Make Me - Tessa Bailey Page 0,86

for actress Alyssa Cole’s world to come crashing down . . . but Heart Fire Ranch is a place of new beginnings, even for those who find their way there by accident.

Justin stared at the woman across from him. As familiar as she looked, he couldn’t put his finger on where he might have seen her before. Alyssa wasn’t from around here, that much was certain. There weren’t many women in town who could afford a designer purse, impractical boots, and a luxury vehicle more suited to city jaunts than the winter mountain terrain. But there was something else, some memory niggling at the back of his mind, teasing him, just out of reach.

Her waifish appearance reminded him of a fashion model. She was certainly lovely enough to be one, but the idea didn’t suit the woman standing in front of him. Justin assumed models would be accustomed to taking criticism and judgment, and this woman looked as if she’d crumble if he so much as raised his voice.

That was it, he realized. Behind her sadness, he recognized fear. Justin felt the uncontrollable instinct to protect Alyssa swell in his chest. She might not be his responsibility, but he couldn’t stop the desire to help her any more than he could have let the dog die. When she glanced up at him again, his mouth opened without acknowledgment from his brain.

“D’you know anything about accounting or running an office? You did pretty well with these guys. You could work here for a while, at least until you get your car fixed or figure something out, since my regular help doesn’t seem inclined to answer her phone.”

“I guess, but I couldn’t let you fire her . . .”

What the hell are you doing? He knew she came from money, since she wore a huge wedding ring. Hell, that ring alone should have been enough reason for him to keep his mouth shut, since she was another man’s wife, but his lips continued to move.

Justin laughed out loud, but he wasn’t sure whether it was at himself for his stupidity or her comment. “I can’t fire her; she’s my cousin. But maybe this would be a wake-up call to be more responsible.”

Alyssa gave him a slight smile before ducking her head again. He didn’t miss the fact that she wasn’t able to meet his eyes for more than a few seconds.

“My sister has a ranch with a few guest cabins. I can see if she has one empty. I’m sure she’ll let you stay as long as you need to.”

Her eyes jumped back up to meet his. He could easily read the gratitude, and a hopeful light flickered to life in her eyes. But there was more—a wariness he couldn’t explain and that had no reason to be there.

“Why are you being so nice? You don’t know me.”

Justin shrugged, as if car crashes and late-night emergency puppy deliveries were commonplace for him. “It’s the right thing to do.”

The light in her eyes darkened immediately and she frowned, not saying anything more. He reached for the runt, still in front of the oxygen and barely moving. “I don’t know if this little guy is going to make it,” he warned, slipping the dropper into the puppy’s mouth. He wasn’t surprised when the puppy didn’t even try to suck. It wasn’t a good sign.

“We have to help him,” she insisted, her voice firm as she set the puppy she was feeding back into the squirming pile of little bodies.

Justin looked up at the determination he heard in her voice, the antithesis of the resignation he’d seen there only moments before. His gaze crashed into hers, and he felt an instant throb of desire. He cursed the reaction, especially since she was right, he didn’t know her or her story.

“We? Does this mean you’re staying?” The corner of his mouth tipped upward in anticipation of spending some time with her, finding out how a woman like her ended up in the middle of nowhere like this.

Easy, boy. You’re allowed to help and that’s all. That ring on her finger and that belly say she’s committed to someone else.

Yeah, well, that sadness in her eyes and the fact that she’s alone say something completely different, he internally argued with himself. Justin wondered what happened to his “no romantic entanglement” resolution and how quickly this woman was able to make him reconsider it. But he couldn’t just leave a damsel in distress to figure things out on