Branded as Trouble. Delores Fossen

the conversation.”

      “How the devil did he work that in?”

      “He asked if you were still a virgin.”

      Mila wasn’t sure why that caused her to blush. Everybody in town probably talked about that, but it caused a little tingle inside her to know that it was something on Roman’s mind. It likely wasn’t a deep interest for him, though. More like a curiosity.

      “I told him yes, you were still a virgin,” Sophie went on, “and that he was the reason for it.”

      Mila gasped and nearly dropped her phone. “You didn’t.”

      “No. Just kidding. But it’s the truth.”

      In part, and in a very roundabout way, it was the truth. Mila put her hand to her heart to try to steady it. She needed to regain her composure and get rid of the flushed cheeks before she went into Belle’s hospital room.

      Where Roman would be.

      Mila had wanted to wait to have this conversation with Sophie’s mom until after the woman got home, but Belle had called earlier and asked her to come over on her lunch break.

      “Admit it,” Sophie went on, “no man has ever lived up to Roman in your eyes. Though I don’t have a clue why you feel that way. He’s pigheaded and sullen.”

      Yes, but he was also alarmingly handsome. The kind of handsome that made a woman stop breathing. Stop thinking. And start feeling warm in all the secret places of her body. The Grangers were all good-looking, but in her opinion Roman was at the top of that good-looking man-heap.

      And now he was here. And hurting.

      Not just from his surgery but because of what’d happened with Tate.

      “How was Tate when you saw him earlier?” Mila asked.

      “Changing the subject. You always do that when I talk about Roman. But in this case I’ll give you a pass because I know you’re worried about Tate. So am I. The doctor said the pills didn’t do any harm, but that he’ll need to keep seeing the therapist.”

      Mila had expected that. “Did Tate say how the first therapy session went?” She stopped outside the hospital doors since she didn’t want to continue this conversation while she went through the waiting room.

      “He grunted when I asked. Have you noticed that Roman’s and his grunts are identical? It’s weird.”

      Yes, she had noticed. For some reason, even the little things about Roman jumped into her head and stayed there.

      “One more thing, and I’ll let you go,” Sophie said. “If you help Mom set up one of the fantasy dates, give Clay the guy’s name so he can run a background check on him. The way we do for you.”

      Clay did indeed do that for her. He’d started it shortly after one of her “dates” had gotten drunk and broken into the bookstore. There’d been no real damage, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

      Mila assured her that she would, ended the call and made her way into the hospital. The waiting room was packed, making her wonder if these people all needed medical attention or if they were there to find out what was going on with the Grangers. Sometimes, it was tough being the richest family in town. People admired them, wanted to be them, but there were some who would probably like to see Sophie and her family brought down a peg or two.

      And they had been.

      Only two years ago Sophie and Garrett had nearly lost the family business when one of their accountants got involved in money laundering. It’d been a huge scandal. In part, because at first the main suspect was their CFO, Billy Lee Seaver. Since Billy Lee was also godfather to Sophie and her brothers, it had made the gossip even juicier.

      Shortly after that, Garrett’s then-wife had gotten caught having sex with another man. That had fueled the worst of the busybodies for a while, but now that Garrett had divorced her and was engaged to someone else, it appeared that Roman and Tate would be the next up in the gossip barrel.

      Mila would do what she could to nip it in the bud.

      In part, she could do that just by being seen in public with her mother. Vita had a way of diverting attention simply by showing up. A way of making Mila uneasy, too.

      Bad juju, her mother had said. An ill wind blowing.

      Well, it had blown, all right. That’s why Mila was visiting three people she cared about in the hospital. She doubted Vita had known what was going to happen, but people did have gut feelings about this sort of thing. But if so, what gut feeling had prompted her to give Mila the condom?

      And to say that Mila was going to have her life turned upside down and lose her virginity in thirty days?

      Yes, definite unease, considering that Roman was back in town and that he was probably the only man in the universe she’d take to her bed.

      Mila made her way to the hall of the hospital ward, and she immediately spotted Belle. Not in her room, but sitting in a wheelchair just outside the door. She wasn’t wearing a gown, but rather a dress.

      “I’m waiting for the doctor to say I can go home,” Belle said right away to her. She moved the wheelchair toward Mila, halving the distance between them.

      Mila glanced at her watch. “Why didn’t you just wait in bed?”

      “Because Tate’s been out of the room most of the morning at appointments, and I’ve already had to use my safe word with Roman three times. My son certainly knows how to start a fight.”

      Yes, and so did Belle. Mila kept that to herself, though. And she wondered about safe words. That wasn’t something she’d expected Belle to say, but Sophie’s mother was a little like Vita. You couldn’t be certain what would come out of her mouth.

      Like now.

      “Why would a man want whipped cream sprayed in his boxer shorts?” Belle asked.

      Mila was certain she got a deer-in-the-headlights look. “I’m not sure,” she settled for saying. “Why?”

      “Because that’s what Roman was going on about yesterday when he was waking up from surgery.” She took Mila’s hand, pulled her closer. “You think women have been doing that to him?”

      Mila suspected that women had done a lot of things to Roman. Probably whipped cream along with other edibles. She might be a virgin, but she wasn’t clueless.

      “That nurse, Alicia, has been flirting with him,” Belle went on. “I told her to take care of my bedpan. I didn’t have a bedpan, mind you, but I thought it would remind her that she’s not there to play under the sheets with my son. Will you talk to her about it?”

      Mila would rather eat a cactus. But she nodded. If Roman gave her any hint that it was a problem, she would say something to Alicia. What, exactly, Mila didn’t know, but Roman was here to recover. That might not happen if Alicia managed to give him an erection.

      “Now, to the fantasy,” Belle went on. “Did you bring me the webpage address?”

      Mila nodded and took the paper with the info from her purse. She didn’t hand it to Belle right away, though. She moved the woman closer to some chairs and sat so she could make eye contact with her.

      “Are you certain you want to do this?” Mila pressed.

      “Of course. Didn’t you hear what I said about wanting to live my life? Lordy, I can hardly wait to get started. I’ve missed so much.”

      Mila knew the feeling. But she also knew something else. “The fantasies can be fun, but they shouldn’t be a substitute for a real relationship. If you want to start dating, I’m sure there are several men in town who would love to go out with you.”

      One man, anyway. Billy Lee Seaver. Mila didn’t think it was her imagination that the man had stars in his eyes when it came to Belle. Probably the only reason he hadn’t asked