NO! her head screamed, drowning out anything her heart might have to say. No. Not this time. She wasn’t a little girl with a crush anymore. She was a grown woman in charge of her life, emotions, and actions. There was no way she was going to allow herself to get hung up on him again. It would lead nowhere except heartache, and she’d had enough of that to last her a lifetime. This time it would be different. She’d be different.
* * *
Thirty minutes into the drive, the awkward silence in Wyatt’s truck was enough to smother Gabby. He was an arm’s length away and looking better than she’d ever seen him. Those blue eyes of his made her insides blaze every time he threw a look in her direction. Even the way he held the steering wheel was making her batty. Something had to give, or she’d never make it to Caprock Canyon with her sanity.
“So, you still love the rodeo?” she asked. If she was going to be stuck with him, she may as well try to find ways to dislike him. He’d always been a little cocky when it came to the rodeo, and she had a whole weekend to get through.
Glancing at her, he laughed. “Well, aside from the broken bones, I’ve loved it. The travel, the crowds, the whole shebang has been fun. It’s been an experience.”
The response wasn’t what she expected, and the broken bones still surprised her. The love for it, well, he’d loved bull riding since she could remember. As soon as he turned eighteen, he’d turned pro. She could see the twinkle in his eyes anytime he talked about it. When he first started riding bulls, the whole family would go watch him. He’d finish his eight seconds, land on his feet like a superhero, and his face would light up with a smile so spectacular it made her almost swoon.
“How about you? Have you liked living in Charleston?” he asked.
Loaded question. Before she got fired, she would have been looking forward to returning to Charleston. She’d loved working for the paper, and she’d worked hard to climb the ladder, moving from intern to full-time employee right after she graduated from college. Anytime they needed someone for a story, no matter how demeaning it may have seemed, she’d eagerly volunteered.
Her coworkers had been great, but she’d never made an effort to be more than work friends. Sure, they’d go out on an occasional night and have some dinner and maybe some wine and talk about the paper or where they saw print newspaper going. Come to think of it, none of their conversations ever got beyond work. The magnifying glass she suddenly had wasn’t making her feel all that anxious to go back.
“Uh, yeah, it’s so pretty.” And it was. Gabby loved Battery Park. “All the trees, the ocean, the historical places. I spent my first year just visiting different places. It’s really nice, and the people are friendly.”
“Carrie Anne says you’re dating a guy named Tim.”
Carrie Anne told Wyatt that? Oh, that rotten girl. She was definitely up to something. More than likely, she was calling Gabby’s bluff, but Gabby would show Carrie Anne. Her relationship with Tim just got a whole lot more real. “Yep, been seeing him a couple of weeks.”
“Any potential there?”
It took effort not to laugh hysterically, but somehow, she managed to hold it back. Instead, she shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s too soon to really tell. I mean, it takes longer than a couple of weeks to get to know someone.” That was a reasonable response. One that could be easily sold. “How about you? Are you dating anyone?”
He shook his head as he returned his gaze to the road ahead. “No. Traveling makes it hard to really get to know someone. It also shows you if a relationship can handle rough times.”
Is that what happened with him and Lori? Why didn’t Lori just go with him? “Is it too much prying to ask what happened with you and Lori?”
His lips pressed together, and a second later, he said, “We just weren’t meant to be.” It was a tone she’d heard before. One that meant the conversation was over.
Instead of pressing him like she wanted to, Gabby turned her focus to the scenery flashing past. If he didn’t want to talk about it, there wasn’t much she could do, and she didn’t care anyway. It wasn’t like when they were younger when he’d sometimes come find her when he couldn’t find Carrie Anne, asking about girls and relationships. More than once, they’d talked about deep things like marriage and family. But now they were older and had grown apart.
Silly youthful notions, but those little talks were what started her crush. She liked that he wanted to find someone, settle down, and get married. He wanted a small house and a big yard so his family would spend time outside. He wanted Friday nights with no cell phones and local football games.
