“I don’t much think Sylvia will care. She’ll expect a maid to keep everything clean,” Brett said, grimacing.
“You don’t like the idea of a maid?”
“I don’t see how she’ll fit in here on the ranch.”
Anna knew she should drop the subject. After all, it was none of her business. But she couldn’t help herself. “Surely you wouldn’t give up living with your family?”
Brett leaned against the kitchen cabinet and crossed his arms over his chest. “I don’t want to. I guess I hadn’t thought too much about the future.”
“You have time. After all, you haven’t set the date yet.” She started to walk to the door, but Brett caught her arm.
“Wait a minute. What about you?”
“Me? What do you mean?”
“Which cowboy do you have tied up in knots?”
He was smiling at her, those brown eyes warm, his touch sending chills up her arm. “I—I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I’m talking about your love life. After all, we’ve discussed mine.”
She stiffened. “I didn’t mean to pry.” Tugging on her arm, she kept her gaze down.
“Hey,” Brett said softly, lifting her chin with his other hand. “I wasn’t complaining. But I’m curious about you. Thought maybe you might have wedding plans of your own.”
“No.” When he still didn’t release her, she added, “Well? Did you want to know anything else?”
“Yeah, I can think of several things. Why are you so touchy? And what’s wrong with the men around here?”
“I’m not touchy. And I’m not looking.”
“Why?”
“What is this? Twenty questions?” She tilted her chin in the air and gave him an exasperated look.
“Red always said I was the curious one. Drove him crazy with that word. Guess I haven’t changed much.”
“You look grown-up.” She couldn’t help teasing him. He was such an easygoing, likable man. As sexy as any man she’d ever been around.
And off-limits. For a lot of reasons.
Suddenly his grip on her arm disappeared, but before she could react, he’d grabbed her by the waist, lifted her into the air and spun around. “Brett!” she protested.
“Don’t let looks fool you. I’m still a kid at heart,” he assured her, setting her on her feet again.
She took a deep breath, trying to slow the beating of her suddenly racing heart. “I can see.”
His hands remained on her waist, and the heat from his touch was spreading all over her. She pulled from his arms and walked to the door. It was time to end this midnight visit. And she would avoid all others in the future.
“Wait. I’ll walk up with you.”
She wanted to run from the room, but such behavior would only tell him how much he affected her.
And he did. She wanted to touch him, to feel his muscular arms around her again. To claim his caring for her own. She was like a plant parched for water being touched by a gentle, nurturing rain. Which made her weak and vulnerable. After her stay at the Randalls’, she was going to have to change her personal life. It was time she made some connections.
To put some distance between them, emotionally if not physically, as he joined her at the door, she asked, “When is your fiancée arriving?”
Chapter Three
Brett came to breakfast late on Friday morning, and he was glad he did. Anna was at the table. He’d scarcely seen her since their late-night talk three days ago.
“Anyone need any errands run in Casper?”
There was no response from his family, but then he wasn’t particularly interested in one from them. His eyes focused on Anna. “How about you?”
“No, thanks,” she said, never looking at him. “Though if I’d thought about it yesterday, I would’ve asked you to deliver my friend’s birthday card for me. But I put it in the mail.”
He didn’t believe her. After their conversation on Tuesday night, she’d been avoiding him. Or it had seemed that way to him.
“Why not come to Casper with me?” Brett suggested, an idea forming in his head. “I’d enjoy the company for the drive, and you can take your friend to lunch.”
“Thanks, but I’m sure Lisa has to work today.”
Brett gave her a speculative look. He wasn’t sure why he was so determined to spend time with Anna, but he was. In the past few days, he’d casually questioned his brothers about her, but they didn’t know much. He’d asked a few friends around town, but no one knew whom she was dating or anything about her personal life. For some reason, she seemed to keep to herself.
Now he persisted. “She’d still get some time off for lunch. Why don’t you give her a call?”
Before Anna could say no, Janie chipped in her opinion. “I think you should go, Anna. You never take time off. You deserve a break.”
“You could at least give your friend a call. It can’t hurt anything,” Jake added, smiling.
Brett sat back, silent, his arms crossed over his chest, letting his family do the persuading for him. Sometimes it paid to have an interfering family.
“But I thought you were gonna pick up Sylvia at three,” Red suddenly said. “You won’t be there in time for lunch.”
Brett held back the epithet that rose to his lips. Anna had almost been convinced. Now she stared at him, really looking at him for the first time, her blue eyes large with question.
“I decided to go in a little early, do some errands. I’ll be leaving about nine. We’ll be there in plenty of time for lunch. Go call your friend, Anna.”
“Are you sure?” Anna asked. “Perhaps your fiancée is looking forward to a quiet ride back alone with you.”
“We’ll have plenty of time to be alone. Don’t worry about that.”
“Yes, Anna, go,” Janie urged.
Brett watched Janie wink at Megan and wondered what his sisters-in-law were up to, but he really didn’t care as long as it helped him persuade Anna to accompany him.
She finally left the table. Brett pretended great interest in his breakfast while the rest of the family discussed the day. He ignored their comments and questions and directed a question to Jake. “Is it okay if I take the sedan?”
