Rodney started back toward the house, obviously interested in his next meal, too. Wyatt was attached to Rodney by the nylon leash but the dog was far more eager to go in than Wyatt was. The rockers lining the porch were still wet, but he could imagine coming out here with a cup of coffee and just…appreciating. No doubt that’s why the chairs were there.

  The minute he walked through the front door he caught the scent of coffee and wondered how someone was accomplishing that if the power was still off. But if there was coffee in the making, he’d sure like to find a towel and wipe off one of those rockers.

  He wasn’t sure where his boundaries lay, though. Sarah had insisted that he stay here, but that didn’t mean he could act as if he owned the place. He had to be very careful about that, in fact.

  Rodney, on the other hand, had no such hang-ups. Once Wyatt unhooked the leash from his collar he trotted down the hall toward the kitchen as if the Last Chance had been built expressly for his comfort. Wyatt followed him, figuring the dog gave him an excuse to investigate what was happening in the kitchen.

  In the early morning light he could see the pictures on the wall, but he wouldn’t know most of the people. He needed that guided tour Mary Lou had promised him. He also needed coffee.

  He found more people in the kitchen than he would have imagined this early. Josie had Archie in his carrier on the table and was rocking him gently while she sipped from a steaming mug. Mary Lou, wearing a fluffy white bathrobe, also sat at the table cradling a mug, and the third person was a fully dressed middle-aged cowboy with a handlebar mustache. He had coffee, too.

  “Hi, there, Wyatt!” Mary Lou smiled at him. “Want coffee?”

  “Yes, but what kind of magic did you use to make it?”

  “Cowboy magic.” She glanced at the man sitting next to her at the table. “Watkins, I’d like you to meet Wyatt Locke, Jack’s half brother.”

  Watkins shoved back his chair, stood and extended his hand across the table. “Pleased to meet you, Wyatt.”

  “Same here, Mr. Watkins.” Wyatt shook the cowboy’s hand and kept his expression carefully neutral. So this was the “old fool” Mary Lou had no intention of marrying, the same guy who’d knocked on her door in the rain and caught her wearing, probably not by accident, a red negligee.

  “Just Watkins, son. That’s all I go by. Coffee’s in that big thermos over there. Take as much as you want. I’m about to head down to the bunkhouse and reload it.”

  “Thanks.” Wyatt walked over to the counter where a large carafe stood.

  “Mugs are in the cupboard above,” Mary Lou said. “Need cream? I hope not, because we’re limiting how often we open the refrigerator.”

  “I don’t use cream, thanks.” Wyatt took down a plain white mug, stuck it under the spigot and pushed on the top of the carafe. A stream of dark, fragrant coffee poured out. Heaven.

  When he was finished, Watkins came over and lifted the carafe. “Yep, nearly empty. I’ll be back.”

  “Thanks, Watkins,” Josie said. “You’re a lifesaver.”

  “It’s the hands who get the credit. They weren’t about to go without their coffee this morning.”

  “So what did they do?” Wyatt asked.

  “Hauled out the old campfire coffeepot and turned on the propane barbecue grill,” Watkins said. “They’ll be cooking bacon and eggs soon. I’ll bring some of those up when they’re ready.”

  Wyatt grinned. “Exactly what I would have done. In fact, I didn’t even think about the little camp stove I have in the back of my truck. Should I get that out?”

  Watkins smoothed his mustache. “Thanks, but I think we’ve got it covered. They’re having fun, as a matter of fact. It’ll be their pleasure to feed the ladies. Well, and you, of course. Be right back.” Carrying the carafe, he left the kitchen by the back door.

  “Look at that Rodney,” Mary Lou said. “Waiting so patiently for his breakfast. At least we don’t have to cook that.” She stood and walked back to the laundry room. “Come on, boy.”

  Rodney covered the same distance faster than Wyatt would have thought possible on such short legs. “That was a popular suggestion, Mary Lou.”

  “He loves his food, which is why he’s got love handles.”

  Josie glanced up at Wyatt. “Have a seat, cowboy.”

  “Oh, I’m not a cowboy.” But he pulled out a chair and sat at the oak kitchen table anyway.

