The Cowboy She Couldn't Forget. Patricia Thayer

stepped in front of the monitor. She felt tears burning her eyes as her baby sister appeared on the screen, sitting at a desk. “Hi, Marissa.”

      “Oh, Ana,” she sighed. “You’re in California?”

      She nodded. “I only wish I could see you in person, too. How about I come down to San Diego? If you’ll be around.”

      She saw the panic in her youngest sister’s eyes. “Well...maybe, but it’s not a good idea right now. I’m going to be out on a shoot all this week. How long are you planning to be here?”

      “I need to get back soon to take care of Dad.”

      Marissa hesitated, then asked, “How is he?”

      Ana glanced across the office at Vance, happy for his support. “He’s holding his own. That’s why I’m here. Uncle Wade came to see me a few days ago. Since Dad is temporarily incapacitated, there needs to be an executor to take over.”

      “So Uncle Wade is the boss now?”

      “No, he isn’t. Dad named Vance and me.”

      The twins shot a look across the office at him. “Why doesn’t that surprise me?” Josie said. “He’s always treated Vance like family.”

      Vance didn’t say a word for a moment. It was true, Colt had always treated him fairly. Although he wasn’t happy about the man’s treatment of his daughters.

      “Seems I’m the only one who knows about running a ranch,” he said eventually.

      “That’s not our fault,” Tori retorted, then all the girls began to argue. That was when Vance put his fingers in his mouth and let go with a loud whistle. It got their attention.

      “I didn’t ask for the job,” he told them. “But since I have it, I’m going to do everything possible to keep the ranch.”

      Josie looked at Ana. “What does he mean?”

      “It means the ranch is in financial trouble. Big trouble.” Ana told them about the amount of money owed for the lease, and their six-month extension. “So we need to come up with some ideas.”

      “Dad doesn’t have the money?” Marissa asked.

      Ana shook her head, knowing this wasn’t going as well as she’d hoped.

      “Well, we don’t, either,” Tori stated. “Everything we have is tied up in the business here.”

      “It’s not only money we want,” Vance said. “We need some ideas to add income to the ranch so this doesn’t happen again. So tell me, is the Lazy S important enough to you sisters to help save it? Can we count on your support?” After giving them his two cents’ worth, Vance turned and walked out of the office.

      Tori sighed. “I have to say that cowboy of yours sure knows how to get a woman’s attention.”

      “He’s not my cowboy or anything else.”

      Josie looked at her twin and they both grinned. Then their baby sister’s voice said via the computer, “If you say so, sis.”

      Ana was frustrated, having to defend herself. “I do say so. Vance and I have to work together.”

      Tori shook her head. “Too bad. You’ve had that guy tied into knots since you grew breasts.”

      What? Ana opened her mouth to deny it, but refused to add fuel to the fire. They had other problems. “We need to direct our attention to the ranch.”

      There was silence and Ana saw the confused looks on her sisters’s faces. Of course they were torn. Colt never appreciated anything his daughters had ever done. Tori and Josie had been top students all during school. They’d even won academic scholarships. Marissa had been a star athlete, but over the years their dad had said little in the form of praise or encouragement to any of them. So why should they go back to Montana now?

      Ana couldn’t make them, but didn’t want them to have any regrets, either.

      “Okay, sisters,” she began. “If you won’t do it for our dad, I have another idea.” She glanced at the twins, then at Marissa on the computer screen. “Let’s do it for ourselves. Let’s show Colt Slater how his girls can run the ranch.”

      CHAPTER FOUR

      THREE HOURS LATER, Ana kissed her sisters goodbye and she and Vance left the Slater Style office. She regretted that she hadn’t been able to convince them to come home.

      She sat in the passenger seat as Vance drove them to the airport hotel. “Go ahead and tell me how badly I handled things.”

      “No, I’m not saying a thing. Your sisters will have to decide on their own if they want to come home.” He stopped at a traffic light, and his dark gaze locked with hers. “I understand how they feel. I’ve watched for years how Colt treated you girls.”

      Ana froze. “But you never did anything.”

      “I can’t say I liked it, but I was a kid, too. I liked having a roof over my head, food in my stomach.”

      Ana remembered the night when Vance had showed up at the supper table, a skinny teenager with a lot of attitude. At first, she felt sorry for him, knowing he had been beaten by his drunken father. Their dad had never laid a hand on them, but it was almost worse when he directed all his positive attention to Vance. It should have come to his daughters.

      “We both can agree that Colt never had a sweet disposition,” Vance went on. “Truth be known, he doesn’t deserve your and your sisters’ loyalty. But if I know you girls, you inherited a fair amount of stubbornness and determination from that man. You four aren’t about to let the Lazy S fail.”

      Before Ana could disagree, he pulled up in the circular drive of the large chain hotel. The valet came up to the car and opened her door. “Good evening, ma’am.”

      She got out and thanked him, while Vance popped the trunk and another attendant helped with the bags.

      They arrived at the front desk. A pretty blonde with Jessica printed on her name tag smiled at Vance. Why wouldn’t she? He was a handsome man. Dressed in a pair of cowboy boots and creased jeans, he would turn any woman’s head. Ana glanced away, hating that she wasn’t immune, either.

      He placed his hat on the counter. “Hello, ma’am. We need a couple of rooms for tonight.”

      “Do you have a reservation?”

      “I’m sorry, we don’t. This was an unexpected trip.”

      The woman frowned and began to search the computer screen. “We’re pretty full tonight.”

      His dark gaze never wavered as he moved closer. “I’m sure you can find something.”

      Jessica sighed and went back to her search. “Oh, good. I do have a one-bedroom suite available.”

      Before Ana could refuse to spend the extra money and the night with this man, Vance said, “We’ll take it.” He pulled out his credit card, and before Ana recovered, they were riding up in the elevator.

      Vance held his breath as they stepped out onto their floor. He was surprised that Ana hadn’t fussed about sharing a room. Of course, he hadn’t given her much choice. He found their suite and slid the key card into the slot, then pushed open the door and allowed Ana to step in. His body immediately responded to her closeness. He caught her scent as she brushed by him. He sucked in a breath and gave himself a quick talking to, then followed her inside.

      The room was fairly spacious. There was a sofa, which was no doubt going to be his bed. He went into the next room to find an inviting king-size bed. Don’t even go there. He turned and walked away from the temptation.

      “You take the bed. I’ll sleep out here.”

      Ana shook her head. “You’re