During the next few months, she’d been friendly and businesslike despite her breaking heart, and when she couldn’t stand the strain for one moment longer, she’d consulted Rachael and dissolved their partnership.

Even though she was no longer involved with Johnny in any way, his betrayal still hurt. Ellen knew it was partially her fault. She’d tried to be something she wasn’t. An expensive hairdo, makeup applied by an expert, and a designer gown could camouflage the package, but nothing could change the contents. And as she became accustomed to being alone, she admitted that it was a considerable relief not to have to worry about how she looked and what she said. Now she was just plain Ellen, and if people didn’t like her, that was too bad.

Of course she’d missed the hours she’d spent with Johnny, so to compensate, she had poured all her energy into running her mannequin business. Ellen knew her products were good, but orders were slow and her expenses were much higher than she’d figured on. She knew it took time for a small business to show a profit, but she was barely at the break-even point and she was running herself ragged, trying to handle everything on her own.

One morning she’d run into Jack St. James and when he’d casually asked how her business was doing, she’d burst into tears. It was just too much for one person to handle alone, she was losing money every time she turned around, and she wished she’d stayed in Minnesota and never tried to go into business for herself. After a couple of astute questions, Jack had told her she needed a business manager and recommended his friend, Walker Browning. Walker had spent the first two weeks examining the books and he’d discovered that Johnny had contracted with several firms who were bleeding off Ellen’s profits. Their shipping charges were ridiculously high and the company they used was only minimally responsible for damages. Walker had found another carrier who guaranteed all losses at a much lower tariff, and Ellen had agreed to switch the moment their contract ran out. They were also changing warehouses as soon as their lease was up. Vegas Dolls had been paying through the nose for a prime location they didn’t need.

When Walker had handed her his set of recommendations, Ellen had been astounded. She knew nothing about business, and obviously, Johnny hadn’t either. If she followed Walker’s plan, her running expenses would be cut by more than a third!

Next, Walker had concentrated on generating new business. He’d persuaded Ellen to ship out a free sample mannequin to several chains of clothing stores and every one of them had placed an order for more.

There was the sound of a key in the lock. Walker looked startled to see her sitting there.

“Ellen! I never expected you to wake up. You all right?”

Ellen nodded. “I’m fine. I just couldn’t sleep, that’s all. Where were you?”

“Up in the spa, enjoying the view.”

Walker smiled his contagious smile. He seemed honestly glad to see her awake and Ellen couldn’t help but smile back. She couldn’t thank Jack enough for sending her Walker. He didn’t mind working long hours and seemed just as excited as she was when they came up with a good model, even suggesting some new features of his own. He never pried into her personal life and he’d caught on to her moods so quickly it amazed her. If she didn’t want to talk, he did his share of the work in silence. If she was in the mood for conversation, he treated her to stories of growing up in Chicago that had her in stitches. She knew he liked her and she didn’t have to be on her guard.

“Tell me about it, Walker.” Ellen tucked her knees up and the blanket slipped down a little. She saw her image in the mirror over the fireplace and smiled again. Here she was in her blue flannel granny gown, the bunny slippers on her feet, alone in her living room with a man and not even the slightest bit embarrassed. Perhaps if Johnny had truly been her friend, things might have worked out better between them.

Walker sat down on the couch. “It was spectacular, Ellen. You know those little crystal balls you find in the stores at Christmas, the ones with the winter scenes and the snowflakes?”

Ellen nodded.

“Up at the spa with the dome overhead and the snow falling outside, I felt like I was trapped inside one of those crystal balls. It was a strange feeling. I was all alone, but I wasn’t alone because some big hand up there was shaking the ball to make the snow swirl. That sounds pretty crazy, doesn’t it?”

“Nope.” Ellen shook her head. “I wish I’d been there.”

“It’s not too late. Why don’t you go put on your suit and we’ll sit in the Jacuzzi with the lights out. Then I can show you what I mean.”

Ellen began to smile. Her former coworkers at Garfield Elementary would have had a collective fit if they thought she was even considering such a thing. She was glad she didn’t have to worry about proper behavior for a teacher anymore.

“Come on, Ellen. I really want you to see it. It’s the chance of a lifetime.”

Ellen smiled and got up. She turned at the doorway with a smile. “It’s really strange, Walker. Somehow, you’ve plugged into my fantasy. When I was a little girl, I always dreamed of hiding inside the little crystal ball my mother had on the mantel. Now here I am, over thirty years old, and I’m finally going to do it.”

TWELVE

Jayne woke up to feel her husband’s arms around her. God, how she’d missed him! She burrowed a little deeper under the covers and thought about how good it was to have him home again. Last night had been like a second honeymoon. If only they could stay like this and ignore their problems. Perhaps they needed blackout drapes like Marc, so they could sleep and make love all night and all day.

The sun streaming in through the shuttered window cast a bright pattern of gold stripes against the knotty pine-paneled walls. Moira had burned cattle brands into the wood at strategic intervals and the bedroom had the look of an elegant bunkhouse. Jayne squinted and tried to read the time on the Lone Ranger alarm clock Paul had found for her in an antique shop. Seven-fifteen. At seven-twenty, the clock would whinny like Silver and play the first eight bars of the 1812 Overture. She reached out and pulled the plug so it wouldn’t go off. The button had broken off while Paul was gone and she hadn’t gotten around to fixing it.

The bedroom was filled with promotional objects that had been sold in the forties by the enterprising cowboys and cowgals of the silver screen. It had all started when Jayne had casually mentioned that she’d always wanted the Tonto Trick Lasso she’d seen as a child, advertised in the back of a Lone Ranger comic book, and Paul had turned it into a holy quest. Now she had the lasso, along with a Gene Autry hat rack, a Roy Rogers Happy Trails phonograph that played only seventy-eight RPM records, a Gabby Hays Sidekick trunk that sat in the corner next to her dressing table, and a Dale Evans Little Cowgirl mirror framed with rope. Paul had even managed to find a Cisco Kid poncho, obviously a product of some tongue-in-cheek promoter. He’d spent hours searching for cowboy movie memorabilia until she’d begged him to stop. That was another of their basic differences. She’d always enjoyed trying new activities, but Paul threw himself into them with such zeal that they ended up as work instead of fun.

Jayne grimaced as she remembered suggesting they camp out at the Grand Tetons for a week last summer. She’d always wanted to see Jackson Hole. Paul had agreed that it might be fun and the next thing she knew, their living room had been loaded with camping equipment. She could see the need for backpacks and sleeping bags and she hadn’t objected to the three tents: One for sleeping, one for cooking, and one for storing their supplies. Paul said he wanted to be prepared for any contingency and he’d pored over countless volumes on life in the wild, taking notes on the proper procedures for setting up their base camp and making detailed lists of the supplies they’d need. Jayne had thought all this preparation was silly. They were just going for a week and if they ran out of something, they could get in the car and drive to the store. And if the tent blew down, or the air mattresses went flat, or it was too cold at night, they could always dash up to the lodge to get a nice comfy room there. Absolutely not, Paul had been firm. Jayne had wanted to camp out and that was exactly what they were going to do.