Cameron, Paige - The Billionaire Cattleman Wins a Wife [Wives for the Western Billionaires 4] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic) Read Online Free

would help to know a little about him and Candice. They were childhood sweethearts, and inseparable from their early teens on.”
    “Oh, my.”
    “Yeah. They married early, both went to college here in Montana , and then came home and started their family. She got pregnant pretty quickly. Everyone was excited about the first grandchild. Candice celebrated her twenty-third birthday two weeks before she and her unborn baby died during childbirth.”
    Tears flowed out of Lily’s eyes and down her cheeks. “How do you recover from such a loss?”
    “We worried he wouldn’t. Some family member stayed near all the time and watched him. He tried drinking, as he mentioned, and then went wild for a while. He’d date, take them to expensive restaurants and to places to dance. He burned the candle at both ends. He even tried bull riding one season. Somehow he survived and began to calm down, but in place of the grief came a quick temper. Even that was slacking until your arrival.”
    “Do I look like her?”
    “No. She had black hair and green eyes, and was tall. She grew up on a neighboring ranch. After her death, her parents sold out and moved away. They were devastated. They moved closer to their only other child, her sister.”
    “I must leave. I’m doing more harm than good being here.”
    “Please don’t.”
    Puzzled, Lily frowned at him. “You must see he’d be better without me around.”
    “Have you ever heard about something getting worse before it gets better?”
    “I think I know what you mean.”
    “I believe you’re the catalyst to help him get back to himself.”
    “I’m not sure I agree.”
    “You’ll see if you stick it out. I guess I’d better go. I’ve talked way too much.”
    “Wait. I baked another cake. Please take some with you. The freezer’s full.”
    Dirk laughed. “All right. You twisted my arm. I saw the chocolate cake on the counter, my favorite.”
    “Good.”
    He followed her to the kitchen. She cut him half and insisted he take it. Then she followed him to the door. He put on his hat and coat.
    “I’ll stop by once in a while to check on you.”
    “Thanks, I’d like that.”
    Lily shut and locked the door. She took her time cleaning the dishes and putting them away, doing busy work trying to keep her thoughts at bay.
    Deep inside, where she hadn’t even acknowledged it to herself, she’d hoped Ty might take a liking to her, might come to desire her. How foolish. She was just, as he said, a baby in life compared to him. And they both had too many personal problems. She had to leave while her heart was still intact. Tomorrow, while they both were working, she’d borrow the truck and drive to the nearest town. It couldn’t be that far away. She’d call her friend, Moira, in the morning and ask to stay with her while she found a job.
    After putting on her flannel nightgown, she went to the window. The moonlight lit the darkness. The snow had stopped.
    Between the trees, she saw the faint light from Ty’s windows.
    Turning off her lights, she huddled under the covers and imagined she was cuddling into his strong arms against his hot body. Heat raced through her veins, and deep inside she ached.

    * * * *

    Ty saw her lights go out. He’d been staring out his window at the house. When he first got home, he’d gone to his liquor cabinet and taken out a bottle of bourbon. It was unopened, had been for several years. He’d gotten a glass and started to break the seal, shook his head, and put the bottle back.
    Then he’d gone to his bedroom closet and pulled out a box of pictures. He kept telling himself he’d get rid of all but a few. He hadn’t. There they were at a barn dance on their first date. Had he ever been that young? They were grinning at each other, love evident in their eyes. He’d been so horny in those days, he kept a perpetual hard-on for her, only her. Right from the first they’d talked of a future together, marriage, college, and then family. No