Page 21 of A Montana Fake Marriage (Sagebrush Ranch Sweethearts #1)
Her brows creased together, and she scowled at her food. “Money doesn’t bring happiness, Caleb.”
He stiffened. “I didn’t say that.”
“Didn’t you?” she challenged him. This time, her eyes drilled into him as if she accused him of lying.
“What has this whole year been about? Every single paycheck I’ve earned has been accounted for.
Every dollar is being saved so that I can afford what I need .
You yourself have been trying to help me understand that money isn’t the source of happiness. ”
“It isn’t, but?—”
“So let’s not talk about it. I don’t want to talk about my father. I don’t want to talk about my inheritance. If I get it, I get it. If not, we’re going to be okay, right?” There was something deep about her question, as if she wasn’t sure he’d give her the answer she wanted.
“Right,” he insisted. Still, the instinct to tell her that she should stay away from her father, block him on her devices, and refuse to speak to him without someone present gnawed at him.
He wanted to assure her that they were married. They’d been married for a year now. There was nothing her father could say or do to hurt them.
More than anything, he wanted to tell her that he would protect her.
But he didn’t.
All he could do was watch from the sidelines as she made her own decisions on how to deal with her wretch of a father.
The more time that slipped past after her father’s visit, the better Sammie looked. Occasionally, she’d look at him with concern knitting her brow, but then he’d flash her a smile, and that doubt flickered away.
Whenever the local vet stopped by to check on the herd and speak with Caleb on how the feed patent was going, Sammie would appear. She’d ask questions about the veterinarian career path and what a job like that would entail. Little by little, Sammie’s light returned.
Caleb didn’t notice any more missed calls or messages—then again, Sammie could very well be hiding them from him. Based on how she was doing, however, he didn’t think that was the case.
They were still deep in the throes of two different waiting games. News on his patent and updates on her inheritance. The weather was getting warmer, and they spent more of their time outside, sitting beneath large shade trees or swaying on the porch swings.
One sunny afternoon, Sammie was seated beside him sipping a glass of lemonade.
Occasionally, she’d close her eyes and let her head fall back to let the breeze capture the whisps of hair that had fallen from her braids.
His arm was draped around her shoulders, and he dragged his fingers up and down her arm.
She sighed, and he couldn’t help but feel that perhaps they’d dodged a bullet.
Life really couldn’t get any better than this.
A silver car drove up the drive toward their house and pulled to a stop in their driveway. Sammie lifted her head and glanced in its direction before she stilled. Just like that, the peace was zapped from them, replaced by a tenseness that he didn’t know how to shake.
Caleb stood as their lawyer got out of his car and headed toward them, a handful of folders under his arm. He glanced up and flashed them a smile. “It’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?”
Caleb nodded tersely. “But you didn’t come here to talk about the weather.”
The man’s features faltered, and his eyes shifted to Sammie. “No, unfortunately, not.”
A knot formed in Caleb’s stomach. What now?
The lawyer tugged at his collar and held out one of the folders, his eyes not leaving Sammie’s. “Your father is requesting interviews to validate the marriage.”
Sammie shot out of her seat. “What?”
Caleb swung around to look at her. “It’s fine,” he assured Sammie. “We knew this would be a possibility.”
Her tight expression didn’t ease.
The lawyer gently tapped his shoe on the wooden floor of the porch, and Caleb returned his focus to the man who was still holding out the folder. Taking it from the man, Caleb nodded his thanks. “All the information is in here, I take it?”
He nodded. “It’s there. But we’ll probably need to talk about our plan going forward. There will be depositions. You’ll be under oath.”
“What will they ask? Oh geez, this is so bad.” Sammie put her hand over her heart and looked like she was going to cry.
“You know, let’s don’t worry about those details right now. I promise you’ll be prepared. We’ll go through all of it and I’ll be with you the whole way.” He nodded reassuringly.
Sammie looked uncertain, but she at least didn’t seem like she was about to cry.
“Thanks for stopping by. I’ll call your office to set up some time.” Caleb smiled briefly and shook his head.
“Hey, we’ll figure this out. Don’t let it worry you until we know for sure we need to worry. Okay?” With a final nod, their lawyer turned and headed back to his car.
Caleb waited for the man to get to his car before he turned to Sammie again. She was seated on the swing, her coloring paler than before.
“Maybe we should just give up.”
His brows shot up. “What? Why?”
She lifted a shoulder. “He’s not going to stop.”
“What he thinks doesn’t matter. You followed the rules. You got married, and we’ve been together for a year. You didn’t do anything wrong, and you deserve to get your inheritance.”
She shot him a hard look.
“I know you don’t want to talk about the money, but that’s what started this whole thing.
After everything is said and done, we won’t have to see your father ever again.
” He took a seat beside her and grasped her hands within his own.
“Besides, we don’t have anything to hide. We’re in love, remember?”
That statement tugged a smile from her lips, and he breathed out a short sigh of relief before pressing a gentle kiss to her temple.
“Maybe you’re right,” she murmured.
“I know I am.”