Each of the brothers had his own pickup, but the family also kept a sedan for more-formal outings.
“I don’t know if it’s back from the mechanic. I’ll check on it.”
“Um, Jake,” Janie said in a hesitant voice quite unlike her normal self. “I forgot to tell you Mike called about the car yesterday. He said you needed a new water pump but he had to send into Casper for the part. It won’t be ready until Monday.”
Jake turned to Brett. “Looks like it’s the pickup. Sorry, brother.”
“Sorry about what?” Anna caught the tail end of the conversation as she entered the room. After Brett filled her in, she balked. “Should I stay here, then? I don’t want to crowd you.”
“Don’t be silly, Anna,” Brett said, openly winking at her. “You won’t take up much room.”
“Yeah, you’ll just give him an excuse to sit close to Sylvia,” Jake added. Everyone laughed.
Except Brett.
“THAT WAS a brilliant move about the sedan,” Megan congratulated Janie.
“It wasn’t planned, honest. The mechanic needed more time. But I’d like to be there to see Brett’s arrival. Can’t you just see Sylvia hitching up into Brett’s pickup?” Janie giggled.
Megan smiled back. “I know. She’ll be horrified. She probably won’t say anything in front of Anna, but poor Brett’ll catch it later.”
“He’ll probably catch it for bringing Anna, too.”
“Do you think our plan has a chance?” Megan asked after looking over her shoulder cautiously.
“I don’t know why not. He’s the one who asked Anna to go with him, not us. Maybe he’s already interested in her.”
“She’d be a perfect fit for the family…unlike Sylvia. Though Anna is right—I guess we do need t
o give Sylvia a chance.”
“We’ll see,” Janie said, promising nothing.
BRETT DECIDED he must’ve been bad since his luck wasn’t so good this morning. When he got to the garage, planning on bringing his truck to the back door, ready for Anna to join him, the truck’s engine wouldn’t turn over. In fact, it wouldn’t do anything.
He jumped out of the truck and started back to the house to tell Red he was taking Chad’s truck when Anna met him at the garage door.
“Ready?” she asked.
“Nope. Engine’s dead. I’ve got to—”
“We could take my car,” Anna offered.
In his mind’s eye, Brett saw the fifteen-year-old mini-station wagon that Anna drove. “Do you think I’ll fit in it?”
Anna grinned, and it seemed to him that her riotous red curls bounced and her eyes sparkled.
“We’ll fold you up like an accordion,” she promised.
“If you’re sure you don’t mind, we’ll take your car, and I’ll buy the gas.” He liked the idea more and more as he thought about it. Anna could drive and he could concentrate on her. He wasn’t sure why he had so much curiosity about the little redhead, but something drew him to her. Maybe she was the sister he’d never had.
“Let’s get started,” she agreed, still smiling.
With his knees, pressing against the dashboard, Brett found he was more comfortable when he turned his body around toward Anna. He liked the view better, too.
“So, who is this Lisa?” he asked once they were on their way.
“A friend.” She sent him a sideways glance, as if to see if her brief answer would satisfy him. When he said nothing, she added, “We shared an apartment the five years I was in Casper.”
“Is she a nurse, too?”
“A dietitian, actually. But she works at the hospital.”
“Don’t tell me she’s responsible for that terrible food they serve you.”
Anna laughed, a delightful sound. “I’m afraid so. But it’s good for you.”
“Is that why you weigh ninety pounds sopping wet?”
She frowned at him. “I weigh more than that.”
“Not by much. You need to eat regular meals.” He watched the irritation build in her face.
“My eating is none of your business.”
He grinned. “There’s that temper again.”
“I do not have a temper.”
A chuckle was his only response.
After that, she refused all his conversational offerings for almost half an hour. Brett was content to ride beside her, studying her profile. She drove with competence and self-assurance, even when her jaw was clenched.
Today her red curls were pulled back on the sides by barrettes, leaving her big blue eyes to dominate her delicate features.
“Did you get your blue eyes from your mom or your dad?” he finally asked.
That question surprised her into answering. “My mother.”
“And your red hair from your father?”
“No. My father was what they called black Irish.”
“Do you have brothers and sisters?”
“Why do you want to know?”
“I was thinking about how much you work. Figured you didn’t have time for family.”
“No. No brothers or sisters. My—the baby died with my mother.”
“So you’re all alone?” he asked softly.
Her chin rose even as she kept her gaze on the road. “Lots of people are.”
“Yeah,” he agreed with a sigh. “I guess I was just thinking about how empty my life would be without my brothers. We’re pretty close.”
“That’s an understatement,” she said with a grin.
He smiled in return. When Anna was smiling, he had a notion he would feel the sunshine from a mile away. “Is everything going to be all right with Janie? I mean, why did Doc think you should move to the ranch?”
“He didn’t. But there was a huge storm two weeks ago. It cut off the phone lines and flooded some low-lying roads. Pete got in a panic, afraid of what would happen if Janie had the babies during another storm like that. I think I’m here to reassure Pete as much as anything.”
“I don’t blame him. He’s loved Janie for a long time.”
