A Man to Call My Own

Chapter 33

CHAD COULDN'T SLEEP. HE wasn't surprised. He wanted a drink badly, but Red didn't keep any hard stuff on the property. He wished she didn't live so far from town. He wished he didn't need a drink. Actually, if he could have a wish granted, it would be to turn back the clock and relive the day.

Someone else couldn't sleep either. He stood by the bunkhouse door and stared up at the main house, wondering whose room still had a light burning in it. And although he watched for a very long time, no one came to the window to give him a clue.

The sick feeling in the pit of his stomach wouldn't go away. Trapped. He'd been used. He knew it, but knowing it wasn't going to dig him out of the pit he was in. Despite the fact that Amanda didn't really want him, despite the fact that he'd thought he'd made love to someone else, the trapdoor was still slamming shut on him. Because she'd been a virgin. Because whether he liked it or not, he'd taken her virginity from her and he wasn't the kind of man who could just ignore it.

Spencer Evans was, that bastard. He'd done it before, would do it again. He had no morals worth mentioning, could care less if anyone got hurt in his pursuit of pleasure. It's too bad Amanda hadn't set the trap for him instead—not that it would have gotten her married.

Chad gave up the notion of getting any sleep that night, and, just past midnight, he jotted off a quick note for Lonny with instructions for the next couple days, then rode out to get that drink he was hankering for. He had to pay a visit to his father anyway, to give him the bad news—another reason why he'd like to get thoroughly drunk first.

The moon obliged him. A big one was out that lit up the countryside in a soft gray. Not that it mattered, since he was still pretty much riding blind, his thoughts—and regrets—too distracting to keep his mind on the trail for the most part. He had a smart horse, though, which got him into town around four in the morning.

Not Here didn't stay open all night, but O'Mallys Saloon never closed its doors, whether it did any business or not. Not that Chad would consider frequenting Spencers place even if it was the only place open.

The last two customers were just staggering out of O'Mally's when he arrived. Archie the bartender went back to reading a dime novel after he shoved a bottle and glass in Chad's direction.

Harry Sue was the only saloon gal up for the night shift, so nicknamed because of the abundance of dark hair that grew on her legs and couldn't be hidden by the knee-high saloon outfit she was forced to work in. Not that a man wouldn't admire her shapely legs. A pretty girl despite that, she was quick to offer him any service he might require, but left him alone when he declined.

He should have been thoroughly sloshed by dawn, had certainly worked at it, but it was taking longer than usual—or Archie had passed him a watered-down bottle. Harry Sue had lingered nearby, just in case he changed his mind about getting a better look at her room upstairs, but she was sleeping at one of the tables now since he hadn't offered conversation or anything else to keep her awake.

Her replacement would probably be showing up soon, and some of the townsfolk soon after, since O'Mally's actually served coffee from dawn till noon, though at the same price as the cheapest rotgut. Chad would really rather not be found there by anyone he knew, but he wasn't leaving until the drink did its work and he could stop thinking.

But as if his luck hadn't turned rotten enough, Spencer Evans pushed through the swinging doors along with the sunrise. To find out what Chad was doing there, no doubt. He knew he should have stabled his horse instead of just removing the saddle and leaving him tied up out front where it might be recognized, but he really hadn't thought he'd still be there come daylight.

Archie perked up at the sight of Spencer. He looked worried, but held his tongue. Most business owners in town tried to get the two rivals to leave their premises before the fists started flying, but Archie didn't own O'Mally's, so he wasn't that concerned about a brawl there.

It was still a ridiculously early hour for Spencer to be up and about, night owl that he was. Chad wouldn't be surprised if Spence hadn't promised half the town a buck or two to let him know whenever Chad showed up. He did stem to make an appearance far too often, no matter which establishment Chad entered.

But Spencer made no pretense of just happening to pass by diis time. He leaned against the bar next to Chad, tipped his hat back, and asked straight out, "What are you doing here?"

Chad didn't answer, didn't even glance his way. Spencer mumbled something under his breath.

Louder, Spencer said, "I'd as soon not be having this conversation either, but I'm not going to pretend indifference where this particular lady is concerned. Are you finally out of there? On your way home? Can I stop worrying about you trying to court her while I'm not around?"

"Go away, Spencer."

"This is a public place."

"So go get public in some other part of it."

"You always were amusing after a few drinks. You got turned down, didn't you? I knew she wouldn't find you to her taste," Spencer smirked. "Drowning a broken heart then, are you?"

Chad finally glanced at his nemesis. It was too ironic by half, that he'd finally beaten Spencer to the prize, only for it to be one he didn't want. And Spencer had never been this obvious before either, that he wanted the same woman. He always tried to hide his interest. Sneaking about to win was his style, for the shock effect—hell, they were very alike, Spencer and Amanda. He couldn't think of two people who deserved each other more. It was too bad she hadn't figured that out before she plotted to ruin his life instead.

