by Maisey Yates
“Catch you later then,” she said, handing him her empty tequila glass and making her way out onto the dance floor. He stood there, watching her move. There was a smile on her face that lit up the entire room. She moved with lithe, graceful steps, holding the hand of her great-nephew, Daniel, and showing him the moves.
“Dude, why are you standing here instead of dancing with the woman you’ve been trying to get with for months?” Zeke asked him.
“I can’t dance,” he repeated to his friend. “It’s a disaster and I pretty much haven’t been very articulate with Piper tonight, so I don’t think I need another strike against me.”
His friend just shook his head. “The Electric Slide isn’t my thing either, but if your lady wants to be on the dance floor, then that’s where you should be.”
“She’s not my lady,” Brian grumbled.
“She never will be if you stand here like a doofus,” Zeke pointed out. He left to find Reagan, and a few minutes later Brian saw the two of them dancing along with everyone else.
Brian had never let anything stand in the way of what he wanted and he certainly wasn’t about to be defeated by this dance. He finished his vodka in one long swallow, put the empty glasses on the tray of a passing waiter and went for it.
He joined the group on the dance floor next to Daniel. “Hey, can you help me figure this out?”
“Sure can,” the four-year-old said. Then Daniel started calling out the steps, and to Brian’s surprise, it was actually fun.
Piper looked over at him, laughing when he and Daniel went the wrong way and almost crashed into the line behind them. Finally, the music ended, and Brian stooped down to thank Daniel. The little boy was very happy that he had a starring role in the day’s events as his parents had been married. He looked adorable in his tux, cowboy boots and Stetson.
“You really helped me out. I owe you, buddy,” Brian said.
“I like jelly beans,” Daniel returned with a grin.
“I’ll remember that.” The music changed to a slower song, and Brian looked over at Piper. “Dance with me?”
“I’d say no, but you really put yourself out there with the Slide,” she said, taking his hand and coming into his arms.
A tingle went through him, and his blood seemed to run heavier in his veins. More than anything, he wanted to take her back to his place here in Royal, but that felt like it might be too fast for this woman who he’d barely been able to get to have a drink with him. Was he coming on too strong? Hell, he didn’t know another way to be when he wanted something.
And he definitely wanted Piper in his bed.
But if he’d learned anything from this woman today, it was that she was skittish.
Building trust took time, and Brian had never been long on patience, but for Piper he was willing to be. He wanted to explore his attraction for her and wouldn’t let anything stand in his way.
And the attraction that burned between the two of them might be setting him on fire but he wanted to stoke the flames, not just let it go wild and leave nothing but ashes and smoke.
* * *
Piper wanted to pretend that she wasn’t interested in Brian Cooper, but after spending some time on the dance floor in his arms she knew that was a lie. The large tent that had been erected in the yard of the Everett ranch had sparkling lights draped around the interior and large portable heaters dotted around the area to keep the November chill away. The reception was full of people she’d known her entire life, but after the scandal that her family had been through lately, Piper realized these were the people who mattered. The ones who’d stood by the Wingates and hadn’t abandoned them.
Brian was one of those men. He’d helped Zeke and Reagan out—her nephew had told her how much it had meant to them. And, of course, there was this crazy sexual attraction between her and Brian. It had been there since the moment they’d met but she’d done her best to ignore it. That kind of passion she reserved for her art. It was safer that way. She just had never been an all-or-nothing kind of woman when it came to her desires, and with Brian it felt dangerous to let go.
Though with his hand on her back and her breasts brushing his chest as they danced, she was sorely tempted to throw caution to the wind. There was something...electric...in the way he touched her, and despite what he’d said about not dancing, he wasn’t half bad, swaying to the beat.
She started to feel restless. Usually she didn’t feel it in Dallas because she had her routines and her normal life. But here in Royal, when everything was in chaos with her family, it felt like things were changing... Maybe she was too. Starting with when she had ordered that tequila. She’d spent too long trying to be part of the society that Ava always urged her to conform to. Now she was on the edge, ready to do something reckless...
But, as attracted as she was to him, she knew that Brian wasn’t the man for her.
