“I do?” He glanced up, a look of amusement on his face as he cut the cheese and handed her a slice.

“This is so romantic.”

“If you think this is something, just wait.”

Caroline raised her head. “You mean there’s more?” She savoured a bite of the sharp cheddar.

“Much more.” He leaped to his feet and returned to the horses. Again opening a saddlebag, he drew out a small gold-foil box.

“Chocolates?” Caroline squealed with delight.

“I figured these were the kind of thing a man gives a woman when he comes courting.” He didn’t look at her; instead, he busied himself carefully pouring the wine.

Caroline loved the way he used the old-fashioned term. “Are you courting me, Grady?” She’d meant to sound demure, but her question had an urgency about it. “Are you being serious?” She had to know.

“This is about as serious as a man gets,” he said and handed her a plastic cup of wine. “Shall we make a toast?” he asked, holding up his glass.

She nodded and touched her glass to his.

“To the future,” he said, then amended, “our future.”

Caroline sipped the wine. The chardonnay was delicate, smooth, refreshing. One sip and her heart started to pound, the force of it growing with every beat. It took her a moment to realize what was happening.

She was in love, really in love. It both terrified and excited her. And with that realization came another. She needed to tell Grady about Maggie’s father. He had a right to know the truth, although the thought of telling him brought a dull ache to the pit of her stomach.

“You’re quiet all of a sudden,” Grady said.

“I was just thinking.” She shrugged off his concern.

“That could be dangerous to your mental health,” he teased. He leaned forward, his lips moist with wine, and gently kissed her. His mouth lingered in a series of short nibbling kisses far more potent than the wine.

“I can’t make myself stop kissing you,” he said, leaning his forehead against hers.

“I can’t stop wanting you to kiss me,” she told him. She moved her hands along his neck, loving the feel of his skin. “I…I want to talk to you about Maggie.” She closed her eyes, fighting back the tension that gripped her. The sooner she got this over with, the better.

“I’m trying, Caroline, I honestly am.”

“I know…but what I want to say doesn’t have anything to do with how she feels about you.”

Grady went very still.

The heavy pounding of her heart echoed in her ears, drowning out her thoughts. She couldn’t look at him while she spoke of that pain-filled time. Before she could stop herself, she was on her feet.

“It’s about Maggie’s father.” She clenched her hands until the knuckles were white. Her stomach tightened. The only one who knew the full truth had been her mother. Caroline was well aware that other family members and certainly her friends had speculated for years about who’d fathered Maggie, but she’d never told them. Never told anyone. Never felt the need until now.

“Caroline, you’re very pale. Is this really so difficult for you?”

She bowed her head and exhaled slowly. “It’s much harder than I’d thought it would be.”

He stood up and moved behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders. “Then forget it. My knowing isn’t necessary, not if it upsets you like this.”

“But it is necessary.” He had no idea how much.

“Then you can tell me some other time,” he insisted. He bent to kiss the side of her neck. His mouth lingered and her head fell forward. “I want our afternoon to be special. I don’t want anything to interfere with that.”

“But you have a right to know.” She paused and swallowed. What he didn’t seem to understand was that telling him wouldn’t get any easier. In fact, the longer she waited…

His hands gently stroked the length of her arms. “Let’s not spoil our afternoon with memories best forgotten. There’ll be plenty of time for you to tell me everything—but not today.”

“Aren’t you curious? Don’t you want to know?”

He released a long sigh. “Yeah, I am,” he said after a moment. “Perhaps I’m a little afraid, too. I don’t want anything to ruin what we have.”

“Oh, Grady.” He made it so easy to delay telling him the truth. Easy to thrust it into the future with excuses she was far too willing to accept and he was just as eager to suggest.

“I’m your prince, remember?”

“I remember,” she replied dutifully.

“Good.” He kissed her then, his mouth touching hers in a quick caress. “Now let’s get back to our wine.”

He waited until she’d settled herself on the blanket before he handed her the glass he’d refilled. Positioning himself behind her, he eased her against him. Caroline closed her eyes as he gently fingered the fine strands of her hair.

“I told you this is a magic place.”

“Mmm.”

“Reality will find us soon enough, so let’s enjoy the magic while we can.”

Caroline had to admit she was willing to do just that.

* * *

MAGGIE PUT Savannah’s dolls back on the bedroom-window seat and looked out again, hoping to see her mommy. She’d gone horseback riding with Grady and they’d been away a long time. Longer than she wanted them to be. She was ready to go home now.

Bored, she put on her backpack and wandered into the kitchen where Savannah was kneading bread dough.

“When’s Mommy coming back?” she asked.

“I don’t know, sweetheart, but I imagine they’ll be here soon.”

“Where’s Richard?” Maggie asked next.

“I don’t know.”

“Can I watch television?”

“Of course, but get Laredo to turn it on for you, okay?”

“I can do it,” Maggie insisted. She turned on the television at home and it wasn’t hard.

“Grady got a new satellite dish and it has three remote controls.”

There was his name again. Not only did Grady shout, but he made it so she couldn’t prove to Savannah how smart she was.

“Laredo’s in the barn, but he’ll be finished any minute.”

Maggie glanced wistfully toward the barn, but she wouldn’t go in there alone, not anymore. The last time, she’d gotten into trouble, and Grady had yelled at her again and grabbed her. He’d been scared, too; she could tell when he pulled her away from the horse and held her.

“I’d do it for you, sweetheart, but I’ve got my hands buried in bread dough,” Savannah explained.

“That’s all right.” Not wanting to wait inside, Maggie walked onto the porch. She sat on the top step, and Rocket ambled over to lie down beside her. She rubbed his ears for a few minutes because Savannah had told her he liked that. Then she rested her chin on her folded hands, looking out over the ranch yard, hoping she’d find something to do. Something that wouldn’t get her in trouble.

She caught a flash of color and saw Richard coming out of the bunkhouse. Her spirits lifted immediately. Leaping off the steps, she raced to his side. “Richard!”

He jerked around, then smiled when he saw her. Maggie liked Richard’s smile, but what she enjoyed most were his magic tricks. Once he pulled a coin out of her ear. Another time he had her draw a card out of the middle of a deck and then told her what card it was. He was right.

“Howdy, kiddo,” Richard said.

“Wanna play?” she asked, skipping after him.

“Not now.”

“Nobody wants to play with me,” she said, hoping he’d feel sorry for her and offer a game or a few tricks.

“Sorry, kiddo, I’ve got things to do.”

Maggie’s face fell. Everyone was too busy for her. “Can I help?” she asked, thinking if he finished early, he might take time to play.

“No,” he said sharply. He sounded almost like Grady when he was mad, and Maggie gasped.

Richard squatted down. “Maybe we can play, after all. How about a game of hide-and-seek?” he suggested. “You go hide and I’ll come and find you.”

This was great, better than she’d expected. “Okay.” Maggie glanced around, looking for a place to hide, somewhere Richard wouldn’t find her.