CHAPTER 1

Reena downs her vodka, then orders another before the wine glass reaches my lips.

Since I am an attorney and Reena’s opened the door, I’m surprised how casual “Okay then, how is Paul?” sounds when my heart is fluttering so.

“Oh, dear.” Her voice drips with sympathy. “I thought you’d be over him by now.”

That’s a gut-shot. I know I should pay attention to the growing lump in my stomach, but I don’t. Instead I flash my most nonchalant expression. “It was a summer romance. Nothing more.”

She’s not quite buying, so I quickly change the subject. “What’s the graveyard?”

Reena lowers her voice as her eyes soften and brim once again. “There’s another woman. It’s just a matter of time until Paul asks me for a divorce.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” It’s a lie, but what the hell? I don’t owe Reena a thing. Besides, it’s pure pleasure to see her in pain. “But, if Paul’s wells are still pumping, you should come out of this marriage a very wealthy lady.”

Reena crumples. “He made me sign a pre-nup before we eloped.” Between sobs she blubbers, “He canceled my Visa and Amex cards after the December bills. Now, I have to beg him for spending money. The only thing in my name is the title to my little red Mercedes.”

I want to tell her she could probably break the agreement if she got a good lawyer. Instead, I find myself wallowing in the first real satisfaction I’ve felt in years.

I take a small sip of wine. “So, why don’t you fill me in on your terrible existence.”

Reena gives me a penetrating stare, then nods. “Okay, okay. So Paul didn’t quite turn out to be the husband I thought he’d be. The minute we got back from the honeymoon he was out of bed before dawn and away all day, busy with the cattle and the oil. On top of that, he hunted every damn weekend from September through February.”

She sighs. “When Paul wasn’t away hunting with someone on their property, he invited the men and their wives to hunt on the Anacacho. At first, it was fun being the hostess with the mostest, but after seven years of those long evenings, and Paul’s latest . . .” She must think better of her next words because she shakes her head. “Let’s just say it’s turned into the marriage from hell.”

Reena downs her second drink. “The weekends are bad enough, but for the last ten months, Paul has been spending most of the work week in Laredo. Says it’s oil or an ‘urgent bank matter.’ But I know better.”

Laredo? That’s a new twist. Paul always did business in San Antonio, boasting his was the third generation to do business with the venerable Frost Bank.

I offer a sympathetic, “Maybe you’re imagining things.”

She grabs my hand. “Come back to the ranch with me. See for yourself.” She squeezes hard. “I’ve never begged before in my life, Allie, but I’m begging now. Please?”

Go with her? After what she did? Then I see her pain, and realize she must be desperate. Why else would she want to see me after all these years? Am I the only one left she can trust?

Allie-the-attorney kicks in. Get real. For as long as you’ve known her, Reena has never played it straight. She wants something.

But what? I silently damn my inborn curiosity, pick up the menu, and study it a moment before saying, “Let me think it over while we have a bite. After all, you said you were buying.”

Reena nods and pastes the “Double F” smile on her face. She’s got me and she knows it.