Kate Thomas - Baily's Irish Dream

Their meals came and for the next hour they satisfied their hunger and attempted not to further confuse the waiter. It was while they sipped their coffee after dinner that Daniel decided it was time to talk about what had happened back in the motel room.

“Listen, Red, we need to work a few things out.”

Baily’s eyes met his over the rim of her coffee cup, and instantly she knew what he referred to. His hazel eyes took on a deeper color and he lowered his voice. He hunched forward in his seat, creating a more intimate atmosphere. And if it were possible, although Baily didn’t see how it was, he made himself look sexier.

“Did I tell you about the history of this restaurant? It was named after a famous mountain man.” Baily simply couldn’t tell this man with a straight face that she wasn’t interested in him, which of course she had to say because she was going to become engaged to another man in a few short days.

“You’re avoiding the subject,” Daniel informed her. Ironic, since he was usually the one to avoid personal conversations. It was why he had never dated a woman for any longer than a couple months. There was only so much sex you could have and so many superficial conversations you could carry on. Once a woman started to talk about a future and family, Daniel bolted. He had no interest in becoming part of another family again. Not when he knew from experience that the pain suffered from the loss of a family could cripple a man. He’d protect Sarah, but that was where all of his family obligations ended. He couldn’t say that he ever broke any hearts. Most women never got to know him enough to like him very much, let alone love him.

Red was different. He wanted to talk about the intimate stuff with her. He wanted to talk about what they were going to do with this attraction they felt for one another. And it was mutual. Instinctively, Daniel knew that to be true.

“Did I tell you that this man was the first to cross the Sierra Nevadas? He was. He fought off Indians. He tackled bears. He charted new land. He….”

“…seduced virgins,” Daniel filled in, hoping to snare her attention.

“I don’t think he did that.”

“I do. It must be the air at this altitude,” Daniel quipped. Pushing ahead now that he had her attention, he continued. “So about what happened in the hotel earlier…”

“I’m engaged!” Baily shouted, which in turn caused the other diners to turn their heads in their direction.

In a lower tone, but no less menacing, Daniel insisted, “No you are not. Regardless, that doesn’t have anything to do with us.”

“Of course it does,” Baily replied, her tone equally soft.

“This is between you and me. Howard has nothing to do with us.”

“It’s Harry, and I hope you aren’t implying that I’m the type of woman who could promise one man that I was going to marry him and then sleep with another man days before I saw him again.” Just because that was exactly what Baily wanted to do didn’t mean that he could go around implying it. Besides, it didn’t matter what she wanted. She couldn’t betray Harry. It would be wrong. No, they weren’t married. No, they weren’t engaged. They had never even been lovers. Really they were just good friends.

But she had made up her mind that she was going to marry him, which meant that she had to be faithful to him starting now. Never mind that in her heart she had already been unfaithful to him. She wanted Daniel. Was it wrong to want someone when you were supposed to want someone else even though you didn’t really want the someone else? She thought so. It was hard to tell.

Sometimes, Baily confused herself.

“I did not imply anything,” Daniel countered irritably. In truth though, he had. He wanted Red, and he was annoyed now that he wasn’t going to get to have her because of some man that waited for her in New Jersey. A man, he could tell, she didn’t even want. “Why are you marrying this man?”

“I’ve already told you,” Baily said as she reminded him of their conversation earlier that day. That day! Had they only known each other less than twenty-four hours? It didn’t seem possible.

“Oh, yeah, now I remember. Security.” He might as well have said money for all the disdain in his voice.

“If I remember correctly, you agreed with me.”

Daniel shrugged his shoulders as if to pretend he couldn’t quite recall what he said on the matter. It had been a long day. Day. Had it only been one day?

“We both agree that love is nothing more than a fancy word for poems, songs and romantic stories,” Baily continued. “In real life it doesn’t happen the way people say it does. There are no sparks.” Well, there were a few between them it seemed. “There is no love at first sight.” Okay so maybe she’d been attracted to Daniel at first sight, but that wasn’t love. “And there is no ‘happily ever after.’”

And that was certainly true. Even if they did decide to pursue their mutual attraction it would only end in heartbreak. He was going to Seattle. She was going to be with her family in New Jersey. Certainly not a fairy-tale ending. Baily told herself to stop being depressed by that thought.

Daniel wondered what she was thinking that dimmed the sparkle that always seemed to glow in her eyes. He supposed it was her convincing argument that true love, magical love, didn’t exist. He wondered why that thought should depress him.

“Go home and marry Herbert. See if I care,” he said a bit nastily.

“That’s exactly what I’m going to do,” she returned haughtily. “Nothing is going to stop me.”

Please stop me. Please. Shut up, she told her conscience. She was doing the right thing. She had waited all her life for someone like Daniel. She had waited for someone handsome, smart and funny. Okay, so he was a little arrogant. And maybe he could fly off the handle from time to time. But probably only after trashing his car or getting his wallet lifted. A case could be made that he was overly protective of his sister, but that really couldn’t go down in the negative column. There was still the whole walnut issue. Frankly, she didn’t know if that one was surmountable. Not that she wanted to sur…mount him. But if she was considering him as a potential love interest, it was just possible that he might be the very sort she would fall for. For some unfathomable reason, she wanted to cry.

The meal was over, but Baily wasn’t ready to retire back to their small room where the beds practically touched. Instead she had a better idea for the evening’s entertainment. “How about a gunfight?”

“You’re not still on the room thing, are you?” he asked a little worriedly. Pistols at fifty paces over a motel room seemed drastic, but he didn’t put it past her.

“No, silly, it’s a tourist attraction. Like a reenactment of a real-life shoot-out. Two men face each other at dusk and stare down the barrel of a gun aimed at each other’s heart. Neither one knows if they’re going to live or die. It’s all very intense.” Baily’s face was flushed with excitement at the thought of actually being able to see a real-life gun battle. A real-life fake one, that is.

“And very dramatic,” Daniel added. “You’ve seen too many movies.”

“That’s the point! This will be like watching a movie only live.” Daniel knew he wouldn’t be able to squelch her enthusiasm so he didn’t try. Besides, watching her watch the gunfight would be like watching her watch Old Faithful. For that it would be worth the price of admission.

The two left the restaurant in search of the attraction. They didn’t need to walk far. The gunfight was held in the center of town, which, Baily insisted, was the only place to hold it.

Jackson Hole, despite its chic shops and expensive restaurants that catered to the skiers, still maintained an authentic Western atmosphere. All of the storefronts were faced in a dark wood and since the main street was framed by a large wooden boardwalk one could imagine horses tied to the posts out front. The effect was nineteenth-century Wyoming, and it attracted tourists during the summer as well as the winter season.