how he wanted their land. Delia and Maddie might have been able to forget that little detail, but she hadn’t.
For the first tune in her life, she had a home; shabby, yes, but it was a home. And she’d guard it with everything she had.
Ty hung up his jacket, clearly certain he’d be staying. The sleek muscles of his back stretched under his shirt, and for the first time, Zoe realized he must have come straight from work. His boots were dusty. His long, powerful legs were covered in frayed, worn jeans that had seen better days but fit him like a worn, soft glove. While she watched, he shoved up the sleeves of his shirt, revealing deeply tanned forearms, strong, firm, callused hands.
“See anything interesting?”
Her gaze jerked up to his laughing one, and she was thankful the room was dim enough to hide her blush. “Don’t count on it. But you’re holding up okay for an old man of...” She considered him with a frown, feigning indifference. “Forty.”
“Thirty-four,” he corrected her. He leaned forward, smelling of rain, wood and one hundred percent delicious masculinity as he tugged a loose lock of her hair. “But I’ll be sure to tell that to the geriatric warden tonight when I check in, thanks.”
Muttering to herself, she whirled away.
One of his hands caught her and held firm as steel. “Wait up.”
His eyes weren’t kind and sweet, the way they were when he looked at Delia and Maddie. They were...hot. “I’m busy,” she managed to say.
“I want to talk to you.”
“About the land?”
He didn’t answer.
“Talk to Maddie and Delia, though their answer will be the same as mine. No, this place isn’t for sale.” Even if she had no idea what they were going to do for cash. “No, no, no.”
His mouth twitched at her adamant tone. “You keep sweet-talking me like this, and I’m going to get ideas.”
“Go get ideas about Shirley.” She fairly choked on the name of his enthusiastic blond ranch hand and reminded herself she didn’t care about him. Not one little bit.
He let out a huge grin. “And jealous, too. That’s so sweet.” His voice lowered, deepened to a rich honey. “Ready to admit it, Zoe? You’re hot for me.”
“Ha!” She lifted her chin. “I’m too hot for you. Now, go home. You smell like a cowboy.”
“I am a cowboy.” His eyes glittered knowingly, as if he could see right through her facade to the secret part of her she liked to keep hidden. “And I want to talk to all three of you,” he said.
And what Ty wanted, he got. No use trying to fight it, he’d probably just toss her over his shoulder and cart her into the kitchen, where even now she could hear her sisters’ voices.
It was pointless to fight with him. So she shrugged in acquiescence and sashayed away.
Ty watched, a slow, appreciative smile crossing his face now that she had her back to him. God, she was so easy to bait, and he loved to see her flash all that fire she struggled to contain.
She was something; that compact, hot little body of hers spitting all that attitude, her wild hair falling around her shoulders. A strand slipped in her face, which she tugged at with a low sound of annoyance.
Oh yeah, she was riled up good now.
And while there were other things he might love to do to her as well as tease, Zoe Martin was off-limits. They’d both set those limits three days ago. He’d done so because, despite her innocence in the whole thing, he resented like crazy that she was holding Ben’s dream. He was far less certain why she held back from their obvious, unfortunate attraction, though he got a feeling it was because she’d been hurt and betrayed far too much in her short life. It did disturb him to watch her hide her natural sensuality and passion, especially when he knew that sensuality and passion were directed at him.
She concealed them behind a wall of indifference that exasperated him. Which was why he so enjoyed the bickering; it pulled her out of her shell and revealed the true Zoe.
But she was a weakness, one he didn’t have time for.
He’d come to a decision. One that would solve this problem once and for all. He was going to do exactly as Constance had asked. He would manage this place for them. It meant getting the ranch running from nothing. It would take money, hard work and grit, none of which he was even sure they had.
Truth was, he was banking on them not having it. As soon as they saw how much was involved, he figured the city girls would be happy to sell—to him—and head back to Los Angeles.
Nobody would get hurt; they’d go home and he would fulfill his promise to his brother. Perfect. Hoping it worked, Ty followed the tantalizing scent of food, and the equally tantalizing scent of Zoe Martin.
* * *
“Go ahead, Ty, you take that last piece.” Maddie held out the pan and smiled at him. He smiled back because it had taken her these entire three days just to feel comfortable enough to speak easily to him, and he felt relieved she’d decided to trust him.
Relieved and guilty, because he didn’t deserve their trust when he wanted them to leave so badly.
The mouth-watering aroma of melted cheese and sausage continued to call to him. But he’d had four pieces already, and he hadn’t come to eat them out of house and home.
“You know you want it,” Delia teased him.
They’d had an instant connection, he and Delia. A brother-sister connection that had them immediately bonded. And now he’d bonded with Maddie as well, their relationship was softer, more gentle than the teasing one he and Delia shared.
He wanted to resent these women, and did. But some of that resentment was fading, no matter how he struggled to hold on to it.
God, he missed Ben. He supposed that would never change. But how to keep his dream alive without hurting these women?
Maddie was a haunting beauty, with huge wide eyes that just made a man want to drown in them and offer to slay dragons. Those eyes held secrets, painful ones, and he wondered at them. Delia was tall and slender, a glamour girl. Intelligent, too, with a wicked sense of humor he got a kick out of. And in her eyes was a need to belong. Well, she belonged now, to the ranch he wanted for himself.
Then there was Zoe. She was different from her sisters, far different. He wasn’t satisfied by anything so simple as friendship, and he didn’t understand it.
“Eat,” Maddie said to him again, gesturing with the box. “You’ve lost weight.”
Zoe snorted.
He ignored Zoe and winked at Maddie. She held the pan patiently.
His stomach growled.
Oh, what the hell. He took the piece, studying the third sister, the one who didn’t easily fit into any simple category.
Did