“Yes,” Anna agreed softly. “He and Janie and Chad and Megan are wonderful couples. It makes me feel good just to be around them and see the love they share.”
He wished he could see her eyes as he asked, “Ever been in love yourself?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
She shifted her gaze from the road to him. “Love isn’t something you can order from a catalog, Brett. Why did you wait until now to fall in love? You’re not exactly wet behind the ears.”
“Hey, are you calling me old?”
“If the shoe fits…”
“Well, even if I am a little past my youth, I have a good reason.”
“And that is?”
“Don’t tell me you haven’t heard about Chloe, the Wicked Witch of the West.” He felt sure Jake’s exwife had been mentioned.
“Yes, I have. And I’ve also heard the theory that fear of marrying someone like Chloe kept all of you from venturing down the aisle. But I’m not sure I buy it.”
“Why not?” Brett demanded, his hackles rising.
“I think the four of you used her as an excuse. You know, typical bachelor cop-out.”
Only the grin she turned his way kept him from blowing up. Okay, he’d teased her. He guessed she had a turn coming. “And what do you know about bachelor cop-out?”
“Just what every single female knows, Brett. Most of us have heard all the lines.” She rolled her eyes at him for emphasis.
A surge of jealousy startled him. No, not jealousy, he decided. Must be a protective instinct. Of course. He felt as if she were his little sister. If any man handed his sister a line, he’d want to punch him out.
“You mean you’ve already heard that your eyes are as blue as the sky on a Wyoming summer day?”
“Yes, I have.”
“And your hair is as bright as the flame burning in my heart for you?” He emoted with the best of the melodramatic heroes.
“Brett, please,” Anna protested with a smile.
“How about ‘Your skin is as soft as a feather pillow,’ or ‘Your laughter is more melodious than a thousand bells’?”
She fought to hold back laughter as he continued.
“Your teeth are like pearls. Your lashes would make a mink envious. Your eyebrows are more delicately arched than the Golden Gate Bridge.”
“And my freckles are like gold dust sprinkled across my nose,” she added, giving in to her laughter.
He stared at her. “Someone actually said that?”
“Yes. Do you disagree?”
Pretending to consider her face carefully, he said, “Yeah. I think they’re more like liver spots.”
She reached over and swatted his arm. “So much for your silver tongue. You just flunked Flattery 101.”
“Just kidding. Your freckles are perfect.”
“Nice try, but I do have a mirror. Tell me about Sylvia.”
Her abrupt change of subject told him she was uncomfortable being the center of attention. He obliged her, but he wasn’t through learning about the little midwife. “Sylvia is beautiful, a good hostess. Lots of energy. I think we went out every night I was in town. I’d be ready for bed by ten o’clock, and she’d want to dance until two in the morning.”
“I guess that’s good. It takes a lot of energy to get everything done on a ranch.”
For the first time, Brett really thought about Sylvia on the ranch. Could he picture Sylvia pitching in with the chores? Not really.
“Brett? Did I upset you?” Anna asked, a look of concern in her big blue eyes.
“No, you didn’t say anything wrong. I was just thinking about Sylvia living on the ranch.”
“At least she won’t be intimidated by Janie’s and Megan’s beauty. You�
��ll have the best-looking wives in Wyoming.”
Anna smiled, and Brett felt the warmth of it. Sylvia was beautiful, but she had a different kind of beauty, he realized. A more artificial one. A cold one.
“Sometimes beauty isn’t all it’s cracked up to be,” he muttered.
“I wouldn’t know,” Anna replied cheerfully, her gaze on the road.
“What do you mean?”
She took her eyes off the road to give him a look of surprise. “Isn’t it obvious? I wouldn’t be classed with your sisters-in-law.”
He stretched his arm along the back of the seat and traced a finger down her cheek. “I wouldn’t be too sure about that.”
She gave him a look of disbelief and turned her attention back to her driving.
BY THE TIME they reached Casper, Anna was ready for the ride to be over. Brett was treating her like the other Randall men did—as their little sister.
She only wished she felt about him the way she did his brothers. But there was something different about the way she looked at Brett—and it was far from sisterly.
She’d made a mistake, accepting his invitation. After the other night, she’d avoided him and managed just fine. She’d almost convinced herself she’d imagined her reaction to him. But five minutes into their ride, she knew differently.
Why this one man out of the four should touch her senses as he did, she didn’t know. Even though he was single, unlike Pete and Chad, he was as much off-limits. Whether he had a fiancée or not, he was a Randall, rich, powerful, important.
“Traffic doesn’t bother you?” Brett asked as she wheeled around a corner.
“No. I adjusted to it while living here for five years.” She pulled into the hospital parking lot, checking her watch as she did so. “Five before twelve. Perfect.”
“Will Lisa meet us here or do we go in?”
“We?”
“Don’t I get to go to lunch, too?”
She studied his face, unsure whether he was joking or not. “I just assumed—I don’t mind you taking the car, Brett. You said you had errands to run.”
“I lied. I just wanted you to come to Casper with me.” With an angelic smile on his handsome face, he said, “Can I please come to lunch?”
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