"Yes?"

Kate looked beyond the blonde inside the house. "Is Rob around?"

"Yes. He's around," she answered, but she didn't move. "Maybe I can help you?" There was a slight edge of hostility to her smooth voice.

"No. I don't think you can." Kate hadn't a clue who the woman was, but she was acting like she owned the place. "Who are you?"

"I'm Louisa."

Ah. The ex. "Yes. Rob has mentioned you." He didn't, however, mention that Louisa was gorgeous.

The kind of gorgeous usually found on the arm of a very rich man. He also didn't mention that she was going to be in Gospel for his birthday. The alarm bell ringing in Kate's brain got a bit louder, but she ignored it. Rob had divorced this perfect woman, and as Kate recalled, he'd said he'd loved her but never liked her. "I'm Kate Hamilton."

"Hmm." She tilted her head to one side, exposing one ear lobe decorated with a few shining carats. "Interesting that Rob's never mentioned you." Whoa. Kate hadn't been mistaken about the hostility. And as much as she hated to admit it, Louisa's barb nicked her somewhere in the area of her heart. "Why would he mention me to his ex-wife?" But why hadn't he mentioned her?

"Because Rob and I have been talking about a reconciliation. I think if you were an important part of his life, he would have mentioned you."

Okay, she felt a little more than an alarm bell in her head and a nick that time. But she told herself that Louisa was lying. She had to be. Rob wouldn't do that to her. She opened her mouth to respond, but Rob moved into the foyer from the kitchen. He wore a white tank and blue swim trunks and carried a little girl in a pink bikini and flip-flops. The little girl had her arm around Rob's neck, and Kate recognized her from her pictures scattered around Rob's house. When he looked beyond Louisa and saw Kate, his footsteps slowed. "Kate."

"Happy birthday." She held out the Tiffany box, loving him so much that her nicked heart swelled beneath her rhinestone bra. She was going to remain optimistic or die trying.

"Thank you." He set his daughter on her feet, then took the box. "Come in."

Optimism was one thing. Sitting around with Rob and his bitchy ex while rhinestones rode Kate's crack was another. "No. I didn't know you had company. I should have called."

"That would have been nice," Louisa said.

Rob looked at his ex and frowned. "You don't have to call first. Stay for dinner. I'm just about to fire up the barbeque."

If he was planning to reconcile, would he invite her to dinner? asked her newfound optimism. "No, thanks." But optimism only went so far. It didn't mean she was suddenly blind. "Louisa was just telling me that the two of you are planning to get married again."

"That's not true," he said, and Kate felt the pain in her chest recede. A deep furrow appeared between Rob's brows, and he patted his daughter on the head. "Go get your baby. She's on the couch." When Amelia took off, he turned his attention to his former wife. "Let it go."

Louisa looked up at him. Even her profile was perfect. "You told me you'd think about it."

"I did and the answer is still no."

"You really need to think harder about whether you want to throw away a chance at being a family again."

"Louisa, for God's sake!" he exploded. "Why do you always have to keep pushing at the same thing until I get pissed off? I'm not remarrying you. I'm not marrying anyone. Ever. Once was enough."

It took several long seconds for his words seeped into Kate's brain. When they did, she felt the direct hit, and she took a step back. Oh God. The pain shot up and slapped her. It was happening again. Dйjа vu. Different guy. Different naughty underwear. Same heartbreak.

"Sorry to interrupt your birthday." She turned in a blur of pain and confusion and walked away before she did something really embarrassing like burst into tears in front of that raving hag Louisa.

Rob caught up with her at the bottom of the step. "Kate. I swear I'm not getting back with Louisa. You don't have to leave."

"Yes. I do." She kept walking. She needed to get in her car. If she could just get into her car.

"I didn't even know she and the baby were coming until she called me from the airport in Sun Valley this morning."

"It doesn't matter." She reached for the door handle.

He put his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face him. "I'll call you tomorrow."

The backs of her eyes stung and she felt as if she were about to implode. She recognized the symptoms. She was going to fall apart, but not yet. Not until she was alone. "No. Don't call. I can't do this anymore. I thought I could, but I can't."

