She sighed. "I hope no one wants to spend too much time here."
Alex turned quickly and studied her face. "Why?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. I just don't like it here."
His gaze lifted to the cliff top. "I suppose it would be a sad memory."
He used to be able to read her every thought, but lately he seemed to do more misreading than anything else. In this case, it didn't matter, though. Better he should think it was a sad memory than to think she was afraid of ghosts.
The route Alex chose meandered through the gorge and then up a steep deer trail to the top of the mountain. They stopped at the spring where they had found the dead longhorn bull years ago and dismounted to let the horses rest. This was where they had discovered the mother bear that Alex had to kill. That was the summer he learned a third language - sign language. That was the summer he had been stabbed and lost his voice - nearly lost his life. In seven years they had made more memories on her place than she had in the previous twenty-five. This was her land in name only. It was a part of both of them. She glanced up to find Alex watching her in a strange way.
"Are you nervous?"
She frowned. "Nervous? About what?"
"About your guests."
She smiled. "If you're wondering if I'm concerned about being up here alone with three strange men, the answer is no. You wouldn't have allowed them to come here if you didn't trust them."
His brows shot up. "I haven't even met two of them."
She met his gaze. "Then you must have a lot of confidence in Gerald."
He nodded soberly. "That I do, but I'm not going to know all of your guests. You'll have to develop some skill in reading people if you want to make this a business."
Actually, she wasn't that interested in making a business out of it, but she felt the need to make some monetary contribution to their marriage. He had left the farm in her name and it was up to her to see that it was productive.
Alex was trying his best to teach her to be independent. Why, after years of insistence on domination? Katie was probably the cause for this latest change. Maybe they were both putting too much faith in Katie. Who was Katie to teach her independence anyway? Seven years ago Katie had insisted Carmen was too independent. Of course, that was before she met Alex and surrendered everything in marriage.