Bachelor Protector. Julianna Morris

social circle would have expected them to be perfectly dressed.

      “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m wearing sensible shoes.” Rosemary lifted a foot. “Kurt got them for me when he went shopping in Stockton.”

      The comment went over Tyler’s head for an instant then he frowned. “Who’s Kurt?”

      “Sarah’s father, Kurt Fullerton. He manages the Poppy Gold greenhouses and working gardens, but he also helps the bakery by shopping down in Stockton for specialty items. He’s a lovely man.”

      The warmth in her voice made Tyler pause. “Are you dating him?”

      It might explain a lot.

      The disappointment in his mother’s eyes deepened. “Your father has only been gone for eight months. While some people are ready to move on that quickly, I’m not one of them. Kurt and I met two weeks ago at the bakery. Hard as it may be for you to understand, men and women can just be friends.”

      Tyler worked with both men and women, but he couldn’t claim any of them as friends. He didn’t have that many friends, even from college. After he’d rejected law school, his father had refused to pay for his education. So Tyler had worked and borrowed his way through college, which hadn’t left time for socializing.

      “I still don’t see why it’s so important for you to work,” he said. “If you want to get involved with something again, what about your causes back home? Surely they need you.”

      “I’m needed here.” Rosemary’s face lit up. “I hear Nathan outside with Kurt. They often spend time together in the afternoon.”

      “Maybe I should meet him.”

      “Fine, but mind your manners. I’ll freshen up and be out in a minute.” She hurried upstairs.

      Tyler’s head ached worse as he stepped into the garden and saw a burly fellow talking to his brother. This was the guy his mom called “a lovely man”? He certainly didn’t resemble the petite blonde at the sweet shop. Sarah Fullerton was slender with an elfin face, while her muscular father would look right at home in a Hells Angels jacket and straddling a Harley-Davidson.

      Kurt and Nathan were deep in a debate about the merits of Humvees versus the earlier jeeps used by the military, and for the first time in months, Tyler saw animation in his brother’s face.

      Fullerton looked up. “I’m guessing you’re the brother.”

      Since he hadn’t said “chauvinistic jackass,” Kurt probably didn’t know what had happened at Sarah’s Sweet Treats.

      “Tyler Prentiss.” He put his hand out, and Kurt shook it with the strangling grip of a wrestler. “It sounds as if you’ve been in the service.”

      “I’m retired army.”

      “Kurt was in Kosovo and did a couple of tours in the Middle East,” Nathan interjected. “He saw more than his share of action.”

      The older man sighed heavily. “We’ve all seen too much.” He stood as Tyler’s mother came through the door. “Good afternoon, Rosemary.”

      “Good afternoon.” She smiled and pointed to her feet. “The shoes you picked out are wonderful.”

      Kurt Fullerton looked abashed. “I just got what Sarah told me was comfortable.”

      Tyler stepped back and watched his mom chat with Kurt, trying to decide if there was an underlying thread of flirtation. Friendship was one thing, but he wanted to know a whole lot more about Fullerton if something serious was going on. After all, his mother was a financially comfortable widow who was shockingly naive for a woman her age.

      Nathan had become quiet again, the hollow expression creeping back into his eyes.

      Hellfire. Why had he become a soldier instead of something safer? Yet even as the thought crossed Tyler’s mind, an uneasy sensation followed. He’d defended Nathan’s decision to enlist, saying it had to be his choice.

      “Sarah mentioned that you’ve been promoted,” Kurt said to Rosemary. “Assistant manager, no less. Not bad.”

      Rosemary sent a smug look in her eldest son’s direction. “That’s right. I love working for your daughter.”

      “She’s a good kid, all right.”

      A promotion?

      Pain pounded in Tyler’s head. This would make it even harder to convince his mother to leave. She might be doing all right at the moment, but her moods had been wildly erratic since being widowed. For a while she’d be like her old self, then something would happen and she’d fall apart. It seemed unlikely that she’d drastically improved in the few weeks he’d been gone.

      Perhaps he should try enlisting Sarah Fullerton’s help rather than antagonizing her, though he wasn’t sure what she could do. But at least if she fully understood the situation, she might be more supportive.

      Of course, first he’d have to convince her that he wasn’t the chauvinistic jackass she’d accused him of being. And since he’d not only stuck his foot in his mouth but jammed it all the way down his throat, it might take some doing.

      * * *

      SARAH SLID INTO her bathtub that evening, feeling utterly decadent. She hadn’t enjoyed a long soak since her business had gone crazy, but thanks to Rosemary Prentiss, she might be getting her life back.

      Imagine, she’d actually gotten six hours of sleep the night before. Six. She might have gotten seven if her cat hadn’t demanded treats at 2:00 a.m.

      She looked over and saw Theo’s whiskered face gazing at her from the basket of clean laundry she’d brought upstairs.

      “Thanks, Theo, I really wanted to wash that stuff again.”

      He yawned, stretched out his front legs and rested his chin on them, a vision of smug contentment.

      Sarah smiled and closed her eyes, reveling in the warm water and silence. She loved her business, but it was no longer quiet there, day or night. The shop was open for customers nine to five thirty, but the kitchen operated twenty-four hours a day.

      The phone rang abruptly, and Theo lifted his head with a reproachful meow.

      She considered not answering since she’d been getting numerous calls from an “unavailable” number—mostly silent messages on her voice mail—and figured they were telemarketing robocalls. Then she realized it was almost nine, which was a little late.

      “Sorry, toots.” She scrambled out of the tub and grabbed the receiver, shrugging into her robe. “Hello?”

      Silence.

      Irritation filled her. It probably was a robocaller, checking to see when she was home so a “live” telemarketer would know when to reach her. Still, silent calls made her uneasy. Her ex-husband had used them to check on her a dozen times a day, paranoid that she might be cheating.

      What a joke. He’d been the one cheating. He’d also used other tricks to frighten and control her. It had taken a long time after the divorce to stop being afraid of every odd occurrence.

      Sarah looked at the caller ID log and saw the number was shown as unavailable, just like all the other calls. With an effort, she pushed the thought away and looked at Theo.

      “Come to bed,” she told him.

      As a male companion, he lacked certain qualities, but he slept next to her every night instead of tomcatting around like her ex. Not that she’d stayed married after learning about Doug’s infidelity.

      And Theo’s feline smugness was a whole lot more appealing than Tyler Prentiss’s arrogance.

      Sarah got into her nightshirt and lay down, thinking about Rosemary’s eldest son. He might be sexy and gorgeous, but she’d learned all too well what a handsome face could hide. She hadn’t left her marriage hating men; she knew