Fate (Steel Brothers Saga #13) - Helen Hardt Page 0,5
every day. I often thought about bringing them here to live at my condo, but they’d miss the wide open spaces. Wouldn’t be fair to them.
Daphne met my gaze. In her brown eyes, I saw something I didn’t recognize at first.
A few minutes later, though, I knew.
This girl had been through something. Something big. A new feeling landed in my gut, something I hadn’t felt since that day my father made me drive those two calves away to be killed.
It was a profound urge to protect.
Chapter Three
Daphne
He was looking at me again.
I was used to men looking at me. Sean Murphy had been eyeing me since he poured me a beer from the keg on campus. Most men looked at me the way Sean did—they thought I was pretty, so they were interested.
Brad Steel was different.
When his gaze met mine, I felt stripped naked, as if he could see everything inside me. Everything I hid so deeply.
As if he were looking into my soul.
I was being silly, I knew. No one could see inside me. He was probably just looking at a pretty girl like they all did.
Still, I couldn’t shake that there was something more to his gaze.
Something a little bit scary, but in a good way.
I knew all about the Steels. I’d grown up in a Denver suburb, and the Steel ranch distributed beef to most restaurants in town. They were in the news a lot, and everyone knew it was the biggest and most successful ranch in Colorado. The fruit from their orchards ended up on produce shelves all over the state.
Which meant one thing.
Brad Steel was filthy rich.
I didn’t care about money, though. I lived a modest life. Having a sound mind was the most important thing to me. I had one now, and I wouldn’t give it up for all of Brad Steel’s money.
Funny how most people took their minds for granted.
I’d never do that for the rest of my life.
“So, not a vegetarian,” Sean said. “You just don’t think about where your meat comes from.”
I sighed. “It may not make sense to you, but I really love animals. I get that we’re at the top of the food chain and all, and that we’re omnivores and are meant to eat meat. But I don’t like to think of an animal suffering just so I can have pepperoni on my pizza.”
“If it helps,” Brad said, his voice low and soothing, “we treat our animals really well. They’re pastured and fed with local grasses, and we don’t sell our cows to dairy farms just to get hooked up to a milk machine. Our steers and cows have a great life, even if it is a short one.”
“We treat our pigs really well too, Daph,” Patty said. “Because we’re such a small operation, we focus on quality.”
I smiled at both of them. “I’m glad. Thank you for telling me that.”
“Your pepperoni probably came from some disgusting place, though,” Sean said.
“Jesus, Murph,” Brad said.
“Yeah, that was kind of rude,” Patty agreed.
Sean swallowed a bite of pizza. “The truth hurts, guys.”
Brad threw a wadded-up napkin at him. “The truth is you’re a douche.”
Sean laughed. “Takes one to know one.”
Then Brad laughed. “Tell me again why you’re my best friend?”
“Because I find all the hot women.”
I warmed, but Patty, of course, spoke right up.
“You found us? What a crock. Daph and I found you, right?” Patty nodded to me.
Several times, I’d started to open my mouth to tell Patty that no one had ever called me Daph, but now I stopped. It was growing on me.
“Right, Pat,” I said.
I finished my diet soda and wiped my lips on a napkin. The two beers from the kegger on campus had worn off, so I was feeling shy again.
“Is this the best pizza you’ve ever had or what?” Sean said.
“Can’t say I’ve ever had better,” Patty said.
“It’s our favorite,” Brad said. “Beats anything on the western slope too.”
Normally, I’d go along with what the majority said. Life was easier that way. But though this pizza was delicious, it wasn’t the best I’d ever had.
“Sorry,” I said. “It’s great, but not the best.”
“You torture me,” Sean said dramatically. “We haven’t done our jobs, Steel. Now we’re going to have to find a better pizza for Daphne.”
“You don’t have to,” I said. “The best isn’t too far from here. It’s a little mom-and-pop Italian place near where I live in Westminster.”