This was so typical of Amanda. She was getting to rub Marian's nose in the fact that men always preferred her. She was also getting to scandalize Kathleen, which was part of her current agenda. And she would let Chad know how little he mattered in the scheme of things. She wasn't done showing him the consequences of straying from the path of worshiping her. No, Marian didn't doubt that at all.

She felt sick to her stomach. She might have wanted to shoot Chad herself, but she wouldn't have wished Amanda's vindictiveness on him. And it was pointless for her to speak up with the truth. Amanda would call her a liar, so would Chad for that matter, since he'd been so sure which woman he'd made love to.

Amanda was only half-dressed. Marian hadn't noticed right off that her sister was making yet another visual statement about the heat. She was without her camisole and probably her bloomers, too, to go by the slimness of her skirt. And her blouse was unbuttoned down the front beyond decency. It was thin enough to show the shadow of her nipples beneath it, not that the deep V of her blouse wasn't close to showing them off even more. She'd probably come downstairs to shock them with her attire, but with Chad there, she'd found better ammo to use. Marian hoped Kathleen would realize this was just another performance for her benefit, but a glance at her aunt showed she was only just recovering from her initial shock and was blushing again because of Amanda's state of undress.

"We'll discuss your—activities, after you get dressed," Kathleen said sternly.

Amanda raised a golden brow at her and leaned back lazily against the doorframe. "I am dressed, as much as I can tolerate in this heat. Besides, a marriage blessing is all that's required of you, Aunt Kathleen," she added with a tight little smile. "My behavior and the way I dress don't fall under your sphere of influence, so don't think you have anything to say about what I do. I'm only here because there is money involved."

"You're here because your father elected to make me your guardian."

"If you haven't noticed, I'm not a child who needs a guardian."

"Then you might want to stop acting like one. Or is this your way of drawing my attention to the fact that you've made your choice about whom you want to marry?"

"Choice? You mean the cowboy here?" Amanda turned her gaze on Chad. "You didn't have marriage in mind this morning, now did you, darlin'?"

Chad was blushing again, probably because Kathleen was frowning at him. "I can explain, Red. It was a riding lesson that got out of hand."

"A riding lesson?" Amanda smirked. "That's a rather crude way of putting it."

Chad ignored the interruption, even though more color in his cheeks said he'd heard it clearly. But it was Kathleen he addressed, assuring her, "I'll take full responsibility for my actions."

Kathleen sighed at that point. "I know you will, never doubted it for a moment. I'm just sorry you have to in this case."

Amanda had been about to decline any further involvement with Chad. Marian was sure of it. She had set up the scene for one of her nasty set-downs, would want to punish Chad for straying from the path of worshiping only her, and he'd obliged her, had left himself wide open to get his self-esteem demolished. But Kathleen's sympathy for him had her changing her mind—for the moment.

Marian often wished she didn't know the way her sister's mind worked, but she did. Amanda had just been given the means to prolong the agony—for all of them. If Kathleen didn't really want Chad to marry Amanda, as her last remark suggested, then Amanda would suddenly find it worth considering, at least temporarily, until a better option presented itself. Plus, she'd have the bonus of knowing it would hurt Marian the most.

Amanda yawned to show her boredom with the subject, even waved her hand for emphasis, and said, "I'll think about it."

"Appears you already did," Kathleen pointed out bluntly.

Amanda merely laughed and strolled toward the stairs. She'd done what she set out to do and would now go gloat over it in private.

The silence that remained at the table was painful. Marian couldn't bear to be a part of it for long, and with a mumbled, "Excuse me," left the room as well.

She got out right before the tears started. So silly of her to let one of Amanda's scenes upset her. She should know better. Actually, this time it wasn't really Amanda's fault. She'd just done what she always did, stir the pot to boiling. What really bothered her was knowing that Chad was a part of it this time, and even further out of her reach than ever.

Being shot would have been a kinder fate for him than ending up with Amanda for a wife.

Chapter 32

CHAD FELT LIKE A child caught with his hand in the forbidden cookie jar. His embarrassment was still acute, even though it was now just him and Red left in the dining room. But she was shaking her head at him, wearing a look that said "you disappoint me, boy." And he couldn't blame her. It was her niece he'd trifled with. That was a clear betrayal of trust.

