Anything You Ask (5 page)

“Okay. I can do normal.” He closed the door and moved back, lifting his hand in a goodbye salute. “See you in a couple of hours.”

She pulled out of the parking space and shifted into drive. Hale stood on the sidewalk, watching her leave. The grim expression pinching his handsome features revealed this marriage was risky for him, too. With a flash of regret, she wondered if he left a good life in Oklahoma to rescue her from the odious burden of the farm.

To thank him, she’d get out of debt as soon as possible. Over the next few months, she’d help him bring in a profitable harvest while she searched for a full-time teaching position. With any luck, she’d have a new job by the time she left the farm. In the meantime, there were term papers to grade and lectures to plan for the last few weeks of the semester at Susquehanna.

As soon as Danielle got home, she encountered irrefutable proof her second marriage had already changed life as she knew it.

A dog stood in the mudroom, waiting for Hale to return.

Danielle froze, holding her breath as the big brown lab gave her dress a cursory sniff that left a slobbery streak along the silky hem.

“The boys love having you around, but I’m not too happy about all the drool.” The tension loosened in Danielle’s shoulders when Cocoa trudged away and lay by the door with a doleful whimper. “Don’t worry. Hale will be home soon.”

Mindful she no longer had the house to herself, Danielle hurried to change into jeans and settled in the cozy office tucked behind the living room. Almost two hours passed before Cocoa’s jubilant bark interrupted Danielle’s work. Ready for a break, she walked into the kitchen in time to see the dog running circles around Hale in exuberant welcome.

“I asked the butcher to stop by tomorrow.” Hale put a grocery bag on the counter and tussled Cocoa’s ears. “Will you be here tomorrow morning when he delivers the meat?”

“Yes.” She rubbed her thumb along her index finger as she thought about how much it would cost for a delivery. “We don’t need a lot. How much did you order?”

“Enough.”

Not sure how to interpret his brusque response, Danielle peered inside the brown paper bag. Inside were a carton of eggs, a bag of flour, three packs of gum, and butter. By the time she looked up, Hale arrived with another armload of groceries.

She pointed to the pantry on the opposite wall. “I bought food three days ago.”

“You didn’t spend all the money I gave you.” Hale shot her a disapproving scowl. “You used forty dollars and gave back the rest.”

“Stretching my money to go a long way at the grocery store is easy.” Danielle’s empty stomach growled in contradiction. Ignoring the protest, she followed Hale into the fresh April sunshine and gasped when she saw the mounds of groceries waiting in his pickup. They spent fifteen minutes carrying all the food inside. She tightened her ponytail and gestured to the bags crowding the kitchen. “I can’t afford all this.”

“I can.” With a grin, he opened a bag of cookies with one ready rip. “I’m starving, aren’t you? We missed lunch.”

She caught a whiff of chocolate and pretended not to be interested. Instead, she used her thumb and forefinger to lift a massive bag of candy bars like she was plucking a dirty sock off the floor. “Are you trying to give my boys cavities?”

“No. I’m trying to put some weight on them.” He stuffed a cookie into her palm. “And you.”

“Me?” She dropped the candy back into the grocery bag and frowned at the soft cookie in her hand.

“Three days ago, you looked pale when you were trying to till the garden. Thought you might pass out.” The muscle along Hale’s jaw tightened. “You’re not eating enough.”

Flustered that he noticed, she took a big bite of the confection, almost tripping over a bag of potatoes when a burst of sweet chocolate melted on her tongue. The last time she ate something this good was at Christmas. “Oh, wow. This tastes amazing.”

Smiling broad enough to display the chip on his bottom tooth, Hale loosened his tie with an efficient yank. “Mind putting away the food? I don’t know where you like to store things.”

“Sure.” Danielle picked up an egg carton. “Why did you buy these? I have two chickens in the coop.”

“Those old birds won’t lay more than two eggs a week. Don’t worry, I’ll buy more hens as soon as I build a bigger cage for them.”

Visions of omelets and scrambled eggs danced in her head. “Having more chickens would be great. Thank you.”

