Chapter 45
“Wow, that was extra creepy,” Colette said with a delicate laugh, turning and stroking a hand to Marshall’s cheek.
He could swear her touch almost made him purr.
He had missed it so much. Dipping his head, he pressed a quick kiss to her lips, unsure as to how much she was comfortable revealing at this point.
His entire family was here, and yes, some people knew about their more intimate relationship, but did she want a full interrogation by his parents or grandparents?
No.
Perhaps not.
A quick glance over either side of his shoulders told him Colette had found the quietest retreat off the ballroom. They were completely alone for now.
“If you think this is creepy, you don’t want to know how much time I’ve spent watching you,” Marshall admitted. “People kept pulling me aside to chat and I could barely focus. I’m starting to think you deliberately picked this dress to distract me.” He fingered the fabric of her gown.
“You had a lot of attention. I kind of assumed you were enjoying it.”
“This is a foreign world to me now. So much posing and showboating. Glamour porn isn’t my thing anymore,” he said with a chuckle. “I much prefer being at the ranch.”
“Yeah, I guess I got used to the quiet in the country, too,” she mused, eyes moving back to watch the cars and people out the window. Feeling indulgent, Marshall wrapped both his hands around her waist and pulled her close.
His chest hollowed out as she leaned back against it.
Holding her felt so damn right.
“We probably need to get back. Unless you’ve had enough?” He watched as she dug her top teeth into her glossy bottom lip. He was tempted to kiss her again, but only if she was open to revealing their relationship to his family.
There was still too much up in the air right now, especially with them living apart.
They had been on one date, well, maybe two if he counted the time they spent together after karaoke night at The Dusty Spur.
And that wasn’t really a proper date, if he thought about it. Just a hell of a lot of fun.
So there it was, the confusion. If he couldn’t get their relationship straight, how on earth could he expect her to?
“Have you had enough? It seems like so many people in there were excited to see you,” she said. The way her eyes searched his for reassurance broke his heart.
“It’s nice seeing everyone again, but I don’t miss the artifice, the pleasantries, the same boring jokes about golf swings and who everyone wants to hook up with. Some of the guys I hung out with in university are newly divorced and on the prowl.” Marshall shivered.
Colette’s gaze dipped to the side, and something clutched at his heart.
“Tell you what,” he began. “Let’s go in there, sit at the table with the family and you can catch me up on what you’ve found in our files. We’ll enjoy a nice dinner and maybe some dancing.”
Her face brightened at the reminder of their quasi-investigation.
She took the arm he offered. Surely no one would read too much into him escorting her to the ballroom like a gentleman.
It wasn’t like they could read his thoughts as his eyes devoured the soft shuffle of fabric against her lush curves.
Stealing two glasses of champagne, they found their assigned table, where Roger and Simone shared lingering, flirty looks.
Marshall rolled his eyes at the display.
“Did Lucinda find you?” Roger asked with a grin. “She was very eager to catch up with you after all this time. Nearly panting with excitement.”
Marshall groaned and gritted his teeth. He remembered Lucinda.
She loved to call him Marshy and parade him around like a trophy when they hung out at parties.
Her territorial behavior made him uncomfortable, especially when he had never made any promises or commitments.
He had dropped her so fast after a few hook-ups. Back then, that was all that he wanted.
“Wasn’t she married?” he asked.
“She was, but now she’s a divorcée looking for her next conquest. Be warned.” His brother’s gaze flicked to Colette.
Marshall shrugged and pulled out her chair.
Her lips pressed together tightly, indicating how much she hated this conversation.
He hated making her feel anything but cared for.
Colette might not be confident in his feelings for her, but he was.
There was no chance he would spend even a minute entertaining Lucinda when Colette had his focus completely.
Bringing his hand to the back of her chair when he sat, he brushed his thumb along the top of her dress.
Even if it wasn’t an open declaration, he wanted his intentions to be clear.
There was no other woman who could catch his eye.
He belonged to Colette, body and soul, for as long as she wanted him.
“Even if she finds me, she’s barking up the wrong tree,” Marshall said. The last thing he wanted was Lucinda latching onto him or worse, bothering Colette. The sooner everyone understood where his interest lay, the better.
By the seventh speech, he was whispering into Colette’s ear and tapping his brother on the shoulder.
It was time to make an exit. Marshall watched as she left the room first, weaving her way through the tables.
He couldn’t keep his eyes off her dress, the way the fabric draped over her body, and the flowers dotted the delicate tulle.
His hands itched to peel it off her skin and kiss each and every spot the beautiful blooms touched.
He owed her a waterfall of worshipful caresses, one for each second, they had to spend apart. One for each time he thought of her when he was supposed to be working. One for each time he looked for her around the ranch while going about his day. He was eager to make up for the time they had lost.
Marshall gave Simone and Roger a quick wave, hoping his brother would cover for him and his quick departure. Understanding hung between them. Roger knew he was uncomfortable in these types of situations and understood without words why he preferred to leave without any fanfare.
When he stepped out into the hallway, he spotted Colette standing nervously, one hand gripping her arm and the other casually holding the clutch.
“Marshall, good to see you, my boy,” a voice called beside him. Two strong arms wrapped around him, a hand clapping on his back.
