Free Memories of You by Margot Dalton

her somewhere before. There’s something familiar about her, but I can’t put my finger on it.”
    Vanessa looked at her father with sudden interest. “Did you meet her somewhere around here?”
    “I don’t think so. I have the feeling it was a long time ago, but I can’t remember where.”
    “Well, she certainly didn’t grow up on the prairies.” Vanessa added a packet of artificial sweetener to her coffee. “She just moved to Calgary a few years ago.
    “Where did she come from?” Ari asked.
    “I think she got her degree at Montreal and did graduate work at Harvard.” Vanessa was. clearly pleased to be the center of attention. “She’s an American, you know. Her family is one of the wealthiest in the country, but she never talks about them. She grew up in Massachusetts and dated one of the Kennedy boys. And she was also a world-class equestrienne. I think she rode in the Olympics in Seoul.”
    Jon gave his daughter a skeptical glance. “Who told you all this, Van?”
    “Everybody knows. There are tons of stories about Dr. Pritchard.” Vanessa sighed again. “She’s so classy. I’d just love to meet her. I think she’s fabulous.”
    Jon sipped his coffee thoughtfully. He thought of Camilla Pritchard’s elegant, fine-boned face, her aloofness and academic discipline. Had she really dated a Kennedy and ridden in the Olympics, or was that just campus gossip?
    If the rumors were true, perhaps they explained why the woman seemed so hard to approach. She probably had no time for a man who dressed in blue jeans and helped the cowhands with chores around his ranch. No doubt she’d find Jon Campbell’s lifestyle far too primitive for her tastes.
    “Do you like her?” Ari asked.
    Jon looked at his son in surprise.
    “Camilla. Do you like her, Daddy?”
    “Yes,” Jon said after a brief hesitation. “Yes, Ari. I like her.”
    “Do you think you’d want to marry her?” the little boy asked.
    Vanessa hooted with laughter. “Marry Dr. Pritchard!” she jeered. “Can you imagine her living with us at the ranch and putting on rubber boots to go and help feed the calves? I’ll bet she’d just be really tickled with all that.”
    Jon quelled the girl with a stern glance and turned to Ari, who was waiting for an answer.
    “Why are you asking me about this, son?”
    “I just wondered, that’s all. She’s a really nice, pretty lady and you like her, so wouldn’t you want to marry her?”
    Jon thought about that slim body, the smooth blondhead and remote look, and the sudden, surprising glow of warmth when she smiled at Enrique Valeros.
    “Well, now, I just might consider it,” he told the child solemnly. “Matter of fact, if I were planning to get married again, which I’m definitely not, then yes, I think a lady like Dr. Pritchard could probably be a serious candidate.”
    Ari scrambled up eagerly to kneel on the chair and lean across the table toward his father. “So will you ask her?” he said.
    Jon chuckled. “No, son. I won’t be asking her anytime soon. Look, I haven’t even had a chance to talk with her. I’m hardly ready to propose marriage.”
    “Why not?”
    “Marrying somebody isn’t the same as buying her a cup of coffee, Ari. Why?” he asked suddenly. “Do you like her a lot, son?”
    Ari squirmed uneasily on the chair and exchanged a glance with Amy, then took a sip of milk. “She’s nice,” he said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “She has two cats named Elton and Madonna. Elton’s really funny.”
    Amy nodded in agreement. “We like her a lot. She gave us cookies yesterday.”
    “Camilla was wearing blue jeans,” Ari volunteered. “And a Calgary Stampeders football shirt. She really likes to watch football games.”
    “She wears jeans and likes football,” Jon echoed, trying to adjust his mental image of the woman. “What else does she like to do? Did you—”
    “Hey, Ari, what’s her house like?” Vanessa interrupted,breathless with interest.