At the door of the bedroom, Dane stopped in his tracks

On his bed lay Suzy, her two little angels sleeping soundly beside her…drawing him in with their cherubic faces. Tingles ran over his arms. He allowed himself to give Suzy a thorough once-over.

What the hell was she doing in his room? On his bed?

Dane intended to tell Goldilocks when she awakened that his bed was not “just right” for her.

No. He couldn’t do that. There were three of her family and only one of him.

Dane realized no matter how he fought it, staying at the Morgan ranch for a year with Suzy Winterstone and her girls was not going to be his easiest assignment.

MILLS & BOON

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Dear Reader,

I love writing about home, hearth and family. The older my children get, the more home means to me. So I was delighted to be able to write THE MORGAN MEN series, which started with Texas Lullaby (June 2008) and now continues with The Texas Ranger’s Twins. Two more books follow—The Secret Agent’s Surprises (February 2009) and The Triplets’ Rodeo Man (March 2009). These are the stories of four brothers who learn that it’s never too late to go home again.

The Morgan men are estranged from a father they haven't spoken to in years. But the elder Mr. Morgan is particularly clever at luring his boys home—with the promise of an inheritance, and the hope they’ll become family men. Forgiveness is something the Morgan brothers will need to learn—and that’s never an easy lesson! What a wonderful gift it is to discover that forgiveness is possible, and the light of home is always burning.

The Texas Ranger’s Twins also kicks off a year-long celebration of heroes called MEN MADE IN AMERICA. Look for one book a month in 2009 that celebrates a hunky American male and his chosen profession!

Enjoy THE MORGAN MEN and MEN MADE IN AMERICA. See you next month!

Best wishes and much love,

Tina Leonard

Tina Leonard
The Texas Ranger’s Twins

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tina Leonard is the bestselling author of over forty projects, including a popular thirteen-book miniseries for Harlequin American Romance. Her books have made the Waldenbooks, Ingram’s, and Nielsen Book-scan bestseller lists. Tina feels she has been blessed with a fertile imagination and quick typing skills, excellent editors, and a family who loves her career. Born on a military base, she lived in many states before eventually marrying the boy who did her crayon printing for her in the first grade. Tina believes happy endings are a wonderful part of a good life. You can visit her at www.tinaleonard.com.

Many thanks to my family,

who have always made my home a wonderful place

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter One

“Spare the rod, spoil the child”

—Josiah Morgan on his parenting philosophy of raising four boys on his own

Suzy Winterstone didn’t like the Morgan ranch. It was too big, too isolated and very scary at night. She walked inside the house, feeling chills that weren’t from the January wind. The front door actually creaked when someone opened it, just like in an old movie. She told herself the hinges were cold and hadn’t been used recently, but then she remembered Josiah Morgan had told her he had a farmhand who kept an eye on the property. So the hinges weren’t unused—they were simply spooky.

All of five-foot-five and weighing about a hundred and thirty pounds, Suzy wasn’t prepared to grapple with ghosts. According to Josiah’s letter, a live-in housekeeper was badly needed at the ranch. She needed a job, and she dreamed of employment that would allow her to watch over her children. Here was a golden opportunity to achieve her heart’s desire. Josiah Morgan said she’d be doing him a favor—he’d been very generous to her in the past and this job offer was no exception. Upon hearing that her boyfriend of three years had ended their relationship and had taken off for parts unknown, leaving her high and dry with twin babies, Josiah had set up a trust fund for the girls’ college expenses. She’d felt very fortunate, but Mr. Morgan was known for his generous acts in the town of Union Junction. Some people said the old man was crazy, but most people thought he was kind and grandfatherly, including Suzy.

Suzy had been working as a nurse at the hospital up until her maternity leave and was fortunate to have insurance. She could always go back to nursing, but creaking doors aside, this would be a wonderful place to work for one year. Josiah wanted it kept clean, and he wanted it decorated for every holiday, as if a family lived there. Knowing she had sewing skills, he wanted new drapes made for the house, for which he’d pay her extra. The fabrics he’d chosen were stored somewhere in this cavernous dwelling, but she could select other fabric if she wished—as long as she made the house what Mr. Morgan called “gracious living suitable for grandchildren.”

Suzy walked into a large room with a fireplace, noting the window casements were about eighteen feet high. She went up the stairs, peeking into the cold bedrooms. Lack of human warmth chilled the house, and she could understand why Josiah felt it would be better to have her family living in the house in his absence.

She decided to take the job—and first thing tomorrow, she was oiling the front door.

She was still preoccupied with those squeaky hinges when she stepped into the last room on the back hall. Like the others, it was dark and cold. Josiah had the heat in the house turned low, and for January, she would want it warmer for her babies. This back room might be suitable for her—she could make a nursery out of the room across the hall.

She screamed as something grabbed her and tossed her onto a bed. Still shrieking, she scrambled away, only to be caught in strong hands as a light flipped on.

The most handsome man she’d ever seen imprisoned her against his body. His dark eyes gleamed like a pirate’s, saucily admiring his prey.

“What have we here?” he asked, pausing to allow for her answer, yet she sensed he didn’t really expect or want one. Fear charged to a panicky boil inside her. “A very beautiful, very bad burglar?”

“I would never steal anything!”

He gave her a long perusal, raking her from her head to her toes and back up again. She gave him credit for not staring at her breasts, but he certainly made her feel as if he’d undressed her. She couldn’t hold back a shiver.

“A trespasser, then.” He slowly smiled. “I’ll have to call the local police. Lucky for you I know some of the fellows here.” He held her a little tighter, his wolflike gaze locked on her face.

He was toying with her. Anger-charged adrenaline made her brave; she jerked her arm free from his grasp. “I’m the new housekeeper. And since Mr. Morgan said no one would be here but me and my family, I’m pretty certain you’re the trespasser and I’ll be the one calling the police.”

The handsome man frowned. “Well, we have a problem. I’m supposed to be living here alone, or possibly with any of my brothers, if they show up. There was never anything said about a female. I’m Josiah Morgan’s third son, Dane Morgan. Who the hell are you?”

She lifted her chin. “My name is Suzy Winterstone. Your father hired me.”

She could swear he backed a foot away from her.