He'd yet to examine the full ramifications of what had just happened and was still somewhat in shock. He was going to have to marry—the wrong woman. How the hell could he have been so wrong?

"You should have gotten to know her better, before you—decided to marry her."

The disappointment was still strong in Red's tone. Chad nodded. "Don't be surprised if I agree with you one hundred percent."

"Then why didn't you wait before doing something so irreversible?"

"I'm not sure I had much choice in the matter. Oh, I could have got the hell out of there, but, I'm beginning to feel set up, as if she planned the whole thing."

"Then it wasn't your idea to make a bed in the hay with her?"

He'd thought he was done with blushing, but his cheeks started to heat up again. "It certainly wasn't the reason I came back here this morning. I found her in the stable, started the riding lesson you asked me to—"

"Wait a minute, I didn't ask you to teach her to ride," Kathleen cut in.

"That's just it, it wasn't Amanda, well, it was, obviously, but she'd made herself up to look just like Marian. And she was acting just like Marian. She was even willing to learn to ride, when I know she doesn't like horses—which probably was what convinced me the woman I was dealing with was Marian. So I guess my eyesight as well as my good sense went to hell."

"Well, they are twins. I suppose it would be easy enough for one to masquerade as the other and pull it off," Kathleen conceded.

His lips twisted sourly. "The thing is, I was damn sure it was Marian in the stable this morning. There might have been a brief moment when I had some doubt. Her boldness threw me off, and I asked if she were Amanda."

"I take it she didn't confirm or deny it?"

"No, she got mad about it actually. I thought it was because I called her Amanda, but it was probably because I saw through her ploy for a moment."

Kathleen sighed. "So you did seduce the right sister; at least, you thought you did."

"Red, I don't hide from my own mistakes, but I have to tell you, I didn't do the seducing. She was like a cat in heat, giving off all the signs that she wanted me. Considering what I thought, I didn't try very hard to resist. I'll admit that. And I'm not denying responsibility, either. I could have dredged up enough willpower to get the hell out of there. I didn't. But I didn't start it."

"This makes it much worse, you know."

"You don't know the half of it. I don't even like Amanda. I ignored all her bad traits, chalked them up to the trip, was sure once she settled in here that she'd be a lot different. I was attracted to her, yes, very much so. She is damn beautiful, after all. But I was holding off letting her know that until she got here, since her attitude on the trip was entirely too bratty for my tastes. I really thought she'd change though, not get worse."

"I hate to say this, since she is my niece, but from all accounts, what you've seen so far isn't going to improve any. My brother spoiled her beyond redemption."

"But not Marian?"

"No, Amanda was his favorite," Kathleen said. "Marian he ignored completely."

"Is that why she tries to go through life unnoticed? From habit?"

"No, I think it has to do with Amanda's being jealous of her. She started to explain it to me, but we got sidetracked, talking about my brother."

Chad frowned in thought. "Come to think of it, I may have gotten the explanation the night before we got here. I had to drag it out of her, and then I plain out didn't buy it, considering she's about as spinsterish in her looks as she can be."

"You gonna tell me why Marian goes to such lengths to avoid her sister's jealousy?"

He snorted over Kathleens impatience. "I was getting to it. It was her contention that Amanda could get so jealous, that if she thought Marian fancied a man, she'd turn on the charm and try to steal him away from her, just for spite."

"Just for spite? You mean not to keep?"

Chad went very still, then swore, "Son of a bitch. You think that could be what this morning was all about?"

"Was she a virgin?"

Once again, he blushed. "Yes."

"Then no, I can't see her going to that length just for spite."

"What about her behavior tonight? She didn't exactly give the impression that she wants to marry me. It does kind of fit, Red."

Kathleen shook her head at him. "If she'd already lost her innocence somewhere else, I might agree. But she could have accomplished the objective of redirecting your affections to herself without going to that extreme. And besides, she was pretending to be Marian. If she wanted to charm you, she'd do it as herself."