His brows wrinkled. "Can't do what?"

"I can't tell myself that the fantasy is enough. It's a lie." Her voice wavered, and she looked down at her feet. "No matter how many times I told myself that you'd hurt me, I've fallen in love with you."

After several heartbeats, he said, "I care about you."

She'd told him she loved him, and he'd said he cared about her. She guessed it was better than a "thank you." She looked up at him and blinked back tears.

"You care about me?"

"More than any other woman."

It wasn't enough. Not this time. "For how long? What's going to happen in a year from now? Two years from now? Five years from now? How much of my life do I give up for you? How many lies do I tell myself? How much longer until you decide we should date other people or just be friends or you've found someone else?"

"I don't know! For as long as it lasts."

She took a breath and let it out slowly. "That's not enough."

"What the hell is?"

"A man who will promise to love me forever."

He squeezed her arms. "Christ, are you talking about a wedding ring?" He shook his head. "That's crazy." Crazy. Anger mixed with heartbreak. "Let go of me."

His eyes narrowed and he dropped his hands. He stepped away from the car, and she yanked the door open and climbed inside before she started to cry in front of him. She shoved her key in the ignition and drove away. She glanced in her rearview mirror one last time and caught a glimpse of him walking up the steps before her vision blurred and she turned her attention to the road.

What was the matter with her? She'd told herself to stay away from Rob. She'd come to Gospel to try and figure out what was wrong with her, not to fall in love, heart and soul, with a man who could never fully commit to loving her as much as she loved him.

She pulled onto the highway. No, there was a difference now. The difference was that she was no longer willing to settle for less than she deserved. She loved Rob. More than she could remember loving any other man, but her grandfather was right. She was worth everything a man could give her. His heart. His soul. His promise to love her forever.

Rob took Louisa and Amelia to the airport the next morning. It had cost him a lot of money to get them on another chartered flight out, but he was afraid he was going to kill his ex-wife. And he really didn't want to do that. He didn't want to spend the rest of his life in jail and have Amelia raised by relatives.

But as angry as he was with Louisa, it didn't come close to what he was feeling for Kate. What the hell was wrong with her? Why had she messed everything up with talk of wanting more from him, wanting marriage? He'd thought she was different, but she wasn't.

He should have known better than to get involved with her. He'd learned the hard way that sex was never free. There was always a price. Kate's price was a wedding ring. He'd been forced into one bad marriage. He wouldn't be coerced into a second.

It was just never going to happen. She could just sit over in her store and bake bread and grow into an old maid for all he cared. He'd liked Kate. He'd told her the truth when he'd said he cared about her. He did care about her, but he was going to try and forget her.

No way was he going to let her make him crazy.

When he pulled the HUMMER to a stop at the back of Sutter Sports, Adam Taber was waiting for him. Rob opened the doors for business, and Adam followed him inside.

"Mr. Sutter," he said. "Wally can't make it today 'cause he got the chicken pox."

"That's okay. I don't have that much for you to do." Rob looked back at Adam over his shoulder and did a double take at the bag in the boy's hand. "What is that?" he asked and pointed to what looked a lot like granola.

"Granola."

"Where'd you get it?"

"At the M&S. The lady over there is making it."

"Kate? The lady with the red hair?"

"Yep. She gave it to me free 'cause she wants me to tell people it's really good. Then they come buy it."

She'd stolen his granola idea! "Adam," he said. "You're in charge of the store until Rose gets to work. I'll be back in a few minutes." He hit the front door with the heel of his hand and shoved his sunglasses on his face, so angry he didn't care that he'd left an eleven-year-old to run his store. He couldn't recall a time when he'd been so enraged. Yes, he could—last night, when Kate had told him she loved him, then, practically in the same breath, said it was over. His anger burned a hole in his stomach, and he clenched his teeth.

"Hi, Rob. Haven't seen you for a few days," Stanley said as Rob entered the M&S.

"Hello, Stanley." Rob took a breath and forced his jaw to unlock. He didn't want to take out his anger on his soon-to-be stepfather.

"Your mother should be here in a minute to talk about flowers at the wedding. It's coming right up, you know."