“Suzy Winterstone?”

She nodded. “Yes.” The fact that he seemed to know her name didn’t appear to be a good thing.

“Pop hired you to be a housekeeper?” he demanded. “Here?”

She gave him a confident glare. “Yes, he did.”

He stared at her for a minute and the overriding emotion she saw in those dark eyes was now anger. He frightened her; he looked like the sort of man who might not play by the rules of common decency, capable of tossing her out on the porch to soothe his temper.

“Damn Pop,” he finally growled. “Just when I hoped he might be mellowing, he proves himself to be the blue ribbon–winning jackass of all time.”

“Mr. Morgan has been very good to me and my family—”

He pulled her to him, kissing her hard, tasting her unrelentingly before he pushed her away. “I am not my father. If you choose to accept the position, be aware you’ll be living here with me. And I am not an easy man to live with.”

She forced herself not to capitulate just because his kiss had unnerved her. “I guess that’s supposed to scare me. You’re obviously hoping to discourage me from taking this job. I hate to dash your hopes, but Mr. Morgan wants me here, and I need the job. To be honest, I’m less afraid of you being on the premises than my babies and me being here alone.” Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome was just going to have to put up with her presence.

“Oh, yes, the babies. The pink-ribboned treasures intended to enhance my father’s golden years.”

“Is there a problem with that?” She looked him over, admitting to herself that he certainly was sexy, but sexy wasn’t always a worthy trait in a man. “You seem to have an aversion to children, so I’m not sure why it would bother you if your father has an interest in my babies.”

He shook his head, crossed his arms over his admirably broad chest. “You’re forewarned that nothing that happens here between you and me will ever entail an altar or a wedding ring.”

She shook her head. “You can bet your boots on that, mister. This house is big enough for the both of us, and we need never see each other. I expect wood brought in for the fireplaces—I’ve counted four—and I don’t want muddy footprints or beer cans left about. Mr. Morgan didn’t say anything about me playing house with a man or waiting on anyone hand and foot, and I will inform him of the parameters we are agreeing upon.”

“I haven’t agreed to anything.”

She backed to the door before he could pounce again. Not that it had been an entirely unpleasant experience—in fact, Dane was a pretty good kisser—but her blood was still boiling like crazy at being jumped by the Adonis in the doorway. She’d never been much for hide-and-seek, so it was best to put this awkward relationship on professional footing. “You’ll have to take any grievance you might have with me up with my employer.”

“And no doubt Pop would side with little bitty Miss Babymaker.” He stepped one foot toward her, laughed when she fled down the hall.

“Jerk,” she murmured as she went down the stairs, “we’ll see how hard he laughs when I short-sheet his bed and sprinkle rice in it.”

If the arrogant swine thought he was going to chase her out of a well-paying job and a chance to stay home with her children, he’d find himself greatly mistaken. Some men were just too hunky for their own good—clearly Dane was suffering from too much ego.

She would set him straight.

“And we’ll draw straws for bedrooms!” Suzy called up the stairs, just to assert herself more fully.

She heard his laughter echo down the hall.

Chapter Two

“So Suzy Winterstone is cute,” Gabriel Morgan said to his older brother, Dane, who was visiting him and his wife, Laura, at their comfortable house. Dane had to admit, Gabriel had adapted well to living in this small domain with his growing family. But still, that just meant the youngest of all the Morgan boys had fallen under Josiah’s thumb.

Dane would not be doing the same. “She’s much more attractive than I would’ve imagined. I suppose I have to give Pop points for good taste in women.” He sighed, heavily put-upon. “However, she has a bit of a mouth on her.” A mouth he’d kissed, and would love to kiss again. He liked blondes, especially round, sunny ones like Suzy.

He shouldn’t have done it.

Dane heard Laura laugh in the kitchen as she caught his remark. Her children—his niece and nephew—were baking sugar cookies with their mother. It was a nice way to take the edge off a cold day, and his stomach rumbled at the aroma. He sure hoped he’d be offered one of the treats.

“What kind of mouth?” Laura asked, setting a glass of milk in front of him. His hopes for being included in the cookie-tasting rose exponentially. “Pink and tempting?” she teased.

“I meant she talks a lot,” he said with a mock growl, knowing his sister-in-law was giving him grief. Still, he wasn’t going to admit to kissing Suzy—he’d never live it down since he’d protested his father’s incessant matchmaking from the start. “She doesn’t shut up.”

“Hmm,” Laura said, “how much could she have said in such a short amount of time? Didn’t you say you only talked for about five minutes?”

“And that was plenty. During that time she set rules, gave commands and pretty much tried to show me who was going to be boss.” He looked hopefully toward the kitchen, wondering if that confession had been enough to earn him a cookie.

Seeing his eager glance, Laura laughed. Gabriel chuckled.

“Penny, will you please bring your uncle Dane and your dad that platter of cookies?” Laura said. “Suzy simply sounds organized to me, Dane.”

“Like someone in law enforcement, and I’ve had my fill of people like that.” Dane took the platter from Penny gratefully. “Very pretty. How many am I allowed?” he asked Penny.

“Only two if you don’t want to spoil your supper.” Penny was nearly five years old now and wise to the house rules.

“Two?” he asked, looking at Penny with his best uncle smile. “But I don’t think I’m going to be getting any supper.”

“That’s because you didn’t play your cards right with your housekeeper.” Gabriel took the platter, moved two cookies to Dane’s plate, three to his own, and handed the tray back to Penny. “Please put temptation out of Uncle Dane’s way, honey.”

She smiled at Gabriel and took the plate back to the kitchen. Her little brother, Perrin, followed, anxious for his own treat.

“How come you get three?” Dane asked. “Not that I’m trying to be ungrateful or anything, but I am older than you.”

“Because I’m in good with the women of my house.” Gabriel grinned. “I get extra sweets.”

“Great.” Dane bit the head off the sugary reindeer and closed his eyes. “She sings, Gabriel, all the time.”

“Bro, she’s only lived there since this morning.”

“But it’s nonstop. She sings to the children. The children sing back, in those little nonsense voices, and then Suzy praises them, so proud of their efforts. The noise level is pretty constant.”