He was a family friend. More so than “Uncle” Keith, who Piper’s nieces and nephews didn’t trust after the way he’d muscled his way into Ava’s life after the death of their father. Should she be equally careful of Brian...?
“Another drink?” he asked when the song ended.
“That’d be great,” she said.
“Piper, do you have a minute?” Lauren Roberts asked, coming over to her.
“Go on. I’ll get our drinks and come find you,” Brian said. He turned to walk away, and she watched him go, admiring the cut of his suit.
Down, girl.
“What can I help you with?” Piper asked, pivoting toward Lauren. The brunette beauty was known around Royal for her fabulous food trucks, and her assistant had mentioned Lauren was going to be opening a restaurant soon.
“I was in your gallery while you were out of town and saw a number of pieces I really liked. Your assistant said that it would be better to talk to you so that you’d have a feel for what I really wanted,” Lauren said. “I know a wedding reception isn’t the ideal place to chat, but I was hoping to catch you so I wouldn’t have to go back to Dallas next week. Do you mind?”
Piper shook her head. “No, of course not. I love talking about art, and finding pieces that suit your new restaurant sounds like a fun project. I think someone had mentioned it was going to be a farm-to-table one?”
“Yes. I really want to be as local as I can with the sourcing of the food,” the other woman said.
“I think the art should be from the area too,” Piper mused, thinking out loud. “I have a few colleagues that I can reach out to in order to find some local artists. Are you looking for paintings or photography?”
“I just want really good stuff on the walls so people will feel like they are in a nice place,” Lauren said.
Piper laughed. “So, you’re saying you’ll know what you want when you see it?”
“Yes. Also Gracie Diaz is investing in my business so she’ll be helping me make the choices.”
“Okay, let me look around and see what I can find. I’ll send some images to the two of you and you can narrow down what you like. Then we can go forward from there. How does that sound?” Piper asked.
“Perfect. Thank you,” Lauren said. “I know it’s not my business...but are you seeing Brian?”
“No. We’re just hanging out together. I guess he didn’t bring a date either,” Piper said.
“That’s good,” Lauren said. “I’m sure he’s not anything like Keith. I know Sutton thinks he seems like a good guy.”
Seemed like a good guy.
“Great,” Piper said.
“What’s great?” Brian asked, handing her a glass of tequila as Lauren turned to leave.
“The reception,” Lauren said, walking away.
“It is nice,” Brian told Piper. “I really like that Harley and Grant found each other and that they are going to go back to Thailand. There was a time when everyone would have expected her to give up her
life and move back here.”
“Not that long ago,” Piper said. “Grant’s a great guy. I think that even though times have changed, some men still wouldn’t follow their woman.”
Brian took a sip of his vodka and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m not sure I’d leave the country, but I who am I to judge someone else?”
“Right. Everyone makes the choices that work for them,” Piper concurred.
Watching her niece, she was happy for Harley but another part of her was...leery. Piper had once come close to believing she’d found someone she could share her life with, but she hadn’t measured up to his version of perfection and he’d left. And although it had stung for a time, life hadn’t ended. She was old enough to know she didn’t need a man by her side to complete her. But spending the reception with Brian...exploring the spark of sensuality he’d lit in her...had shown her that she had missed the companionship of having a partner. Not that Brian would be her partner, but maybe it was time for her to start looking again.
She had been put off dating after her bad breakup and watching Ava’s marriage to Trent as his health deteriorated. But her nieces and nephews were all finding love and that made her long for something to help fill the void.
That said, she would never try to change for a man again. And she’d never be with a guy she couldn’t trust. But laughing and talking with Brian had reminded her of how much she’d shut herself off from relationships. Maybe it was fear or something else that had kept her away, but it was time to stop it.
She turned her attention to the coming week. She was looking forward to getting back to Dallas. Even though he had a law firm in the big D, he wasn’t part of her circle. Once she was home, she’d be away from the confusion and desire that Brian was stirring in her.
Copyright © 2020 by Harlequin Books S.A.
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ISBN-13: 9781488063220
Claiming the Rancher’s Heir
Copyright © 2020 by Maisey Yates
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
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