Free The Cowboy and the Lady by Diana Palmer Page B

said. “I’m doing to desert you and go to New York, okay?”
    “Sure. Have a good time. I’ll work on my sales pitch out by the pool,” he told her.
    “Just don’t fall in. He can’t swim,” she told the others with a laugh.
    “We can’t all be fish like you in the water,” came the teasing reply.
    “If you’re ready,” Duncan said, slipping into his brown suit coat.
    “More than,” Amanda told him.
    He studied her outfit carefully, and his eyes narrowed on the sweater. “Honey, there’s a lot of difference between Texas and New York, and we’ll be leaving after dark. Are you sure that sweater’s going to be enough on your arms?”
    Amanda nodded, too proud to admit that the only coat she owned was back in San Antonio, and that it wouldn’t have done for anything more than a trip to the neighborhood grocery.
    “I’ll loan you my spring coat,” Marguerite said easily, smiling. “You simply can’t pack coats, Duncan, they’re too bulky,” she added.
    Amanda blessed her for that, knowing the older woman had deliberately covered up for her.
    Marguerite came back with a lightweight gray coat, very stylish, and very expensive.
    “But I can’t…” Amanda protested.
    “Of course you can, dear. I have several more, and we’re about the same size. Here, try it on.”
    She helped Amanda into it, and it was a perfect fit. Her soft brown eyes said it all, and Marguerite only nodded.
    “Have fun, now, and don’t be too late. Which plane are you taking?”
    “The Cessna,” Duncan called back as they went out the front door. “Don’t keep supper for us—we’ll have it there.”
    The twin-engine plane made good time, and Duncan was a good pilot. Almost as good as Jace, and not quite as daring. Before Amanda knew it, they were landing in New York’s sprawling terminal, despite the wait to be sandwiched in between jumbo jets.
    Duncan hailed them a taxi with the flair of an experienced traveler and hustled Amanda inside. He gave the driver an address and leaned back with a sigh.
    “Now, this is the way to travel,” he told her. “No bags, no toothbrush, just leap on a plane and go.”
    She laughed, catching his exuberant mood. “Sure. Since we’ve come this far, let’s just go on to Martinique.”
    “Now, there was a fun island,” he replied, going back in time. “Remember when you and I flew down there with Uncle Macklin and forgot to tell Mother? I thought the end of the world was coming when they caught up with us. But we had fun, didn’t we?”
    “We certainly did,” she replied, turning her head against the seat to look at him. He was nothing like Jace. She liked his boyish face, his sparkling personality. If only she could have loved him.
    “I hate it when you do that,” he remarked, grinning.
    “Do what?” she asked softly.
    “Measure me against Jace. Oh, don’t both to deny it,” he said when she started to protest. “I’ve known you too long. Anyway, I don’t really mind. Jace is one of a kind. Most men would fall short of him by comparison.”
    She let her eyes drift to the moving meter. “Sorry. I wasn’t trying to be mean.”
    His hand found hers and squeezed it. “I know that. The joy of being with you, Mandy, is that I can be myself. I’m glad to have you for a friend.”
    She smiled at him. “Same here.”
    “Of course, it wasn’t always friendship,” he said, lifting a corner of his mouth. “I had a crush on you when you were about sixteen. You didn’t even notice—you were too busy trying to keep out of Jace’s way. I was terribly jealous, you know.”
    “Did you, really?” she asked. “Duncan, I’m so sorry…!” Maybe that explained the lie he’d told Jace about her reason for inviting him to the long-ago birthday party.
    “Just a crush, darling, and I got over it fast. I’m glad I did. It was never there for you, was it?” he asked, more serious than she’d ever seen him.
    “No,” she said honestly. “It never was.”
    “If I can help,