Laura laughed again. He considered the lightly falling snow outside, and the gray skies—both signs the temperature would be dropping. “I can’t stay long. There’s wood to bring in for all four fireplaces, among other manly chores I’ve been assigned.”

Gabriel raised his brows. “Expecting a deep freeze?”

Dane sighed. “It’s just not peaceful and quiet there like I imagined it would be. Like you have here. I thought I’d be out at Pop’s alone, at least until you or Pete or Jack showed up.”

“I got my million dollars,” Gabriel confessed. “I won’t be coming, bro. You’re on your own at the Morgan ranch with your trio of singing females.”

Dane stared at him. “When did that happen?”

“Dad gave me my money before he went back to France.”

“Because you sold out,” Dane whispered, with a careful glance at Laura. “Wedding bells coaxed Pop to give in on the part about you having to live at the ranch for one year to get your money?”

Gabriel shook his head. “Nope. He just felt that I’d proven myself.”

“Proven yourself?” Dane glanced around the small, clean home. “You’re living in pretty tall cotton, Gabriel. Can’t see that your life is all that hard.”

Gabriel shook his head. “You don’t get it.”

Dane didn’t think it was fair that Gabriel had been let off the hook. “Sucking up to Pop shouldn’t be part of the deal.”

“Why?” Gabriel looked at him. “All Dad wants is family harmony.”

“And grandchildren!” Dane tried to sound horrified and maybe even accusative—Gabriel had definitely sold out, the weasel—but looking at Laura’s gently rounded stomach made it a bit hard to be completely indignant.

The fact was, Gabriel had done what Dane, Pete and Jack didn’t want to do. Jack would never make up with Pop, not after Pop kicked him out for luring his too-young brothers to the rodeo all those years ago. Dane and Pete still harbored enough bad feelings to fill a valley. Still, he couldn’t fault Gabriel. “Never mind,” Dane said, morosely finishing off his cookies. “The baby always has it the easiest.”

He brushed off the crumbs and stood to leave. Laura handed him a lace napkin full of cookies to take with him. He headed to the door, glanced around at Gabriel and his family and the life he’d chosen. Then he tipped his hat to Laura, kissed both the children, thanked them for sharing their delicious cookies, and braced himself for the cold outside.

It was nothing, he knew, like the cold he was going to get at the ranch. He only had three hundred sixty-four more days to go. It wasn’t a lifetime, something he’d already felt he’d lived.

He’d retired from the Texas Rangers following years of service. After enlisting in the military—just to get away from Pop—Dane had gotten his college degree, then moved on. He went into the police academy, becoming a top recruit. With his competitive nature, he’d pushed himself hard enough to make it into the Rangers.

And then, at twenty-eight, he’d burned out. He’d seen the worst in people while on the job, but always felt he had his friends to fall back on, no matter what. The final straw was his best friend talking him out of his life savings. Dane realized he wasn’t as much of a tough guy as he thought he was, and began to doubt his ability to see the good in people.

Suzy seemed good, but she sure had dug her way into an old man’s life with ease. Pop was supposed to be a tough guy, too.

Maybe Morgans were just easy marks for a sad story. He’d find out in the next year of hell with the rulemaking Miss Winterstone.

He got into his truck, carefully placing the cookies on the seat next to his so they wouldn’t break. On the other hand, there was something to be said for sucking up, he decided. Yet, he wasn’t sure he could survive three hundred sixty-four more days in a house with a woman he’d kissed, since he frequently found himself wondering about kissing her again.

He’d always been a bit of a rebel, something that irked Pop no end. The practically neon sign the little mother was wearing that said No Trespassing made him definitely want to jump the fence.

But knowing Pop would be rewarded for his manipulative ways, Dane vowed to give up trespassing, at least where Suzy was concerned. He’d refused to even look at the babies this morning—he knew that if he wasn’t careful, he could get sucked into a life just like Gabriel’s.

It was all about the children, and Dane understood the game.

SUZY PUT HER TWO TODDLERS down for a nap, then lay beside them, rubbing their backs as they snuggled into the bed comforter. She’d chosen the large back bedroom for herself and the children. It was big enough for them to sleep in the same room with her. That way, if she needed to get up in the night to check on them, she wouldn’t risk running into Mr. Loves-the-Dark Ranger. She didn’t trust him, not one bit. He’d probably jump out and grab her again just for the pleasure of hearing her yelp. And he’d made it obvious this morning that he didn’t want her there—he hadn’t spoken a word to her. Not even a polite good morning. So she’d sung to keep the frosty awkwardness in check.

“Fine by me,” she told the girls. “It’s better when he’s not around being pigheaded.”

The babies slept on without heeding her comment. She’d named the eighteen-month-old girls Nicole and Sandra after her mother. For the hundredth time, she thought about calling her mother, then decided it wouldn’t be a good idea. Her mother, who lived in Fort Wylie, had told Suzy in no uncertain terms that being pregnant and unmarried was a disgrace. Her mother and father were scions of Fort Wylie and reputation mattered to them. Appearances were important.

Suzy’s appearance was one of loose living, her mother had said, and they hadn’t spoken since. She’d never visited the hospital to see the newborns. It killed Suzy, broke her heart, but it was her mother’s right to feel as she did. “I wasn’t delighted when your father packed up, either,” she murmured to her daughters. “I didn’t foresee Frank being so afraid of responsibility.”

He’d liked her well enough for her family’s money—but when he’d realized that the Winterstones were, well, wintry about their new grandchildren, cutting off even Suzy’s trust fund she would have received at age thirty, well, Frank had disappeared like a puff of dust under a vacuum cleaner.

“Speaking of vacuums,” she said, closing her eyes, “just as soon as we finish our beauty rest, girls, we need to lug that monstrous canister up here and vacuum all the rooms thoroughly. Don’t think it’s been done in thirty years.”

She hadn’t planned on napping, but the wind was howling outside, the snow sugaring the ground, and at the moment, she felt so blessed lying on the bed with her children that she drifted off to sleep.

