Perrie forced a smile and turned her attention to the crowd. What other choice did she have? It was clear that she couldn't stay in Alaska. She had a successful career waiting for her in Seattle. Besides, she'd been told over and over again that Joe Brennan was not the type to seek a permanent relationship. And neither was she. Even if she wanted to love him, she wouldn't let herself.
Whatever had begun between them would have to end on the day she left Muleshoe. They could continue this little dance of theirs, maybe even make love, but sooner or later she would say goodbye. And knowing Joe Brennan, he'd move on to the next available woman.
The thought of Joe with another woman brought her own twinges of jealousy, but she pushed them aside. Falling in love with him would be nothing but disastrous. And allowing herself any regrets about what they might or might not do would only add to the mess. She could make love to Joe Brennan and then leave him. She could and she would.
'Do you think I can win the wood-splitting competition?' Perrie asked, anxious to put their conversation back on a more benign track.
'Sweetheart, I think you could do just about anything you set your mind to.'
Perrie bit back a curse. Every time she thought she'd figured Joe Brennan out, he would say something that made her lose all her resolve. How the hell was she supposed to keep herself from loving him when he called her sweetheart and told her he loved her writing and touched her until her blood felt like liquid fire?
They drank hot chocolate and waited as the rest of the brides finished the dogsled race. As Joe predicted, she came out the winner and currently led in the point total. But it was plain to see that three other competitors had a distinct advantage over her in the ax-wielding department-mainly due to biceps the size of tree trunks.
When the wood-splitting competition was ready to begin, Joe accompanied her to her spot, then gave her a quick peck on the cheek, causing a major reaction with the crowd.
'We can see you got yer bride all picked out, Brennan!' someone shouted. 'That legend is at work again!'
Perrie could only force a smile as a flush of embarrassment warmed her face. But Joe merely laughed and waved at them, taking the teasing with his usual good nature.
'Don't hurry,' he said. 'Just do your best.'
'I'm never going to win. Look at those women! They could bench-press a Buick.'
'Yeah, but you're much prettier, sweetheart. In fact, if they had a 'pretty' competition, you'd win hands down.' With that, he turned and left her to stand in front of the crowd with the other seven single women. A tiny smile touched her lips and she picked up the ax and hefted it up to her shoulder.
She'd have three minutes to split as much wood as she could. And the rest of the day to savor the fact that Joe thought she was pretty.
The whistle sounded and she carefully set a log on end and raised the ax. Her aim was true and the wood cracked. A few more raps with the ax and one log became two and she repeated the process. Three minutes seemed like three hours, and before long, she could barely lift the ax, much less hit the log. Her arms burned and her back ached, and finally, when she thought she might just fall over from the pain, the whistle sounded again.
The crowd erupted in cheers and she collapsed on top of the woodpile. She watched as the judges worked their way down the line, counting the number of logs split When they reached her, she rolled off the pile of logs and rubbed her sore arms.
In the end, one of the Alaskan Amazons won the wood-chopping contest. She wearily pushed to her feet and began to scan the crowd for Joe, when the judges returned to her spot and placed a huge medallion around her neck. At first, she wasn't sure what it all meant, and Joe added to her confusion when he grabbed her and spun her around.
'You won, Kincaid!'
'I placed fourth,' Perrie gasped, grabbing hold of his arms.
'No, you won. The whole thing. You had the most points.'
Perrie gasped. 'I won?'
Ed Bert Jarvis shuffled over and pushed an envelope under her nose. 'Here's yer prize, missy. Congratulations.'
Perrie squirmed out of Joe's arms and snatched the envelope from the old prospector's hand. 'I won the trip to Cooper?'
'You did.'
Perrie screamed and waved the envelope at Joe. 'I won, I won. I'm going to Cooper!' She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him hard. Then she looked up at him. His blue eyes darkened slightly before he brought his mouth down on hers.
He kissed her long and hard and deep. The crowd screamed its approval, but this time Perrie wasn't embarrassed at all. She tipped her head back and laughed. She'd conquered the wilderness and she'd proved to Joe Brennan that she could handle anything Alaska tossed her way. She was going to Cooper. In no time, she'd be back in Seattle.
The only problem was that she didn't want to leave Alaska. There was one more thing she needed to conquer… and he was kissing her at this very moment.
Doyle's was packed when they arrived. Music blared from the jukebox, mixing with the chatter of the crowd. Joe held tight to her hand as he led her through the press of people. He hadn't let go of her hand since he'd kissed her in front of the entire town. Odd, how they'd suddenly become an item. Everyone now looked at them differently, as if they belonged together.
Did people believe they were already lovers? Did they think he might actually be in love with her? Or did they all mink that she was just another one of Joe Brennan's conquests? She shouldn't care what anyone thought, but she did.
As they made their way through the room, she had to stop time and time again while the townsfolk congratulated her on her win. Finally, when she met up with the brides, Joe disentangled their fingers and continued walking toward the bar.
'He looks positively besotted,' Allison said, envy filling her voice. 'I don't know how you do it. You weren't even looking for a man when you came here and you end up snagging the cutest bachelor in town.'
'I haven't snagged him,' Perrie said, uncomfortable with the notion. It wasn't as if she wanted to marry him… although the thought might have crossed her mind once or twice.
Didn't every woman think about marriage, about a husband and children at least once in her life? So what was it about Joe that summoned such ridiculous thoughts? She'd dated men much more suitable-stable, trustworthy men with good careers and monogamous personalities.
Boring men, she thought to herself. Safe men. That was one characteristic that she could never apply to Joe Brennan. He was the most dangerous man she'd ever met. Maybe that's what she found so alluring, the danger that he might just break her heart. She'd been throwing herself in harm's way her entire career, and now she'd moved the danger from her professional life to her personal life.
'Well, you sure proved you fit in up here,' Linda said, giving her a hug. 'I can't believe you won the dog-sled race. I fell off three times. And Mary Ellen didn't even get on. The sled ran off without her.'
'I had good training,' Perrie said, glancing over at Joe and Hawk as they leaned against the bar. She distractedly listened to the brides' conversation, adding a comment here and there to appear interested. But all she was really thinking about was how long it would take before she and Joe were alone.
She caught his eye and gave him a little wave. With a grin, Joe turned to take a bottle from the bar, then made his way back to her. When he finally stood by her side, he wove his fingers through hers. The contact made her heart skip and start again.
'Come on,' he said, leaning close. 'There's an empty table over there.'
He nodded to the brides, then led her away. When they reached a table in a dark corner, he pulled out her chair with unexpected gallantry, then produced a bottle of champagne from behind his back. Two wineglasses appeared from his jacket pockets and he placed them on the center of the table.
'Champagne?' she asked as she tugged off her jacket.
'We're celebrating,' he said, sitting down across from her and tossing his own jacket across the back of a chair. He worked at the cork for a moment, then it popped off, champagne bubbling out of the bottle. 'It's not
