held her inquisitive gaze. “Do you have a problem with me hanging around here, Gramma Mel?”
“Not as long as you don’t have some shenanigans brewing in that head of yours, Gavin.”
If only you knew, he thought. He pushed his plate away. “Breakfast was good as usual. I’m surprised you didn’t invite Layla to join us.”
“I did. But she made an excuse for not coming. I wonder why.”
He stood. His grandmother was fishing for information and he was determined not to get caught. “I have a call with Phil to go over the books. I’ll be in my office for an hour or so.”
“Alright. And you may have changed your mind about going to Mississippi, but I’m still scheduled to go to that library conference in Cincinnati. It lasts a week, and I booked it before I knew you were coming home.”
Gavin knew his grandmother enjoyed going to those conferences. “You should go,” he encouraged.
She looked at him as if he wasn’t trustworthy...of all things. “Is anything wrong?” he asked her.
“You tell me, Gavin. You’re not fooling me one bit. I know that look. You’re up to something and whatever it is, I hope you don’t get caught in your own trap.”
“What trap?”
“I’ll let you figure that one out. But keep something in mind.”
He lifted a brow. “What?”
“Layla is not Jamie.”
He frowned deeply. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means I think something good could develop between the two of you, if you let it. But you won’t. You’re afraid she will be like Jamie. Whether you choose to believe me or not, your mom loved you and your dad. I would sit and hear her crying for him at night when he was gone.”
“Then why did she leave?”
“Loneliness drove her away, Gavin. The Silver Spurs isn’t meant for everyone and she was miserable here. Not everyone can handle the isolation.”
“But that was no reason for her to desert me and Dad.”
Without saying anything else he turned and walked out of the kitchen toward his office.
* * *
A lump formed in Layla’s throat when she heard the knock at the door. She didn’t have to look out of the peephole to see who it was. Gavin had said he would arrive at ten and it was ten on the dot. She glanced down at herself and then wished she hadn’t. Why should she care what he thought about how she looked today? And why had she decided to wear her hair down instead of back in a ponytail?
She opened the door and Gavin stood leaning in the doorway. He filled the space, looking like he needed to be some woman’s breakfast, lunch and dinner. Why did the man have to be so over-the-top gorgeous? Why did she want to drool, drool, and then drool some more?
And why did she want to snatch him inside and have her way with him?
She had no right to think any of those things, no right to fantasize. She had to stay focused on her work. “Good morning. I’m ready,” she said, grabbing her jacket. He moved aside when she stepped out and closed the door behind herself.
“Good morning, Layla. I hope you slept well,” Gavin said as they walked off the porch.
He slid his hand to her elbow to help her down the steps and she wished he hadn’t. Immediately, a spike of desire shot through her and she was tempted to snatch her arm away.
“Nice day, isn’t it?”
“Yes, it’s nice.” She glanced over at him as he kept his hand on her elbow while he led her to his truck and opened the door.
“And speaking of nice,” he said, gripping her elbow a little tighter as he helped her up into the passenger seat. “You look good this morning. Real nice.”
“Thank you.”
He closed the truck door and as she watched him move around the front of the truck to the driver’s side, she couldn’t help thinking that he looked pretty good himself. Real nice. A pair of jeans hugged masculine thighs, a pullover sweater and a leather bomber jacket with the crest of a SEAL on the back graced broad shoulders. In her book there was something about a man who wore a leather bomber jacket, whether he was a biker, a model or a navy SEAL.
She kept her gaze trained on him. When he opened the door and slid onto the leather seat, she couldn’t help but appreciate how the fit of his jeans tightened on his thighs.
“You went riding around your ranch dressed like that?”
“No. We finished early so I had time to change before joining my grandmother for breakfast. She missed your presence at breakfast by the way.”
“I told her about the report I had to review this morning.”
He didn’t say anything and she wondered if he believed her.
“You okay?”
It was only then that she realized she was still staring. She snatched her gaze away from his thighs, regretting that he’d caught her ogling him. “I’m fine.”
A smile curved his lips and her insides felt like they’d turned to mush. “Just checking,” he said, snapping his seat belt in place. “I don’t want you to start admitting you want me anytime soon.”
Layla frowned, remembering what he’d said last night. “Trust me. That won’t be happening.” She spoke with a degree of confidence she wasn’t feeling, especially when he shifted gears, causing those thighs to catch her attention again.
She forced her gaze out the window to view the pastures, valleys and hills they passed. Not for the first time, she thought the Silver Spurs was beautiful. Already they’d passed the new barn and several other smaller buildings. And there were several fenced rolling plains filled with cows. The sun peeked through a bevy of trees that layered the countryside and she knew it would be a beautiful day even with the chill in the air.
“Sleep well?”
She glanced over at him, wondering why he would ask. Did he assume that she hadn’t? Well, she intended to crush that assumption right then and there. “Yes, like a baby, straight through the night.” Maybe she’d laid it on too thick since most babies didn’t sleep straight through the night.
“Glad to hear it. So did I. I slept so well that I almost overslept this morning.” He didn’t say anything for a minute. “Which way?”
She lifted a brow. “What?”
“Directions. Gramma Mel said the spot is just past the old barn. Which way do I go after that?”
The barn he was talking about was a big empty building painted red. According to Ms. Melody, it hadn’t been used in years but the structure looked sound. More than once Layla had been tempted to take a peek inside but the doors were bolted up. She wondered