DANE WALKED IN WITH A LOAD of firewood, and remembering Suzy’s caution about dirtying up the floors, swept off the snow and ice as best he could from the logs and his boots. Last thing he wanted was a further discourse on his cleanliness. He carried the wood upstairs. There were two fireplaces up, plus two downstairs. He’d take care of the upper level fireplaces first, particularly in his room. It was a great night for a nice, cozy fire in the hearth in Pop’s bedroom, which he had decided to commandeer for himself as the only son in residence.

He deserved some of the finer things in life. One, for living in this godforsaken backwater and, two, for having Suzy and her tiny crew cast upon him.

At the door of the bedroom, he stopped in his tracks. On his bed lay Suzy, her two little angels sleeping soundly beside her. Well, they weren’t angels, they were more like time bombs, he reminded himself, backing into the hallway. Set to explode his world, drawing him in with their cherubic faces. Tingles ran over his arms. He allowed himself to give Suzy a thorough, yet lightning-fast once-over, avoiding the pink-wrapped dolls beside her.

“Holy smokes, that was close.” He went down the hall, placed the firewood in the stacker in the smaller bedroom. What the hell was she doing in his room? On his bed? She couldn’t stay there, that was for certain. Somehow he was going to have to explain to her that she just couldn’t fall asleep on the job, cushy employment though it was, in the first available reclining apparatus she came upon. His bed should be his domain—and anyway, hadn’t she already read him the riot act about how she was never stepping in his room?

His heart thundered in his chest. Pop stayed in France almost year-round, giving the boys a lot of time to gnash their teeth over his wily proposal. Dane was proud that he’d been wilier. Pop believed that money would buy love, like castles in France and sandboxes in the Caribbean, but Dane knew money and love were not always good bed partners.

Dane intended to tell Goldilocks when she awakened that his bed was not “just right” for her. She could just stick that in her proverbial little pipe and move into a smaller, less-appointed chamber.

No. Sighing, he knew he wouldn’t do that. There were three of her family and only one of him. Besides, he could be a gentleman if it was absolutely required, and in Suzy’s case, it probably was. Besides, he didn’t actually need the gold-outfitted bidet and tub Pop had in his master bath; he didn’t need the slipper sofa by the hearth, nor the lush rugs underfoot surrounding the massive canopied bed. One of the other starker, less decked-out rooms would be fine for him—like this one.

Restlessly he rose to light a fire in the small fireplace. The tinder caught slowly, the cold, damp logs reluctant to take the heat.

He realized that no matter how much he fought it, staying on the ranch for a year was not going to be the easiest assignment he’d ever had. He’d talked himself into this “cream puff” of a situation, but Pop would certainly laugh if he saw him now, cowed into a small bedroom and padding around with clean, silent feet, all thanks to Pop and his Grandchildren Conspiracy.

Chapter Three

In the morning, Suzy was awakened by her children stirring. Nicole gently touched her mother’s face. Sandra waved a tiny hand at some sunlight streaming into the room. Suzy smiled, enjoying the gentle wake up. “You must be getting hungry,” she told her girls, and then realized they had slept the entire night in the house without any incident concerning Dane Morgan. “This is going to work just fine,” she said, putting on her clothes.

She helped her daughters dress, a slow process because they were at the age when they wanted to do things themselves. Their little fingers weren’t quite ready for pulling on tights to keep their legs warm, or brushing their own hair. Finally, they were all ready to leave the sanctuary of their bedroom and head into the kitchen.

“Hold my hands,” she told her girls. “We have to be very careful on these stairs.” She tiptoed by the other bedrooms on the hall in order to avoid a run-in with Josiah’s son, breathing much easier when she made it to the kitchen.

But the dark-haired, cold-eyed handsome stranger sitting at the table pulled a startled shriek from her. He jumped to his feet, spilling hot coffee on his hand and swearing a blue streak. Her daughters began to cry so she clutched them to her, glaring at the stranger. “Who are you?”

“Who are you?” he demanded. “You don’t live here.”

She raised her chin. “I do live here. And if you don’t leave right this instant, I’ll scream. There’s a man sleeping upstairs and he’ll come running down—”

The back door opened. “It’s durn cold out—” Dane stopped when he saw the scene in the kitchen. His gaze swept over her, registering her panic, and then went to the stranger. He calmly walked over to the sink to wash his hands.

Suzy gasped. “What are you doing?”

“Washing my hands to warm them up.” Dane smiled at her. “Is there a problem?”

She blinked. “Do you know this person?”

The man took off his hat, nodding to her. “My name’s Pete. I’m one of Dane’s brothers,” he explained. “I let myself in,” he said to Dane who merely nodded. “I apologize if I frightened you.” He gave Suzy what she supposed was a reassuring smile. “Dane says I unnerve him when I pop in, too. I didn’t realize he had company.”

“I am not his company,” Suzy said, stiffening. “I’m the housekeeper.”

Pete grinned hugely. “Pop,” he said to Dane. “He’s got you by the short—”

“Ah, let’s get some breakfast on the table,” Dane interrupted. “Is that in your job description?” he asked Suzy. “I’m not quite sure of all the parameters yet.”

These two were quite the pair. There was some unspoken joke going on between them, but Suzy was in no mood to guess what it was. “I cook for myself and my daughters,” she said, getting out a box of oatmeal. “You two are on your own.”

She waited for Dane to move away from the sink so she could fill a pot with water. He looked at the pot a trifle regretfully before turning to his brother.

“We’re still working out the kinks in this housekeeping thing,” he said, and Pete nodded.

“I see that.” Pete slouched into his chair and put his feet up on another one, making himself right at home. Suzy’s irritation rose, because, after all, it was his home and she hadn’t factored being in a house with one man much less two. But no one had been on the ranch in six months—surely both of these men weren’t planning on staying long.

“Hope I won’t be any trouble,” Pete said.

Suzy whirled to look at him, ignoring how fast her heart had begun to beat as she’d stood next to Dane at the sink. “Trouble?”

“Living here.”

Dane grinned. “Come to sweat it out for your share?”

Pete shrugged. His gaze went to Suzy for just an instant. “Hadn’t planned on it, but you two need a chaperone. Pop clearly didn’t consider that in his scheming, but I might be persuaded.”

Suzy’s daughters stared up at the big man, completely perplexed by the presence of two males. They hadn’t been around many, and the Morgan men had deep voices and large, masculine presences. Suzy decided to skip the chaperone comment and went straight to the ominous word in Pete’s analysis. “Scheming?”

