Chapter Seven #2
Ryan had always been Vic’s friend, never hers. Until now. But were they friends? She had no idea what label to put on this unusual relationship.
Morgan pushed away the worry as she took her first bite of stew. The groan escaped her before she even realized. Then she took another and came to the conclusion Ryan’s chef was a gift from heaven.
“Good, right?” he asked with a smile.
“I don’t have the right adjective. I haven’t even tried the bread yet.”
“Nelson can turn a pile of ingredients into something magical and make it look so easy.”
“He should open a restaurant if he can cook everything this good,” she told him.
“He’s not going anywhere,” Ryan replied. “I overpay him for just that reason. I never want him to leave.”
Morgan tore off a piece of the rosemary bread and dipped it into the stew. Oh my word, how could anyone be this masterful in the kitchen?
“Is Nelson’s cooking reason enough for you to move in here and marry me?”
Morgan nearly choked on her bread. She reached for her tea and took a long drink, mostly to gather her thoughts.
“Well, you went a whole twenty minutes without bringing up your favorite topic.” She took another drink, then set her glass back down. “I can visit, but I’m not living here or marrying you.”
“I see no reason not to.” He kept his head down and focused on his dinner like this was a done deal. “A child needs both parents and as I told you yesterday, I want to not only help the baby, I want to be there for you.”
Morgan set her fork down and opened her mouth, but Ryan held his hand up.
“We’ve been through this, I know. Just hear me out.”
Nothing would change her mind, but she would let him speak before she shot down his proposal once again. She’d been raised to be respectful, so she’d let Ryan say anything he wanted while she enjoyed the most delicious meal she’d had in a long time.
“I spent the entire day thinking of a solution,” he started. “Being selfish or controlling is not my main goal here. My goal is to have my family all together and be one unit. I want my child to grow up on the ranch and learn what real work is.”
“On that we can agree,” she replied. “I don’t want my child believing he or she would always get money simply because we have it. I want them to work for it.”
“So marry me and we can build this life with the same vision.”
Morgan sighed and sat back in her leather bar stool. “A life? What kind of life is being trapped in a loveless marriage? You think you’d never want to date again or maybe find a woman you actually want to spend your life with?”
Ryan pushed away from his side of the island and came around to stand next to her.
He placed a hand on the back of her stool and turned her to face him fully.
Morgan swallowed at the intensity of his gaze.
Ryan was completely serious about this situation and her words were not cutting through his hard head.
“I tried love once,” he explained through gritted teeth.
“I still have the internal scars to prove it. I’m here for the family and the legacy, that’s it.
You and I have chemistry, so why shouldn’t we try?
Live here for one month. That’s all I’m asking.
I know you want to challenge me at every point, but just give this idea a try and then decide. ”
There was no desperation in his voice, but an underlying command. He wanted this to happen. He wanted her in his home and very likely in his bed.
“You think I’ll change my mind after a month?” she finally asked. “My stance will be the same. Neither of us deserves to be trapped in a marriage.”
“I’m not trying to trap you. I’m telling you this is for the best and once you stay here and see that, you’ll agree.”
Ryan rested his big, strong hands on her upper thighs.
The man was wearing her down with his home and hearth vision and that sexy bedroom stare.
She could do much worse than having Ryan Carter demand she move in and marry him.
The attraction alone tempted her. The idea of spending all of her nights with Ryan heated her body and stirred her desires.
Maybe she should consider being with the father of her child.
They could learn to make a unit, a family.
Morgan chewed the inside of her cheek as she thought of how to answer.
He didn’t lay out a bad option for the both of them to try this arrangement for a month.
Perhaps if she stayed, he’d see that playing house wasn’t all that fun.
If she left a towel on the floor or snored too loudly or cluttered his bathroom vanity with her beauty bottles, maybe then he’d be ready to coparent while living apart.
“One month,” she agreed. “At the end of that month, you’ll have to respect my decision to remain single and we can go back to our bickering like we’re used to.”
A corner of Ryan’s mouth kicked up. “That won’t happen, but challenge accepted.”
He covered her lips with his and Morgan’s belly quivered at the prospect of living with this potent, captivating man.
Without a doubt, the next month would prove to be memorable.