Heartbreaker by Linda Howard

Sumner,” he murmured, noting the diamond-studded wedding band on her left hand. “Would you like to join us?”
    â€œOnly for a moment,” Bitsy sighed, slipping into the chair he held out. “My husband and I are here with some business associates and their wives. He says it’s good business to socialize with them occasionally, so we flew in this morning. Michelle, dear, I haven’t seen you in so long! What are you doing on this side of the state?”
    â€œI live north of here,” Michelle replied.
    â€œYou must come visit. Someone mentioned just the other day that it had been forever since we’d seen you! We had the most fantastic party at Howard Cassa’s villa last month; you should have come.”
    â€œI have too much work to do, but thank you for the invitation.” She managed to smile at Bitsy, but she understood that Bitsy hadn’t been inviting her to visit them personally; it was just something that people said, and probably her old acquaintances were curious about why she had left their circle.
    Bitsy shrugged elegantly. “Oh, work, schmurk. Let someone else take care of it for a month or so. You need to have some fun! Come to town, and bring Mr. Rafferty with you.” Bitsy’s gaze slid back to John, and that unconsciously hungry look crawled into her eyes again. “You’d enjoy it, Mr. Rafferty, I promise. Everyone needs a break from work occasionally, don’t you think?”
    His brows lifted. “Occasionally.”
    â€œWhat sort of business are you in?”
    â€œCattle. My ranch adjoins Michelle’s.”
    â€œOh, a rancher !”
    Michelle could tell by Bitsy’s fatuous smile that the other woman was lost in the romantic images of cowboys and horses that so many people associated with ranching, ignoring or simply not imagining the backbreaking hard work that went into building a successful ranch. Or maybe it was the rancher instead of the ranch that made Bitsy look so enraptured. She was looking at John as if she could eat him alive. Michelle put her hands in her lap to hide them because she had to clench her fists in order to resist slapping Bitsy so hard she’d never even think of looking at John Rafferty again.
    Fortunately good manners drove Bitsy back to her own table after a few moments. John watched her sway through the tangle of tables, then looked at Michelle with amusement in his eyes. “Who in hell would call a grown woman Bitsy ?”
    It was hard not to share his amusement. “I think her real name is Elizabeth, so Bitsy is fairly reasonable as a nickname. Of course, she was the ultimate preppy in college, so it fits.”
    â€œI thought it might be an indication of her brain power,” he said caustically; then the waiter approached to take their orders, and John turned his attention to the menu.
    Michelle could only be grateful that Bitsy hadn’t been able to remain with them. The woman was one of the worst gossips she’d ever met, and she didn’t feel up to hearing the latest dirt on every acquaintance they had in common. Bitsy’s particular circle of friends were rootless and a little savage in their pursuit of entertainment, and Michelle had always made an effort to keep her distance from them. It hadn’t always been possible, but at least she had never been drawn into the center of the crowd.
    After lunch John asked if she would mind waiting while he contacted one of his business associates. She started to protest, then remembered that his men were taking care of the cattle today; she had no reason to hurry back, and, in truth, she could use the day off. The physical strain had been telling on her. Besides, this was the most time she’d ever spent in his company, and she was loathe to see the day end. They weren’t arguing, and if she ignored his arrogant certainty that they were going to sleep together, the day had really been rather calm. “I