“Uncle Jarrett, good to see you too,” Marshall said into his shoulder. Boy, his uncle gave hearty hugs. “How have you been?”
“Well, I’m awfully upset about what’s been happening at the ranch. Do we have any more information about poor Jack?” his uncle asked.
Marshall waved Colette over and she joined them. “You’ve met Colette, right?”
“Yes, we met at the wake. Such a shame we had to meet under those circumstances.” His uncle shook his head and clucked his tongue. “You’re looking lovely tonight, Colette.”
A soft pink blush suffused her cheeks at the compliment, and she thanked him. Colette stepped closer to Marshall, tugging her bottom lip through her teeth.
“It’s hard to believe,” Marshall agreed with a nod.
“We’ll figure it out. We’re cooperating with the police on the case.
Colette is helping me figure out the finances, and I promise, things will be back on track soon.
” Marshall pressed his lips together, not entirely convinced he was being truthful.
Every part of him wanted to show his uncle, his father, his grandfather, that he could be trusted to run the family ranch.
That trust had been shaken, but the will behind his words was there.
“Colette, do you have any idea who might have hurt Jack?” Jarrett asked, rubbing his chin with his hand.
Colette shook her head. “No, I’m just tidying up the mess that was left by your former accountant. Cleaning up financial disasters is kind of my specialty.” She gave a soft chuckle. Her stiff posture belied her actual ease with the conversation.
“I can’t believe Agnes left like that,” his uncle said with a shake of his head. “Especially after we took such good care of her over the years.”
Colette shrugged.
Marshall sensed a nervous energy coming off her. It was easy to forget that Colette had something to prove, too. She was at the ranch to do a job, and obstacles were getting in her way, too. With a gusty sigh, Marshall shook his uncle’s hand.
“Don’t worry, we’ve got everything handled. I just want all this bad stuff to be in the past so that we can get on with our work,” he reassured.
“I know you will,” his uncle said with a chuckle.
“And make sure my son helps you; he has to earn his keep. You two take care and keep up the good work.” Adjusting his suit and tugging on his shirt cuffs, his uncle strode back into the ballroom, leaving Marshall with Colette. She turned her wide-eyed gaze on him.
“What do you want to do now?” she asked, her tongue darting out to sweep across her lips. Marshall’s eyes darkened as he watched the movement.
Finally, they were alone.
“I want to get the hell out of here.”
Tearing his gaze away with effort, he swallowed and pulled her by the hand, heedless of who was watching. Reaching for his phone in his pocket, he ordered a car to pick them up while they waited for their coats at the coat check.
Clasping her hand tightly, he led her toward the gold-trimmed entrance of the hotel and out into the night.
The night air was bracing, laden with car engine fumes and the pungent smell of dumpsters wafting from the back alley.
Marshall barely understood how people breathed in the city.
The air was occupied with an overwhelming array of scents.
He would take the smell of cow shit and hay over this any day.
Their shoes clicked on the damp sidewalk.
It had rained while they had dinner, and the pavement gleamed where the streetlights touched its surface.
Marshall looked up at the sky and shook his head.
Where were the stars? Where were the soothing sound of breezes weaving through fields of grass or tickling aspen leaves?
Everything about being downtown Calgary filled him with memories he wanted to forget.
Nothing about the city filled him with the same sense of freedom.
Rosebud Ranch was always calling him back.
Bundling Colette into the dark SUV, he breathed a sigh of relief as he clasped her hand the way he had wanted to do all night.
It wasn’t as though he wanted to keep her a secret, but he did want to protect her from anyone who might want to hurt them.
He would be devastated if she was somehow damaged by association.
Even Colette was different here, quiet. It was as though the city silenced her spark, subdued that magic that glowed from within her. Maybe it was his imagination.
“Are you okay?” Marshall questioned, wanting to dig deep into her brain and find out what had changed. “How does it feel being back?”
“It’s good. I missed having all my stuff, I guess,” she said as she looked down at her hands. “Everything is so loud and bright, like I’m used to. It’s…familiar.”
Marshall watched as she played with her hands in her lap, her answer sitting heavily on his chest. Maybe she was happier here. It was unlikely that a month at the ranch would have made that much of an impact.
When Marshall first arrived at the ranch, he was lonely, but it was the first time in his life that he could be himself.
It was freeing. He didn’t have to fit into a mold, get a certain degree, talk about football or hockey, or build his life according to a set of expectations placed before him.
Even if it meant he could never get back certain parts of himself and had to sever certain friendships, it had been worth it to be his own person.
The last thing he would ever want was to stop Colette from being her own authentic self. “Hank misses you,” was all he could say. How mature of him to use his dog to communicate what he was actually feeling.
She gave a soft snort. “Really? He said that?”
“Oh yeah. He said you know right where to scratch him behind the ears.”
“Well, tell him I miss him too. When you go back.” Her eyes dulled at the last words, as though the same heaviness was wearing upon her.
“Let’s not talk about me going back. I want tonight to be about us.”
She gave a soft inhale and smiled. Reaching an arm around her shoulders, he pulled her into the crook of his arm. He wasn’t sure what it was about her, but she seemed to fit against him perfectly, as though she belonged there.
Though their future was still up in the air. They had tonight.
He could think of many ways to forget his troubles in her arms.