A Bride for Jericho Bravo. Christine Rimmer

were through. She had proudly refused him, which had seemed really noble at the time—but was actually kind of stupid, when you got right down to it. Bottom line, she was on her own with five hundred dollars in her checking account. She had two years of junior college and a hodgepodge of subsistence-level work experience to recommend her to a prospective employer.

      But she could get crazy all over again if she started dwelling on her chances of finding a decent job with her minimal skills in a not-so-great economy. She closed her eyes and let her body float in the cooling bathwater and tried to turn her wayward mind to soothing things.

      For some reason, her thoughts drifted to Jericho. She could see him now, behind the dark screen of her shuttered eyelids, in the hard glare of the Mercedes’ headlights, when he caught up with her on his bike.

      He’d held out his arms to her.

      It was the last thing she’d expected him to do.

      But he had done it.

      And somehow, that moment—when his big, tattooed arms closed around her—that was the turning point. That was when she knew: in time, she was going to be all right.

      The world had simple kindness in it after all. How strange that a big, scary biker guy like Jericho Bravo had ended up being the one to make her see that.

       Chapter Three

      “Are you sure you don’t mind if I stay a few weeks?” Marnie asked the next day.

      It was after nine and Ash had gone to work. Marnie and Tessa were sitting at the table in the kitchen, the morning sun pouring in through the glass panes of the French doors, Tessa with a cup of herbal tea and Marnie with her third mug of coffee. Mona Lou, the bulldog, was curled up in her doggy bed nearby.

      Tessa said, “The guesthouse is yours for as long as you want it. And Ash and I discussed it some more, last night after you left and we—”

      “Don’t tell me. He said he wished I would go away and never come back, but since he’d told me I could stay, he felt honor-bound to stick by his word.”

      “Oh, stop. He said no such thing. Now, will you let me finish?”

      “Sorry. Go ahead.”

      “Well, we were talking about your situation and we got to discussing the money thing.”

      Marnie shrugged. “You want me to pay rent? That’s reasonable.”

      Tessa set her cup in the saucer with a sharp clink. “Of course not.”

      “Tessa, it’s fair. I don’t mind at all.”

      “You are not paying us rent.”

      “Tessa …”

      “I don’t want to hear any more about that.”

      “Okay, okay.” Marnie put up both hands. “Since you insist, I’ll be more than happy to stay in your guesthouse for free. And if you weren’t talking about my paying rent, then …?”

      “Look. Do you need money? If you do, just say so. We would be only too happy to—”

      “No. Thanks. But no, thanks.”

      “Don’t be so proud.”

      “I’m not.” She rethought that. “Well, okay. I am. Pride’s about all I have left at this point.”

      “It’s not a big deal,” Tessa insisted. “Don’t make it one. If you’re planning on staying for a while, you’re bound to need a little cash to tide you over. ”

      “I have a little cash.” Very little cash, as a matter of fact. “Also, I’m planning to earn my way while I’m here.”

      Her sister gave her a disapproving look and then asked, with her mouth pinched up, “A job?”

      “That’s right. I’m sort of a Jane-of-all-trades, after all. I’m sure I can find something. Did you know that I was even a short-order cook once?”

      Tessa was still frowning. “You want to flip burgers?”

      “I want a paycheck for the time I’m here.”

      “But … there’s no need to rush into anything. Maybe you should, you know, take it easy for a week or so at least. Relax. Take some time off.”

      “Tessa.” Marnie gave her a patient look. “You so don’t get it. I’ve had time off. The past five years since I’ve been with Mark, I’ve hardly worked at all.”

      “But if you—”

      “Tessa.”

      “Hmm?”

      “Don’t go all Saint Teresa on me. Please.”

      Tessa put on her most innocent expression. “I would never try to tell you what to do.” As if she hadn’t just done exactly that.

      But Marnie didn’t take offense. She knew that Tessa was only being bossy out of love. “Well.” Marnie sent her sister a fond smile. “Then we understand each other.”

      Tessa got her pinch-mouthed look again. But at least she didn’t say anything more.

      Ash had left the morning paper on the table. Marnie picked it up and flipped it to the want ads. What she saw there sent a little shiver down her spine.

      It also made her smile. “Speaking of jobs. What do you think of that?” Marnie set down the paper and pointed.

      The ad read:

      Temporary Office Manager Sought

      Busy motorcycle shop: repair and custom Familiarity with Word, Excel and general office experience required. Past experience in car or motorcycle repair a plus. Contact Gus, San Antonio Choppers (212) 555–2873

      Tessa’s nod was beyond reluctant. “Yeah. So?”

      “Why only temporary?”

      “The woman who runs the office is going on maternity leave—and you’re not thinking of going to work for Jericho, are you?”

      “Why not?” Marnie laughed. “You don’t think he’ll hold it against me that I stole his bike, do you?”

      “I didn’t say that.”

      “But you know you were thinking it.”

      “You’re serious. You want to work in a motorcycle shop?” Tessa couldn’t believe it. But then, she’d never hung around the North Magdalene Garage in the old days, helping their dad, like Marnie used to do. To Tessa, a car was for transportation, period. And a motorcycle … well, she might admire the art and technical skill that went into Jericho’s choppers, but she clearly didn’t find them all that intriguing.

      Marnie did. “Yeah. I think it might be interesting. And it just so happens that I have experience in car repair.”

      “Working for Dad, you mean.”

      “I also know Word and Excel. More or less. And I worked in an office. Once. Accounts payable and receivable. It was really boring.”

      Tessa sipped her tea and wore her best I-am-staying-out-of-it look.

      Marnie reached across and patted her arm. “Come on. Be fair. Think about it. Jericho is my brother-in-law. And we’re on good terms—as of now, anyway. And the job sounds kind of interesting. Plus, it’s temporary and I’m looking for something temporary. It could be just what I need.”

      Tessa set down her cup and beamed her most beatific smile. “Did I utter a word of objection?”

      “You didn’t have to. I can see it all over your face.”

      “But did I say anything?”

      “All right, fine. No. You didn’t. You’re a model of