I took a deep breath and peeled the first wool blanket away. Next was an old thick quilt my grandma had made. Last but not least was a down sleeping bag that I found him nestled into. In the dim light, I made out his handsome face. I loved the stubble. And he almost looked innocent while he slept. I also noticed what looked like some bruising on his forehead. As upset as I was with him, I hoped he was okay.
I lightly brushed his hair with my hand. I loved the feel of it.
His eyes fluttered open. He squinted and focused on me. “Darlin’.”
I gently touched the bruise on his forehead. “Are you okay?”
He moved and groaned. “I’m alive.”
I lowered myself and rested on my legs. “Why are you here?”
He rolled to his side. I could tell it caused him some pain and effort. His smile bordered on a smirk. “The Nanettes and Kenz were threatening significant bodily harm if you didn’t come back.”
“Oh.” I stood up. “I see.” He came because he was pushed to.
“Meg.” He tried to sit up.
My brothers came crashing through the back door into the kitchen.
Zander scrambled to sit upright.
“Heard there was some city slicker in here with no brains, driving a sissy car to see our sister,” Colton yelled way too loudly.
I cringed and looked at an embarrassed Zander running his fingers through his hair. I had never seen him express that particular emotion, but even in the low light I could see his face was a shade or two redder than it had been. I marched into the kitchen and stood in front of the entryway between the two rooms. It was obvious they had come to torture Zander, and as much as he probably deserved it, I couldn’t forget he had been stuck in a ditch. I wasn’t sure how hurt he was. I stood there with my arms folded shaking my head.
My brother’s both wore evil smiles.
“Trying to protect your boyfriend?” Lincoln inched toward me.
“He’s not my boyfriend.” I knew full well Zander could hear every word we were saying.
The boys looked between themselves. “She’s lying.” They both rushed me at the same time, but it was Colton who picked me up and moved me right out of the way. Lincoln breezed by and Colton set me down. They were both laughing hysterically. Those dang boys. They were to Zander in a second.
Zander sat up as straight as he could.
I tried to intervene as much as possible by placing myself between my brothers and Zander. “Colton, Lincoln, this is Zander. We work together, or at least we did.”
Zander narrowed his eyes at me.
The boys sidestepped me and neared their victim.
“That was a pretty fancy car you had last night. Too bad you wrecked it.” Lincoln started in on him first.
“Enough.” I stepped in front of the clowns again. “You guys get to work.”
“Oh, we will. But what kind of brothers would we be if we didn’t interrogate, I mean, get to know your boyfriend?” Colton slid past me and sat right next to Zander. The other idiot brother took Zander’s other side.
“I told you we aren’t dating.”
“So you’re stalking her?” Lincoln glared at Zander.
“Not my style.” Zander glared right back.
“So what’s going on with you two?” Colton asked.
“That’s between Meg and me.” Zander set his sights on me.
“See, you have to get through us to get to Meg.” Colton high-fived Lincoln.
“Seriously, guys, get out of here.”
Lincoln grinned. He looked like the devil. “We will.” He patted Zander hard on the shoulder, making him wince. “Your boyfriend here is coming with us. There’s no lying around on a ranch.”
“Oh no, no, no.” I locked eyes with a worried Zander.
“You wouldn’t mind helping us out, would you, Zander?” Colton said his name like he was daring him.
That unfortunately ignited his ridiculous male pride. “I’m game.”
“Boys, in the kitchen, I need to speak to Zander alone. There’s cookies, so help yourself.”
Their stomachs were bigger than their brains. They bolted up and headed for the kitchen.
I sat down on the couch, but not too close to Zander. I kept my voice down. “You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into. You don’t need to prove anything to anyone.”
“That’s not true.” He reached up, the back of his hand gliding down my cheek.
I caught my breath. “The Nanettes and Kenadie?” Was he here to prove something to them?
He smirked. “They do seem to like me less since you’ve entered the picture.”
“Well, I’m gone now.”
“I noticed.”
“You don’t have to pretend like you care.”
“Like you’re pretending we never dated.”
“We didn’t.”
He scooted closer. The heat level crept up. “What do you call all those nights and days together?”
“We . . . were . . . pretending,” I stuttered.
“Were we really?” He ran his hand through my hair. “You felt real to me.”
“You laughed us off and ignored me.” I pushed off the couch. “Be careful today.” Maybe he deserved a little time out in the cold. I walked into the kitchen. “Make sure he’s properly dressed and don’t hurt him.”
The boys grinned between each other, cookie crumbs on their faces.
“Ah, he’ll be all right. We’ll only take him out to feed the herd. And Dad had me bring him down some warm clothes.” Lincoln did his best impression of an innocent person.
I wasn’t buying it. “Play nice. I mean it.”
Their smiles didn’t bring me much comfort.
Chapter Twenty-Four
I anxiously paced around the house, checking out the back several times to see if there was any sign of life. Not like I could see any of the pastures from the house. The best I could do before they left was make sure he was dressed accordingly for the weather. He looked so out of place, on the ranch in plaid and work boots. One of my dad’s old coats swallowed him up. And I knew he was sore and tired, but the testosterone in the house was making fools out of all of them.
