The Ransomes: Matt, Nick and Katherine. Sara Orwig

he leaned around her to pick up another one of her boxes.

      “I’ll get your things and then I’ll show you around. Have you quit your job?”

      “No, I haven’t. I figured whatever we decide to do, I’ll work tonight.”

      Matt straightened up and she saw the hard look back in his features. He shook his head. “You quit today. You don’t owe them anything and you shouldn’t be there one more hour.”

      “I thought you weren’t going to meddle in my life,” she said, trying to curb her temper.

      “Where the baby is concerned, I’ll interfere. That nightclub isn’t healthy. They’ll manage without you.”

      “Look—”

      “No, you look,” he said quietly. “The bar’s atmosphere isn’t healthy. They’re going to get along without you. If we have a deal, part of it includes you taking care of yourself and your unborn baby.”

      Where sexual tension had spun tightly between them only moments ago, now friction set sparks flying. She glared at him, yet she suspected she would get nowhere if she argued the rest of the day.

      “Why do you want to wait tables so all-fired badly?” Matt asked her.

      “I don’t. That isn’t it.”

      “There you are.”

      She put her hands on her hips. “I’m here tentatively. We haven’t agreed on what we’re going to do. I haven’t accepted your offer. We need to discuss it before you start taking complete charge.”

      “Let me show you around, let you select your room and then we’ll sit down and see if we can’t come to terms,” he said, lifting the last box and putting it under his arm. “Tomorrow I’ll introduce you to everyone who works here. Mrs. Marley is the housekeeper and cook. You’ll meet her at the end of the week. She’s here two days a week. Fridays, she cooks. Saturdays, she cleans. My dad lives down the road from me. She’s at his house Monday through Thursday.”

      Olivia nodded.

      “Wait a minute,” Matt said and set a box on her car. Following Matt’s gaze, she watched a tall, sandy-haired man approach and shake hands with Matt.

      “Olivia, this is our foreman, Sandy McDermott,” Matt said easily. “Sandy, meet Olivia Brennan who will be staying with us a while.”

      “I’m glad to meet you, Sandy,” she said, extending her hand and smiling.

      “Happy to meet you, Miss Brennan. Glad to have you here.”

      “It’s Olivia, Sandy. Call me Olivia.”

      Sandy nodded. “Nice meeting you, Olivia,” he said, turning to talk to Matt. Olivia listened while they discussed cattle and a world she didn’t know. Matt was quick and decisive and more relaxed than when he was dealing with her. As soon as Sandy told them goodbye and left, she and Matt headed for the house.

      She was aware of Matt walking close beside her. Her jittery nerves kept her on edge, and she wondered what she was getting herself into.

      Once again Matt took her arm and she drew a deep breath. She hadn’t known him twenty-four hours, yet his slightest touch set her ablaze. She couldn’t fathom the chemistry. She had known other handsome, decisive males and she had had no trouble dealing with them and no difficulty ignoring them. Until now. Even Jeff with all his charm had never carried the electricity of a bolt of lightning the way Matt did.

      She wondered again what she was getting into if she accepted Matt’s offer that was a windfall in her circumstances. She was heartily glad to be out of the bar and away from lustful men. At the same time, she wanted this bargain to be partially on her terms. Her queasy nerves jangled when she thought about her plan and her requests. She had no idea how Matt would react. The knowledge was constantly with her that she was taking a risk by making her own demands because if she accepted his offer and he did what he said and kept his bargain, her life would improve beyond her wildest dreams.

      He held the door, following her inside an enormous kitchen with oversize windows. Sunlight streamed into the room that held maple cabinetry, granite countertops, a marble floor and maple furniture. The floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked a patio and a pool with sparkling blue water.

      “This is beautiful,” she said, unable to keep a breathless tone of awe out of her voice. “It doesn’t look like what I imagined.”

      “Jeff and I must have created the wrong impression.”

      Her gaze flew to him and heat flooded her cheeks. Embarrassed by her reaction, she bit her lip.

      “You probably thought we lived in a cabin with mounted heads and gun racks and the sort.”

      “No,” she denied halfheartedly and then shrugged. “Maybe something like that,” she admitted.

      “C’mon. Let me show you this wing of the house.” He took her arm lightly, yet the contact sizzled, and as they crossed the kitchen, her surroundings paled in comparison to the man beside her.

      From the hall he led her into a family room and her awe returned at the sight of a twenty-foot-high cathedral ceiling, a massive stone fireplace, luxurious tan leather furniture and pictures of landscapes.

      “This is a dream!” she gasped and her face flushed. “You can tell I’ve never lived in a house like this,” she said.

      “Well, now you do,” he said. “It’s comfortable. Across the hall are the living and dining rooms,” he said, taking her arm again as they returned to the hall. “On the other side of the kitchen is a utility room, exercise room and my office. The bedrooms are in the opposite wing. Other than my bedroom, in the southeast end of the house, you can have whichever bedroom you want.”

      As he led her through a workout room, a media room and his office, the elegant furnishings overwhelmed Olivia. It was a dream-come-true moment to think she would live in this palace. She realized Jeff and Matt weren’t the ordinary cowboys she had imagined they were. The house reeked of money and power and she wondered whether she could hold her own and govern her baby’s future against the Ransomes’ wishes.

      “We’ll have a decorator help you with the nursery.” Matt’s words jolted her back into awareness of the moment.

      “I won’t be here forever.” Olivia gave him a startled, wide-eyed look.

      “That’s all right. You’ll return to visit and bring the baby.”

      “You’re so certain!” she exclaimed, yet now she realized part of the source of his arrogance and assurance. Growing up in a home like this, how could he be anything except confident?

      “Shouldn’t I be?” he asked, looking blandly at her.

      Olivia stopped to face him, a frown creasing her brow. “Our lives are so different.”

      “It doesn’t matter, Olivia,” he replied easily. “We’ll be related to the baby and we’ll want to see him or her through the years. It’ll save you money to live here until you finish your education.”

      She merely nodded and returned to thinking about her future while she looked at more rooms in a house that dazzled her.

      “How’s this for you?” he asked later, leading the way into a bedroom that took her breath and she could not imagine living in it.

      She stood in the room large enough to contain the house she rented. The room was plush beyond her wildest dreams. It was ample for a king-size bed with a bronze headboard, a massive mahogany chest, bookshelves, a wide-screen television, a maroon sofa, a rocking chair and assorted tables. The decor was maroon with accents of white and beige and an oriental rug partially covering the gleaming plank floor.

      She knew she wasn’t hiding her amazement. She reminded herself that it was premature to celebrate her newfound fortune, her future prospects or this house that could possibly become her home. In