Chapter 12
Austin got dressed in a dark-blue suit, combed his hair back, and glanced in the mirror.
He looked the part and played it well. Even his wife, Angela, believed that he worked for the bank.
In a way, he did, but not in the conventional sense.
The owner, Mr. Tyler Conway, was a very good friend and business partner of Austin’s.
Tyler didn’t know the ins and outs of what Austin did to get his money and never asked.
They had a simple agreement: Austin helped to fund the bank when it wasn’t doing well, and in return, Tyler helped Austin with all his banking needs and gave him a job that offered a title but required no actual work.
Spending his days reading newspapers, going on so-called work trips, and visiting special friends wasn’t a bad way to live.
He should have been happy, but the nagging feeling that something was missing never left.
Feeling frustrated, Austin made his way out of their bedroom and to the kitchen, where he knew he would find Angela.
She was a beautiful woman—young, vibrant, and willing to do anything to make him happy.
Securing a bride wasn’t difficult once he decided he wanted one, and since he was the wealthiest man in town, the women were practically lining up.
Austin never thought he would get married after losing Eleanor to Jasper, but as much as he enjoyed being a bachelor, living alone had its downsides. He hated cooking, cleaning, and doing any other chores; now Angela took care of those things.
“There you are,” she said with a wide smile as soon as he entered the kitchen.
“Indeed, here I am,” Austin responded with much less enthusiasm. “But I’d better be on my way. Don’t want to be late for work.”
Angela shook her head playfully and laughed at him. “We both know that you don’t exactly have working hours.”
“Still, I have a lot to do.” Austin walked over to his wife and gave her a quick kiss.
He really didn’t have to be in a hurry, but he didn’t feel like continuing their discussion from the previous night.
He had almost lost his temper, and he had a reputation to uphold.
During the two years that they had been married, Angela had never asked for anything.
Austin made sure she had everything she needed and more, but lately she had been asking for the one thing he refused to give her.
Angela wanted a child, and Austin had no interest in having children.
There had been a time when he had dreamed about marrying Eleanor and starting a family with her, but he had no such intentions when it came to Angela.
There was no love between them, at least not from his side, and he didn’t care much about having an heir.
At the end of the day, she had no say in it, but he was trying to come up with a nice way to reject her request once and for all.
“Will you be home for dinner?” she asked as she followed him to the door.
Austin shook his head. “Not today, but if you make a roast meal, I’ll make sure I’m home for supper.”
That brought a smile to her face. “Anything for you, my love,” she agreed.
Austin liked the sound of that. Women were there to take care of men’s wants and needs, after all. “Good, and I don’t want to hear a word about what we spoke about last night.”
Angela’s face fell. “Austin . . .”
“We’ll talk about it another time,” he assured her. “When I’ve had more time to think about it. For now, just focus on taking care of our house.”
“Of course,” Angela agreed. “Have a nice day.”
She didn’t look happy, but Austin didn’t care. She would simply have to accept it and move on. He was giving her a good life, after all, and she should be grateful.
Riding down the road, Austin smiled to himself as people waved in greeting.
The whole town knew who he was, or at least who he wanted them to think he was, and they all loved him.
He had created the best fake persona possible, and he was extremely proud of it.
All those people who always said that he would never amount to anything could eat their words.
The downside of running a secret criminal empire was that he couldn’t exactly brag about it.
None of his family was alive anymore anyway.
His parents died a long time ago, and Austin made sure that Jasper could never insult him again.
The ranch was supposed to be Austin’s. He was the oldest, after all.
It was so humiliating to find out that his own father didn’t trust him enough to run the place, and then Jasper started acting all superior.
The bastard got what he deserved, and so did the Cassidy Ranch.
Austin hadn’t gone back to Silver City since the day he and his men killed Jasper, Eleanor, and their children, and he had no plans of even going back.
He had left that life behind and started a new one where he got all the respect and admiration he deserved.
It still bothered him, though. All of it could have been avoided if his family had simply trusted and loved him, but they didn’t.
Sure, he enjoyed drinking and gambling, but he was young and had no reason not to.
Shaking his head, Austin pushed the memories aside.
He didn’t gamble anymore and only drank a little.
He could have made a success of the Cassidy Ranch.
He could have made it bigger and better than it ever was, but that was all in the past now.
It was a long-lost dream that would never be real.
Instead, he was living a great life with all the riches he could ever want.
He would admit that he still longed for Eleanor, though.
He had only tasted her that once, and no other woman, no matter how young or beautiful, could ever compare to her.
That train of thought brought him back to Angela and his current predicament. She wanted children, but he didn’t. “What shall I do?” he asked himself, wondering if having an heir might not be such a bad idea.