To calm my nerves, I got Colton’s old room across from mine ready for Zander to stay in. Though I wasn’t sure how long he was staying. I knew his rental car had been towed away, per Lincoln. I guess he was pretty shaken up and half frozen when they got to him. I still couldn’t believe he was here. I didn’t even know how he knew where here was.
Colton’s room had long been cleaned out, so all I had to do was put clean bedding on the bed, dust, and sweep. I placed Zander’s bag on Colton’s old bed and peeked in the opened zipper. He was the most meticulous packer. That shouldn’t have surprised me, but what did surprise me was how many clothes he had brought. Was he planning on staying for a while? He definitely had to get back for all the wedding festivities. And his parents were coming for Christmas this weekend.
I picked up one of his button-ups that was sitting on top. I loved that shirt, and soaked in the way it smelled like him. I shoved it back in his bag. What was I thinking? Actually, what was he thinking?
All morning I worried. I was just about ready to go looking for them when my brothers came walking through the mudroom. I happened to be passing by to the laundry room. Their evil grins and the fact Zander wasn’t with them made my heart pound.
I dropped the basket of clothes I was holding. “Where’s Zander?”
They both sat down on the wooden bench removing layers as they went.
“Don’t get your panties in a wad, he’s alive.” Colton was unlacing his boots.
“Barely.” Lincoln chuckled.
Major panic creeped in. “What? Is he okay? What did you do to him?”
“Thought you didn’t care about him?” Colton taunted me.
“I never said that. You better tell me what happened right now, or I’m calling Dad.”
“Don’t worry, your precious boyfriend is fin
e, at least he is now.” Lincoln walked past me laughing, headed for the kitchen.
“Stop right there. There will be no food until you tell me where he is.”
Colton joined us in the hall. “We told you, he’s fine. He’s with Dad.”
They both looked at each other and busted out laughing.
“You can head to your own places. I’m not feeding you.”
“Don’t be like that, sis.” Colton ruffled my hair.
“It’s not our fault if the city slicker almost killed himself.” Lincoln was still laughing.
I marched right past the idiots. “I’m calling Dad.” I headed for the living room where I left my phone.
They followed. “Don’t do that.” Colton sounded worried.
I whipped back around to look at him. “Why?”
“We just played a little trick on him.”
I narrowed my eyes at both the red-faced fools.
“Can we at least sit by the fire to warm up?” Lincoln headed that way.
We all ended up in the living room together. I sat on the couch while Lincoln and Colton warmed themselves by the fire.
“Tell me what happened.” I held my phone in my hand as a threat.
“You go ahead, Colton.” Lincoln smiled.
Colton grinned with pleasure. “First, I’ll give it to your boy that he’s not one to back down or shy away from working. He throws a bale of hay as well as anyone I know.”
I didn’t know why that filled me with pride and regret that I missed seeing it. I thought he was attractive before. I could only imagine that would have had me knocking him down to get tangled up in the hay. I’d thought about his kiss more often than I should have. It left me wanting more and then some. I had to focus back on Colton’s story.
“We got the trailer hitched to the old Ford and stacked it with the hay. Your boy was doing a decent job tossing it out while Lincoln and I were in the cab.”
“Why weren’t you helping him? You guys can make the truck drive itself down the rutted road.”
They grinned between themselves.
“Please don’t tell me that you—”
“We jumped out and when he realized no one was driving the truck he jumped off and tried to get in the cab, but he slipped.”
My hand flew to my mouth.
“Landed face first in the snow.” Colton and Lincoln laughed. “Came up sputtering.”
“You guys are jerks. Why would you do that? Is Dad taking him to the airport? Because that’s where I would be headed if I were him.”
“It was all well and good until one of the heifers charged him.”
“WHAT!”
Lincoln and Colton at least had the decency to look ashamed.
Colton rubbed the back of his neck. “Thankfully Dad had an inkling and he and Dakota made it out to the pasture just in time. Dakota got between the heifer and Zander before Dad came riding up on Gus and drove her completely away.” Gus was my dad’s horse.
“You guys could have gotten him killed. Where were you during all of this?”
“You know that patch of trees near the shed?” Lincoln wouldn’t meet my eyes.
I shook my head at the two of them.
“We were heading his way,” Colton tried to explain.
Their excuses meant nothing to me. “Where did Dad take him?”
They both shrugged.
“He’s never going to want me now.” I started dialing my dad.
“Hey.” Colton joined me on the couch.
I scooted away from him.
“I don’t think you have to worry about that.”
Tears stung my eyes. I cared for Zander more than I should and despite our improbability, I wanted him, even if I shouldn’t. “You guys have no idea.” I got up and headed to my room. They could feed themselves. I called my dad as soon as I closed my door.
It rang a couple of times before he answered. “He’s all right, Megan.” I didn’t even have to ask.
“Where are you?”
“We’ll be back in a bit.”
