her own lust onto Nate because every time he looked at her it felt like her skin burst into flames and sparks danced across her stomach.
She’d honestly thought motherhood had sucked all the woman out of her. She hadn’t felt a yearning like she did for Nate in—well, she’d never felt anything like it.
But if he truly saw her as only Eddie’s little sister, where did that leave her? She wasn’t exactly going to throw herself at him and risk losing the second chance she had in Paseo. That didn’t stop her heart from racing as she heard the truck door slam shut.
“Mr. Nate is home,” EJ shouted, jumping up from where he sat coloring at the kitchen table. He ran down the hall and a moment later reappeared, holding tight to Nate’s hand as he peppered the handsome rancher with questions about his day.
“Something smells great in here,” Nate said, his smile making Bianca’s heart beat even faster.
“It’s dinner,” she said. “I hope you like stir-fry.”
He chuckled. “I like anything I don’t have to cook. Do I have time to take care of a couple things in the barn? The day got away from me.”
“I can help,” EJ told him, tugging on his hand.
“Sure,” Bianca said. “When would you like to eat?”
“Twenty minutes?”
“I’ll have it ready.”
“Mommy’s making fried rice,” EJ announced. “Even the vegetables taste good.”
“I can’t wait to try it.”
“It’s nothing special,” Bianca said quickly. “An easy midweek meal.”
Nate studied her for a moment, then said in his deep, rumbling voice, “It’s special.”
He and EJ headed for the barn. Bianca adjusted the stove’s temperature to low, set the small farmhouse table with three place settings, then impulsively ran upstairs and dabbed a light coat of gloss on her lips. She pulled her hair out of its ponytail and ran a brush through it as she studied her reflection in the mirror over the bathroom sink.
Was it too much to leave it down? Did she look like she was trying too hard? Of course she was trying too hard. Any woman in her right mind would try to impress a man like Nate. She grabbed a jeweled clip out of her toiletries bag and fastened it at the back of her head, figuring hair half up and half down was a good compromise. She was trying but not too hard, if that was an option.
She hurried back downstairs just as Nate and EJ returned to the house. EJ was still talking a mile a minute, but Nate paused in the doorway to the kitchen, his eyes darkening as he took her in. Clearly he appreciated the small effort she’d made. Feeling like a teenage girl again, she gave her hair a gentle toss over one shoulder, gratified when his lips parted and he simply stared at her.
“Hi,” she said, her voice a little breathless.
“Hi,” he answered, removing his Stetson and setting it on the kitchen counter.
They stared at each other for several seconds until EJ shouted, “I’m hungry, Mommy.”
“Wash your hands,” she told him, quickly moving to the stove.
“Would you like something to drink with dinner?” Nate rubbed a hand against the back of his neck. “Not sure there’s any wine in the house, but I’ve got beer.”
“A beer would be great. Thank you.”
With Nate’s big presence in the kitchen, the space felt smaller—more intimate. It felt like a real family dinner, something simple but an activity Bianca had always craved. She loved the normalcy of it.
“This is a real treat,” Nate said as he sat down at the table.
“It’s the least I can do,” she told him and dished out a generous amount of rice and chicken onto his plate.
“EJ told me you went to town today. Paseo must seem like a speck on the map compared to what you’re used to in San Antonio.”
“It’s a nice change,” she said, taking a seat across the table from him.
“Really?” He took a long pull on his beer. “Your brother liked to say that Paseo was a half-a-horse town because there wasn’t enough room for a full horse.”
She smiled. “He made the worst jokes.”
“He cracked himself up every time, though.” Nate forked up a big bite of chicken. “This is unbelievable,” he said after swallowing. “It’s like real Chinese food.”
“I can’t tell if that’s actually a compliment,” Bianca said with a laugh.
“It’s amazing,” he clarified. “Best I’ve ever had.”
“Mommy’s a good cook,” EJ announced. “Even though she couldn’t find the targreron.” He stumbled over the last word.
“I’d planned to roast the chicken,” she explained when Nate threw her a questioning look. “But they didn’t have tarragon at the local market and there’s none in your spice cabinet. Stir-fry was my backup plan.”
“Hold that thought,” Nate said, and pushed back from the table. He walked into the hallway, where Bianca could hear him rummaging through a closet.
“Found it,” he announced, and returned with a small camo knapsack rolled tight. “I don’t know if the spices are still fresh, but we have tarragon.”
“That’s the care package I sent to Eddie on his final deployment.” She frowned. “No, that’s the second one I sent. He wrote and told me he lost the first, but I couldn’t find the material I’d used for it so I made that knapsack out of a camo vest I bought at a local thrift store. I forgot that I’d included tarragon along with the basic spices. Eddie loved the licorice flavor.”
Nate put the sack down on the kitchen table, looking a little sheepish. “Eddie was the envy of all of us with these little tubes of spices.” He unrolled the sack to reveal a row of test tubes, each filled and labeled with a different type of spice. Bianca had gotten the idea for it after Eddie’d complained so bitterly about the bland navy food. “Turns out one of the guys from the squadron had taken the first one you sent. He ended up returning it but not before Eddie had asked you for another. He gave the second package to me for my birthday.” He ran his fingers over the labels on the front of each tube. “It was my most prized possession when we were deployed.”
“Really?”
Nate nodded. “I’m not a picky eater, but it gets old when every meal starts to taste the same week after week. These spices were a reminder of home, and that somebody cared.”
Conflicting emotions unfurled in Bianca’s chest, happiness at knowing her gift had meant something to her brother tinged with the familiar ache of missing him.
“You should sell those, too, Mommy.” EJ looked at her matter-of-factly. “If Uncle Eddie and Mr. Nate liked them so much, other soldiers would, too.”
“That’s a heck of an idea, buddy,” Bianca murmured, staring at her son in wide-eyed wonder. As they were driving back to the ranch, she’d told EJ about her conversation with Susan the librarian. That was the thing about being a family of two. EJ might be only four, but he was Bianca’s constant companion and often her first sounding board. She tried not to burden him with her stresses, but he’d been as excited as she was at the prospect of a business that would allow her to work from home.
“What else are you selling?” Nate looked confused.
“I haven’t had a chance to tell you about my visit with Susan at the library,” she said.
“I’m