LITMIR.BIZ

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more trouble than the rest of his eight brothers and sisters combined.

      “I’m sorry,” Beth said, looking equally distressed. “Is there anything I can do?”

      Maddie shook her head, grateful for the warmth of Patrick’s fingers clasping her own. She wasn’t sure how their hands had met, but he had a strong, firm grip. It was comforting. A man ought to have hands that did hard work and had the calluses to prove it.

      Boy, was she a dope.

      “I’m through with men. That’s all,” she said hastily, trying to send her thoughts in another direction.

      Patrick seemed like a good guy, but it didn’t change anything. She was through with both men and romance. She’d feel melancholy for a while, which was natural, then she’d get back to normal.

      Beth opened her mouth, but whatever she’d planned to say was lost when the door of the shop opened and a woman walked inside, wrestling a baby carriage ahead of her. With an apologetic glance, Beth went to assist the customer, who was casting curious looks from Beth to Maddie and back again.

      More customers came into the store, and Beth rushed over to Maddie. “I’m so sorry,” she said. “I’ll put the Closed sign out and get rid of everyone.”

      “No.” Maddie was secretly grateful for the interruption. Finding a sister was the last thing she’d thought would happen when she left New Mexico—not that it was certain they were sisters, she reminded herself. “Don’t do that. I’ll come back tomorrow…or call. I’m staying at the Puget Bed and Breakfast Inn just outside of town.”

      “You could stay with us. We’ve bought a wonderful old house and it’s huge. We’re remodeling so it’s a little dusty, but we’ve got lots of space.”

      Maddie shifted uncomfortably. Beth might well be her sister, but she didn’t know the O’Rourkes or what they expected of her. What she did know was how difficult it would be to stay in the same house with two newlyweds who couldn’t keep their hands off each other. Being a third wheel—on what should have been her own honeymoon—didn’t sound like fun.

      Besides, Beth would undoubtedly want to know more about her almost-a-wedding. She would ask with the best of intentions, but it was too humiliating.

      No.

      She couldn’t talk about Ted and the way he’d cheated on her. Not with Beth. It would be easier confessing to Patrick than tell a woman whose husband obviously thought the sun rose and set in her eyes. Maybe Patrick could help her understand men better, because right now she didn’t have a clue about the opposite sex.

      Oh, yeah, that was a great idea.

      Maybe she could ask his opinion about her less-than-generous bustline. He could tell her if it was really inadequate or just sort of inadequate. Heat crawled up Maddie’s face at the thought. She was losing her mind—totally bonkers.

      “Take it easy,” Patrick murmured in her ear.

      Maddie realized she was gripping his fingers with the fierce hold of a drowning woman. With an effort she let go and shook her head.

      “That’s kind of you, but I can’t,” she said to Beth. “Uh, stay with you. But thanks. I’ll call tomorrow.”

      Beth’s face fell with disappointment, Kane seemed thoughtful, and Maddie deliberately didn’t look at Patrick. She backed out of the shop and hurried up the street, her only thought to get away.

      This just wasn’t her week.

      Patrick looked at his sister-in-law’s upset face and his brother’s worried eyes, and sighed.

      He was going to get in deeper with Maddie, he just knew it. Beth was ready to welcome her with open arms, while Kane was concerned about his pregnant wife getting upset. Somebody would have to run interference.

      That would teach him to take the afternoon off. Officially he worked Monday through Friday, but lately he’d been at the station seven days a week. Right now he was researching radio transmitters, trying to determine the best way to double KLMS’s receiving area. It was a big investment, but it would pay off if he planned right.

      “I’ll go talk to her,” he said, trying not to sound reluctant. He liked Maddie, but getting messed up with her would play hell with his peace of mind.

      The reward for his offer was a kiss on the cheek from Beth and an approving nod from his brother.

      Well…maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.

      After all the times Patrick had screwed up, it felt good to be the one helping out.

      Maddie’s rental was parked at the curb, which meant she was on foot. He spotted a flash of turquoise and scarlet down the street. She hadn’t been wearing her jacket and the temperature was dropping, so he checked the rental. Sure enough, it wasn’t locked. She’d probably tell him that nobody locked their cars in Slapshot and be surprised to hear she ought to do it here in Washington.

      Slapshot.

      Who ever heard of a town being called Slapshot? There was a story behind that name, which he’d undoubtedly hear if he spent enough time with Maddie. Deep down Patrick thought the way her tongue ran away with itself was charming. Most of the women he knew were trying so hard to be sophisticated you couldn’t tell what they were really thinking.

      Patrick pulled a jacket from the front seat. A faint scent of sage rose from the garment, mixed with a sweet fragrance that had to be Maddie’s own perfume. He draped the jacket over his arm and headed for her with a long stride.

      “Hey, Maddie,” he murmured when he’d gotten close enough. “We have to stop meeting like this.”

      She regarded him gravely, without the slightest suggestion of a smile at his weak joke. “Do you really think Beth is my sister?” she asked.

      “Maybe.” Actually, he thought it was likely, but since Maddie seemed ambivalent on the subject, he didn’t say so.

      “She seems nice.”

      “She is.”

      “And your brother is really in love with her.”

      It was the second time she’d said something about love, and Patrick felt as if a lightbulb had gone on over his head. That was the problem. Maddie’s heart had been broken. Now she’d met a possible sister who was happily married and newly pregnant. No wonder she didn’t want to stay with Kane and Beth.

      “Tell you what,” he murmured, abandoning his resolve not to have anything to do with Maddie’s obviously troubled love life. “If you show me the low-down louse that made you cry, I’ll beat him up.”

      “You…” Maddie stopped and actually smiled. “Would you do that?”

      “In a cold second.”

      Patrick meant it, too. His best defense was to think of Maddie like another sister, and he’d defend his sisters with the last breath in his body. All his brothers felt the same; guys learned not to mess with the O’Rourke women if they had any brains in their heads. Of course, their sisters didn’t seem to appreciate the effort and complained every chance they got about them being overprotective Neanderthals.

      “Here, it’s getting cold.” He dropped her jacket around her shoulders.

      “Thanks.” Maddie caught the lapels together.

      “Do you want to get some lunch?”

      She shook her head. “Thanks, but not today.”

      “Come on, Maddie,” he wheedled. “It’s been hours since breakfast, and I hate eating alone.”

      Maddie doubted it. Patrick O’Rourke seemed comfortable with himself, though he was hardly a lone-wolf sort of guy. He could probably have all the feminine companionship he wanted, so she ought to be flattered he wanted her companionship. But since she was through with men and romance, she wasn’t the least

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