The ridiculous idea now seemed like the only solution. “I can’t believe I’m considering this.”
“You are?” He sounded shocked.
“I like progress, but getting rid of farming would be like taking the soul out of our community. It’s our history and heritage.”
“So, what are you saying?”
I turned to him. “I’ll do it. I’ll accept your fake proposal and fake marriage.”
A flash of annoyance appeared in his eyes, but then quickly dissipated. I wondered what it was about. I was agreeing with the ridiculous plan.
“Good. I brought you this.” He pulled a ring from his pocket. “I guess that makes it fake official.”
I looked up at him in surprise. “You bought a ring?”
“It’s my grandmother’s.”
Oh Christ, I couldn’t accept that. “Wyatt, I can’t take that.”
“I get that this is fake, but it needs to look real, Sinclair. And by real, I mean you and your daughter come to live at the farm.”
Oh jeez, I hadn’t thought about that either. All of a sudden, I felt like I made a mistake. I shook my head.
“I’m not my father, Sinclair,” his voice was tight. “I won’t hurt her or you.”
I whipped around, not liking that he thought I’d think he might abuse her like his father did him. “I’m not worried about that.”
“What’s the problem then?” He shoved his hands in his pockets and stiffened as if bracing for something negative.
“I just don’t want Alyssa to be uprooted and her life turned upside down by this.”
“Alyssa. That’s a pretty name.” He relaxed slightly. “Consider it a vacation or retreat. It’s summer, right?”
I nodded as I reworked all the reasoning about this fake marriage again, and the concerns about what would happen if Alyssa and Wyatt grew close, and then the guilt at thinking that would be a bad thing.
“I’ll do it, but this is a fake marriage. It only lasts until Stark is dealt with and then we get it annulled and go back to our lives.”
He flinched. “Annulled. I think that means-”
“It means to the outside world we’re married, but in the privacy of home, we’re not acting married.”
He looked disappointed, and saying it was hard. But I needed to be clear that this was an arrangement.
“Was it that bad the other night? Because personally, I thought it was spectacular. Better than I’d remembered.”
I rolled my eyes. “It was lovely, Wyatt. But what we’re talking about here is an arrangement.
He cocked his head to the side. “Are you still mad about my leaving? I explained all that-”
“It doesn’t have anything to do with that.” I paused to try and figure out the best way to explain it. “If it was just me, I might be more cavalier about this, but I have Alyssa to think about. I need the boundaries clear for us all. It’s bad enough I’m going to uproot her, I don’t want her getting an idea that this is a real family.”
Pain flared in his eyes. It made my guilt even worse, because the truth was, we were a family.
“I understand.” He held out his hand. “A marriage of convenience until Stark is run out of town.”
I looked at his extended hand and then took it in mine to shake. “Deal.”
He handed me the ring. “This will make it look real in the world. I get that it’s fake, Sinclair, but for this to work, it has to look real.”
“Sinclair?”
I turned to see my mother calling me by the house.
“I’ll be there in a minute, Mom.”
“Is that Wyatt Jones with you?”
“Yes, Mom.”
“Well tell him to come join us for supper. It’s on the table getting cold.”
I looked up at him.
He grinned. “You don’t want me to stay, do you?”
“It’s complicated.”
“We’re getting married, Sinclair. Perhaps it’s time they got to know me again since I’ll be their fake son-in-law. And maybe you’ll feel better about me being a fake step-father if your daughter got to know me.”
I swallowed hard, because step-father wasn’t right.
“Okay. You can join us, but nothing about a marriage, fake or otherwise. I need time to figure out the best way to explain this.”
He held his hands up in surrender. “I’ll behave, I promise.”
I shook my head, but smiled in amusement.
We walked back to the house together.
“Mrs. Simms, it’s so good to see you,” Wyatt said as my mother hugged him.
“My, Wyatt, you’re a fierce-looking man now. And handsome too,” my mother said with a glance to me.
Wyatt looked at me with his eyebrows up as if to say, your mom likes me.
Inside the house, Wyatt’s manners and charm continued as he shook my father’s hand.
“What brings you out here this evening?” my father asked.
“I had some business with the deputy mayor.”
At least he was keeping up the charade.
“Alyssa, this Wyatt Jones. He was a friend of uncle Ryder’s when we were growing up.”
“You’re the one that ran off to join the soldiers.”
Wyatt looked at me and then her. “Yes, I did. But now I’m running a cattle ranch.”
“Do you have horses?” she asked as we all sat at the table.
“I do. I have several. They help us do our work with the cattle.” He took an ear of corn from the platter my mother held for him. “Do you ride?”
“No.” She gave me a pursed-lip glare. “I want to but my mom says no.”
“Why? Your mom rode all the time growing up.”
I closed my eyes and waited for Alyssa’s wrath.
“What! You got to ride but I can’t? That’s not fair.”
I glared at Wyatt. “I got to ride a few times when Ryder and Wyatt would let me tag along. You don’t have a friend to ride with like that. And we can’t have a horse here.”
“Jasper said his daughter Julie had been offering lessons.”
I was about to throw my water on him if he kept making this hard.
“But she’s moved away,” I said tightly.
“I’ll tell you what,” Wyatt said leaning conspiratorially toward Alyssa. “You can come ride at my place. I’ll teach you.”
“Really?” Alyssa looked up
