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piper so to speak before she could have her freedom. He’d let her go, eventually. He had to, but that didn’t mean he had to make it easy for her. No sir, he’d let her go all right, but this time when she walked away, she would know exactly what she was giving up.

Chapter Four
    Bright morning sunlight cut through Shelby’s sleep like a white-hot knife. She groaned and rolled over, pulling the pillow to cover her face and block out the brutal sun.
    Two heartbeats later she remembered why her head hurt so bad and why her stomach pitched. She would like to blame all her problems on the wine she’d drunk the night before. More than half had to do with Ritt.
    Why had she thought it a good idea to kiss him? Well, she hadn’t really thought, she’d just done. Now she regretted throwing herself at his feet. It might not have hurt so much if he hadn’t turned her down.
    But even as the thought crossed her mind, she knew it was for the best.
    With another groan, she rose from the bed. No time like now to face the music and find Ritt. She pulled on her Kmart robe and padded into the kitchen.
    She was spared having to come up with a logical explanation for her amorous intent last night because Ritt was gone. In his place was a quickly scribbled note.
    Gone fishing.
    Naturally.
    There was nothing more important right now than sitting on the lakeshore with a pole in the water. Certainly not signing divorce papers so she could get on with her life.
    Shelby growled and crumpled the paper into a tight ball. She pitched it in the trash and grabbed a granola bar from the cookie jar.
    She should have expected as much, she thought as she ate. Classic Ritt. Not one care about anything other than fishing and baseball. How did he support himself? Certainly not with a part-time job at the bait shop. He still lived with his parents for pity’s sake!
    And speaking of parents, she should call her mother right now. The earlier the better. Maybe today Shelby could catch her before she left the house.
    She dug her cell phone out of her purse. Dead, of course. “Grrr…” She’d have to go into town and get a new charger today. Damn Ritt’s stubborn streak. It was costing her a fortune. She tossed her phone back into her purse with a frustrated sigh.
    “What’s wrong?”
    At the sound of his voice, Shelby nearly jumped out of her skin. She pressed a hand to her heart and turned to face him. “Ritt! You scared me half to death.”
    He raised one dark brow. “Obviously.”
    “I thought you were fishing.”
    “It’s nearly ten. They stop biting when the sun gets up.”
    If there was one thing she knew, it was that Ritt could stay at the lake all day without any problems. “You don’t trust me in your house.”
    He shrugged. “Can you blame me?”
    She supposed not. After all, she had set fire to his kitchen yesterday.
    “Having a good morning?” Why was he standing so close to her? She moved a step back and shrugged. “I was going to try calling Mom again.”
    “This is really bothering you, huh?”
    Shelby tossed back her hair. “Naturally. You are accusing my mother of…of…” What exactly was he accusing Stormy of? “I’d like to call her and get this straightened out as soon as possible. Where’s the phone?”
    She tried to escape him again, those magnetic eyes and alluring…everything else.
    The phone base was on the desk right inside the living room, but the receiver was not on it. She looked around, moving a packet of papers and a newspaper clipping in her search.
    Then Ritt was there, edging her away and finding the phone among the mess. Like there was something on the desk he didn’t want her to see.
    Phone in hand, she glanced down at the stacks of papers. Electric bill, junk mail, bank statements.
    Ritt grasped her arm and pulled her back into the kitchen.
    She glanced over her shoulder. “Why, Ritt…are you hiding something from me?”
    For the merest moment he looked…guilty, then his expression reverted