“Does that surprise you?”
She hesitated. “A little. Men don’t like to lose, especially to a woman.”
“That’s not true in all situations, just some.”
“Name one.” Her challenge was there, bold and unmistakable.
“When it comes to a woman deciding between two men,” he said thoughtfully. “Naturally, I can’t speak for all men, but there’s one thing that bothers me more than anything.”
“And that’s?”
“When I’m forced to compete with another man for a woman’s affection.”
Lesley grew quiet after that, and Chase hoped he hadn’t offended her with his honesty. He couldn’t apologize for speaking the truth.
“Tell me about the women you saw today,” she said unexpectedly, sounding almost cheerful. He caught the gleam in her eye and realized she was prepared to hear horror stories.
“I was really surprised by some,” he began.
“Oh? Were they that awful?”
“No.” He shook his head. “Not at all—there were some classy women in the group, with good educations. One of the first few I interviewed had her master’s degree.”
“What prompted her to respond to your ad?” The self-satisfied look disappeared, replaced by one of genuine curiosity.
Chase had wondered about that himself. “I asked about her motives right off. Don’t get me wrong—Twin Creeks is a nice, civilized town, but it’s a long way from shopping centers, large libraries and cultural events. Granted, we have TV and the internet, but you aren’t ever going to see any Broadway shows performed there. I explained all that to Christine.”
“And she still wanted to marry you?”
Chase nodded. “At least she said she did. She explained that she’s in her late thirties and has a successful career. But now she realizes how badly she wants a husband and family. She claimed every guy she’s dated in the last few years is emotionally scarred from a breakup or a divorce.”
“Having reentered the dating scene myself, I’m beginning to see how true that is.”
“Christine is mainly interested in starting a family,” Chase concluded.
“How do you feel about children?” She propped her elbows on the table and rested her chin in her palms as she studied him.
“I want a family, but I’d prefer to wait a year or two, to give my wife the opportunity to know me better and for me to know her. In my view, it’s important to be sure the marriage is going to last before we bring a child into the equation.”
“That’s an intelligent way of looking at it.”
Lesley went silent again and he saw pain in her eyes and wondered at the cause. He was about to question her when she spoke again.
“Other than Christine, is there another woman who made an impression on you?”
“Several. A female plumber who let me know she doesn’t, uh, mind kinky sex.”
The look that came over Lesley was very prim and proper. “I see.”
“And Bunny, who has four children under the age of six.”
“Oh, my goodness.”
“She was looking for someone to help her raise her kids and was honest about it. Her ex-husband abandoned them nine months ago.”
“The creep.”
Chase agreed with her. “I don’t understand how a man can walk away from his responsibilities like that. What he did to Bunny is bad enough, but to leave those beautiful children…”
“She brought them?”
“No, I asked to see a picture. They’re cute as could be. I felt sorry for her.” He didn’t mention that he’d given her enough money to fill her gas tank so she could get home and paid for a week’s worth of groceries. She hadn’t asked, but he could tell she was in dire financial straits.
“You aren’t interested in a woman with excess baggage?” she asked, almost flippantly. Though he’d only known Lesley a short time, he already knew it wasn’t like her to be so offhand. He suspected something else was bothering her.
“Bunny’s a good woman who didn’t deserve to be treated so badly by the man she’d loved and trusted. The divorce was final less than a week ago. Bunny, and the children, too, need more love and help than I could give them. To answer your question, no, I don’t object to marrying a woman with children.”
Lesley was silent for a long time after that. “My dad left us,” she finally said in a small voice.
Chase chose his words carefully, not knowing how to comment or if he should. “It must have been very hard.”
“I was only six and we were going to Disneyland. Mom had worked a second job in order to save extra money for the trip. Dad took the money when he left.”
“Oh, Lesley, I’m sorry.”
The look in her eyes became distant, as if she were that six-year-old child, reliving the nightmare of being abandoned by her father all over again.
“I know I shouldn’t have blamed myself. I didn’t drive my father away, but for years I was convinced that if I’d been the son he wanted, he’d never have left.”
“Have you had any contact with him since?”
“He called when I was fifteen and wanted to see me.”
“Did you?”
She nodded. “After being so bitterly hurt, I didn’t have a lot of hope for our meeting. It’s funny the things a child will remember about someone. I always thought of my dad as big and strong and invincible. When we met again nine years later, I realized he was weak and selfish. We had lunch together and he told me I could order anything I wanted. I remember I asked for the most expensive thing on the menu even though I didn’t like steak. I barely touched the steak sandwich and took it home for our dog. I made sure he knew he’d paid top dollar to feed our collie, too.”
“What made him contact you after all those years?”
Lesley sighed. “He seemed to want me to absolve him from his guilt. He told me how hard his life had been when he was married to my mother and had a child—me—with all the responsibilities that entails. He claimed he’d married too young, that they’d both made mistakes. He said he couldn’t handle the pressures of constantly being in debt and never having money to do the kinds of things he wanted to do.