Ordinarily, Chad would have thrown it in Spencer's face, that he'd won. Not that he usually won when it came to women they were both competing over. Spencer was better at making promises that he had no intention of keeping. But Chad would have liked to throw it in his face for once. Tit for tat, it was exactly what Spencer would have done.

But considering what he'd won, he didn't feel like a winner at all. He and Spencer were both going to lose this time around, and he didn't feel like discussing why, when his only reason for being there was to drink enough so he could wipe it from his mind.

So he said only, "I repeat, Spence, go away."

"Give me a straight answer and I will. She's still available, right?"

"Marian is."

"Who the hell is Marian?"

Chad rolled his eyes, though he wasn't surprised at all that Spencer didn't recognize the name. He'd had eyes only for Amanda since he'd first seen her. He might not even know she had a sister, might have missed that entirely, he'd been so centered on Amanda when introductions were made. But if he'd noticed Marian at all, he would have likely gotten to the same first impression that Chad had.

So he merely replied, "The spinster."

Spencer snorted. "Like I'd give a hoot about her. Now are you deliberately trying to provoke me in not telling me what I need to know, or do you just like my company?"

Chad wasn't inclined to tell him, since it was bound to start a fight between them. Not that he wouldn't welcome a fight, but he hadn't counted on one as he hadn't expected to see Spencer during this trip to town. And fighting when he was half-drunk and Spencer wasn't would be rather stupid. But Spencer was going to hear about the wedding in a couple days anyway, when Red had her talk with the preacher.

So there really was no reason to keep silent about it.

"I'll tell you what," he offered magnanimously. "Get yourself a bottle of liquor and drink it down to this point." He held up his own bottle to show there was only a quarter bottle of whiskey left in it. "And then I'll consider discussing my woes with you."

"Woes, huh?" Spencer chuckled, visibly relaxed. "I guess that was answer enough for me. I'll leave you to continue drowning your sorrows alone."

Spencer was halfway to the door when he probably heard Chad mumble, "Just as well."

He stopped, frowned, appeared to spend a few moments debating with himself. Then with an angry gesture, he marched back to the bar, growled at Archie, "Give me a bottle of the same swill, and if you ever tell anyone I drank some of O'Mally s inferior rotgut, I'll run your ass out of town so fast, you won't be able to keep up with it."

Chad just watched with partial interest as Spencer proceeded to guzzle down the bottle Archie tossed at him. He stopped to check it once, sighed that it was only half-empty, guzzled down some more, then set it down next to Chad's bottle to measure it, growled that he still had an inch to go, and quickly finished off the inch.

"Now, you son of a bitch, let's hear it," he snarled when he was done.

"I'm impressed," Chad remarked. "And you still have a voice?"

"Do I have to beat it out of you?"

"Seeing as how we both know that wouldn't work, I guess it's your lucky day that I'll hold up my end of the bargain—or not so lucky. You're not going to like what's happened, any more than I do, but the whole town doesn't need to hear about it, so let's take it outside."

Archie sighed, clearly disappointed that he was going to be excluded, but went back to reading his novel as they left O'Mallys. Chad moved out into the middle of the street. He didn't want any eavesdropping in case he ended up saying more than he should due to the liquor.

Spencer grabbed his arm impatiendy. "That's far enough. Now tell me."

Chad nodded. "I don't know if you know about the inheritance Amanda can't get her hands on until she marries."

"I believe it was mentioned."

"Well, she wasn't willing to wait for it, at least not long enough to enjoy a normal courtship."

"If you tell me she asked you to marry her, I think I'll kill you."

"No, she didn't ask."

"Damn lucky for you she didn't."

"She tricked me into making love to her, and that pretty much settled the matter in Red's mind."

It was the liquor that delayed Spencer's reaction. For all of five seconds he just stared, which gave Chad enough time to get out of the way of the first swing. But Spencer was too enraged to take a chance that he might miss again and tackled Chad to the ground. In a prone position, the liquor caught up with Chad real quick, and his head began to spin.

"Watch it, before I puke all over you," he managed to get out.

Spencer leapt off him, and snarled, "I'm calling you out. High noon."

"I'll be sleeping at noon, and don't be an ass," Chad said as he carefully got back to his feet. "Would I have been 'drowning my sorrows' as you put it, if I wanted her? I don't. I told you she tricked me."

"Liar! How could you not want her?"

"Maybe because I've been around her a lot more'n you have and have seen her at her worst. She's beautiful, yes, but that doesn't make up for the rest. Cut out her tongue, and she might be bearable."

"That isn't funny."

"Wasn't meant to be," Chad replied. "She's a spoiled brat, Spencer, seriously spoiled. And you're more'n welcome to her, if you can manage to get her to marry you before I get dragged to the altar."

Spencer stopped snarling for a moment, and demanded, "You mean it?"

Chad nodded, then wished he hadn't. The spinning wasn't quite over.

"Red's going to talk to the preacher this weekend, either at my pa's barbecue on Saturday, or before she returns to the ranch the next day," he warned. "So that doesn't give you much time. Yes, I mean it. You'd actually have my eternal gratitude if you can pull it off."