LITMIR.BIZ

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you at all.”

      Scowling, he snatched the wallet from her hand. “It’s a couple of years old. I’ve changed.”

      She cocked her head, amused by his embarrassment. “Actually, I was thinking the picture was quite flattering. You look…friendlier.”

      He shot her a dark scowl, then jerked a chair from the table and sat down. “Are you going to make coffee, or what?”

      “Of course.” She headed for the coffeemaker, but stole a glance at him over her shoulder, fearing she’d insulted him with her comment. “I’m sorry if what I said about your photo offended you.”

      “You had questions,” he said tersely.

      Reminded of them, she pulled a canister from the cupboard and measured grounds. “Yes. Quite a few, in fact.”

      “So let’s hear ’em.”

      She switched on the coffeemaker, then crossed to sit opposite him at the table. “Where did Renee live?”

      “You don’t know?”

      “No. I haven’t had any contact with my sister in over five years.”

      Though she sensed that he wanted to quiz her about that, he said instead, “Killeen.”

      “Killeen,” she repeated, amazed to discover that Renee had lived a mere three-hour drive from Dallas. “You said that you didn’t know her.”

      “No. Never even heard of her until Maggie showed up with the kid.”

      “Which is your father’s?”

      “Yeah,” he muttered, his expression turning sour.

      “And he and Renee never married?”

      He snorted. “That wasn’t his style.”

      “You sound as if your father was involved in…paternity situations before.”

      He arched a brow. “More than I was obviously aware of.”

      She frowned thoughtfully, wondering what Renee would have seen in a man old enough to be her father, then rose to pour them both a cup of coffee. When she returned to the table, she pushed a cup toward him, then closed her hands around hers, needing the warmth.

      “How did she die?”

      He took a sip. “Something to do with the birth. I don’t know the details. Maggie could probably tell you, though.”

      “Maggie,” she repeated. “The friend. You said she’s your brother’s wife?”

      “Yeah. Though that’s recent. A couple of days ago, in fact. Ace hired her to take care of the baby, then they up and married.”

      “They fell in love?” she asked in surprise.

      He grimaced at the question. “I guess. If there is such a thing. They seem suited. They’re both nuts about the kid. Hell,” he said, tossing up a hand. “Come and see for yourself.”

      Her eyes rounded. “What?”

      “Come to Tanner’s Crossing with me. See the kid. Meet Ace and Maggie and my other brothers.”

      The thought of going to Tanner’s Crossing and coming face to face with her sister’s past terrified her. What kind of person had Renee become? Would the baby look like Renee? Would Elizabeth be able to let her niece go once she saw her, held her in her arms?

      She swallowed hard. “I’ll need to pack a bag.”

      Two

      Woodrow had thought Elizabeth would sleep during the drive to Tanner’s Crossing. At least that was the impression she’d given him, when she’d tipped her head back against the seat and closed her eyes as he’d pulled away from her house. But she hadn’t slept. He knew, because her facial muscles had remained tense throughout the drive and she’d kept her hands knotted together on her lap so tightly her knuckles gleamed a pearly white in the darkness. He’d considered asking her to take over the wheel, so he could sleep. After twenty-four hours without any, he could use a little shut-eye. But after sizing her up, he’d opted to remain in the driver’s seat. The woman was skinnier than a rail and looked as weak as a newborn calf, which made him question her ability to handle a truck the size of his.

      When he stopped in front of his log house, she finally gave up the possum act and sat up.

      “Are we here?” she asked.

      Her voice sounded a bit rusty after three hours without use.

      “Yeah,” he replied, then clarified, “at my place.”

      She whipped her head around, her eyes wide in alarm. “But I thought we were going to your brother’s home.”

      He gestured at the windshield and the darkness beyond. “It’s not daylight yet. Everyone will still be in bed. I figured we’d catch a couple hours sleep, then head over to the Bar T.” Without waiting for a reply, he pushed open his door and hopped to the ground. He stretched his arms above his head to smooth out the kinks the drive had left in his back, then dropped his arms with a weary sigh and rounded the hood.

      As he opened her door, he saw that her eyes were riveted on the dark house behind him. “Problem?” he asked.

      Her gaze snapped to his. She gulped, then forced a polite smile. “I appreciate your consideration. Really I do. But I’m not the least bit tired. Couldn’t we just go to your brother’s?”

      “And chance waking Ace up before he’s gotten a full night’s rest?” Shaking his head, he offered her a hand. “Trust me. That’s not something you want to do.”

      She gave the dark house another uneasy look, before accepting his hand. “Why not?” she asked as she climbed down.

      The moment her feet touched the ground, he released her and reached into the back to lift out her suitcase. “Because he’s meaner than a grizzly if he’s awakened before he’s ready to rise.” He tipped his head toward the house, indicating for her to precede him up the rock walk that led to the front porch. “One time when we were out camping during a roundup, Rory and me woke him up from a dead sleep and ’fore we knew what was happening, he had us between the sights of his shotgun.”

      She jerked to a stop on the porch, her eyes wide in dismay. “He was going to shoot you?”

      He gave her a nudge with the suitcase, urging her on to the door. “Didn’t hang around long enough to find out. Me and Rory hightailed it out of there so fast, Ace was spittin’ dust for a week.”

      He pushed the door open, then waited for her to enter before him. “Light switch is on the left,” he instructed.

      As she fumbled a hand on the rough-hewn wall in search of the switch, Elizabeth wondered what had possessed her to agree to making this trip. At the very least, she should have insisted upon driving her own car. If she had, she could be on her way to a hotel right now, rather than searching for a light switch in a strange man’s house and worrying about her safety.

      Berating herself for the uncustomary impulsiveness, she found the switch and flipped it on. Light flooded the space, exposing a large room. A stone fireplace stood opposite her, wood stacked ready in a copper tub on its hearth. Before it, a round, braided rag rug was spread, covering a large portion of the heart-of-pine flooring. A small kitchen opened to the left of the fireplace, and a closed door stood at its right. To her surprise, she found his home warm and inviting, which helped ease her fears a bit.

      “You can bunk down in here,” he said as he crossed to open the closed door. He flipped on the overhead light, then tossed her suitcase onto the massive bed that dominated the small room.

      Elizabeth stopped in the doorway and stared, knowing by the personal items scattered about that this was his room. “Where will you sleep?” she asked uneasily.

      “On the sofa.” He

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