coworkers gossiping about the whole sordid mess. That’s when she’d decided she had no alternative but to look for another job and had found her present position at Skerritt and Crowe.
But she was certain Caleb would never stoop to that level, would never take credit for her or anyone else’s accomplishments, even if he wasn’t already the head of Skerritt and Crowe. Nor would he publicly humiliate her. On the contrary. He’d come up with the pretend engagement and had her spending the weekend with him because he was trying to squelch the rumors and gossip that she found hurtful.
Sighing, she put the last of her clothes in the dresser drawer, then changed into a pair of baggy camp shorts and a T-shirt. She’d tried every way in the world not to like Caleb. But the truth of the matter was, she trusted him more than she had anyone in a very long time. And whether it was smart or not, she might as well admit it—if she hadn’t already fallen for him, she was well on her way.
“Thank you for a delicious dinner. You’re a very good cook.”
“Not really.” Caleb grinned. “Throwing something on the grill and fire roasting a few vegetables is about the only thing I know how to fix, besides frying bacon and scrambling eggs.”
“Well, I thought it was scrumptious.” Her sweet smile did a real number on his insides. “And I’m glad you suggested we eat out here on the patio.” He watched her look past the pool at the valley below. “The view is absolutely gorgeous.”
He couldn’t agree more; the view was beautiful. But he wasn’t looking at the cedar trees or the valley. The woman seated at the table with him was far prettier than anything he’d ever seen.
Rising to his feet before he did something stupid like take her in his arms and kiss her senseless, he gathered their plates. “I like sitting out here after the sun goes down. Other than an occasional coyote howling, it’s pretty quiet.”
“Let me help with those,” she said, standing up.
He shook his head. “I’ll take care of the cleanup.”
“That’s not fair,” she protested. “You cooked. I should clear the table.”
He started toward the house with the dishes. “While I’m doing this, why don’t you change? I don’t know about you, but I could use some time in the hot tub be-fore I turn in for the night.”
“That does sound wonderful, but are you sure I can’t help you first?”
Damned if she didn’t follow him into the kitchen. Taking a deep breath, he shook his head. He was about two seconds away from kissing her until they both needed CPR or carrying her to his bedroom to make love to her for the rest of the night. But he couldn’t tell her that. She’d probably belt him a good one, then run as hard and fast as she could back to Albuquerque.
“I’ll just put these plates in the dishwasher, then meet you in the hot tub in ten minutes,” he said, surprised that his voice sounded fairly steady. Considering his state of mind and the changes his body was going through at that very moment, he figured it was nothing short of a miracle he could talk at all.
“Okay.” She gave him a smile that caused his blood pressure to shoot up a good fifty points. “But I’m cooking breakfast tomorrow morning.”
“You’ve got yourself a deal, sweetheart.” He’d agree to just about anything as long as she left the room and let him get a grip on his runaway libido.
But as he watched her walk away, his heart stalled and his body tightened so fast it left him feeling light-headed. Even though her khaki shorts and pink T-shirt looked to be a couple of sizes too big, it couldn’t disguise the sexy sway of her shapely hips or the fact that her long, slender legs looked like they could wrap around a man and take him to heaven.
Caleb closed his eyes and forced himself to breathe. What the hell had he been thinking when he’d suggested they get in the hot tub? If just watching her walk made him hard, what would happen when he saw her in a swimsuit?
The mental image his overactive imagination conjured up made his knees wobble and sweat pop out on his forehead and upper lip. Leaning against the kitchen counter for support, he groaned. How on God’s green earth was he going to keep his hands to himself for the next two days?
When the phone rang, he was grateful to whoever was on the other end of the line for interrupting his disturbing thoughts. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Now, do you want to tell me what I did?”
“Hey, Hunter.” Once he and his brothers had learned about each other, they’d all, by unspoken agreement, stayed in touch. And Caleb was happy with the bond they were forming.
“What’s up with answering the phone the way you did?”
“Just thinking out loud,” Caleb said, hoping his oldest brother forgot about his slip of the tongue.
“How’s the financial world? Any new advice on how I can turn my savings account into a fortune?”
“If you want to build your money, the best advice I can give you at this point is to leave it where it’s at,” Caleb said dryly.
Hunter snorted. “You sound about as sure of yourself at this financial stuff as I feel about running an air-ambulance service.”
Caleb smiled. “How’s the EMT course going?”
There was a pause before Hunter finally answered. “I’ve been in that damned class for almost two weeks and I still get light-headed whenever I see a needle.”
“At least you’ve stopped passing out at the sight of them,” Caleb said, laughing.
“Just barely.” Obviously wanting to change the subject, Hunter asked, “Are you going to attend Emerald’s birthday party at the end of the month?”
It was Caleb’s turn to snort. “I don’t think we’ve been given a lot of choice about going. The invitation read more like a summons than a request to help her celebrate her seventy-sixth birthday.”
“It sounds like the one I got.” Hunter laughed humorlessly. “I knew that old gal was going to yank our chains every chance she got.”
“Have you talked to Nick lately?” Caleb asked.
“He called me last night and suggested we all meet for a beer before we attend Emerald’s party.”
“That’s a good idea.” Caleb chuckled. “Maybe if we have a buzz going, it’ll make the evening more tolerable.”
“I like the way you think.”
Finalizing plans to meet before the party, Caleb hung up and headed for his bedroom to change. He was looking forward to seeing Nick and Hunter again. And his only regret about finding out that he had two brothers was that he hadn’t learned of their existence sooner.
But he really had no room to complain. He’d had a great childhood with the love and guidance of his maternal grandparents and a mother who had been totally devoted to raising him the right way. He’d asked who his father was a few times, but his mother would only smile and tell him to be patient—that one day he’d learn all about the man. After a while he’d given up asking, and if he’d missed having a father, Caleb couldn’t ever remember it. His grandfather had taught him everything he’d needed to know, from how to tie a fishing lure to what it meant to be a good, honest man.
But as he pulled on a pair of gym shorts, he decided he couldn’t say he’d missed knowing his manipulative paternal grandmother. No matter what she said about not meddling in their lives back then or the way they ran the businesses she’d given them now, he had a feeling she still had their every move under surveillance and would have no problem stepping in to take over if she felt it was warranted.
But when Caleb opened the French doors to step out onto the patio and spotted Alyssa standing by the hot tub, his grievances with Emerald Larson were quickly forgotten. Damn, but Alyssa looked good. Her black