“That’s when I learned the truth. My dad walked out on my mother and me because he wanted to race sports cars. Imagine, driving a sports car meaning more to him than his wife and daughter.
“You might think badly of me, but I wouldn’t give him the forgiveness he was seeking—not then. It wasn’t until later, in my early twenties, when I learned he’d died of cancer, that I was able to find it in my heart to forgive him.”
“I don’t know how any fifteen-year-old could have forgiven someone who’d wounded her so deeply,” Chase said, reaching for her hand. She gripped his fingers with surprising strength and intuitively Chase knew she didn’t often share this painful part of her childhood.
She offered him a brief smile and picked up her drink.
“Did your mother ever remarry?”
“Yes,” Lesley answered, “to a wonderful man who’s perfect for her. You’d have to meet my mother to understand. She has a tendency to be something of a curmudgeon. It took her a long time to find the courage to commit herself to another relationship.
“I was out of high school before she married Ken, although they’d dated for years. She never told me this, but my guess is that Ken said either they marry or end the relationship. I don’t think he would’ve followed through on the threat, but it worked.
“He and Mom are both retired. They live on a small ranch in Montana now and really love it.”
“They sound happy.”
“They’d like a couple of grandkids to spoil someday but—” Lesley stopped abruptly and her face turned a soft shade of pink.
“But what?” he inquired.
“Oh, nothing.” She shrugged, looking decidedly uncomfortable. “It’s just something Daisy said to me this afternoon. And…she might be right.” Her voice faded.
“Right about what?”
“Nothing,” she said quickly.
Whatever the subject, it was obvious that Lesley wasn’t going to discuss it with him.
“Will you be meeting more women tomorrow?” Lesley asked.
Chase nodded with little enthusiasm. “I should never have agreed to that news story. The phones have been ringing off the hook ever since. There’s no way I could possibly interview eight hundred women in two weeks’ time.”
“Eight hundred!”
Lesley sounded as shocked as he’d been when he’d heard the original number of five hundred. Since the story had aired, three hundred additional calls had poured in.
“That’s…incredible.”
“Just remember, I haven’t met a single one I like better than you.”
Lesley laughed. “You’ve already heard my answer to that.”
“I don’t have much time in Seattle, Lesley. Less than three weeks. I need to make some decisions soon. If you’d be willing to marry me, I’d promise to be a good husband to you.”
“Hold it!” she said, raising both hands. “Back up. I’m not in the market for a husband. Not now and possibly never again. Men have done some real damage to my heart, starting with my father and most recently Tony. I don’t need a man in my life.”
“True, but do you want one?”
She hesitated. “I don’t know.”
“It’s something to think about, then, isn’t it?”
“Not right now,” she answered, her voice insistent. “I don’t want to consider anything but having fun. That’s my goal for this summer. I want to put the past behind me and get on with life in a positive way.”
“I do, too,” Chase assured her, and it was true in a more profound way than she probably realized.
“I baked cookies this morning,” she said. “It was the first time in months I’ve wanted to bake anything.”
“I don’t suppose you saved any for me?”
Lesley smiled as if she knew something he didn’t. “There’s a full cookie jar reserved for you.” She suddenly recalled that she’d said Kevin and Eric could have them. She’d have to compromise. “Well, half a cookie jar,” she amended.
Chase couldn’t remember the last time he’d tasted home-baked cookies. “This calls for a picnic, don’t you think?”
“Paradise.”
He frowned. “Do I have to wait that long to try these cookies of yours?”
“No, silly. Paradise is in the national park on Mount Rainier. There’s a lodge there and several trails and fields of wildflowers so abundant, they’ll take your breath away.”
“Sounds like Alaska.”
“It’s one of my favorite places in the world.”
“Let’s go, then. We’ll leave first thing in the morning.”
“You can’t,” she said, with a superior look.
“Why can’t I?”
“Because you’ll be interviewing a prospective wife. Eight hundred prospective wives to be exact.”
Chase cursed under his breath and Lesley burst out laughing. Only then did Chase see any amusement in his predicament. What she didn’t seem to understand, and what he was going to have to prove, was that he’d willingly leave all eight hundred prospects behind in order to spend time with her.
The sun had barely peeked over the horizon when Chase arrived. Lesley had been up for an hour, packing their lunch and preparing for their day. Her hiking boots and a sweater were in a knapsack by the door and the picnic basket was loaded and ready for Chase to carry to his rental car.
“’Morning,” she greeted him.
“’Morning,” Chase returned, leaning forward to kiss her.
The kiss seemed instinctive on both their parts. A kiss, Lesley noticed, that was exchanged without doubt or hesitation.
Suddenly their smiles faded and her lungs emptied of air. It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. She was inches, seconds, from walking into his arms before she caught herself.
Chase, however, felt no such restraint and reached for her, pulling her toward him. Even with her mind crying no, she waited impatiently for his mouth to touch hers.
His lips were gentle, as if he were aware of her feelings.
“I love it when you do that,” he whispered, kissing her neck.
