The handsome, middle-aged man stared out the kitchen window for a long moment, then turned back around and shook his head. “Does she always work this late?” he asked the young woman seated at the nearby table. The winter sun had dropped behind the small hills several hours earlier. Without even a moon for light, the darkness was eerie to the man who had lived in large cities all of his adult life. When he glanced at his expensive designer watch, Michael Cauble saw that it was almost nine o’clock. “I had no idea so much work went into a place like this. What on earth does she find to do in the dark?”

“Umm.” I know quite a few things she does well in the dark, but I’m not about to tell you most of those, Dad. Amanda blushed. “She’s probably working in one of the barns. She mentioned something earlier about storing winter hay for the horses.” She smiled at her father when he walked over to the table and sat down next to her. “And yes, she does work late quite frequently. Especially when she’s taken time off for more than a day or so. I think she feels guilty.”

The rancher hadn’t done much of anything around the large ranch the previous two weeks, having spent it shadowing Amanda, telling her friend that she didn’t want her to be moping around the house alone. Despite the plausible excuse, Amanda was certain that her overprotective lover was still feeling responsible for the incident right after Thanksgiving in which she had been poisoned during an attempt to dispose of Lex.

“Ah.” Michael looked down into his coffee mug. “I was half-afraid that she was avoiding me.” He realized with a shock that he wanted to get to know Lex better. The former executive was curious about the tall, quiet woman who had captured his youngest daughter’s heart. He also felt a need to understand Amanda. She’s a strong, young woman, with such a beautiful heart. I really do need to thank my parents for that, too. Lord knows I can’t take any credit where her upbringing is involved.

Amanda patted his arm. “No, it was her idea for you to come to the ranch and stay. Probably to make up for that misunderstanding at the hospital. I think that she wants you two to at least try and become friends.” Hoping that they would have the time and opportunity, she pursued a related subject. “Gramma told me that you’ve decided to stay in Somerville. Are you going to start up in business again?”

He smiled. “Not exactly. But I did have a nice long talk with Mom and Dad about the whole situation.”

“Really?” She and her father had only reconciled a couple of weeks earlier, when he had returned to Texas while Amanda was hospitalized. Having been surprised when he had not accepted Jeannie and Frank’s offer to come and stay with them in Los Angeles, she was a bit sad to think that perhaps he had reconsidered. “Have you changed your mind? Are you going back to California, after all?” She felt his hand clasp hers and squeeze.

“Actually, no. I am staying here, but I’ll be starting a different kind of business. Dad even offered to loan me the money to get it operational.” He paused, not knowing if he wanted to share his feelings about that, but deciding that his daughter should know. “I was quite surprised, knowing how often I’ve disappointed them; but they have stood by me through this entire mess.”

  Even now he found it difficult to believe that his wife had cleaned out his bank accounts, and spread the vicious rumors that caused his business to collapse. Michael had discovered that his wife was also behind the disastrous attempt to get rid of the rancher, so he left Elizabeth and raced to Texas to be with his recuperating daughter. Much to his consternation, the authorities hadn’t yet been able to conclusively link Elizabeth with any wrongdoing. She'd escaped the country before the police could prove that she had anything to do with the attempted murder of Lex or the accidental poisoning of their daughter Amanda.

She nodded. “You know, I could do the same thing. Loan you the money, I mean.” Amanda looked earnestly into his hazel eyes. “I could always stand to make a good investment in--” she paused, wondering what new business venture her father was interested in pursuing.

Michael laughed and blushed slightly. This is so strange--my daughter offering me money. “A photography studio,” he murmured quietly, a little embarrassed.

Amanda’s pale eyebrows shot skyward. “Photography studio? I had no idea.” She studied her father carefully. “But do you…” She could not remember ever seeing her father with a camera, much less envision him working with anything as complex as a studio.

“When I was in college, it was what I was planning to do as my career choice. But then I met your mother, and she convinced me that I couldn’t make as good a living with a camera as I could in high-profile business management. Her father offered to set me up in my own company, so I changed majors and forgot all about my first career choice.” Michael dropped his gaze back to the tabletop. “I’m ashamed to admit that I allowed Elizabeth to talk me into doing a lot of things that I shouldn’t have done.”

