All of the men about Little River had eagerly pointed Jese in the direction of Anne Rollins's house.

He hadn't needed to embellish the truth. Which was fine with Jese. Telling lies made a person vulnerable to being caught out, but as telling the truth wasn't a safe option either, it left Jese saying nothing at all. Which worked out well for him... it turned out that everyone trusted a silent cowboy.

Anne Rollins opened the door on his second knock. One wrinkled hand clutched a pail of slops, while the other swept her wild hair down. "Good day."

It was the same woman he'd spoken to the night before. He wouldn't forget her face in a hurry. "We spoke last night..?"

"Yes," she didn't seem surprised to see him. Nor was she flustered that he had somehow managed to find her address. From her sad expression, he guessed that her doorstep was busy with foot traffic through the night. Explaining why every man in town knew her direction, he thought. He watched as she hunched over, stepping through the doorway, so not to hit her head against the door jam.

"I think you have information about the two men I'm seeking?"

Confusion crossed her brow.

"If you could direct me to the accommodation of the two men you told me about last night, I'd be much obliged."

The shock was quickly replaced with greed. "For a small fee."

"Name your price."

"A guinea?"

He laughed in response.

"Well, what have you got?"

"A dime?"

"I'll take it." Stepping off the porch, she dumped the bucket of slops into a trough; it was soon overflowing with fine looking hens. "I can lead you there now," she called over the cackling birds.

It wasn't something that he wanted to do. To be marching around town with the likes of Anne Rollins on the eve of his wedding day. But beggars couldn't be choosers. They set off. Looking, he suspected, like a rather odd pair. Her, with her sad eyes, him standing away from her; desperate not to send the wrong message about this strange little stroll.

#

Nova had finished cleaning the plates from the table when a knock fell on the door. Jese, she decided. He was the only person that would arrive at such a late hour. The thought of his devilish black eyes greeting her sent her pulse through the roof. Trying calming breathing techniques, Nova swung the door open. Coming face to face with a pair of tiny blue eyes that were framed with blonde eyelashes.

"Brandon?" Her long lost beau, that had turned out to be not quite so lost. His strangely intense expression caused her to move back in discomfort.

"Hi," he replied.

She was to be married the following day, it wasn't the time for regrets or breathing life back into flames. "How can I help you, Mr. McCabe?"

"I needed to speak to you before your wedding. May I come in?"

She had no chaperone. Her mother was wrapped up in bed. Even if she hadn't of been, Helaku wasn't in the right state to be keeping an eye on them both. Nova wasn't sure what her future husband would think about her entertaining male guests at such a late hour. But what he thought was irrelevant, Nova realized, for he was more than likely drowning his liver and warming his hotel bed with a bevy of random women. "Come in," she said, stepping aside.

Brandon walked in. His posture reeked of supreme confidence, he hung his hat and coat on the stand before entering the Sitting Room in a proprietorial fashion.

Nova felt a ripple of annoyance, after his rough treatment of her he really ought to try a bit of humility. Or attempt at an apology. "What was it that you wanted to say?"

"I noticed your husband in town, with some tired looking floozy." He waited. Whether it was to hear her cries of agony, Nova didn't know. No screams forthcoming, he continued. "Since he might be away for some time, I wanted to come and speak to you about... your situation." He watched her closely. "I hope you don't mind my arrogance."

"Not at all." Her heart was being torn in two. Why was she feeling so much pain from hearing Jese's whereabouts? He'd never given her any illusions that he'd be a respectable husband.

Brandon, noticing Nova's long silence, plunged into dialogue. "I can't help but think, because I know you so well, that -"

"Because you used to know me so well," Nova corrected absent-mindedly, more concerned by the agonizing pain in her breast.

Her companion had the good grace to look slightly awkward before rushing on. "Well, I wondered if - perhaps, you weren't so happy with him?"

Silence. He didn't deserve the right to know how she felt. She pressed her lips pressed firmly together. Hurt and anger hitting her in waves. He didn't deserve to know that she'd not moved on in life - that she'd not found someone better. That the only thing she'd accomplished in his absence was a ton of debt and potential heartbreak. Potential heartbreak? She reigned her thoughts in wildly. Woah back! There was no way she was foolish enough to fall in love with someone like Jese Calhoun!

"I've angered you," Brandon spoke. "If I spoke out of turn, then please forgive me."

"Why is this any of your business?"

He looked uncomfortable. "If you were marrying him because of ... debts-" Her fiery glare almost silenced him, but he bravely sucked in a breath before continuing onwards. "And you weren't wanting to be married ... I could help you."

Help. She'd been optimistic that something would appear before her wedding day. That if she concentrated on it enough that help would arrive. And it had arrived on her doorstep, in a strange package. She eyed Brandon warily.

There could be a catch. He was a man, Nova stopped herself from laughing out loud. There definitely would be a catch. It was only that cynicism that kept her from throwing herself at his feet and begging him for mercy.

But if that catch was marriage? How did she feel about him? She eyed him cautiously. There wasn't any attraction there like the chemistry she had for Jese. He wasn't blessed with a sweet caring face either, which would have been better than chemistry. Afterall, there was nothing more exhausting than the thought of spending a lifetime with someone who caused sparks. Sparks caused fire and fire left scars.

She couldn't trust Brandon. Obviously, it wasn't as immense as the mistrust she felt for her fiance. Jese was too sketchy around sheriffs for her liking. Having a criminal with his hands on her finances wasn't ideal. Brandon, on the other hand, had disappeared for years without a single note... perhaps he could do that again? Well, she decided, an absent husband is better than the one I'm faced with.

Glancing at Brandon now, she could see that he was watching her closely, waiting for her to say something anything.

"How could you help me?" She asked.

She saw the expression of hope cross his face. "I could buy the Ranch off you - for a fine price. My wife is quite taken with your homestead, and I have always fancied the land."

Wife? Well, that explained the lack of written communication, she marveled. Surprisingly his revelation of his marital status wasn't the punch to the stomach that she'd expected. It did make her wonder about her childhood friend's character that he could come and visit her, and ask her such personal questions without mentioning his significant other. There was something shady about that, she decided. He obviously didn't want to hurt her more than he already had.

"You have a wife? Congratulations!"

His body language betrayed his discomfort. "It wasn't a marriage of the heart," he confessed. "We have a sod cottage downriver of the township... It isn't as refined as my wife had hoped. She'd heard such elaborate stories." He paused, perhaps waiting for her input. None forthcoming he carried on, "The land isn't as fertile as yours. If you were struggling I would be happy to pay off your debts and take this place from your hands."

"Did you speak to my bank manager?"

"Pardon?"

"Don't play innocent with me. You've been told about my situation."

He smiled meekly. "I may have overheard something."

A humiliated blush scorched her cheeks. Did all of Little River know that she'd failed? It was too much to bear. She couldn't give everyone more to talk about. Moving across town to a sod cottage while her childhood sweetheart moved his wife into the ranch. Over her dead body!

Which left the only option. Marrying Jese Calhoun. That didn't mean she was going to be shackled to him for a lifetime. No. She was going to get out of the contract as quickly as possible, with her Ranch intact.

An unconsummated marriage would be easy enough to annul.

#