow much faster than previously estimated and perhaps even rival Heath Ross in a few years.
And she was beautiful. Slender shoulders hung above a gracefully curved waist and full hips. Logan was ashamed to admit he noticed this, but her bust appeared full as well, though not so full as to be out of proportion to her narrow waist. In the candlelight of the night before, her hair appeared to be a dusty brown but in the morning light it seemed several shades lighter, only a few shades darker than his own.
It hung in soft curls down to the small of her back, highlighting the curves of her shoulders and hips. Logan had no trouble admitting she was the prettiest girl he’d ever seen. The thought of her as his wife, sleeping in his bed, not alone but nestled in his arms …
The thought of her in his bed as his wife and not as his guest tantalized him but another, even more powerful thought came to his head. This was how he could get back at Heath Ross. He couldn’t kill the man.
That would only result in his own arrest and death, and the loss of the ranch and his brothers’ futures along with it. He couldn’t bankrupt Heath. In fact, despite Logan’s earlier arrogance, he knew if Heath was so inclined, he could likely bankrupt Logan.
This was how he could make Heath pay for the pain he’d caused Logan’s family. He could marry his daughter. Heath couldn’t bankrupt his own daughter and would be expected to be fair and civil to her husband or risk losing his precious reputation.
Her stepmother would be stuck in the same boat and would have to put on a show of kindness and respect to him. Both of them would have to live with the knowledge that Winona was sleeping in Logan’s bed, only this time she wouldn’t be sleeping alone.
“Logan might not be thinking of marrying Winona, but I certainly am,” Gregory said, snapping Logan out of his reverie.
“Enough,” he said. “Look, I don’t like it, but Winona has a point. It wouldn’t be right to send her away with a tarnished reputation. As oldest brother and head of the household, it’s my duty to do the right thing and marry Winona.”
“Now hold on!” Jay said indignantly. “Winona said she’d marry any one of us, so I deserve a shot as much as you do! Besides,” he smiled smugly. “You saw the way she looked at me.”
“She looked at all of us that way, Jay,” Logan said. “She doesn’t care who she marries, she just wants to get away from her parents.”
“Exactly! That’s why we should all have a chance to marry her. We can play jackstraws to decide.”
Logan stared at Jay for a moment. “Jackstraws? You want to play jackstraws to decide who gets to marry Winona?”
“Well, if you have a better idea, let’s hear it.”
“I do have a better idea. I’ll marry Winona. You’re still green, Jay. You have to learn to be a man before you can be a husband.”
“So, I should be sarcastic and bitter and mistrustful like you? That’ll make me a better husband?”
Gregory chuckled and Logan glared at him. “You want to help me out, Gregory?”
Gregory shrugged. “Jay does have a point, Logan. Winona said any of us. In fact, as I recall, she said any of us right after you adamantly refused to marry her. I think we both have as much right as you to marry Winona.”
“That’s crazy talk! Jay isn’t ready to—both?”
“That’s right,” Gregory said. “Count me in. I’m useless at jackstraws, so I doubt I’ll win but if I do, well, I wouldn’t mind me a pretty little wife like Winona.”
Logan couldn’t believe what he’d heard. “Ain’t you sweet on Louise Parker?” he asked Gregory.
Gregory smiled wryly. “Well, life is short Logan. I don’t know if Louise’ll ever feel the same as I do and like I said, Winona would make a fine wife. It’s worth a shot, anyway. Besides,” his smile widened. “I’m probably going to lose anyway.”
Logan sighed angrily. Along with the anger was a fair amount of jealousy, which surprised him. He recalled the smile she gave Jay and Gregory, and though he knew she was exaggerating her affection for them to tease Logan, he still felt a surge of envy that they should receive her attention and he should be denied. He looked up to see Gregory smile knowingly and Jay grinning smugly at him and his frustration grew.
“All right,” he said. “Fine. That’s how you want to do this? We’ll play on two conditions. First, if I win, I win. I don’t want any more arguments after. If I win this game, I marry Winona and that’s final.”
“Same if I win!” Jay insisted.
“Fine,” Logan snapped. “The second condition …” he sighed. He couldn’t believe they were actually going to do this. “We never, ever, under any circumstances, ever tell Winona we decided who would marry her based on a game of jackstraws.”
“Deal,” Jay said.
“Deal,” Gregory agreed.
Logan sighed. He looked toward the house where Winona continued to watch through the window. “Follow me,” he said.
He led the brothers to the barn, out of view of the house. He retrieved their old jackstraws box from a shelf just inside the barn where it lay next to a shoeing hammer and a box of nails. He returned outside and instructed Jay and Gregory to hunker down. He knelt in front of them and held the box up.
“Okay, first one to reach five hundred points wins.” He dumped the box upside down. The multi-colored wooden sticks fell and bounced, scattering in a circle eighteen inches wide and laying in a tangled heap on the ground.
Logan looked at Jay. “I’ll go first, then you, then Gregory.”
Jay glowered. “Why do you get to go first?”