He nodded and rubbed a hand along Cocoa’s smooth back.

“I opened up a checking account in both our names. The bank will mail us debit cards in a couple of days.” His steady blue gaze met Danielle’s. “Sometime tomorrow, we need to talk about our budget.”

She cast a guilty glance at the food crowded on the counters. “After that conversation, you’ll probably regret spending so much at the grocery store.”

“This is my wedding gift to you. You’ll never have to worry about feeding your boys while you’re with me.”

Danielle blinked, muted by his kindness.

“Here, take this.” He slipped a wad of bills into the back pocket of her jeans. “Get whatever else you need.”

“I can’t accept your money. Please take it back.” She hastily extended the roll of bills toward him.

“That money is yours.” His hand closed over hers, preventing her from dropping the cash onto the counter.

Her pulse in her wrist fluttered under the pressure of his thumb. Every couple fought about money, but Danielle had never been with a man who insisted on
giving
her money. “I’ve already burdened you with enough. Don’t do this.”

An eyebrow arched. “Don’t provide for my family? You’re kidding, right? You married a traditional guy, one who will work like heck to keep a roof over your head.” He let go of her and unbuttoned his shirt cuff. “I’m gonna get to work on the tractor. Don’t bother cooking tonight. I told Drew and Luke we’d order pizza to celebrate keeping the farm in the family.”

Hale headed upstairs before she could respond, so she set the money inside an empty jar and began to unpack the groceries. Every bag contained some sort of extravagance, like candy, soda, and ice cream.

Was he trying to win over her boys with sugar? Sadly, that simple tactic might work. Danielle sucked in her breath when she realized Drew and Luke weren’t his only targets. At the bottom of the last bag, she came face to face with her greatest weakness

a book.

She picked up the paperback and pressed her nose against the pages, inhaling the crisp scent like she held an armful of roses. The novel was a spy thriller, certain to provide much-needed escape from the crushing anxiety pulsing just beneath the surface of her daily routine. Clasping the book against her chest, she smiled.

****

Later that night, Danielle pretended to be captivated by the poorly written term paper in front of her when Hale entered her office.

“Why don’t we go to bed?” Hale braced a shoulder against the wall. “It’s nearly eleven. I’m beat.”

“You can go ahead without me.”

“Nope. Not tonight.” He folded his arms over his chest. “I’ve got something to prove.”

The pen squirted out of her hand, skittering across her desk. “Like what?”

“That my wife can trust me.”

The term paper blurred into an incomprehensible jumble of letters. “Please stop being so nice. Your kindness makes me feel even guiltier for asking you to help me.”

Two strong hands pulled her chair away from the desk. “Come upstairs. You’re as tired as I am. How can you grade that paper if you can’t keep your eyes open?”

“I close my eyes when I’m thinking.”

“Think in bed, okay?” He extended his hand and waited.

She stared at the red scrape along his index finger, most likely sustained when he tuned up the tractor that afternoon. Danielle suddenly remembered how Mark used to storm out of the barn in a foul temper whenever he couldn’t fix the mechanical snafus sidelining the equipment, but Hale had a knack with machines. His family had relied on him to keep things running, so she wasn’t surprised when he repaired the tractor in short order and started plowing.

He could fix anything he touched, but could she trust those adept hands on her body?

Sliding her narrow palm into his, she felt a bristle of apprehension when his fingers closed around her hand and helped her up with a gentle tug. Looking away from the sober curiosity in his gaze, Danielle let go, unnerved by how nice sliding her palm against his felt.

Hale cleared his throat and gestured for her to go first.

She took a tentative step and stopped when she noticed the dog standing in the doorway.

“Cocoa, heel.”

The lab trotted to his side with an obedient wag of her tail.

Danielle headed for the stairs, mindful of the thud of Hale’s stocking feet behind her. They made the long climb up the stairs in awkward silence, but Cocoa’s thick tail thumped against the wall with every happy wag.

Concerned the noise might disturb her sons, Danielle hesitated by the twins’ bedroom and listened for the smallest sound that might give her an excuse to check on them.

