spent most of his time driving a beat-up truck to rodeo arenas, then proceeded to torture his body atop a raging bull.
The whole time he’d been in Oklahoma this week, he hadn’t mentioned his ex-girlfriend once. Silvia admitted she was curious—had he seen her? Had they talked? Was he considering getting back together?
All of his calls and texts had been getting more and more flirty. But maybe that was her imagination, and she was reading into things that weren’t there. Maybe all guys in Oklahoma were like Westin. Polite, charming, heart on their sleeves . . .
Silvia sighed. She couldn’t sit on her bed all morning, even though Saturdays had a lighter agenda. She planned to make more batches of barbeque sauce and deliver it to Mariah’s. The sauce wasn’t due until Monday, but what if . . . What if Westin wanted to hang out with her?
Not like a date. Maybe a drive. And not what he’d suggested—taking her out on some horses. No thanks.
Silvia stood and set her phone aside. Then she headed into the kitchen. The coffee machine was brewing, and Kellie sat at the table with some tea. Silvia knew it was orange tea, and she’d started drinking it herself.
“Good morning,” Kellie said, smiling, her blue eyes warm. Her blonde hair was pulled into a messy bun.
“Good morning.” Silvia opened a cupboard and fetched a mug, then filled it with water from the sink. Next, she put it in the microwave to heat it up. “You’ll be relieved to know I talked to my brother this morning.”
“How did it go?”
“Fine,” Silvia said, then smirked. “Gave him some homework.”
Kellie chuckled. “Good for you.”
Silvia nodded, warmth blooming in her chest. The microwave dinged, and she took out the steaming mug. Then she dunked a tea bag into it and anchored it with a teaspoon.
Next, she took a seat across from Kellie while waiting for the tea to steep.
“How are you doing?” she asked Kellie.
The woman’s brow wrinkled. “Fine.”
“Women say that a lot, don’t we?”
“That’s the truth,” Kellie said on a sigh. “You know, I’m not fine. Hardly slept last night. It appears my ex-husband is claiming I stole money from him during our marriage. I didn’t, of course, but now we’re getting lawyers involved again.”
“What a creep,” Silvia said, then clamped her hand over her mouth. “Sorry. Was that cross talking?”
Kellie laughed so hard, she had to wipe her eyes. “Oh, gosh, I needed that. Thanks, Silvia. And no, we can talk like normal people in the kitchen.” She was still chuckling as she reached for her mug.
“Glad I could help.”
Kellie winked, then she sobered. “By the way, Ryan told me Westin is staying at his place this weekend . . .”
Silvia didn’t meet the woman’s eyes as she stirred the teabag in her own mug.
“Do you know anything about that?”
Silvia glanced up. “About Westin? Or about Ryan?”
“I don’t want to get in the middle of anyone’s business,” Kellie said in a careful tone. “But Westin and my brother go way back. He’s like a brother to me, too. And you’re a beautiful woman, Silvia, so I’m not surprised Westin is interested. I just . . . I don’t want him to get hurt. You live in Seattle, and—”
Kellie didn’t need to finish. Silvia knew exactly what was going on. “My brother told you about the men I’ve dated, didn’t he?”
“He had concerns about your past behavior,” she said. “Your impulsiveness and how you date guys for a few weeks at a time, then dump them, only to be dating another guy soon after.”
Silvia took a sip of her tea, even though it was too hot. She could feel her temper rising, and that wasn’t a good thing. She focused on taking a steadying breath. “My brother is overprotective, and like I said in group, way too co-dependent.”
“I totally get that, I really do,” Kellie said. “I don’t mean to offend you. But if you’re not interested in Westin as much as he’s interested in you—according to Ryan—can you make sure that’s clear?”
First, Silvia wondered what in the world Westin had said to Ryan about her. He’d been in Oklahoma hanging out with his ex-girlfriend, for heck’s sake. Second, Axel had seriously crossed the line. But she’d have to deal with that later. Right now, Kellie Prosper was looking for an answer, and Silvia didn’t know if she had one.
She stared down at the mug in front of her. The orange scent was sweet, calming, but that didn’t