He’d been seventeen and madder than hell after another fight with his father. Darci had insisted on following him, determined to protect him from himself, to talk to him and try to fix things. Cole had hiked up into the foothills behind their house and proceeded to take the most difficult route to the top. And Darci had stuck with him, tongue clenched between her teeth, puffing hard as she gamely tried to struggle up rock outcroppings taller than she was.

He’d been hoping to lose her, to make her give up, but she’d earned his grudging admiration that day. Before the hike was over, he’d carried her piggyback because she’d twisted her ankle. But he hadn’t let her know how much her caring had touched him. He’d just pulled her pigtails until she squealed; then he’d walked away, carrying a tiny piece of warmth in a dark corner of his soul.

Their memories touched, melded and gave them a common bond that had been long forgotten.

A bond he forced himself to ignore as he went after what he needed for his very survival. “You won’t sell to me, will you.”

“No.” The single word carried all the arguments she hadn’t spoken.

“Separately, we’re weak, almost helpless. Neither one of us has a big enough chunk of stock to stop Uncle John.” He leaned back in the chair and tipped his hat back on his head. “I won’t sell to you, even if you had the money to buy me out, so where does that leave us?”

“Without a prayer.”

He almost smiled in silent victory. He had her right where he wanted her.

“Then let’s get married.”

Her mouth dropped open, and she stared at him in disbelief. He gently reached out and nudged her chin up with one finger. “You’ll catch flies that way.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t think I heard what you said.”

“Marry me. We were each supposed to receive additional stock as a wedding present. That was part of the old man’s will. Combining what we have would give us controlling stock. If we work together, maybe we can keep Blackmore’s out of John’s greedy fingers.”

The color washed out of her skin, and she swayed slightly. Cole braced his hand on her shoulder, afraid she was going to crash to the floor.

“Darci?”

She blinked and seemed to focus her eyes on his face.

“There has to be another way.”

“Probably, but this will give us the most power within the company. It’s the fastest, most efficient way.” He waited for several heartbeats, studying her, trying to gauge her reaction—trying to ignore the frustration building inside of him. “Is the idea of being married to me that repugnant?”

She hesitated just long enough to give his ego a battering. “No.”