forgot to tell him how long his housekeeper should cook them. He said they were having some big to-do on his family’s ranch next month and he wanted the recipe for that.”
“So you called him in the middle of the night to tell him?” he asked, incredulous.
She grimaced. “It was when I remembered it,” she replied, and shrugged. “I forget stuff.”
“Not his phone number, apparently,” he mused.
“It was listed on the internet,” she muttered, prevaricating because it was for a good cause. “I used a search engine. I knew his name and what he did for a living. The rest was easy.”
He let out a long breath. He always seemed to be suspicious of her, and he hated himself for it. She seemed to be an honest, hardworking, kind young woman. But he didn’t trust his instincts. He’d been taken in one time too many by a woman who wasn’t what she seemed. This one knew her way around the law, despite her protests, and she could pose a real threat to the ranch if she was trying to set him up.
On the other hand, his heart started doing cartwheels every time he looked at her, and that was getting worse by the day. He wanted her. He was having a hard time hiding it, especially from his brothers, who noticed everything.
Gelly was furious that he even talked about Morie, which he did often, involuntarily. He’d mentioned her help in the kitchen, which Mavie had been overjoyed to have. Gelly wouldn’t dirty her fingers in a kitchen, and she was already jealous. Too jealous. He’d let the woman get too familiar with him, just by not pushing her away when he still could. Now she was talking about marriage and interceding with him for a friend who wanted to buy some scrubland on the northernmost end of the ranch.
“It’s just worthless land,” she coaxed. “You can’t run cattle on it. This poor man just lost everything he had. He just wants a few acres to live on. Maybe grow a little garden.”
“If it’s land you can’t run cattle on, you sure as hell can’t farm it, Gelly,” he’d replied. “Besides, it’s a family ranch and that would be a family decision. You need to have the man come and talk to us.”
She didn’t dare do that. The brothers would realize in a heartbeat that he was a businessman, not a down-on-his-luck rancher.
“Oh, he’s out of town,” she said, thinking quickly.
“Doing what?”
She thought. “Visiting his sick brother.”
He shrugged. “No problem. Have him come see us when he gets back. Now, are you hell-bent on going to this movie?” he added, indicating it on the screen of his computer. “I don’t like comedies.”
“It’s funny,” she assured him. “At least, that’s what I was told. You need a night out. You spend too much time working around here. You should hire a manager. You know, I just met a man who would do nicely. He’s college educated and…”
“I run the ranch,” he said coldly, looking up at her.
She hesitated. “Well, I was just mentioning it. About the movie,” she added, and quickly changed the subject. He was too quick for her. She’d have to be more careful.
Mallory was remembering the conversation while he was staring pointedly at Morie. She flushed under the scrutiny. He could see her heart beating wildly against her shirt. Her breasts were pointed suddenly, too, and he felt his own body reacting to her arousal. He wanted to back her into the wall and kiss her forever.
He pulled himself up short. He had to get her out of here before he did something stupid. “All right,” he said. “You can go back to work.”
“Thanks.” She didn’t look at him again. She could barely walk for the trembly feeling that went over her. He’d looked at her with pure hunger. She knew he wanted her, but he didn’t trust her. He was remembering her involuntary outburst in the woods. If only she’d kept her mouth shut! He’d never trust her again and she had only herself to blame. But she could win his trust. She knew she could. She just had to try.
HE TOLD GELLY, WITHOUT meaning to, about Morie’s phone call to the Texas judge.
“Well, that’s not surprising,” she commented on the way to the movie.
“Why not?” he shot at her.
“They were all hugged up together when I went out to tell her to get back to work and stop disturbing your guests,” she replied, lying through her teeth.