The doorbell chimed, and her heart lurched. She swallowed and opened the door. Sam, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, stood on the other side. He didn’t look any better than she felt. Although he was outwardly composed, turmoil and regret were evident in his eyes and the hard set of his mouth.

He stepped inside her living room and hesitated, then smiled. The movement transformed his face.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, convinced she should have worn anything but jeans. Denim might help her legs, but it didn’t do a thing for her hips.

“The jeans,” Sam managed.

“They’re all wrong, aren’t they?” Silently she blamed her sister. Marjorie knew better than to listen to the advice of a college student who was toying with the idea of tinting her hair blue.

“No,” he murmured.

“I can change, don’t worry,” she went on brightly. “It’ll only take a minute.”

“Don’t,” he said, and smiled briefly. “You look fantastic.” His gaze was warm and sincere.

Marjorie thought she would cry. She’d been as taut as a violin bow, as well as nervous and worried. Until the minute he spoke, she’d had no idea what he was thinking. Apparently he’d decided to put the incident in the hospital behind them—at least for today. She knew that they should talk and try to settle this problem, but in three days she hadn’t been able to come up with a solution, and from his haggard look, she suspected that Sam hadn’t, either. Today they would put their troubles aside and enjoy the holiday. She was grateful.

“Every woman should look so good in Levi’s,” he said.

A smile curved her mouth. “You honestly like them?”

“Yes, Kitten, I do.”

Sam longed to take her in his arms and hold her, but he didn’t dare. These last days without her had been a self-imposed nightmare. After years of searching for a woman he could love, respect, and admire, he’d been convinced he’d found her in Marjorie. No, she wasn’t exactly the woman he’d pictured, but he’d discovered he could accept her quirks, loved her all the more because of them. They were part and parcel of who she was. But children…He’d dedicated his life to reproduction and childbirth. To him, children were as essential as food and water. He needed a woman who wanted to give him a family. He could find no way to compromise on an issue so basic to his happiness.