Cassie pointed to the mare and foal, who were obviously doing well, the filly standing contentedly in her mother's shadow, Rosie continually checking to see if her little miracle was still there.
'See?' Cassie looked up at Dan, her eyes shining with tears. 'See?' she repeated anxiously when he again said nothing.
He looked long and hard at her. 'I see,' he said at last in a thick voice.
A surge of intense relief swamped Cassie. He understood... She had reached him.
'Thank God,' she sighed.
Cassie knew now, beyond any shadow of doubt, that she wanted Dan as her husband—on any terms. She loved him to distraction. And now that he'd shown that his consideration had been based on true caring, that he genuinely wanted their marriage to work... Well... Cassie was prepared to more than meet him half-way.
'So you weren't thinking of leaving me?' he asked, still frowning.
'No!'
His face remained guarded. 'The tears were really for the horse?'
'I swear.'
Gradually the tautness left his features, but he did not smile. His eyes flicked over Rosie's way. 'This horse—Rosie... She means a lot to you?'
'Oh, yes.'
'Why is she so special?'
Cassie proceeded to tell him all about Rosie, talking with the enthusiasm of a true animal lover. 'I couldn't let her become dog food, could I?' she finished, flushed with pleasure at Dan's showing interest.
He gave her a slightly sardonic look. 'No...of course not. What about all these other horses?' he went on, dry amusement settling on his face. 'Are they refugees as well?'
'Most of them. But Rosie's special. The others I will sell or give away once they're in good condition. Rosie I could never part with.'
They had begun walking along the path as they talked.
'Why don't you move them over to the island?' Dan suggested. 'There's plenty of good pasture.'
'That would be wonderful, but...'
'But what?'
'They'd have to have stables, or a barn. It gets pretty nippy up here in the winter. And they like shelter when it rains.'
'Stables it is, then.'
Cassie frowned. 'Good stables run into a lot of money. Perhaps ‑'
'Cassie!' Dan stopped. He took her by the shoulders and turned her to face him. 'I can afford stables. I can afford anything you want. Anything! All you have to do is ask and I'll buy it for you.'
Cassie's heart squeezed tight as she stared up into his beautiful, serious face. You can't buy me what I want most, Dan, came the destructive thought, but she firmly pushed it aside. He was trying hard to please her. And he did care. Maybe it was just for Jason's sake, but why quibble about that? Everything was looking a lot brighter than it had when she'd woken up that morning.
She smiled. A marriage where only one partner loved would always be a lop-sided compromise. Better that she begin compromising right now. 'I might take you up on that,' she said with feigned lightness.
'Just name it!'
Cassie could see that he wanted to buy her something, needed to buy her something. Perhaps it was his way of making up for forcing her into the marriage. But really, she didn't need anything, and had to rack her brains to come up with a suggestion.
'I...I could do with some new tyres on my jeep.'
'Tyres?' He grimaced. 'I offer my new bride anything she wants in the world and she says tyres!'
Cassie could see that he was really quite pleased.
'Dan,' she murmured, her voice catching in her throat.
'Yes?' Wariness again showed in his eyes.
'Good morning,' she said. And kissed him.
There was no doubting that she shocked him. He jerked back from her lips as though they were coated in poison. 'And what was that for?' he said, after regathering his composure.
'Nothing. I just felt like doing it.'
He lifted a single eyebrow. 'Did you, now?'
'Yes.'
'Impulsive, are you?'
'Sometimes...'
He gave her the oddest look, part sensual, part sad. 'You know... I've been thinking... We don't know each other very well, do we?'
Cassie stiffened, then turned to walk on. Dan moved with her. She hoped his remark wasn't another lead into his telling her about his previous marriage. Perhaps it was irrational, but she still didn't want to know the whys and wherefores of the relationship that had drawn Dan away from her. Maybe at the back of her mind a few questions niggled. Maybe she would like to know what kind of woman Roberta had been, whether she'd been wealthy or beautiful, and how she had died. And maybe in time she would ask... But not now! Her sense of compromise did not extend that far as yet.
'We know enough,' she said tautly.
She kept on walking, but she could feel him looking at her. 'That's a matter of opinion,' he said quietly, but the words carried hurt.
Cassie's regret was instant. They had actually been breaking down the barriers between them. Now, with her stupid jealousy, she had sent them back to square one.
'I'll have to ring Roger later.' she went on.
changing the subject in an effort to smooth over the sudden tension. 'He'll need to check on Rosie and the foal while I'm away. I hope nothing goes wrong.' Her eyebrows scrunched up in a burst of new worry. 'Perhaps we could...?' She turned sharply towards Dan.