He’d wanted all the same things she wanted. A simple life with the love of her life and kids running around. Small-town life.
But he’d always wanted those things with someone else. And that little piece of knowledge was what she needed to remember this weekend, especially if she was to keep her feet on the ground.
On occasion, one of them would break the silence by pointing out animals or something interesting. Other than that, it was just a long stretch of highway until they got closer to Caprock Canyon.
Gabby could feel the change in elevation. The way the air seemed to grow cooler. This part of the Panhandle felt like its own little world. It was hotter in the summer and colder in the winter. It snowed more in Caprock Canyon than just about anywhere around.
It wasn’t until Wyatt was turning off the main road that it hit her. “I can’t believe Bear did it. He actually bought the place.”
Laughing, Wyatt nodded. “Well, I believe it, but, yeah, I know what you mean. None of us ever expected to win all that money.”
She turned to him. “Have you done anything with it?” There literally was no telling with Wyatt. Of the four brothers, he was the most spontaneous.
“I haven’t touched a single cent. We had the money deposited in one account initially. You know, so we could all pitch in to pay off family stuff. Once we had that done, then we split it. I didn’t want the excitement of winning to cloud my judgment and for me to do something stupid with it, so there it still sits.”
Gabby narrowed her eyes. She knew by the way he said it that he was holding something back. “And?”
“And what?”
“What else?”
“What makes you think there’s something else?” He shot her a glare.
She cocked an eyebrow. “I’ve known you all my life. I just know.”
“Can we just drop it?” His lips curled as he said it. “I hate talking about it.”
Gabby leaned back, moving as close to the door as she could. He’d never snapped at her like that. Never. “Okay,” she whispered.
A wall of uncomfortable silence fell between them, and the few miles from the road to the ranch house felt like forever.
As soon as the truck pulled to a stop, Wyatt turned to her. “Gabby, I’m—”
She threw the door open and jumped out. “I guess my time away hasn’t changed things as much as I thought.” She slammed the door then yanked open the back door and grabbed her luggage, ignoring the biting cold that hit her face.
Wyatt got out of the truck and came around the bed. “Really, Gabby, I’m sorry.”
“Just…” What was there to say? He needed to leave her alone. Seeing him brought back so many feelings and emotions, and as much as she wanted to deny it, there was still that something Wyatt had that was pulling her to him.
He reached for her luggage, but she jerked it away. “I’ve been on my own and alone long enough. I don’t need help.” She pulled on the handle of the suitcase, the wheels digging into the dirt. “Why can’t he just…leave me alone,” she whispered to herself.
Why did he have to be in town in the first place? And why couldn’t the torch she had for him ever die? What was wrong with her? She’d never considered herself a glutton for punishment. The second she saw him in the airport, she should have marched her happy self to the ticket counter and gone back to Charleston.
Now she was stuck wi
th a man she couldn’t have…and, by golly, didn’t want. Maybe if she repeated that phrase enough times, she wouldn’t actually want him anymore.
Chapter 4
Wyatt swore under his breath and kicked one of the tires on the truck. When he’d agreed to pick up Gabby, he hadn’t expected to pick up a beautiful woman. The last image he had of her from before she’d left for South Carolina was of a fresh-faced college sophomore, but now she was replaced by the gorgeous woman who’d just stomped into the house. The only thing seemingly unchanged was her favorite color, red.
Wow. The little girl he’d always considered a sister wasn’t giving him brotherly feelings at all. When she’d stepped close to him to look at his scar, he’d just taken a deep breath. It had been the worst—or best—timing. He couldn’t quite decide. Gabby’s perfume had smelled incredible. And her lips? When did they get so…luscious? Dang, when did she get so beautiful?
He quickly followed Gabby into the house and paused a second, watching her fight to get up the stairs with her luggage. Man, oh, man, Gabby definitely wasn’t a little kid anymore. The deep red blouse paired with dark wash jeans showed off her figure. Her long dark hair fell past her shoulders and curled up at the ends.