“The boys are fine, Dani.” Hale grabbed her around the waist and picked her up, carrying her down the rest of the hallway and over the threshold of their bedroom.

Did he mean to make this a traditional wedding night? Her stomach twisted. Glancing at the neckline of his blue shirt, she was surprised to see red creeping up his neck. Not sure if the flush was one of exertion or embarrassment, she took a stumbling step backwards when he lowered her feet to the floor.

He flicked a hand through his hair and gestured in the general direction of the bed. “Which side do you want?”

“I sleep close to the door in case Luke comes in.”

“Fine.” He nodded toward the adjoining bathroom. “Do you want to go first?”

“You go ahead.” She stayed motionless until the bathroom door closed behind him. Lurching to the bureau, she searched for something to wear. Her normal bedtime outfit consisted of a tank top and panties, which was far too skimpy for tonight.

Something roomy and dull would work better. Stuffed in the back of a drawer, she found a gray t-shirt and baggy yellow pajama bottoms. Perfect. She put them on in a nervous rush and then let out a relieved sigh. Danielle pulled the elastic band off her ponytail, allowing her hair to fall in a billow of gold waves to her shoulder blades.

Hale emerged from the bathroom and came to an abrupt halt when he saw her.

Danielle plucked at one of the sheep imprinted on the pajama bottoms. “Thought I’d go for comfort tonight. It’s been a long day.”

“Yeah.” His blue-eyed gaze burned a trail up her legs, jumped to the curve of her breasts, and darted to her face before jerking to the plain blue bedspread. “Uh, I’m done. The bathroom is yours.”

“Oh, okay.” She glanced at his bare chest and couldn’t help comparing him to Mark, who had put on a significant amount of weight from all the drinking. Her new husband didn’t have an extra ounce of fat on his body. Well-defined muscles sculpted Hale’s broad chest, and his torso narrowed to a lean, flat belly.

After catching a glimpse of the attractive way his blue boxer shorts hung on his hips, Danielle almost lost her nerve to go through with this sleeping arrangement.

A sudden jolt of adrenaline propelled her into the bathroom like she was strapped to a rocket. She shut the door and mouthed a wide-eyed “Wow!” at her reflection in the mirror.

By the time she finished brushing her teeth and returned to the bedroom, Hale was already in bed. She scrambled under the coverlet and turned off the light, cementing her arms to her side when she accidentally elbowed Hale’s warm back.

The queen-sized mattress felt cramped with a new husband who possessed shoulders as wide as a barn door.

“Go to sleep,” Hale murmured.

“On our wedding night?” Her chest tightened with anxiety. What would she do if Hale reached for her?

“I was talking to the dog.” He rolled onto his back.

“Oh, right. Where will she sleep?”

“I put her cushion in the corner.”

“Sounds good.” Danielle tucked the covers under her chin and folded her hands on top of her chest, resembling an Egyptian mummy.

Uncomfortable silence pulsed into the room. She studied the shadows cast by the blue light of her digital clock. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Hale touch the back of his ear to adjust the volume on his hearing aid.

“I’ve been thinking about what Luke said the other day.” Hale glanced sideways. “How long did Mark sleep on the couch?”

“Six months.” She tried not to fidget with shame.

“What happened?”

“We had a fight about the bathroom. If you weren’t careful, the door would bounce off the cabinet drawer and fly back into your face. The third time it happened to Mark, he blamed me for leaving the drawer open. I told him the drawer wouldn’t stay closed, but he didn’t believe me.” She tried to tamp down the visceral memories from that bleak night. Her insides coiled with distress as she thought about how the alcohol had poisoned him, leaching away his decency until nothing could shield his anger.

“There’s a drawer missing under the sink.” Hale scratched his forehead. “Did that one cause the trouble?”

“Yes. He ripped it out during the argument.” Danielle crumpled the sheet in her fist, remembering how Mark had been drunk enough to take a swing at her and sober enough to regret the impulse. “After that, he slept in the living room.”