  “Hey, you wear the clothes, you soon get the attitude. We’ve seen that happen before, right, Mary Lou?”

  Mary Lou chuckled as she returned to her seat at the table. “We certainly have. Your brother Alex, for example. Oh, and Logan Carswell.”

  Wyatt recognized the name. “Logan Carswell? You don’t mean the former catcher for the Cubs.”

  “One and the same.” Mary Lou sounded proud of the fact. “He and Alex were best friends growing up in Chicago, so he came out for Alex and Tyler’s wedding last summer, fresh from forced retirement. He turned into a darned good cowboy, don’t you think, Josie?”

  Josie laughed. “He’s so hooked on the cowboy lifestyle that he had to go to Casper with the rest of the guys even though he doesn’t own any horses and doesn’t ride competitively, either. But he couldn’t stand to be left out. His wife, Caro, would be here tonight but she needed to spend time with her grandmother in Jackson this weekend.”

  “Huh. Logan Carswell.” Wyatt sipped his coffee. The ranch was full of surprises.

  Josie eyed him across the table. “You and Olivia seemed to hit it off.”

  Startled, he met her gaze. Welcome to the other side of this cozy family situation. People felt free to give advice and commentary.

  Josie looked amused. “If you’d rather not talk about it, that’s okay. Around here we have a bad habit of poking our noses where they don’t belong.”

  “I told him last night that he should stake his claim,” Mary Lou said.

  Wyatt decided to use the system to his advantage and find out more about Olivia. “Does she date much?”

  “No.” Josie reached over and started rocking Archie again when he began to fuss. “I think after breaking off three engagements she’s turned over a new leaf and is getting choosier.”

  “She told me about the three engagements,” Wyatt said. “And about being more in charge of her love life from now on.”

  Josie continued to rock Archie’s carrier. “Did she tell you why she broke those engagements?”

  “Just that it didn’t work out.”

  “Each of those bozos managed, eventually, to make a disparaging remark about her father.”

  “Oh.” That put a new light on the situation. No wonder Olivia wanted to make the choice next time. “He sounds like he’s…different.”

  “He is, and she’ll be the first to say it, but woe unto anyone else who pokes fun at him. I find that kind of loyalty admirable.”

  Wyatt nodded. “So do I. Thanks for telling me.”

  “Consequently, I don’t think she’s planning to rush into another engagement any time soon.”

  “Rushing into an engagement is a bad idea, anyway,” Wyatt said. “I want to be pretty damned sure when I ask somebody to marry me.”

  Mary Lou gazed at him over the rim of her mug. “Sounds like you’ve never taken that plunge.”

  “Nope. Like I said, I want to be really, really sure before I drop to one knee in front of a woman.” When neither of them responded, he raised his eyebrows. “You don’t agree with that?”

  “I don’t know if you can ever be that sure,” Josie said. “You can be crazy about somebody, but there’s still a big risk involved. Sometimes you have to be willing to leap and hope the net will appear.”

  “Or you can be like me.” Mary Lou set down her empty mug. “I had your attitude about marriage. Still do, actually. Can’t see any reason for it, so here I am, still single at fifty-two.”

  Josie gave her a nudge. “Watkins would take care of that issue for you in a heartbeat.”

  “Watkins.” Mary Lou blew out a breath.

  “Did you call my name, Lulu?” Watkins came through the back door without knocking, a testament to the freedom Mary Lou allowed him in her domain.

  She sniffed. “I told you not to call me that.”

  “Then I’ll call you sweetie pie.” He held the coffee carafe in one hand and a metal container covered in foil in the other. “Time to break out the chafing dishes. I’m bringing home the bacon.”

  “I smell coffee and I smell food!” Olivia’s cheery voice preceded her as she walked into the kitchen. “Good morning, everyone!”

  Wyatt stood up so fast he had to steady his chair to keep it from falling over. Wow, did she look great. She’d tied her hair up in some kind of sassy ponytail that made her look about sixteen, and the impression was enhanced by her bare feet, jeans rolled at the cuffs, and a light green T-shirt with the words Nail Techs Do It with Polish on the front.