He took a deep breath, shaking away the strange reaction. Yanking off his hat, he sighed and hung it on a hook by the door. He crossed the foyer and reached for the handle. “Let me help you with that.”
She popped his hand. “I can get it.”
“Clearly, you can’t, or you would have already. It’s heavy. Just admit you need help.”
“No. Not from you.” She stopped and glared at him. “Leave me alone.”
“I said I was sorry, and I meant it. I’m…what do I need to say to make you believe me?” She had seemed angry with him since the moment she saw him at the airport, and he had only made it worse. Why had she cared that he had picked her up and that he was there and not at the rodeo?
Gabby looked away. “You’ve never snapped at me like that.”
“I know, and I shouldn’t have. You were asking an innocent question, and I bit your head off. It’s not you; it’s me. I’m…” He set his hands on his hips and swore under his breath. “I’m...lost lately. I am sorry, Gabby. You’re one of my oldest friends, and I never should have spoken to you like that.”
“Friend,” he thought he heard her mutter. She grumbled something else he couldn’t make out and began fighting with her luggage again.
He pushed her hand aside, took the handle, and began walking up the stairs. “I’m helping whether you want me to or not.”
She stomped up after him, her boots clacking on the wood. “Give me my luggage.”
“No. I said I was sorry, and now I’m being a gentleman and helping.” He didn’t even bother to slow down. When they got to the top of the landing, she tried to take the handle, and he jerked it away. “I’ve got it.”
Her lips pinched together, and her little nose scrunched up. Man, she was cute when she was mad. Had she always been so cute? “I can get it from here.”
“Do you know what room you’re staying in?” Bear had told Wyatt that morning before he left to get Gabby that her room was the last room on the left. Wyatt had initially taken the first room on the right, but now he was going to move into the room right across from her just so he could bug her.
Squaring her shoulders, she lifted her chin. “No, but I can figure it out. Thank you.”
“You have always been so stubborn.”
In a split second, she snaked her hand out and pinched his stomach so hard he nearly yelped. “You take that back. I’m not the stubborn one. You are.”
Wyatt rubbed his stomach. “Ouch. That wasn’t fair.”
“No,” she said, taking the handle of her luggage and smiling. “But you let go of my luggage.”
Oh, that did it. He took her by the waist, threw her over his shoulder, and didn’t stop walking until he reached her room. He plopped her on the bed and without a single word went back for her luggage. When he returned, judging by the murderous look she was giving him and the way she was standing with legs apart and hands clenched at her sides, she was going to strangle him.
She crossed the room and pointed her finger at him. “If you ever, and I mean ever, do that to me again, I will—”
He leaned in, narrowing his eyes, and she stopped short. “You’ll what?”
Her eyebrows drew in further. “I don’t know, but I’ll think of something that will make you regret it.”
Even mad as a hornet, she was breathtaking. She’d always been feisty, not taking junk from anyone. Memories played in his mind of when they were younger. It didn’t matter how big the other person was, if Gabby saw them picking on someone smaller than them, she’d tear them up. Most of the time, she’d have them running home crying, and she hadn’t even hit them.
A smile spread on Wyatt’s lips. “I know how you get. You were being difficult, and I had to do something.”
She shook her head. “You didn’t have to do that.”
No, but it worked. He pulled her into a hug. “I’m glad you’re home, Gabby. I’ve missed you.”
She pushed against him at first, but he squeezed tighter. Slowly, she thawed and hugged him back. “I’ve missed you too,” she whispered.
The longer the hug continued, the weirder it got. It felt so right to have her in his arms. She fit more perfect than anyone ever had. He leaned back, and his heart jackhammered. More than just fitting perfect, she was perfect. Soft bronze skin, dark eyes, and round cheeks. And was that honeysuckle perfume she was wearing? Whatever it was only enhanced her essence, making his nerves tingle.