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of, Daddy. I can’t tell you how many times she did the same to me.” Amanda stood up with a sigh. Like my entire life. She paced over to the window and stared out into the darkness. “It wasn’t until very recently that I had the nerve to stand up to her.”

He stood up and stepped in behind her. “I noticed. Even as angry as that made me, I had never been more proud of you.” Michael put his hands on his daughter’s shoulders. “But why then? Don’t misunderstand me, honey. I know that you’ve always had an inner strength that you didn’t get from me. What finally caused you to draw on it?”

Amanda turned around slowly. “I finally found something… someone, worth fighting for.”

“She’s really that important to you?” Michael saw the fierce determination in the young woman’s green eyes. She looked so much like his mother—with her fire and strength. It’s plain to see that my parents had more of a hand raising her than I did.

“Lex means everything to me. She’s my entire world, Daddy.” Amanda felt tears threatening to fall. “I would do whatever it takes to protect her--even defy Mother.” She looked down at the floor, then felt her chin gently grasped and raised.

“I’m still trying to come to terms with the person whom you’ve decided to spend your life with, Amanda. But I realize that my approval doesn’t matter, and if I want to be a part of your life, I’ll just have to try and get along with your tall friend.” Earlier, he had noticed the ring that Amanda now wore, and had a pretty good idea who it had come from. Looks like it’s mutual, if that ring is any indication. I could just ask Amanda about it. No, he decided. I think I’d rather ask Lex about it in the morning.

Michael smiled gently. “Now, I hate to admit this, but liking Lex is not as hard as I expected.” He laughed. “She is a really nice person when she’s not threatening to throw me out of a hospital window.”

Amanda chuckled. “She does tend to be a little overprotective.” During the hospitalization a few weeks previously, the police had given Lex incomplete information which had led to her believe that Michael had nearly killed his own daughter. The rancher had confronted him in Amanda’s hospital room, and had to be physically restrained from causing the older man serious harm.

Michael nodded in agreement. “True, she is. But I’m not about to complain.” He was about to say more when Martha breezed into the kitchen.

The short, heavyset woman stopped suddenly and held one hand over her heart. “Goodness, you startled me! I had no idea that anyone was in here.” She noticed the serious look on the young woman’s face. “Is everything okay?”

“Hi, Martha. Everything’s just fine. We were just discussing Lex, and how she tends to work long hours after taking some time off.” Amanda looked around the kitchen. She couldn’t see any reason why Martha would be in the main house at this time of night. Having noticed the sheriff’s car parked in front of the housekeeper’s cottage sometime earlier, she couldn’t resist teasing, “What are you doing over here this late? I figured you’d be snuggled up at home watching movies.”

Martha blushed. “I was, as a matter of fact. But I wanted to see if Lexie had come in for her dinner yet.” She opened the refrigerator and sighed when she saw the plate that she had prepared earlier, still untouched. “I swear that girl is gonna blow away if she doesn’t start eating again.”

“Has she done this before?” Amanda asked, concerned

 “Only when she’s upset or worried about something. I just wish she’d tell us what’s bothering her. Maybe we could help.” Martha closed the door to the fridge and turned around. She put her hands on her hips and looked at the blonde closely. “Do me a favor?”

Amanda stepped over to the agitated woman and put a hand on her arm. “Of course, I will. What is it?”

The housekeeper looked deeply into Amanda’s eyes. “I don’t care how you do it, but please get Lexie to eat all of her dinner. She barely touched her breakfast and didn’t bother to come to the house for lunch at all. I’m afraid she’s going to make herself sick.”

“In that case, I’m definitely going to have a nice long talk with that woman. I thought she was just in too big of a hurry to finish her breakfast this morning. Don’t worry, Martha. I think that I can come up with something.” Amanda turned to look at her father, who had been observing the scene quietly. “I’m going out to the barn and drag her back in here, kicking and screaming, if necessary. Will you be okay here while I’m gone?”

Michael laughed. He could just picture his daughter manhandling the larger woman into the house. “Sure. I’m on my way to bed, anyway.” He placed his hands on the small of his back and stretched. “I was up really early this morning helping Dad at his shop.” He stepped over to Amanda and wrapped his arms around her. “Goodnight, sweetheart.”

