Zane. Brenda Jackson

all your favorite flavors,” he said, forcing himself not to grin. The last thing he needed was for her to think he was getting soft. And as far as picking locks, he had forgotten that talent had been just one of the many ways she and their cousin Bane used to get into trouble.

      Getting up from the table, he headed for the door.

      “Hey, where are you going?” Bailey called after him.

      “Since I can’t find peace in my own home, I’m going to ride my horse a spell. I’ll be gone for an hour or so and hopefully that will give you time to find someone else to visit.”

      He then walked out the door and slammed it shut behind him.

      “Channing, wait up!”

      Channing stopped and turned around. She smiled when she saw Megan Claiborne walking briskly toward her. Megan had been one of the first doctors she’d become good friends with while working at the hospital four years ago, and their friendship had remained intact. Last month, Megan married Rico Claiborne, a gorgeous Bradley Cooper look-alike who worked as a private investigator in Philly. To divide their time between Philadelphia and Denver, Megan worked six months as a doctor of anesthesiology in Denver and the other six months at a hospital in Philly.

      Megan looked different. “Marriage agrees with you,” Channing said when Megan came to a stop in front of her.

      Her comment made an infectious smile settle on Megan’s lips. “You think so?”

      “I know so. There’s a radiant glow about you. You seem happy. I mean truly happy,” Channing said.

      Megan’s smile widened. “I am happy, and I have to concur that marriage does agree with me. Rico is the best. He’s everything I could ever want in a man.”

      “Then you have a reason to smile and look radiant.” Channing was happy for her friend and she wanted that same happiness and radiance for herself.

      Long marriages were common in Channing’s family. Her parents had been married for more than thirty-five years, and her grandparents would be celebrating their sixtieth wedding anniversary next year. Her aunts and uncles had been in wedded bliss for more than twenty years, and her cousins and oldest brother, Juan, had all been married eight years or more.

      When Channing had dated Megan’s brother Zane a few years back, she had believed he was the one. Although he had told her more than once that he never intended to marry, she’d actually thought he’d change his mind. Over the course of their relationship, although he’d never spoken any words of love, his actions had convinced her he had feelings for her. He’d been so attentive, possessive and protective. She was the first woman he’d invited to his family’s weekly dinner gatherings and the first woman he’d given a key to his place. So, quite naturally, she had assumed she meant more to him than all the women he’d dated in the past.

      But as time went by, it became obvious that he had no intention of making their relationship more than the affair that it was. Then, one day after they’d dated exclusively for almost nine months—she’d come out and asked him how he saw their relationship evolving. He’d told her nothing had changed. He never intended to marry. He’d said that although he cared for her, he didn’t love her—and never would.

      She’d appreciated his honesty, but his words had hurt. To protect her heart from further damage, she’d decided to move on. She wanted more.

      A week later, she’d accepted the position as a neurologist at Emory Hospital in Atlanta. She didn’t tell Zane about her plans until the week before she was ready to leave Denver. She knew Zane was still angry with her about the way she’d ended things, but it wasn’t as if she’d left town without telling him.

      “I wanted to ask you to come to my family’s Friday night chow-down,” Megan said, intruding into Channing’s thoughts.

      Channing winced. “You know I can’t do that.”

      “Why not? Things between you and Zane didn’t work out, and you moved on. As far as I’m concerned, it was my brother’s loss.”

      “But I don’t want to make things uncomfortable, Megan. I saw the way Zane was staring me down at your wedding. He didn’t like the way I ended things between us.”

      “Forget Zane.” Megan bristled. “Did he honestly expect things to continue between the two of you without him ever making a serious commitment?”

      Channing shrugged, even though she knew Zane had expected that. They had been dating exclusively, and to him that was enough. “I guess he did,” Channing said softly, remembering how hard it had been to leave him, to move forward and not look back.

      “Well, it served him right to find out he was wrong.” Megan took a moment and seemed to choose her next words carefully. “Channing, you were my friend long before you became involved with Zane. You moved away, and now you’re back for a short time. There’s nothing wrong with me inviting you to dine with my family.”

      Channing could see plenty wrong with it. “Thanks, but I think it’s best if I don’t accept your invitation. I’ll be in Denver for at least three weeks, six weeks if I decide to do a second symposium. Considering how Zane feels about me, he and I should keep our distance.”

      Megan didn’t push … at least not right now. Channing knew her friend wouldn’t let it drop. “You’re welcome to come. If you change your mind, let me know.”

      Channing nodded, but she wouldn’t be changing her mind.

      By the time Zane had returned home, Bailey was gone. He headed up the stairs to shower, refusing to admit he missed his sister already. She was known for her drop-in visits not only to him but also to her other brothers, sisters and cousins.

      Presently, there were fifteen Denver Westmorelands. His parents had had eight children: five boys—Ramsey, Zane, Derringer and the twins, Aiden and Adrian—and three girls—Megan, Gemma and Bailey. Uncle Adam and Aunt Clarisse had had seven sons: Dillon, Micah, Jason, Riley, Canyon, Stern and Brisbane. Over the past few years, nearly everyone had gotten married. Megan had married last month, and Riley would marry in September. The only holdouts were him, the twins, Bailey, Canyon, Stern and Bane.

      His parents and uncle and aunt had died in a plane crash nearly twenty years ago, leaving Zane’s brother Ramsey and his cousin Dillon in charge of the family. It hadn’t been easy, especially since several of their siblings and cousins had been under the age of sixteen. Together, Dillon and Ramsey had worked hard and made sacrifices to keep the Westmorelands together. When the state of Colorado tried forcing Dillon to put the youngest four in foster homes, he had refused.

      The deaths had been the hardest on those youngest four—the twins, Aiden and Adrian, and Brisbane and Bailey. Everyone had known that their acts of rebellion were their way of handling the grief of losing their parents. Now, the twins had finished college and were working in their chosen professions: Aiden as a doctor and Adrian as an engineer. Brisbane was in the navy and Bailey … was still Bailey. Considered the baby of the family, at twenty-six she worked for Simply Irresistible, a magazine for today’s up-and-coming woman that was owned by Ramsey’s wife, Chloe. But even with a full-time job, Bailey still managed to remind everyone she could be a force to reckon with when she put her mind to it.

      When Zane reached his bedroom, he glanced out the window at the acres and acres of land surrounding him. Westmoreland Country. Since Dillon was the oldest, he had inherited the main house along with the three hundred acres it sat on. Everyone else, upon reaching the age of twenty-five, received one hundred acres to call their own. Thanks to Bailey’s creative mind, each of their spreads were given names—Ramsey’s Web, Zane’s Hideout, Derringer’s Dungeon, Megan’s Meadows, Gemma’s Gem, Jason’s Place, Stern’s Stronghold and Canyon’s Bluff. It was beautiful land that encompassed mountains, valleys, lakes, rivers and streams.

      Zane loved his home, a two-story structure with a wraparound porch. He had more than enough space for himself and a family—if he ever chose to marry. But since