I let it be. I knew he would be safe with my dad. I sat on my bed with my phone in my hand staring at it aimlessly, thinking about wringing Colton and Lincoln’s necks. And about Zander. As much as I felt like he had hurt me, he didn’t deserve this.
The boys snuck out of the house quietly, the idiots. They were as immature as ever. I felt sorry for my sister-in-law.
I spent the rest of my afternoon preparing a warm meal of chicken and dumplings for my dad and Zander.
Around four o’clock in the afternoon I heard my dad’s truck roar up the drive. I ran to the mudroom to wait for them. I was anxious to see Zander. It didn’t take long for them and Dakota to enter. Dakota came straight to me.
I knelt and rubbed his head. “Sounds like you were a good boy today.” I looked up at a worn and weary Zander. He looked worse than when he was sick over Thanksgiving. The coat he wore was dirty and he looked about ready to fall over. I stood up. “Are you all right?”
He nodded, if barely. “I’m going to take a shower and head for bed.”
“I have a room ready for you.”
He took a seat on the bench. I watched as he painfully took off his boots and coat. I wanted to help him, but knew that wouldn’t go over well. My dad’s reaction to him surprised me. He too watched Zander, but I swore I detected a hint of admiration in his gaze.
Zander slowly stood up. I could feel his aches and pains. “Lead the way, darlin’.”
He followed me to what we used to call the kid’s part of the house. As we walked by the linen closet, I got him a fresh set of towels and handed them to him. “Colton’s room is next door to the bathroom. Can I get you anything else?”
“Yes, but we’ll talk about that later.”
“I’m sorry about my brothers.”
He moaned when he leaned down and kissed my head. “Don’t be. Paybacks will be hell.”
Warmth rushed from my head to toes. “Did you just kiss me first again?”
“Darlin, that’s not a kiss.”
I felt even warmer thinking about his real kisses. “I can bring you something to eat when you get out.”
“I’m going to be lucky if I make it through the shower. I’d ask for your help in there, but I know what your answer would be.”
“Does that bother you?”
“I need some sleep before we get into this.” He headed for the bathroom.
I could understand that. I let him be and found my dad in the kitchen. He was already eating.
“You’re not our maid, Megan.” He took another bite.
I sat down next to him at the table. “I know that, but what else would I do all day?”
“You need to go home and live your life.”
“I kind of messed that up.”
Dad set his fork down. “How?”
I tucked some hair behind my ear. “For starters, I quit my job.”
Dad raised his eyebrows. “I thought this was a vacation?”
“It can be. My boss, Kenadie, wouldn’t accept my resignation.”
“Why did you quit?”
How did I tell him? “You see, Zander . . . I mean, I mixed my personal life with business when I shouldn’t have, especially not with someone like Zander.”
“What do you mean someone like him?”
“He’s a player and a self-proclaimed eternal bachelor.”
Dad actually grinned. I didn’t know he could do that. His weathered face looked younger. He should do that more often. “Most men are. We grow out of it.”
I tilted my head. “What are you saying?”
“You look like your mother when you do that.” He shook his head. “She got to me.”
I smiled, but felt the prick of tears in my eyes. I missed her more than ever. “Are you trying to say you were never going to get married?”
“That was my plan.”
“Did Mom know?”
“No. She knew from the moment we met she had me in the palm of
her hand. She had me driving six hours one way every weekend to see her.”
My mom grew up in Cheyenne, or as my dad called it, the big city. It had nothing on Atlanta. I knew that they’d met at Cheyenne Frontier Days. My mom told me the story a hundred times how they were both at the bull riding event. I guess I was like my Mom—she got anxious and would stand up to cheer or to shout her displeasure. She got knocked over by accident by someone passing by and she happened to land in my dad’s lap. She said she knew right away that she never wanted to be in another man’s arms. I loved that story.
“Why did you change your mind?”
“When I met your mother, I forgot there ever was another choice.”
A few tears leaked out and rolled down my cheek.
My dad brushed them away with his rough, calloused hand. “I think you have yourself a young man who’s having a hard time remembering why he ever wanted to stay single.”
“You don’t know him.”
My dad turned back to his dinner. “He’s here. What does that say?”
That was a good question.
Chapter Twenty-Five
My dad fell asleep that night on his recliner. I stayed up stringing popcorn and cranberries while sitting on the bearskin rug in front of the crackling fireplace. It was ten o’clock. Zander had been asleep for hours. It was cozy working by the glow of firelight and the lit but bare Christmas tree. I thought about how romantic it could have been if I had someone to share the moment with.
I was beginning to wonder if Zander could read my thoughts. I heard the floor creak behind me. I turned around to see a more rested but still disheveled man in pajama pants and a t-shirt. He was rubbing his arms.
“There’s room for you on the rug.”
He didn’t need me to ask twice. He was by my side in record time, warming himself in front of the blazing fire. “How do you live here?”
“You get used to it.”
“No, thanks.”
I smiled at him. “You’re free to go home anytime. I’m not holding you hostage.”
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