Under His Protection. Linda Turner

      “I won’t,” she promised, hugging them both one more time. “I’ll see you in a month. God, I’m going to miss you!”

      “Keep in touch! We expect an e-mail every other day.”

      “You, too,” she said, forcing a bright smile as they slipped into the cab. “I want to know all the little details—where you’re going, what you’re doing, who you’re seeing.”

      “Oh, no!” Priscilla said with dancing eyes. “I don’t kiss and tell!”

      Grinning, Katherine pushed her into the cab. “We’ll call every Sunday,” she told Elizabeth.

      “Good. Be careful! I love you.”

      They waved all the way down the drive, until the cab disappeared around the first curve and they were lost to view.

      Later, Elizabeth couldn’t say how long she stood there, staring at the empty drive. Silence enveloped her, broken only by the sigh of the wind as it whispered through the pines. Hugging herself, she was surprised when tears suddenly spilled into her eyes. She’d thought she was prepared for her stay at the ranch. But already she could feel the loneliness creeping in on her, chilling her.

      It wouldn’t be so bad, she told herself. This was now home. Granted, it didn’t feel like it yet, but she was sure it would eventually. It just took time. And it wasn’t as if she was locked in a cave somewhere. She was free to leave, even be gone overnight. But just for one night at a time, she reminded herself. And that was okay. She’d take day trips, explore Colorado, e-mail her sisters and friends and keep in touch with what was going on in London. And since Spencer had betrayed her, she’d been rethinking her plan to open a dress shop with Priscilla in London after she finished her internship. Maybe Colorado would be better. She’d check out possible shop locations. So she had plenty to do. She’d be fine.

      So why did she feel like crying?

      “Are you all right?”

      Startled, Elizabeth whirled to find John Cassidy studying her with dark-brown eyes that saw far more than she liked. Irritated, she scowled at him. “Don’t do that!”

      For just a moment, she thought she saw the glint of amusement in his eyes, but he blinked and it was gone. “I beg your pardon,” he said stiffly. “Don’t do what?”

      “Sneak up on me! You scared me.”

      “That wasn’t my intention,” he retorted, “but you need to be scared. Being on guard is probably the only thing that’s going to save that pretty little ass of yours.”

      “Excuse me?”

      His lips twitched, and this time, he made no effort to hide the wicked humor that flashed in his eyes. “There’s no need for that. I’m just trying to keep you safe. If something happens to you, I’ve got to call Buck, and then there’s going to be hell to pay.”

      She lifted a delicately arched brow at him. “Oh, really? So what are you saying? He’d blame you or me?”

      “I’d just as soon not take a chance,” he said smoothly. “Behave yourself, watch your back, and we’ll both get along fine.”

      “Behave myself!” she sputtered, indignantly. “Do you know who you’re talking to?”

      Not the least intimidated by her, he grinned. “Elizabeth Wyatt, oldest sister, the responsible one. I can think of other ways to describe you, but I think I’d better stop there.”

      She was so irritated, steam was practically coming out of her ears. She didn’t, however, blast him as she so obviously wanted to. Instead, she said through clenched teeth, “We need to get something straight, Mr. Cassidy, before we go any further. I’m your boss. You don’t tell me to behave myself or how to get along with you. You have to worry about how to get along with me. Understood?”

      He should have said, “Yes, ma’am,” and apologized for so obviously insulting her. It would have been the wise thing to do since she did, probably, have the power to fire his ass. But pushing Miss Elizabeth Wyatt’s buttons, he was discovering, was too damn easy. There were just some things a man couldn’t resist.

      “You’re my boss?” he repeated, making no effort to hide his mocking grin. “Yeah, right.”

      “You don’t believe me? Well, how about this, Mr. Cassidy? You’re fired!”

      Far from impressed, he only laughed. “Sorry, sweetheart. I work for Buck. You don’t have the power to fire me.”

      Chapter 2

      Outraged, Elizabeth couldn’t believe his audacity. So she didn’t have the power to fire him, did she? Well, they’d see about that! He worked for the Wyatts—all four Wyatts—and if he had trouble accepting that, then she’d call Buck and he would make him understand who was in charge of the Broken Arrow for the next month. And if he still refused to accept who his bosses were, then Mr. Cassidy could find himself somewhere else to work. It was that simple.

      But even as she considered going into the house to call Buck, she realized what she was doing and stiffened. No, she thought, irritated. She didn’t need Buck to back her up—this was her ranch, too, and she was in charge! If John didn’t like it, then too damn bad!

      “Don’t push me, Mr. Cassidy.” she warned. “If you don’t realize that you’ll be the one who loses, then you’re not as smart as I think you are.”

      For a moment she thought he was going to ignore her advice completely, but something in her tone must have told him she was serious. With a mocking curl of his mouth, he nodded his head slightly and lifted a finger to the brim of his black Stetson. “Yes, ma’am. Whatever you say, ma’am. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do.”

      He strode past her and headed for the barn. He didn’t once look back, and that was probably a good thing. Because she couldn’t take her eyes off his lean backside. The man had no right to look so good in a denim work shirt and worn jeans. Were his jeans as soft as they looked? His body as hard? With no trouble whatsoever, she could see him working in the sun, his shirt hung on a fence post, his sweat-damp muscles rippling as he worked—

      Elizabeth Marie Wyatt! What has gotten into you?

      Shocked by her own thoughts, she stiffened. What was she doing? She didn’t fantasize about men she didn’t know. Especially a man like John Cassidy. All right, so he was an incredibly handsome man in a hard, macho way. He was also far too sure of himself, not to mention opinionated and argumentative and an employee. Any woman who made the mistake of getting involved with him would find herself with her hands full.

      She wasn’t that foolish, Elizabeth assured herself. She liked a man who was more sophisticated, less rugged, softer. She doubted John Cassidy had ever been soft a day in his life, including the day he was born.

      Still, she couldn’t stop thinking about that rock-hard body of his. What would it feel like to be held against that body? To have him move over her, in her—

      Suddenly realizing the turn her thoughts had made, she pulled herself up short, horrified. What was wrong with her? She wasn’t the type of woman who mooned over a man she didn’t know, let alone fantasized about having sex with him! Did John know? If he even suspected what was going on in her head, she’d be completely mortified.

      This was all Spencer’s fault, she decided. She was still hurt, still reeling from his betrayal and obviously looking for a distraction. It wasn’t going to be John Cassidy!

      Work, she thought desperately, turning to stride into the house. She needed to focus on what was really important—deciding what she was going to do with her future, where she was going to live, work. Nothing else mattered but that. Certainly not a man, not romance, not love.

      Clinging to that thought, she stepped into Buck’s office and settled at the computer. Within minutes she was on the Internet, checking out Colorado towns and cities, searching