What was he doing? The nails ran down the chalkboard so slow and loud in his mind that he nearly covered his ears. He dropped his arms and stepped back. “Uh, well, I, uh, I’m sorry for earlier.”
“I know.” Her rosy lips stretched into a soft smile. “What room are you staying in?”
His head said, First room on the right, but his wires crossed the message, and he replied, “Across the hall.” He blinked. That wasn’t true. Why did he say that? They’d made up now, and he didn’t need to get back at her. “I mean—” But he wanted to be across the hall. It meant he’d open his door and possibly see her each day she was home. He liked that idea even more than coming clean.
“Mean what?”
“Oh, just that I guess I need to let you get settled.”
“Okay.” A puzzled look crossed her features. “Where is everyone?”
“Well, our moms went with Carrie Anne to meet the wedding planner. You know our moms are going to be involved. Bear is out riding around on one of the ATVs with our dads. He wants their opinion on how to get things going. And I don’t know where Josiah or Hunter are. Have you talked to your sister?”
Gabby shook her head. “Not since yesterday, and you know Stephanie. She’s about like you when it comes to spontaneity.”
He laughed. “Yeah, I guess we both get wild hairs.”
“Do you know when any of them will get back?”
“No, but I’m hungry. I’m sure Bandit could cook us something, or we could even run into town for a bite. I mean, if you’re hungry or—” He stopped short, wondering why he was suddenly a babbling idiot. He didn’t get flustered around women, so what was his problem?
She looked over her shoulder at the bed. “I think I might take a nap.”
“That doesn’t sound half bad.”
A wide smile lifted her cheeks, and her eyes twinkled. “You remember when we were kids and we’d camp out? We’d all pile into the same tent ’cause we were afraid of the coyotes. We were such wimps.”
“Yeah, I seemed to always manage to have my sleeping bag next to yours.”
“I’d hold your hand. You’d scoot in close and tell me you’d protect me.” She cleared her throat. “Well, me and Carrie Anne, because she’d be right there with me.”
Wyatt nodded. “Yeah, coyotes were the only thing you were afraid of, but instead of ru
nning inside, you’d stick it out. Unlike Carrie Anne.”
She looked down and giggled. “Because I didn’t want anyone to think I was a chicken.”
He tipped her chin up with one finger. “You were never a chicken.”
Their eyes locked, and he found himself lost in the depths of hers. So deep and dark and full of mysteries he wanted to solve.
“Hey!” Carrie Anne squealed as she bounded into the room.
Wyatt jumped back and swallowed hard. What had just happened? If he didn’t know any better, another minute or two, and he’d have kissed Gabby. And she was dating someone. He needed some air to clear his head.
Gabby grabbed Carrie Anne, and they swayed back and forth as they hugged.
“Uh, I guess I’ll let you two catch up,” Wyatt said, his voice husky.
“Oh, Wyatt.” Gabby slipped off his coat, and their fingers brushed as she handed it to him, causing his pulse to jump. “Thanks,” she said with a sweet smile.
He swallowed. “Uh, sure.”
Stepping back, he nearly tripped over himself to get out of her room. He’d known Gabby forever. Their families were sewn together like blood, only stronger. It wasn’t right to think of her like something other than a friend…a little sister. Whatever was getting his wires crossed needed to stop.
Slowly, he shook his head. She was also dating a guy named Tim. If there was one thing Wyatt wasn’t, it was a cheater…and he didn’t help women cheat either.
Why was he even thinking that? It was complete nonsense. The only thing he could figure was that he was lonely. It might not be the best time for a relationship, but he sure did want one. And not a little fling. He wanted the next relationship to go somewhere with someone he could see growing old with. That was all this shock surrounding Gabby was—a little kick in the pants to wise up and put himself out there again.
The Best Friend's Billionaire Brother (Caprock Canyon Romance Book 1) Page 3
