Cowboy's Baby. Victoria Pade

me.”

      Which wasn’t very hospitable. And he was being more than polite. There was thoughtfulness in his effort to reassure her he’d be keeping their secret.

      Kate took a deep breath and called upon her own manners. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be a shrew. This whole thing is just—”

      “Weird. Uncomfortable. Embarrassing. I know. It is for me, too.”

      It was odd, but knowing that, knowing he not only understood how she felt but was feeling the same things—well some of the same things, anyway—helped. It was comforting. Like having a comrade in arms.

      “What do you say we start over?” he suggested then. “Wipe the slate clean of Las Vegas and of everything up to this minute and pretend we’ve just met?”

      Oh, if only it were that easy.

      But nothing was made any easier by her being contrary or nasty so what was the point? Especially when there was so much more they were going to have to deal with than he knew yet.

      She held out her hand to him. “Hi. I’m Kate McDermot. Matt’s sister. Happy to meet you.”

      Brady chuckled a little and accepted her hand to shake.

      Not the best idea in the world.

      Because only when that big callused mitt closed around hers did she recall what truly wonderful hands he had. Strong, adept, powerful, commanding. And with a touch that felt like kid leather. A touch she suddenly remembered feeling on other parts of her body and liking much too much.

      “Friends?” he said then, still holding her hand and apparently having no idea what it was doing to her.

      “Friends,” she confirmed through a constricted throat.

      Then he let go, and Kate told herself to breathe again, to act normal, to ignore the fact that that one touch had made her blood run faster in her veins.

      “You wanted to shower,” she reminded, since he was still just standing there, still giving her the once-over.

      “Right.”

      “There should be towels in the cupboard in your bathroom and fresh soap in the dish. The wet bar is probably stocked—feel free to help yourself. If you need anything else just holler.”

      “Thanks. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

      “Then I guess I’ll just see you at dinner. With everyone else,” she said, wondering if her cheeriness sounded as false to him as it did to her.

      She finally managed to take a few steps backward, and as she did he said, “It’s good to see you again, Kate.”

      “You, too,” she answered mechanically.

      Then she gave him a little wave and hightailed it back to her own rooms where she again closed herself in and leaned against the door.

      Only this time she needed to wait for everything Brady Brown had put into motion inside her to settle down—her pulse, the blood racing through her veins, the prickles on her skin, the warmth where his hand had held hers….

      This wouldn’t do, she told herself firmly. It just wouldn’t do to be susceptible to the man. She had to keep a level head and view this situation from a practical standpoint. She’d veered off the straight and narrow with Brady once, and look at how much trouble she’d gotten into. She wasn’t going to let it happen again. Regardless of how great looking he was or how charming or how nice or how sexy.

      No sir. Not her. Never again.

      Not if it was the last thing she ever did.

      But as she pushed away from the door with the strength of her determination not to let Brady have any effect on her, she realized that even if it wasn’t the last thing she ever did, it just might be the most difficult.

      Brady unpacked a few things, shucked the clothes he’d been wearing too long now and headed for the shower.

      Matt had a nice place here, he thought as he went from the bedroom that was as big as a studio apartment into a bathroom luxurious enough to have been in a four-star hotel.

      Yep, a nice place all right. A nice place filled with nice people.

      So far it seemed as though his friend’s idea that he check out Elk Creek for some property to invest in was a good one. Which was part of why he was there—to see the spreads Matt had called him about.

      And none too soon.

      Matt had told him that three different ranches were either up for sale or had owners who were making noises about selling, just when Brady had been looking for an excuse to get up here. Just when he’d been looking for something that he could use as a cover for his other reason for coming.

      He needed to have Kate McDermot sign the divorce papers that would dissolve their marriage.

      Their marriage. It shouldn’t be called that. It wasn’t a marriage, after all. At least not in any way that counted.

      What it was was the most insane thing he’d ever done in his life.

      He still couldn’t believe he’d actually married her.

      But then, he’d been in a crazy state of mind, he recalled as he stepped into the steamy spray of the shower.

      Of course, he hadn’t realized he’d been in a crazy state of mind at the time. In fact, he’d thought he was over the craziness that had struck after his breakup with Claudia. After all, they hadn’t been married. They’d only been living together. And not for long. Sure, he’d known his pride was still bruised from her walking out on him, but he’d really thought he’d gotten past everything else.

      And even the bruised pride had felt on the mend the longer he’d been with Kate in Vegas.

      That had come as a surprise to him. But then, having a good time with her had come as a surprise to him, too.

      Brady had known within fifteen minutes of meeting up with Matt and his family that his old college roommate had a fix-up up his sleeve. To tell the truth, Brady had been initially PO’d about it. A fix-up with his best friend’s sister? That was just asking for trouble as far as Brady was concerned. It was a no-win situation.

      Then he’d met Kate.

      He’d liked everything about her on sight. She was more beautiful than she seemed to realize, with that buttermilk skin and those huge eyes the color of kiwi fruit.

      Her mouth was lush, and she had high cheekbones any supermodel would envy, plus curly hair that danced around a face as perfect as a Greek goddess.

      And then there was that compact body with those great breasts that were just the right size….

      Oh, yeah, one look at her and he’d gone from PO’d to thinking it might not be so bad to spend some time with her. As long as he kept everything light and friendly and aboveboard. What harm could it do to escort her here and there? he’d asked himself. And the answer he’d come up with was: no harm at all. A few days of enjoying her company and making Matt happy, then they’d go their separate ways.

      For a while he’d thought he was pulling that off, too. He’d just been having fun, looking forward to meeting Kate at breakfast every morning and filling the rest of the day and evening with gambling or sight-seeing or shopping or taking in a show together.

      Then little things had begun to strike him.

      Like how sweet she could be. How nice. Like how much more fun he had when he was with her than when he wasn’t. Like the fact that she had the most terrific laugh that came out sounding like wind chimes and turned her from terrific looking to stunning and made a sparkle come into her eyes that could light up a whole room.

      And then it was New Year’s Eve.

      His and Matt’s birthdays.

      And there he’d been, with his best friend and his best