Logan threw his hands up in exasperation. “Fine, you go first!” he said.
Jay gingerly picked up a blue stick that lay atop the main pile of sticks. He set it next to himself and smiled. “Three points.”
Gregory considered the pile of sticks then carefully pulled a red stick from the middle of the pile, slowly removing it without disturbing the other sticks. He set it next to himself and grinned at Jay and Logan. “Five points.”
“I thought you said you were no good at this game,” Jay said reproachfully.
Gregory shrugged. “I guess I’m just lucky today.”
Logan glared at the pile of sticks. The only ones within easy reach were the less valuable yellow ones, worth only one point. He stared at the pile for a while but seeing no other option, he finally sighed and picked up a yellow stick. He laid it silently next to him and glared back at Gregory and Jay, who grinned at him. “How many points is that?” Jay asked. “I didn’t quite see what you got.”
“Just pick a blasted stick,” Logan said.
Jay’s grin widened and he obliged, selecting another blue stick. “That’s six for me.”
Gregory studied the sticks for a long time. As he awaited his turn, Logan realized his brothers were actually trying to win. So was he. They were actually playing pick-up sticks to decide who got to marry Winona. He sighed and shook his head. Of all the crazy things he thought he’d do in life, gambling over a woman’s hand in marriage by playing a child’s game was not one he’d considered.
Gregory finally smiled and selected one of the yellow sticks. “I guess we’re tied up now, Jay.”
Logan reached for a red stick. If he managed to keep it, he would pull even with his brothers. He gently tried to dislodge it from underneath a small pile of yellow sticks but just before he retrieved it, the yellow sticks fell apart.
Jay grinned triumphantly at him. Logan gritted his teeth and left the red stick where it was. He wasn’t too worried. It was early in the game, and he’d always beaten Jay and Gregory before. He would catch up. His confidence couldn’t prevent a small kernel of doubt from forming in his chest, however. When Jay successfully retrieved the red stick Logan failed to obtain, he frowned. It would be just his luck if Jay won and got to marry Winona.
As the game continued, Logan built on his early lead and soon enjoyed a comfortable margin over Jay and Gregory. Eventually, Logan passed Gregory and finally the middle brother fell so far behind he withdrew. “I suppose I’ll have to pin my hopes for happiness on Louise’s fickle heart once more,” he said, sighing in exaggerated disappointment. “What a cruel thing the affections of a woman are.”
“It was a mistake to let you buy that book of poetry when we visited Austin last year,” Logan grumbled.
“Don’t be sore just because you’re losing,” Jay teased.
“The game’s not over yet,” Logan retorted, carefully lifting a red stick and placing it on his pile.
Slowly, the tide turned in Logan’s favor and he gained slowly on Jay. He fought to keep his excitement down as he closed the gap between his score and his younger brother’s score. He felt more than a little embarrassed still, but the decision had been made so there was no point in dwelling on that.
After several minutes, both brothers neared the magic total of five hundred points. Jay carefully pulled a blue stick from underneath a pile of yellow sticks. When he successfully added it to his pile, he grinned triumphantly at Logan. “That’s four hundred ninety-nine points. Your turn.”
Logan glared at the sticks. He had four hundred ninety-three points. In a best-case scenario, he could grab the last remaining red stick, but then all Jay needed to do was select the easiest yellow stick. The game would be over. He would lose, and Jay would get to marry Winona.
He nearly gave up when he saw a small sliver of black poking from underneath a pile of yellow and blue. His eyes widened. The black stick was worth ten points. If he could grab it, he would win. Jay saw Logan’s intentions and his smile disappeared. He started forward instinctively, but Gregory put a hand on his arm and stopped him.
Logan carefully grasped the black stick between his thumb and ring finger. He slowly pulled the stick outward, stopping to adjust the direction of his pull whenever he felt tension from the other sticks. Jay and Gregory watched with bated breath as he moved the stick free of the others and set it in his pile.
He smiled at Jay, no longer able to contain his joy. “Five hundred three. I win.”
Jay stared at him, shocked. Then he stuck his finger in Logan’s face. “That’s not fair!” he shouted. “You cheated. You…”
His voice trailed off and a moment later, Gregory spoke up. “That was a fair match, Jay. Congratulations, Logan.”
Logan didn’t respond. The elation of victory quickly faded under the sobering realization of what had just happened. He was going to marry Winona. This time yesterday the biggest worry on his mind was branding the new broodmares. Now he was going to marry his archenemy’s daughter.
“Those blasted cattle,” he muttered under his breath.
“What’s that?” Gregory asked.
“Nothing,” Logan said. “You two go see Darrell and get set to drive the cattle to pasture. I need to talk to Winona.”
The two younger Foleys left, Gregory smiling and Jay scowling. Logan walked back to the ranch house, shaking his head. “Might as well get this over with,” he muttered to himself.
However, despite the reluctance in his voice and the overall exhaustion of the past twenty-four hours, there was a spring in his step as he walked.