Instead, he held her loosely against him. He could guess what her curves would feel like and what they might do to him if he pulled her closer. He wasn’t that much of a dog.
Her scent of spice and citrus filled his head, such a sweet fresh smell. It reminded him of the time between spring and summer, full of promise.
“Did Daddy Gene really talk about us when he was still riding bulls?” she asked, not moving her face from his shoulder.
“Sure.” This topic was much safer than where his mind had gone when his hand encountered the sexy deep curve of her waist. He’d just stopped himself from testing the swell of her hip. He kept his eye on a large cactus in the near distance. “He said that Faye loved turquoise and pepitas. Pumpkin seeds.” Pepper nodded so he went on. “He said you refused to let him get you another horse when yours died from colic.” Crap. Why had he brought up that story? He could feel the sadness course through her as she burrowed into his shoulder again, like she could hide there forever. Surprisingly, he would have let her if it would have helped.
“Toni,” she said, her voice muffled. “Her name was Antonia. I didn’t think I’d ever not be sad again. For a while, I wanted to be a vet, but then when Daddy Gene got sick the first time, I realized medicine—human medicine—was for me.” She relaxed against him.
He wrapped his arms more fully around her, wanting to...he wasn’t sure what, other than make her feel better, to lessen the sadness he felt in her every muscle and heard in her voice. She hadn’t asked for this any more than he had. They both needed to weather the situation as best they could. He could guess at her sorrow now. It was an echo of his own. He missed Gene. He’d been someone AJ knew he could count on if anything went wrong. He hadn’t kept in close touch during the years after Gene left the rodeo, but he’d known his cousin would be there if he needed him. “I’m sorry I didn’t get here earlier, before Gene passed, but...there was EllaJayne and her mama.”
Pepper stiffened and not from sorrow. Crap. His smooth tongue had deserted him. He usually wasn’t so clueless with women.
She pulled away and turned her head but he saw her wipe at her eyes. “I’m good now,” she said with taut determination. “What do we do? Shake hands?”
Pepper thrust out her hand and stepped away from AJ’s heat. Shake hands and move on. That was what she needed to do. Forget she’d broken down in his arms and had liked—way too much—the warm strength of him. He took her hand in his and lingered for a second. She didn’t change her grip, making her gaze stay on him. How had she not seen the tiny white scar that stretched up from the corner of his upper lip and another on the outside of his dark brow? His face told her what she needed to know. A rodeo cowboy. They didn’t stick around.
“Okay?” he asked with soft gruffness.
She shifted her eyes to a place over his shoulder where she could see the mountains that surrounded Angel Crossing. “I’ll get you sitters’ names.” She could do this. She had to do this for herself, for Faye and for Angel Crossing. They were all counting on her.
As for the other part of this debacle, that he and EllaJayne remain at the ranch? That would be all right, too. No matter there would be months and months of sharing a bathroom, a kitchen. It would be very intimate. No. Cramped. And she’d already gotten a good view of a fit-for-bull-riding cowboy walking around in a towel.
Faye danced onto the patio, bouncing EllaJayne on her hip. “We’re going to breathe in the colors.”
“Grana,” the toddler agreed as they danced off.
Pepper gritted her teeth and glanced at AJ to gauge his reaction. Until she was a teen, Pepper had stayed at the ranch, with Faye homeschooling her. Then she’d gone to public school, where a cowboy wearing anything but Wranglers was cause for comment, and her mother’s unusual view of the world after years of living in a commune had mortified Pepper. Now, some days she could appreciate how growing up with Faye had taught her compassion and patience. Angel Crossing needed both. The residents were stubborn about changing anything, even things that would make them healthier.
“All done,” Faye said, snuggling her nose against the toddler’s. “The blue sky smelled like Aqua Velva and the white clouds made us both think sheets dried outside.” The little girl giggled.
“I’ll take her now,” AJ said, holding his arms out for his daughter.
“Wait,” Pepper said. Suddenly, the whole day felt too huge, like something had shifted in the world. Dear Lord, she was starting to sound like Faye. She dug deep for the calm and unemotional Pepper who took over during emergencies. “I want to make sure that we’re clear on our responsibilities.” AJ nodded. She went through the list, while she kept a professional eye on him. She needed to use her PA Spidey Senses. She could ferret out a lie at twenty paces—at least that’s what she told patients. She just wanted to be certain that he would stick by the agreement.
She looked at him hard. It didn’t take a medical degree to interpret his bloodshot eyes or the dark circles underneath. He was exhausted. Why hadn’t she noticed that before? She wanted to tell AJ to go get some sleep and she’d take care of everything. But he wasn’t her responsibility. She didn’t have to care for him. She needed her attorney to straighten out the will. Where you goin’ to find the dinero for that? Daddy Gene’s voice rang in her head. She’d find it because everyone she cared about—which didn’t include AJ and his daughter—was counting on her.
* * *
PEPPER QUIETLY CLOSED the door to the bedroom she now shared with her mother. AJ and his little girl had been given Faye’s room. Faye hadn’t minded—she hadn’t been spending much time there since Daddy Gene had died. Pepper could only imagine how long tomorrow would feel because last night she hadn’t gotten much more than an hour of sleep. Good thing Tuesday was a Dr. Cortez day. It meant her patient load was reasonable.
Pepper headed to the kitchen, not needing to turn on any lights because Faye, as always, had left the house well-lit. Her mother, despite her love of the moon and staying up late, did not like the dark.
Having grown up in a commune, more or less, before Daddy Gene had showed up, Pepper had a high tolerance for sharing space. But sharing the house with AJ made it feel really, really small. Like right now, she could’ve sworn she smelled his scent of dusty leather, baby powder and...bubble gum? That last was new. It smelled like the flavoring in children’s medicine. She moved a little faster. Was EllaJayne sick?
AJ stood in the kitchen shirtless, the top button of his jeans undone so she could see the band of his tighty-whities. Stop looking, she told herself firmly as she stood in the shadows. She made her gaze move to his hand and the small white bottle he held.
“Is EllaJayne okay?”
“What?” He jerked around, the bottle dropping from his hand, pink syrup spraying everywhere. “Damn it.”
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you,” she mumbled as the syrup dripped down his chest. His well-muscled chest. She had to stop noticing things like that right now. She rushed to the sink for a dishcloth and the cleaning supplies underneath.
“This stuff is sticky. What are you doing awake?” he whispered. She glanced over her shoulder to see him rubbing at the pink drops.
“Here,” she said, taking the cloth and wiping at his chest, using her best professional