“You know. To get you two to fall in love with each other.”

Suzy froze. “Are you implying that my job is nothing more than a sham? A cover to induce me into playing house with your brother so that we’d somehow end up together?”

Dane winced. “That might be putting it a bit bluntly—”

“Actually, I think she nailed Pop’s plan,” Pete said. “That seems to be the gist of it.”

“Now that we’re all feeling very awkward, why don’t we eat some oatmeal? Matters will probably seem less complicated on full stomachs.” Dane glanced longingly at the pot Suzy still held in her hand.

Suzy frowned. “Let me be perfectly clear on something. I am not here for anyone’s amusement. Nor did your father seem like the type to be so underhanded. I’m shocked you would suggest it,” she said to Pete. “And I’m annoyed that you don’t refute it,” she told Dane.

Both brothers shrugged.

“I think you two are troublemakers,” Suzy said, “and if you’re trying to run me out of this house to spite your father, a man I know neither of you got along with, I suggest you take your problems up with Mr. Morgan.” She took a deep breath, set the pot on the stove. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to feed my children.”

Suzy felt her hands tremble ever so slightly. Nicole and Sandra clung to her legs, probably sensing the tension in the room. She had a good mind to call Mr. Morgan and directly ask him what his sons were up to—but decided against it just as quickly. A check had been included with the letter in which Mr. Morgan had hired her, with a very generous three months’ salary.

She’d deposited the check. For the first time, she was feeling more comfortable financially. Mr. Morgan had given each of her children what he called inheritances, money that was tucked away in savings accounts for their education. What business arrangements existed between Mr. Morgan and herself were none of his sons’ business. It was the brothers’ fault if they felt uncomfortable around her—they should be ashamed of the stories they’d concocted about their own father!

“Suzy, maybe we jumped to conclusions,” Dane said. She ignored that and went on stirring oatmeal into the pot. “You don’t know Pop like we do, though.”

“It doesn’t matter. Your story is implausible. There’s no way your father knew you’d be here, Dane. You didn’t even know Pete was coming to stay.” She glanced at him. “I don’t want to be dragged into your family issues, and from the way I see it, you have issues with your father. He doesn’t really have them with you.”

Dane and Pete stared at her, their jaws slightly slack. She could tell she had shocked them—but wasn’t that a good thing? These men were taking some childish anger out on an old man who cared for them deeply. “It’s none of my concern,” she said, putting brown sugar and butter into bowls. “Let’s just go on like none of this ever happened.” Even though it had already been said—and Dane had even kissed her! “As far as Pete’s idea of a chaperone, it’s a good one. I’ll take care of that.”

Dane didn’t look too happy, and Pete seemed to realize he’d caused his brother some type of predicament, but what he didn’t realize was that Suzy herself had been reminded of her own mother’s direct criticism of her “looseness.” Suzy was an embarrassment to her wealthy family. She glanced at the brothers—too handsome and too cocky for their own good!—as she seated her daughters at the table and put their bowls in front of them.

Without another glance at the men staring hungrily at the children’s breakfast, Suzy began humming under her breath.

PETE SIGHED AS HE AND HIS brother went out to one of the barns. “Sorry if I’m cramping your love nest. I assumed you’d be alone.”

Dane held in a groan. “I didn’t realize I had company, either, until yesterday. Needless to say, Pop’s probably laughing in the French countryside, enjoying the grapes and the excellent cuisine.”

“I bet. You know, I’ve never liked this place. It was never a home. We were too far from town to have friends, and Pop was too busy to be a father. I wouldn’t even be here if it wasn’t for the money.”

“Got yourself in a bind?” Dane asked curiously, and Pete nodded.

“You, too?”

“Yeah,” Dane said, thinking about his partner. “You’d think with Pop as a role model, I wouldn’t have gotten sucked into a con game, but I did. Lost my savings.” Dane shook his head. “And now it seems we’re getting sucked into another.”

“Not me,” Pete said. “I never got a letter from Pop asking me to look out for a woman. I figure I’m in the clear by now.”

Dane shook his head. “If I were you, I’d be even more wary.”

Pete stopped in the motion of slinging a saddle across a wooden horse. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I’ve always feared the unknown most with Pop.” Dane grinned at his brother, enjoying the chance to have the upper hand, if only for a moment. “I know what my full downside is—Suzy. The other shoe has yet to drop for you.”

“Maybe Suzy’s my dream girl,” Pete said, then laughed at Dane’s shocked expression. “Oh, come on, Pop’s not picky about who pairs up with whom, just as long as we pair up with some woman and provide him with grandchildren.”

Dane stopped his work to give his brother a full glaring. “What is a secret agent going to do with a wife?”

“Be very happy,” Pete said. “I’m thinking about settling down.”

Dane laughed. “Like hell you are.” His brother was only thirty and still had the call of the wild written all over him. Tough and sinewy, with glacial dark eyes and cheeks sculpted by demons—at least that’s what Pop had always said—Pete was no ladies’ man.

No man for a lady, and certainly not for a lady like Suzy.

“Feel like a gentle wager?” Pete asked.

Dane raised a brow. “As a former Texas Ranger, I should say no, but curiosity compels me to ask what you have in mind.”

“Suzy falls for me, and you owe me a night of babysitting her little angels so I can romance their mother.”

“That’s heinous,” Dane said, feeling a flicker of jealousy that shook him. “Betting on a woman’s feelings is ungentlemanly.”

Pete laughed. “Bro, you’re taking a leaf out of Gabriel’s book.”

“Meaning?”

“You’re already down for the count.”

Dane snorted and grabbed some neatsfoot oil to clean and shine the saddle. He completely ignored Pete and his dumb observation. The thing that Pete didn’t know was Dane was moving to Mexico where the palm trees waved and the sun shone hot, the tortillas were soft and the ladies were sweet. He hated Texas and nothing—and no one—was ever going to entice him to stay for long.

Unlike Pete, whose job chasing international baddies might be wearing thin. Maybe Pete’s wandering feet were beginning to cool off.