The light touch of his lips on her head caused a lump to form in Amanda’s throat. “Goodnight, Daddy.” She snuggled into his embrace gratefully. I never thought I’d have a good relationship with him; he was so against my lifestyle. But maybe that was more Mother’s influence than his personal prejudice. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, honey.” Michael felt tears of happiness sting his eyes. I’m so lucky. She should hate me for the way that I’ve treated her. He pulled away slowly. “I’ll see you ladies in the morning.”

“Goodnight, Mr., ah, Michael.” Martha recovered with aplomb. Since they would be seeing so much of each other, Michael had told her to call him by his first name. It was something that took the housekeeper a little getting used to, but after he had stubbornly called her Ms. Rollins, she decided that being on a first name basis with Amanda’s father wasn’t going to be too hard after all. We’re practically in-laws, anyway, she mused.

“Goodnight, Martha.” He winked and then waved at the two women as he left the room.

Amanda sighed happily and smiled at Martha. “Want some company for your walk back? I’m gonna see if I can’t hunt down a certain blue-eyed cowhand.” She linked her arm through the older woman’s. “Maybe I can check on Charlie and tell him goodnight, too.”

“Oh, Lord. You would, too.” Martha laughed and led Amanda into the hallway. “Between you and Lexie, I don’t stand a chance, do I?”

“Nope.” Amanda grabbed her coat that was hanging by the back door. “And you ain’t seen nothing, yet.”

***************

“Damn!” Lex put the tip of her thumb in her mouth. She had just hit it with the hammer for the third time, and the pain was beginning to annoy her. The rancher was trying unsuccessfully to nail a board that she was holding higher than her head. She pulled the digit from her mouth and studied it. The skin wasn’t broken, but the thumb was red and swollen, and she could see the beginnings of a bruise under the nail. “Great. Just what I needed.” She could feel the weakness in her arms from holding them over her head for so long, as well as the shakiness from not having anything substantial in her stomach. Lex pulled another nail from her shirt pocket and positioned it on the corner of the wood. She'd raised the hammer to strike when a voice behind her caused her to jump.

“Lex? Do you need any help?” Amanda had walked quietly into the barn and could see her lover working in the far corner.

The board shifted and fell, thumping the tall woman on top of her head. Lex dropped the nail with another curse. “Dammit! Stupid rotten piece of wood!” She threw the hammer down and dropped to sit on the barn floor in disgust.

Amanda raced over and fell to her knees next to her partner. “Honey? God, are you okay?” She pulled the black cowboy hat off Lex’s head and began to run her hands through the dark hair.

Lex gently swatted the hands away. “I’m fine,” she grumbled as she closed her eyes and leaned back against the barn wall. “What are you doing out here? I figured that you’d be catching up with your dad.”

“I was.” Amanda scooted around until she was sitting next to Lex. She reached over and captured the older woman’s hand. “Martha is worried about you. She came in to see if you had eaten yet, and then told me that you hadn't had lunch, either.” She squeezed the hand in hers until Lex looked at her. “I thought you said you would eat lunch while I went to pick up my dad.”

Lex couldn’t hold the gaze and looked down at their linked hands. “Umm, I was going to. Guess I just got sidetracked and forgot about it.” A small hand grasped her chin and forced her to look into concerned green eyes. “What?”

The blonde studied her friend’s face carefully. “Honey, what’s wrong? You’ve never ‘forgotten’ to eat before.” Amanda released Lex’s chin and ran her hand down the angular face. “You’re not eating, not sleeping, and it feels like you’ve been avoiding me. Have you changed your mind about us? Is that what’s bothering you?”

“No!” Blue eyes widened in concern. “Of course not, sweetheart.” She reached around the smaller woman and pulled Amanda into a firm embrace, burying her face in the soft blond hair and inhaling deeply. “Never. You mean everything to me, Amanda. I’m sorry if I’ve made you feel anything but completely loved and wanted.”

“Then, what’s the matter?” Amanda pulled back slightly so that she could look into Lex’s eyes. “Talk to me, please.”

