Hank glanced in the living room again to check on Libby, then turned back to her. “My land is north of Fairbanks, just outside a place called Foxtail. Not a big population. Very remote. Once a month, someone flies in some supplies, but for the most part, when you needed stuff, you drove down to Fairbanks for about a week. Sold your furs, restocked your pantry, let off some steam. Adria lived in town, and apparently her way of making a living was to pick a particular man, hook up with him for a few days when he was flush with money, and get him to pay for things. When that ran out, she’d find a new guy.” His jaw clenched. “I didn’t know this about her until it was too late. Went back to town about a year later and she handed me Libby. Said she was mine, and she couldn’t be bothered raising a kid. It’d ruin her lifestyle. So I took Libby home and that was that.”

Becca was silent. Shocked, a little. The story had been short, but she suspected there was a wealth of hurt and embarrassment in his tale, too. He didn’t know he’d been used by this Adria woman until it was too late, and she could only imagine how he’d felt at the discovery. And then to find out he had a baby with her? After being shamed by her? He was a good man, because it was clear his little girl was his world. “So you and Adria were never a couple?”

He snorted and gave her a wry look. “We were for about a week. Then I ran out of money and she ran out of interest.”

“Has there ever been anyone else?” she couldn’t help but ask.

“Just one.”

“Oh?”

Hank nodded. “She got the gum out of my daughter’s hair one night.”

She melted at those sweet words. Totally melted. “You said no when I asked you out, though.”

“Thought it was a joke, honestly. Pretty things like you don’t ask out guys like me.”

Now she was blushing. “I admit I did have an ulterior motive. I asked you out because I figured if I dated someone else, maybe people would stop throwing Greg in my face.”

He stiffened. “And I was the first one that came along?”

Uh-oh, was he thinking she was just like his ex? “Actually, I liked how good you were with your daughter. You were the first guy that appealed to me in a long, long time. Still are.”

“Even though I wasn’t very nice to you for a while? Told you not to come by the ranch?”