“Listen, Pete,” he said suddenly and abruptly, as if to underline his own mental game, “If you’re frustrated and lonely and looking for a good time, by all means, put on your best show for Suzy. And I might add she’s probably not the only single woman in town. Best part is, these days all roads lead to town pretty quickly, and you’ve got a shiny truck to get you there for all the womanizing you can stand during your break.”

Pete laughed and went looking for something in the barn. Dane put the whole incident out of his mind for a moment, then took a pocketknife out of his back pocket. With a careful stroke, he notched two lines on the wood rail beside the saddle.

Only three hundred sixty-three more days to go.

CRICKET JASPER HAD KNOWN Suzy Winterstone a long time, and if Suzy said she needed help, then Suzy needed help. So without hesitation Cricket packed her bags and headed out from Fort Wylie to spend a week with Suzy at an old house in the deep country.

Cricket wasn’t sure why Suzy wouldn’t come back to Fort Wylie. The Winterstones weren’t the most affectionate clan, but that they missed their only daughter, Cricket was certain. They were still mad about the unplanned pregnancy, but that was over two years past. Surely it was time to put all those hot emotions in the past.

Cricket could feel forgiveness since she was a deacon. And Suzy was like a sister to her—she wanted Suzy to be happy. Family matters weren’t important at the moment, Cricket decided, and parked her little Volkswagen beside the two big trucks in the Morgan ranch driveway, and the smaller, older car that Cricket recognized as Suzy’s.

Suzy came out on the porch, waiting with a big smile and her two little girls beside her. Cricket hadn’t seen the girls since they were born—just tiny babies—so she hurried to sweep them into her arms. “I’m so glad to see you, Suzy. And these two little dumplings!”

Suzy smiled, grateful her friend had arrived. “Thank you so much for coming out.”

“No problem,” Cricket told her with a hug. “The minute you said you needed help, I penciled in vacation time….” Her words trailed off as two large men walked toward the house from an outlying barn. “My goodness, they grow them big in the country, don’t they?”

Suzy frowned. “At least the Morgans seem to be larger than life. They’re the reason I need help.”

“They live here?” Cricket’s eyes were huge.

She nodded. “You’ll quickly understand why their father despairs of them.”

“Well, I—” Cricket glanced at the men again. “Do you have to live here with them?”

“I didn’t know they’d be here when I took the position. I’ve deposited my three months’ salary, and frankly, I need the money. Not to mention I was eager to find a position where I could stay home with my children while they’re so young.”

“Three months,” Cricket murmured.

“Oh, they’ll be here a year,” Suzy told her. “Dane was here first, then Pete showed up, suggesting I needed a chaperone.”

Cricket gasped. “The nerve!”

“I think it’s a good idea.” Suzy eyed the men as they approached the porch. “Something also tells me I need an objective opinion of my situation.”

“And you think my eyes are objective?” Cricket gave the men a thorough once-over. “Looks like you’re living in heaven on earth to me.”

“Hello,” Pete said to Cricket, a grin lighting his face, although Suzy had to admit that Dane’s expression was just as impressed. Tall and dark to Suzy’s more cheerful blond roundness, Cricket caught and held every man’s eye. She had a long, lean graceful body, a sweet smile and big brown eyes—a tall Audrey Hepburn with her own independent carriage.

Men found the combination alluring. But Cricket had never been interested in much outside her church duties.

“This is Cricket Jasper, my best friend and Nicole’s and Sandra’s godmother,” Suzy said, smiling at the men’s dumbstruck expressions. “She’s going to stay with me for a week. Stay with us,” she amended, not feeling the slightest bit guilty for putting such luscious bait in front of the two very large tomcats.

“Your chaperone, I presume?” Pete said, grinning at Suzy. “Nice. I mean, it’s nice to meet you, Cricket.”

But Dane shot Suzy a glare. “While it’s nice to meet you, Cricket, and you’re welcome at the Morgan ranch, please round out our happy foursome in a guest capacity. I personally do not require a chaperone—for any reason.”

Chapter Four

“Whew,” Pete said as Dane stomped into the house, “please pardon my brother’s boneheaded manners. Texas doesn’t agree with him, and some days he’s a wee bit moody.” Then he whispered to Cricket, “It passes by noon. On his better days.”

Suzy looked at Pete. “Did I mention Cricket is a deacon in her church?”

Pete blinked. “So she is a chaperone.”

“Yes,” Suzy said, dragging her friend away. “Come on, before you fall under the spell.”

Cricket followed willingly. “I don’t think it was a spell. I’m immune to those. I think it was shock. Not sure I’ve ever seen so much man in one pair of boots.”

“It’s okay,” Suzy said. “The feeling will pass once you realize that they’re bona fide womanizers.”

“Too bad,” Cricket said. “You know who’d be perfect for that lanky one back on the porch?”

Suzy stopped, gathering her girls to her. “I’m afraid to ask.”

“Priscilla Perkins.”

Suzy glanced up at Cricket. “The Priscilla Perkins whom you despised on sight because she lured your brother away from his fiancée?”

“That was Thad’s fault,” Cricket said. “He should have had stronger morals. But men and morals are not always secure friends, and heaven knows Priscilla has more than her share of charms.”

Suzy shook her head. “I wouldn’t wish either of these men even on Priscilla Perkins.” Actually, Dane was the kind of man she’d hate to see Priscilla throw her cap at, because he was darling in a sort of hotheaded, sexy way. And he’d kissed her, which she hated to admit had been the hottest kiss she’d ever experienced. But truthfully, Dane was all knotted up and probably had no idea how he’d got that way. Pete seemed like he was meant for wild times and outrageous women—an explosive combination at best.

“Are there any more of them?” Cricket helped Suzy take the girls out back where a patch of sunlight was barely warming the January-cold grass. “The brothers?”

“The youngest, Gabriel, is married and lives close to town. Mr. Morgan was thrilled about the wedding—he’s crazy about Laura and her children. I’ve never met Gabriel, but he’s not as mulish as his brothers, apparently.” Suzy smiled. “And Mr. Morgan mentioned an eldest son whom he never sees, with whom he has a difficult relationship.” She looked at Cricket, sympathy in her eyes as she picked out a ball for the girls to try to roll. “I could tell it hurt him a lot that he and Jack are estranged.”