The rancher sighed and leaned back, effectively putting space between them. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She closed her eyes to avoid the look she knew was aimed at her. Just drop it, please.

Amanda scooted closer and put her hand on Lex’s face. “Are you sick? Maybe we should have Dr. Anderson check you out.”

Lex batted the hand away and jumped up. “There’s nothing wrong with me, Amanda. Stop worrying so much.” She walked back to where she had thrown the hammer and picked it up. “I’m just busy, that’s all.”

“Too busy to eat or sleep?” Amanda stood up as well. She dusted her jeans off and released a heavy breath. “Why won’t you tell me what’s bothering you? Is it something that I’ve done?”

“No.” Lex grabbed the board and tried to hold it up with one hand. “You’ve done nothing wrong. It’s just me.” She smiled gratefully as Amanda walked over and grabbed one end of the wood and held it in place. “Thanks.”

She gave Lex an uneasy smile. “No problem.” Amanda watched as her friend held the nail gingerly. She could see the discoloration on Lex’s thumb. “What happened to your hand?”

The rancher grimaced as she hammered the nail into the board. “Had an argument with the hammer and lost.” She pulled another nail from her shirt pocket and drove it into the plank as well. When Amanda gave her a questioning look, Lex nodded. “That should hold it.”

“Looks like it.” Amanda stepped back and dusted her hands off. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”

“Nah. All I have left to do is bring in a load of hay and stack it in here.” Lex wiped her forehead on her shirtsleeve and stepped back to study her handiwork. “That should hold the horses for a while. I’m tired of hauling in bales every other day.” Lex had removed the common wall between the two end stalls and built a small room that she could lock up. She wanted to make sure that if one of the horses got out, it couldn’t gorge itself on the hay and make itself sick.

Amanda stood next to her and looked up into the exhausted face of her lover. “You’re not going to haul the hay over tonight, are you?” She reached out and touched Lex’s arm. “Why don’t you come back to the house, and we’ll have a little picnic upstairs? Martha made barbecued ribs, just like you like them-- with lots of sauce.”

I really should finish what I’ve started. It would only take another hour or so, and-- Lex’s thoughts were terminated by the pleading look on the blonde’s face. Damn. I can never tell her ‘no’. “Okay. Just let me put this stuff away, and I’ll meet you back up at the house.”

“How about I help you clean up, then we go back to the house together?” Amanda bent over and picked up an unused piece of wood. I’m afraid that if I leave, she’ll keep working--and I made a promise to Martha.

Lex gave her friend a tired smile. “Don’t trust me, huh?”

Amanda stopped what she was doing. “No. I mean, yes. What I meant was…”

The tall woman waved her off. “It’s okay.” Lex gathered up the rest of the tools and tossed them into a wooden tool tray. She picked it up and carried it over to the small room where the grain was stored. She could feel Amanda’s eyes on her. “You ready?” Lex asked, as she turned around and closed the door. She grabbed the brown duster that was draped over the wall of an empty stall and slipped it on.

“Sure.” Amanda stepped up next to her lover and gently grasped her hand. She could see the weariness in Lex’s stance. There’s more than one way to skin a cat, or trick a rancher. “How about a nice hot soak in the tub after dinner? Then maybe a massage?”

Lex allowed Amanda to lead her from the barn. “Okay, but you don’t have to pamper me, sweetheart. I know you’re probably tired, too.”

Amanda snuggled up close to her partner and inhaled happily. “Are you trying to ruin my fun?”

“Umm, no.” Lex looked down at the blonde. “Just don’t breathe too deeply; I’ve been working all day and don’t exactly smell like flowers.”

“I happen to like the way you smell.” Amanda giggled when long fingers raked across her ribs through the open coat she was wearing. “Aaaack! Stop that.”

The rancher looked away innocently. “Whaaat?” She used her free hand to adjust the hat on her head. “Damn, this wind seems to be getting worse.” Lex pulled Amanda up the back steps and pushed the smaller woman through the door. “Get inside before you catch cold.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Amanda teased, as her lanky friend followed quickly behind her and closed the door. She reached up and began to remove the heavy duster from Lex’s shoulders. “Why don’t you go on upstairs? I’ll bring the food up.” She brushed the hair out of tired blue eyes and caressed her lover’s chilled cheek. When Lex looked as if she were about to argue, she added, “Please?”