“Do what?” she asked, sighing deeply.
He groaned. “You just did it again. That sigh. It tells me so much more than you’d ever be willing to say.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” She tried to ease away from him, but felt his breath warm and moist against her throat—and couldn’t move. His fingers loosened the top button of her blouse.
“I…I don’t think this is a good idea,” Lesley murmured as he backed her against the door. He braced his hands on either side of her head, his eyes gazing into hers.
“I don’t want you to think. I want you to feel.” He kissed her then with the same wicked sweetness that had broken her resolve seconds before. She sighed, the same sigh he’d mentioned earlier, and regretted it immediately.
“Lesley, I don’t know what to do.” He leaned his forehead against hers.
“Kiss me again.” She held his face with her hands, buried her fingers in the thickness of his hair and directed his lips back to hers. By the time they drew apart, both were panting and breathless.
For a moment neither of them said anything. “I think you might be right,” he finally said with reluctance. “This isn’t such a good idea, after all. One taste of you would never be enough. I’m greedy, Lesley. I want it all. It’s better not to start what we can’t finish.”
He reached for the picnic basket and took it outside. Lesley felt weak and shaken. She wouldn’t have believed it possible for any man to evoke such an intense reaction with a few kisses.
Her knees were trembling as she grabbed her knapsack and purse and followed him out the door. Chase stored her things beside the picnic basket in the trunk. He helped her into the passenger seat and got into the car a moment later, waiting until she’d adjusted her seat belt before he started the engine.
Neither of them had much to say on the long drive to Paradise. Lesley had planned to play the role of tour guide as she had previously, pointing out interesting facts along the way, but changed her mind. She was going to mention that Mount Rainier National Park was one of the first parks ever established—in 1899. But it wasn’t important to tell him that, not if it meant disturbing the peaceful silence they shared.
Lesley loved Mount Rainier and the way it stood guard over the Pacific Northwest. The view of the mountain from Seattle was often breathtaking. Her appreciation increased even more when she saw the look in Chase’s eyes as they drove the twisting road through the forest-thick area. He surprised her with his knowledge of trees.
“Everyone recognizes a Douglas fir when they see one, don’t they?” he teased.
“No.”
They stopped at a campsite and took a break. When Lesley returned from using the facilities, she saw Chase wandering through the mossy, fern-draped valley. She joined him, feeling a sense of closeness and solemnity with Chase, as though they were standing on holy ground. The trees surrounding them were tall and massive, the forest a lush green. Breathing deeply, Lesley felt the fullness of beauty standing there with him. The air was sharp, clean, vibrant with the scent of evergreens.
Chase took her hand and entwined his fingers with hers. “Are you ready?” he asked.
Lesley nodded, uncertain what she was agreeing to, and for once in her life not caring.
They got back in the car and in companionable silence traveled the rest of the way to Paradise. Since they hadn’t eaten breakfast, Chase suggested they have their picnic, which they did. He finished the chocolate chip cookies she’d brought for him, praising them lavishly.
Afterward, Lesley put on her boots and they walked the trails through the open, subalpine meadowlands, which were shedding their cold blankets of snow.
“You know what I love most here? The flowers, their color, the way they f
ight through the cold and stand proudly against the hillside as if to say they’ve accomplished something important,” Lesley said as they climbed up the steep path.
“The flowers respond the way most of us do, don’t you think?” Chase asked.
“How’s that?”
“They respond to life. To the power and force of life. I feel it here and you do, too. It’s like standing on a boulder and looking out over the world and saying, ‘Here I am. I’ve done it.’”
“And what exactly have you done, Chase Goodman?”
He chuckled. “I haven’t figured it out yet, but this feeling is too good to waste.”
She laughed. “I know what you mean.”
They hiked for a couple of hours, and ascended as far as the tree line. The beauty of the hills and valleys was unending, spilling out before them like an Impressionist painting, in vibrant hues of purple, rose and white.
After their hike, they explored the visitor center, then headed back to the car.
Lesley was exhausted. The day had been full and exciting. Over the years, she’d visited Paradise countless times and had always enjoyed herself, but not the way she had today with Chase. With him, she’d experienced a spiritual wonder, a feeling of joy, a new connection with nature. She couldn’t think of a logical way to explain it any more than she could say why his kisses affected her so strongly.
When they arrived back in Seattle, Eric and Kevin, Daisy’s two boys, ran out to the car to greet them.
“Hi, Lesley,” Eric, the oldest boy, said, eyeing Chase.
“Hello, boys. This is Chase.”
Chase cordially shook hands with the youngsters. “Howdy, boys.”
“You’re sure big. Even bigger ’n Lesley.”
Lesley wasn’t sure if that was a compliment or not.
“We came to see if you had any cookies left.”
“Mom said you might have some more,” Kevin chimed in.
“Yup, I saved some for you.”
“But don’t forget she made them for me,” Chase said. “You boys should make sure I’m willing to share the loot before you ask Lesley.”