“How did you meet Mr. Morgan?”

“I was a nurse at the hospital when Mr. Morgan was brought in one day. He has—” she lowered her voice and glanced around to make certain there were no Morgan men around “—some health issues.”

Cricket’s eyes went wide. “His sons don’t know?”

Suzy shook her head. “He doesn’t want them to know. He’s hoping they’ll all come home and want to stay one day.”

“Be a family.”

“At least try.” Suzy looked at her little girls with pleasure. “I can’t argue with the plan. My mother and father certainly have no desire whatsoever to be a family.”

Cricket winced. “I think they regret some of their words—”

“Don’t.” Suzy rose, taking the ball with her. It was now the middle of the afternoon. She needed to put the girls down for a quick nap and start their dinner. “Unlike Mr. Morgan, I don’t believe in fairy tales.”

Cricket’s eyes went wide. “Suzy!”

“Why don’t you bring in your luggage,” Suzy said, unwilling to think about the past. “I plan to enjoy every moment of your time here, so first I’m going to show you to a room, and then put the girls down to nap, and then you and I are going to sit and girl chat.”

A window opened on the second floor. Dane poked his head out, staring down at them. Suzy was pretty sure the lord of the manor’s mood hadn’t improved any by the scowl on his face.

“Can I assume you’ve commandeered the master suite?”

Suzy put her hands on her hips. “You may assume that.”

“And where is Cricket sleeping?”

“In the room next to mine.”

“I can sleep wherever,” Cricket said hurriedly. “Suzy, I don’t want to put anyone out.”

“This place is like a castle. There are plenty of rooms. Let me see what his problem really is.” She returned his scowl. “Why do you care where Cricket sleeps?”

“I don’t. Pete wants to know.”

Suzy looked at Cricket. “It’s all about communication.”

“He just wants to know where he should sleep,” Dane explained. “He didn’t know you were in Pop’s old room.”

“I took the master because it was big enough for me and the girls, and your father said I should since he wasn’t planning on returning any time soon. And besides, there’s a huge lock on the door. He said I’d be safer that way.”

Dane considered that. “Are you saying you’ve spoken to my father recently?”

She nodded. “Yesterday afternoon after you left. I wanted him to know I was accepting the job.”

“You didn’t tell him I was here, did you?”

“I mentioned it,” Suzy said, not sure why it mattered. “Is there a problem?”

“There are problems,” Dane said, “but they’re really not your concern.” He slammed the window down.

Cricket looked at her. “Those boys are a symphony in human frailty.”

Suzy laughed. “I’m so glad you’re here. Let’s go get you settled.”

The window shot back up. “Now, listen,” Dane said, “did my father tell you about the nice strong lock on the bedroom door before or after you told him I was here?”

She shrugged. “Before. He said he’d feel better knowing the girls and I were tightly locked up since we’re so far out in the country. Why?”

He thought about that, seeming satisfied after a moment. “Just checking.” The window shut again. Suzy looked at Cricket, who shrugged.

“Think you’ll last a year?” Cricket asked. “I’m not sure I could swim in all these undercurrents.”

“I’ll last,” Suzy said. “Swimming’s my only choice.”

“WHAT EXACTLY DOES A DEACON DO?” Dane asked Pete as they did chores in the barn.

“Depends,” Pete said, “marry you, bury you, discuss spiritual stuff with you and so forth. Why? Got a thing for Deacon Cricket?”

“No!” Dane slid a glance at his brother. “Do you?”

Pete sighed. “I would, if I was able. But since I’m not, I don’t torture myself. I’m looking for a peachy blonde.”

Since Suzy probably qualified as a “peachy blonde,” Dane didn’t want more information than that. “So, are you really hanging around here for a while?”

“Sure. What’s better than family?” Pete grinned. “As long as Pop’s not around, that is.”

“Jack planning on showing up?”

“Wouldn’t bet the farm on that ever happening.”

Dane moved some tack to the other end of the barn while he digested his thoughts. “Since you’re the only one who really knows how to find Jack, why don’t you tell him the old man isn’t here and he might as well pay a call on the rest of us slobs? We’ll get Gabriel and Laura out here, let everybody have a grand old time getting to know each other again. Not that I’m suggesting we go overboard to please Pop but, hell, I’m ready to see the king of the rodeo.”

“Nah,” Pete said, “don’t think it would work.”

“Why? Tell Jack to start the New Year off right with a little family, a little—”

“Dane, dude. It’s not going to happen.” Pete shook his head.

“I guess there’s a reason,” Dane said, and his brother nodded.

“Yeah. Jack’s sworn to never set foot on the Morgan ranch again.”

Dane whistled. “No million dollars for him.”

“Jack wouldn’t give a da—”

“Hey, fellows!” Suzy poked her head into the barn. Both men straightened, surprised. “Cricket and I and the girls are going to walk around town.”

“Sounds like a party,” Dane said, realizing he sounded smart-alecky but not meaning it that way. Why did everything he said around Suzy seem to come out stupid?

“It is a party. Toddlers, a deacon and a single mom. Wild girls.”

“Yeah, well,” Dane said, “Pete and I were never much for wild women.”

Everyone in the barn stood still, the fib seeming to take a shape of its own. “I suppose you have underwater land you’d like to sell me, too,” Suzy said, “but what I was really wondering was if you want to accompany us.”

“Sure,” Pete said, dropping what he’d been doing, which was pretty much nothing, in Dane’s opinion. He glanced at Dane. “Nothing pressing around here, right, brother?”

He wanted to go, but at what price to his conscience? Dane knew what his father was up to. Wasn’t it best if he and Suzy stayed well away from each other? She was an innocent party—she really seemed to have no idea what Pop had intended. She claimed Pop was totally innocent.

Dane knew better. “I don’t know,” he said. “I’m not a going-out kind of guy.”

Pete thumped him on the back. “That’s cool. You stay in, and I’ll make sure the girls and dolls stay warm and cozy and safe. I haven’t seen Union Junction in a long time,” he told Suzy as he walked out of the barn with her. “I’m sure there’s tons of changes I need to catch up on while we give Cricket the grand tour.”

