Not a Chance(19)

"At the Raymer house. We had to bust down the door because..."

"Why did you have to break in?" Laura interrupted, clearly shocked at the prospect. "Weren't the Raymers at home?"

Arden laughed sharply. It was a question with an odd and disturbing answer. "No. The bank seized the property a couple of weeks ago. The Raymers..."

"So you were there without food or water?" Laura's voice pitched higher, a mixture of concern and distaste in her expression.

"There was water. It was just really cold. No electricity. But Travis kept a fire going. And there was a lot of canned food in the pantry, so we made do."

Laura's mouth hung open in disgust. She couldn't fathom living in such primitive conditions. "My poor baby!" she cried.

Arden rolled her eyes. "Mom, please..."

"You've been through so much! Let me call Dr. Weston."

"I don't need therapy, Mom."

"For God's sake, Laura," Mark chimed in. "You're completely overreacting. She was basically just camping."

"Camping?" Laura, who had never spent the night out of doors in her life, shrieked. She looked even more appalled than before.

Arden suppressed a grin.

The doorbell chimed, then. Mark went to answer it and came back with Nick at his side.

Nick was a beautiful young man. Everyone in their circle of friends couldn't wait to see the babies that these two produced. Nick, like Arden, was blond, but a few shades darker. He was raised driving boats and swimming in the big, slow river that snaked along the border of Splitlog. As a result, even in the winter, he was always tan, lean and smelling vaguely of sunscreen. He smiled when he saw Arden and held wide his arms.

Arden plastered on her best doting fiancée smile with just the right amount of adoration and went to him. They embraced briefly and then stepped apart.

"We'll just leave you kids alone," Laura said, taking her husband by the arm and leading him out of the sitting room.

Once they were gone, Nick lifted Arden off her feet and kissed her firmly on the lips. They drifted over to the sofa where Nick proceeded to kiss her passionately, moving from her lips to the side of her neck. Arden draped her arms over his shoulders and let him slobber all over her for the next few minutes. She glanced at her watch and suppressed a sigh. It was getting late.

She gently pushed him back and scooted a few inches away. "I think we should stop," she said.

"Why?" he asked, his voice groggy. His lips were wet and parted, his breathing shallow.

"I'm just really tired."

"Why don't you come spend the night with me?"

Arden shrugged. "I just got home. It was a really traumatic ordeal," she said, affecting a dramatic sigh and placing her hand to her throat like a corset-bound damsel with the vapors.

Nick smiled gently, but not bothering to mask his disappointment. "Alright. I'm just glad you're home safe. I can't say it didn't bother me knowing you were forced to spend four nights alone with that...that...grease monkey."

Arden pressed her lips together. The coffee service was still on the table between the two sofas. She leaned forward and poured herself another cup. "He's a good guy. Whatever happened to 'don't judge a book by its cover?'"

Nick scoffed. "Everyone knows all about the Lanier family history. His great-great granddad was a cattle thief. And that's practically a compliment compared to the rest of the descendants. You remember a few years back when his old man got sentenced to two life terms?"

"Of course I remember." She pulled her sleeves down over her hands and tucked her feet underneath her. Why couldn't he just go away. All she wanted right now was to crawl into her bed for the evening and read a good book. All of this being forced to defend Travis without betraying any emotions was wearing on her.

"So you can understand my concern?"

"Travis has earned a good reputation around town. He's done good, honest business with people. And though he appears on the outside to be something of a roughneck, he's actually really respectful of women. And if you don't like him, well you certainly have to admit that his brother, Dustin, is a solid, upstanding citizen. Blameless, really."

"I don't know either of them and frankly, I don't care. All I want to know is that he treated you well...I mean...respectfully."

Good God, how much more of this must she sit through? "He did," Arden said.

Nick deflated, slumping back into the sofa. "I don't think I slept the entire time," he said, his tone becoming somber. "I was so worried about you and him together."

"Give it a rest, Nick. Feigned jealousy is not a turn-on for me. Besides, you know I'd never go for a guy like Travis anyway."