Gift of Fortune (23 page)

"You're not. You may have inherited half of his DNA,
but your character is nothing like his."

"Thanks. Your saying that means a lot. I have to go. The
vet's here. He charges by the hour, so I better get back out
there and help." Quint walked to the front door. He paused
there a moment. "I'll see you tonight."

Aileen stared at the door long after Quint had walked
out. Something had shifted between them. She couldn't put her finger on it, but whatever it was, she sensed it was
momentous.

Quint was late for dinner. It was just as well, Aileen
thought. Given the extra time, she might compose herself.
All day she'd been as nervous as the proverbial cat on a
hot tin roof.

She had told Quint that she cared for him. He hadn't
responded. Maybe he hadn't heard her. Maybe he hadn't
wanted to hear this declaration. No, that didn't make any
sense. Hadn't he said he wouldn't let her go? He had. And
he had hugged her. It hadn't been a friend's comforting
hug either. Aileen clung to these two things as if they were
a piece of lifesaving driftwood in a storm-tossed sea.

When he came home, she served him dinner, claiming
she had already eaten. She didn't think she could keep any
food down. She busied herself tidying the kitchen while he
ate.

"This was very good. Thank you, Aileen."

"Are you still hungry? Would you like a piece of cake?"

He shook his head. He watched Aileen closely as she
put the food away. She had said that she cared for him.
What exactly did that mean? He cared for Sweepstake. He
cared for the ranch. What he felt for Aileen went way beyond that. Quint didn't know just how he was going to ask
her what she meant by caring, but ask her he would. He
had hardly been able to think of anything else all day, not
even when he'd been helping the vet with the sick horse.

When she hung up the dishtowel to dry, he said, "I'll
walk you to the stairs."

It took less than ten seconds to reach the stairs. Both
stopped.

"What does it mean, to care for someone?" he asked. He
could tell by the pink color tinting her cheeks and by the widening of her eyes that she remembered saying that to
him. He watched her struggle for words.

"It means that you're fond of that person. That you have
feelings for them." She lifted her shoulders in a small
shrug. "I think that's what it usually means."

Happiness flooded through him. Quint wanted to shout
like a drunken cowboy. He was a drunken cowboy, drunk
on joy and rapture. Sensing the tension in Aileen, he controlled his elation. He watched her gaze dart to every corner
of the hallway as if looking for a way out. Then he saw
her take a deep breath as if she'd reached a decision.

"Remember when you tried to teach me to shoot pool
and we talked about the senses?"

"I remember," he said feelingly.

She took another deep breath. "I hadn't planned to do it
like this. I mean I wanted to create a romantic atmosphere,
but here goes." Aileen placed her arms around his neck. "If
you don't mind, I'd like to do that touching thing again."

"I don't mind," Quint managed to say, his voice barely
above a whisper. "I don't mind at all." Her touch felt like
an electric current burning its way along his nerve ends. If
he were a machine, his circuits would have just shorted out
and his parts melted down. He felt her eyes look at his
mouth. Quint forced himself to stand very still, his arms
loosely draped around her waist.

Aileen raised her face to meet his lips. He didn't hesitate,
but brushed his mouth over hers in a whisper of a kiss. Her
response, though light and unpracticed, was sweet and intoxicating. Encouraged, he wooed her with countless kisses,
each one more potent, more urgent. Finally he tore himself
away, fearing he might lose control.

"Quint?" she asked softly, tentatively.

"When, if ever, are you going to invite...Dammit Aileen, I'm no saint, so don't go tempting me." Wordlessly
he stormed into his room.

Aileen blinked. What on earth had just happened? One
moment Quint was kissing her until she nearly fainted, and
the next he closed his door and shut her out. She had to
find out what had gone wrong.

Resolutely she knocked on his door. Quint opened it almost instantaneously, as if he'd been waiting on the other
side. He didn't say anything but looked at her expectantly.

"You said something about an invitation?"

Softly, gravely he said, "In our particular situation it
seemed to me that the invitation ought to come from you."

"I'm afraid I'm not familiar with the...er...etiquette."

"You haven't known a lot of men, is that what you
mean?"

"I haven't known any," she whispered.

For an instant Quint was speechless. How could he have
been so blind and not sensed this?

"I knew you'd be disappointed. A man like-"

Quint placed his finger across her mouth to stop her outburst. "I'm not disappointed. You caught me off guard,
that's all. I'm sorry I've been so dense."

She looked at him, her eyes pleading.

Suddenly he knew what he had to do.

Quint pulled her close. "A woman wants words," he said
softly. "You told me that once. Dumb of me not to remember it."

He wrapped his hands in her glorious hair and made
Aileen look at him. "Words," he murmured thoughtfully.
"I'm not usually at a loss-"

"No, you're not," she agreed.

"But these are hard words to say, even if they're short
and simple. Especially that one word. I've only said it to two women: to my mom and to my grandmother, my abuelita."

Aileen looked at Quint, waiting.

It was now or never. Risk all or play it safe? Since when
had safety been that all-fired important to him?

Quint looked at Aileen, looked into those lovely eyes
that made him glad he was alive, looked at those lips that
kissed him until he trembled like a leaf in a storm. "I'd
rather take you upstairs and show you," he murmured.

"Not yet." She realized how hard this was for him. She
liked the way he looked at her. She loved him. Why not
make this a little easier for him? "I want to ask you some
questions first." He nodded. "Do you like me?"

"A lot."

"Do you find me attractive?"

"You make my blood run hot. Aileen, let me cut to the
bottom line." Quint took a deep breath. "I love you. I fell
for you...I'm not sure exactly when, but maybe as long
ago as that first time I waltzed you around the kitchen. But
we kept telling ourselves that it was better if we kept our
feelings businesslike, and that slowed down everything."

Aileen shook her head. "No, it didn't. It gave us a chance
to fall in love."

"You said us. As you falling in love too? With me?"

"With you. Totally, irrevocably and forever."

"Yeah?" Quint smiled at her. "Irrevocably? I love it
when you use fancy words."

"Yeah?"

"Uh huh. Irrevocably, as in not being able to revoke, to
take back, to undo?"

"All of the above," Aileen said. "Now what was it you
said about taking me upstairs?"