 God, I hate when she looks at me like that. Damn. Lex sighed heavily. “Okay. But only because you asked so sweetly.” She bent down and kissed Amanda gently for a long moment. “See you upstairs.” The rancher winked and climbed the stairs, leaving Amanda staring at her back.

***************

Early the next morning, Michael backed out of his room and almost yelped when he felt a sturdy body behind him. He turned around and looked up into the shadowed face of Lex, who was smiling. “Umm, good morning,” he whispered. “I figured that you would already be gone by now.”

“I usually would be,” Lex admitted. She gestured down the hallway. “Why don’t we go downstairs? I don’t want to wake Amanda.”

“Sure.” He followed her down the stairs and into the kitchen, where Martha was already bustling about. “Good morning, Martha.”

The housekeeper turned around and smiled at the pair. “Mornin’, you two.” She filled and placed steaming cups of coffee in front of them as they sat down at the table. “You ready for breakfast?”

Lex reached out and grabbed Martha by the arm. “Why don’t you sit down and join us, Mada? We can wait for Amanda.” She looked at Michael. “If that’s okay with you.”

“Sounds good to me,” he agreed.

Martha tried to shake the grip from her arm. “I’ve got too much to do to be sitting around, Lexie.”

“Now, now. No sense in getting cranky about it, is there?” the younger woman teased. A quick thump on her knuckles caused her to release her captive. “Ow!”

Martha laughed. “Teach you to mess with me, brat.” She winked at Michael and scurried back to the counter, where she was rolling out dough for biscuits.

He covered his mouth with one hand to muffle his laughter. After spending the past two days at the ranch, Michael had seen a new side to his daughter’s friend. Friend. I think she’s much more than that, especially after seeing the ring that Mandy is wearing. Speaking of which – “Lex? Can I talk to you about something?”

The dark head raised from where she had been studying her knuckles, apparently searching for damage. “Sure, Michael. What’s up?”

“I couldn’t help but notice the new ring on my daughter’s hand last night. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about it, would you?”

“Umm. Ring?” Blue eyes darted around the kitchen as if looking for an escape.

Michael laughed. “Don’t look so scared, Lex. I’m not going to pull out a shotgun and force you into anything.” He leaned forward slightly so that he could look directly into her eyes. “I could have gotten the story from my daughter, but I was hoping to hear it from you instead.”

“Oh, okay.” Lex exhaled heavily and studied his face for a long moment. “You know that I love Amanda.” At his nod, she smiled. “I would do just about anything in the world for her.” She broke eye contact and looked down into her coffee cup. “When we almost lost her, it terrified me, Michael. Not only would I have lost the biggest part of myself, but I was afraid that she’d never realize how much she meant to me.”

“Lex,” he murmured, reaching over and taking hold of her hand, “you don’t have to say anything else.”

She shook her head and looked up. “No, I think you need to hear this.” Lex took a deep breath and released it slowly. “I wanted to give Amanda my mother’s wedding ring, but that didn’t work out.” She pulled her hand away and tilted her chair back. “Luckily, my grandfather showed up, and gave me my grandmother’s ring, which has been in the family for several generations.”

Surprised by the revelation, Michael also leaned back. A family heirloom? I knew she loved Amanda, but still – that ring’s got to be worth a fortune. “Does he realize what you’ve done with it?”

“Yeah,” she nodded. “It was his idea, actually. Grandpa found me in the storage room, looking through boxes trying to find my mother’s wedding ring. He suggested giving her that one instead.”

“But…”

Lex leaned forward and put her elbows on the table, picking up the coffee mug with both hands. “Michael, I love your daughter with everything that I am. Hell, if we could, I’d have married her already. Since we can’t, I gave her my promise to love and cherish her for the rest of my life. That ring is simply a token of that promise.” She looked up into his eyes and smiled. “And I never go back on a promise.”

“I believe you,” he admitted. “And I also think that you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to Amanda. I know I probably wouldn’t have said this a couple of months ago, but I’m glad we’re in the same family.”

“Thanks, Michael,” Lex whispered. “I’m pretty glad, too.”