Buckhorn Beginnings. Lori Foster

Honey stared at the cat as if she’d never seen one before. “What time is it?”

       “Five o’clock. You missed lunch, but dinner will be ready soon.”

       Casey stepped forward to retrieve the new pet, but Honey shook her head. “She’s okay there. I don’t mind sharing the bed.”

       Casey smiled at her. They all loved and accepted animals, thanks to Jordan, and it pleased his son that their guest appeared to be of a similar mind. “You want something to drink?”

       She thought about that for a moment, then finally nodded. “Yes, please.”

       Sawyer was amused by her sluggish responses and said, “Make it orange juice, Case.”

       “Sure thing.”

       Once Casey was gone, Sawyer studied her. She yawned hugely behind her hand, then apologized.

       “I can’t believe I slept so long.”

       He resisted the urge to say, I told you so, and stuck to the facts instead. “You’ve got bronchitis, which can take a lot out of you, not to mention you’re just getting over a concussion. Sleep is the best thing for you.”

       She sat back and tucked the covers around her waist. After a second, she said, “I’m sorry about arguing with you earlier. I know you mean well.”

       “But you don’t trust me?”

       She shrugged. “Trust is a hard thing. I’m not generally the best judge of character.”

       This sounded interesting, so he pulled up a chair and made himself comfortable. “How so?”

       She gave him a wary look, but was saved from answering when Casey came back in. He handed her the glass of iced orange juice and a napkin.

       “Thank you.”

       “No problem.” He turned to Sawyer. “I’m going to go down and do some more work on the fence.”

       “Only for about an hour. Dinner will be ready by then.”

       “All right.”

       As Casey started out, Honey quickly set her glass aside and lifted a hand. “Casey!”

       He turned, his look questioning.

       “I noticed your shoulders are getting a little red. Have you been out in the sun much lately?”

       “Uh…” He glanced at his father, then back to Honey. “Yeah, I mean, I’ve been outside, but there hasn’t really been much sun till just a bit ago.”

       “I know it’s none of my business, but you should really put on a shirt or something. Or at least some sunscreen. You don’t want to burn.”

       Sawyer frowned at her, then looked at Casey. Sure enough, there was too much color on his son’s wide shoulders and back. Casey looked, too, then grimaced. “I guess it was so cloudy today, I didn’t think about it.”

       She looked prim as she lectured. “You can burn even through the clouds. I guess because I’m so fair, I’m especially conscious of the sun. But I’d hate to see you damage your skin.”

       Casey stared at her, looking totally dumbfounded. Too much sunshine was probably the last thing the average fifteen-year-old would have on his mind. “I’ll, uh…I’ll put some sunscreen on. Thanks.”

       Sawyer added, “And a shirt, Case.”

       “Yeah, okay.” He hurried out before he drew any more attention.

       Sawyer looked at Honey. She was smiling, and she looked so sweet, she took his breath away. He didn’t like her interference with his son, but since she was right this time, he couldn’t very well lecture her on it.

       “You have a wonderful son.”

       He certainly thought so. “Thank you.”

       “He doesn’t really look like you. Does he take after his mother?”

       “No.”

       She looked startled by his abrupt answer, and Sawyer wished he could reach his own ass to kick it. He didn’t want her starting in on questions he didn’t want to answer, but his attitude, if he didn’t temper it, would prompt her to do just that.

       “I got your clothes washed. If you’re feeling up to a bath, we can get that taken care of before dinner, then you can change.” Not that he wanted her trussed up in lots of clothes when she looked so enticing wearing what she had on. But he knew it’d be safer for his peace of mind if she at least had panties on.

       Except that he’d already seen the tiny scrap of peach silk she considered underwear, and knowing she wore that might be worse than knowing she was bare, sort of like very sweet icing on a luscious cake.

       Luckily he’d done the laundry while no one else was around. He didn’t want his brothers envisioning her in the feminine, sexy underwear. But he knew they would have if they’d seen it. He could barely get the thought out of his mind.

       “I’m definitely up for a bath. I feel downright grungy.”

       She looked far from grungy, but he kept that opinion to himself. “We’ll use the hall bath. Morgan’s room opens into it, but he isn’t home yet. I think he’s on a date. And Gabe only uses the shower in the basement.”

       Her eyes widened. “Good grief. How many bathrooms do you have?”

       She looked confused again, and he grinned. “As many as I have brothers, I guess. Little by little we added on as everyone grew up and needed more room.”

       “It’s amazing you all still live together.”

       He lifted one shoulder in a lazy shrug. “My father left us the house, and my mom moved to Florida after Gabe graduated. Morgan stays here in the main house with me and Case, but he’s building his own place on the south end of the property. It should be done by the end of the summer.”

       “How much property do you have?”

       “Around fifty acres. Most of it’s unused and heavily treed, just there for privacy, or if any other family decides to build on it. Morgan’ll have his own acreage, but still be close enough, which is the way we all like it. Jordan’s settled into the garage. He converted it to an apartment when he was around twenty because he’s something of a loner, more so than the rest of us, but with his college bills, he couldn’t really afford to move completely out on his own. Now he could, of course, since there’s even more call for a vet in these parts than there is for a doctor, but he’s already settled. And Gabe has the basement, which runs the entire length of the house. He’s got it fixed up down there real nice, with his own kitchen and bath and living room, and his own entrance, though he usually just comes through the house unless he’s sneaking a girl in.”

       “He’s not allowed to have women over?”

       “Not for the night, but that’s not really a rule or anything now, just something my mother started back when Gabe was younger and kept trying it.” Sawyer grinned, remembering how often he and his brothers used to get in trouble. “Gabe has always attracted women, and sometimes I think he doesn’t quite know what to do with them. Dragging one home for my mother to get rid of seemed to be a favorite plan of his.”

       Honey chuckled, and he could tell by her expression she didn’t know he was serious. He grinned, too. She’d get to know Gabe better, then she’d realize the truth.

       “Keeping women out is just something that we’ve all stuck to. Especially with Casey around. He’s old enough now not to be influenced, but he was always a nosy kid, so you couldn’t do much without him knowing. He has a healthy understanding of sex, but I didn’t want him to be cavalier about it.”

       She pulled her knees up and rested her crossed arms on them. Smiling, she said, “I guess your wife wouldn’t have liked it much, either, if a lot of women had been in and out of the house.”