Alone in the barn, Dane grimaced. Pete was unusually friendly, and he couldn’t tell what was up with that. Was his brother flirting with the single mother or the deacon—and did he care? “I don’t care,” he muttered.

“Dane?” Suzy said, glancing in the barn again. “We’re going to get hot chocolate in town. Sure you don’t want to come along?”

What the hell. He did, and he was tired of acting like he didn’t. Hot chocolate was harmless, right? “As long as Pete’s paying,” he said, and went to join the party.

TWO HOURS LATER, DANE was pretty sure hot chocolate was going to be his undoing. Pete flirted outrageously with both women—he apparently saw no reason to acknowledge his brother—and Suzy and Cricket seemed to eat up the attention. Nor could Dane make any strides with the toddlers, Nicole and Sandra, because there was Pete, making suck-up points by helping them cool their hot cocoa, or carrying the girls on his shoulders so that they could better see into shop windows as the group walked down the main street of Union Junction.

Dane didn’t even know why he was out of sorts. Something suspiciously like jealousy ate at his insides, which felt uncomfortably like worms crawling around inside him, fat and cold and slithery.

He wanted to be mad at Pete, but he knew he was really mad at himself. Having gotten off on the wrong foot with Suzy in the very beginning, he didn’t appreciate further distance being made between them, and particularly by his older brother.

Competition had never been his downfall before. But he had to admit that his relationships with men were lacking in the trust area. He didn’t trust Pop, and he’d made the mistake of trusting his former partner, Kenny, and lost his shirt for that. Worst of all, Jack was nowhere to be seen. Maybe he needed a good example of how a man should act around a woman with two children, but to Dane’s mind, the chivalrous thing to do was to keep distance between them. They had no future because he was retiring young to Mexico where it was warm all year round, not like Union Junction. He was certain a bad example to follow was Pete’s, acting as if he was some kind of woman magnet, irresistible to the opposite sex.

What really dug at him was how much all four girls seemed to enjoy the attention. I’m sulking, he realized. An old habit of being the third son. No wonder I hate Texas. I really hate being third in a family of dysfunctional freaks.

Okay, that was harsh. The Morgans weren’t freaks; they just had more than their share of cautionary tales. So what? A man bucked up and took it.

He could take it. Couldn’t he?

And besides, it was all none of his business. Pete could do what he liked, and so could Suzy. He sighed to himself, deciding he was as much fun as a holey sock. Pete, with his older, hard-won maturity, would seem more impressive to a woman who craved some sort of adventure in her life.

Of course, if Suzy wanted adventure, then he was Mr. Adventure in the amazing flesh. “Before I went into law enforcement,” he said, “I thought I’d probably have to stay in the military forever to stay out of trouble.”

Suzy and Cricket paused in their walking to look at him. Pete frowned, not liking the limelight being off him all of a sudden.

“We were an indulgent group of boys,” Dane said. “I wanted to be just like Jack when I grew up. I couldn’t, so I did crazy stuff like canoeing through Mexico and parachuting out in California until I realized I had to grow up. The military changed me, and then being a Ranger gave me purpose in life.”

Suzy smiled at him. “No wonder you seem so ready to settle down.”

Dane felt his bravado slip. “Settle down?”

Cricket nodded. “Suzy and I have decided we’ve never seen a man so ready to marry and start a family.”

Pete was grinning like mad. Dane perked up under the women’s admiring eyes, though his courage wanted to take a major hike. “I plan on settling down in Mexico next year, as a matter of fact.”

“Oh. Mexico?” Suzy said, sounding surprised, and maybe unpleasantly so.

“Cost of living’s great,” he explained. “I figure if Pop can live in France and all over the world, I should at least be able to park my boots in a border country.”

“I guess so,” Suzy said.

Cricket nodded. “It makes sense.”

They turned their attention back to Pete, who was grinning at him like a stupid hyena. The three of them, along with the tiny toddlers, one of which was held by Pete and one by Cricket, continued walking along the sidewalk. There wasn’t enough room for him, unless he wanted to walk in the street, which he didn’t, because that would feel as if he wasn’t part of the group—a mere hanger-on pedestrian. Didn’t Pete have some secret agent-spy stuff he needed to attend to? Dane wondered sourly.

Some chaperone Cricket was turning out to be—more like the fairy matchmaker. Suzy was supposed to be his responsibility, according to Pop’s instructions—those very same instructions he’d cursorily read last June and then shuffled onto an intermediate, he recalled. And then he’d headed off for six months, keeping himself well away from the mother and her twins. Thwarting Pop was great, but he didn’t like Pete weaseling in on his assignment.

He let himself think up the most impressive thing he could possibly hope to say to a group like this.

“Let’s go to the rodeo tomorrow,” he suggested, and with Pete gesturing No to him, it was like a comet he could latch on to with joy. “Anybody up for watching cowboys get thrown in Lonely Hearts Station?”

“That sounds like so much fun!” Suzy exclaimed. Cricket nodded enthusiastically, but Pete’s lips turned down in a tight frown.

Dane clapped him on the back. “Remember when you wanted to grow up to be a rodeo clown?”

“At least one of us has achieved clown status,” Pete said.

“We’d best get back,” Suzy said, “the girls are starting to get a little fussy. And we want to be well rested for the rodeo tomorrow.”

“What’s the problem?” Dane asked Pete under his breath. “It’s just harmless fun.” Of course, that’s what he’d thought about tonight’s outing, and look where it had gotten him: showboating into another outing with Suzy.

Not with Suzy—with the group, he told the mocking voice chiding him.

“If you’re smart,” Pete said as the ladies walked ahead of them, “you’ll figure out what you’re going to do to cure the case of hots scorching your brain.”

“What do you mean?” Dane demanded, but Pete just shook his head.

“Knucklehead,” Dane said as Pete galloped off with Sandra on his shoulders, “you just want every woman for yourself.”

He understood himself well enough to know that the family closeness and brotherly harmony his father dreamed of wasn’t going to happen if he and Pete hit a rough patch because of a woman.

The best thing he could do was to forget about Suzy and her twins altogether.

“At least I still have Mexico,” he muttered, and then wondered why the idea of palm trees in January didn’t seem quite as exciting as it once had.

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