  As far as he was concerned, she could do it any way she cared to, if she promised to do it with him.

  9

  THE AROMA OF COFFEE HAD finally drifted up to the second floor, which had roused Olivia out of a very erotic dream involving a certain Wyatt Locke. Knowing a sexy guy like Wyatt was around certainly could cause a girl to rush through her morning ablutions. Cold water could do that, too, and she’d danced her way through a freezing shower.

  At least her skin would look pink and healthy after that onslaught. But the hair dryer she’d brought wouldn’t work, which had meant towel-drying her hair, which wasn’t the optimal method for fluff. She’d wanted to look cute for him, so she’d taken a little extra time to create a bouncy ponytail. A light application of makeup and she’d been good to go.

  Her outfit couldn’t be changed. She’d brought something fun to wear, thinking she’d just be hanging out with the girls until she went home this morning. She had, however, forgotten to bring another pair of shoes, and the heels just didn’t go with her casual clothes. She’d opted for no shoes at all, figuring she could borrow the same rain boots she’d worn before if she needed to go outside.

  She’d heard Wyatt’s voice as she’d walked down the hallway that led through the dining room and into the kitchen, and that soft baritone had jump-started her pulse rate. By the time she’d arrived she’d been slightly out of breath, strictly from nerves. The size of her crush on him was growing by leaps and bounds.

  His smile when he saw her was encouraging, and the light in his gray eyes was even more encouraging. He hadn’t shaved yet and she enjoyed the fact that he had a beard going on. There was an intimacy involved in knowing this was the Wyatt she’d see in the morning if they spent the night together in a tent.

  She shouldn’t be entertaining such thoughts while they were in a crowd of people, though, a crowd that grew larger by the moment as Morgan showed up with SB, followed by Tyler, Emily and Dominique.

  Then Sarah and Pam walked in and Sarah immediately took charge of the situation. “Time to move into the family dining room for breakfast.”

  Olivia had never seen the room Sarah referred to. The main dining room with its four round tables that could each accommodate eight people didn’t seem like the right venue for a family meal. Instead Sarah led everyone through double doors that Olivia hadn’t noticed before. Then she hit the light switch and muttered a soft curse.

  “That’s okay,” Mary Lou said. “I can fix this.” Shortly she returned with a candelabra, each taper lit. “Voilà.”

  “Breakfast by candlelight,” Emily said. “I love it. I’ll have to try that with Clay after he gets home.”

  Olivia was entranced. The flickering candles revealed a table perfectly sized for the number of guests eating breakfast. In no time Sarah, Pam and Mary Lou had everyone set with dishes, utensils and cloth napkins, all matching.

  The food arrived in shifts, and Olivia soon realized that the hands down at the bunkhouse were cooking on the barbecue grill. She recognized Watkins, Mary Lou’s sweetheart, as the delivery man. The meal was chaotic, fun, and somehow she ended up sitting next to Wyatt.

  His knee touched hers under the table, and when he didn’t move it, she decided he’d meant to do that. The point of contact felt warm and sent squiggles of awareness through the rest of her.

  Wyatt unfolded his napkin and laid it in his lap before glancing over at her. “How did you sleep?”

  It could have been an innocent question, a simple conversation-starter, but she knew it wasn’t. “Fine.”

  “Really?” He sounded disappointed.

  “You didn’t want me to sleep well?” She couldn’t keep the teasing note out of her voice.

  “Well, yeah, of course I wanted you to sleep well. I’m glad you did. That’s great.” He passed her a platter of scrambled eggs. “Want some eggs?”

  “Thanks.” She started to take it from him.

  “Go ahead and dish yourself. I’ll hold it for you.”

  “Okay.” She took a couple of spoonfuls. Apparently lust made her hungry, because she could hardly wait to tuck into the food.

  The bacon came around next, followed by hash browns and then toast. Each time Wyatt repeated his gallant gesture of holding the platter while she loaded her plate. He was so cute. She had the strongest urge to lean over and kiss him on his bristly cheek, but that wasn’t appropriate in front of all these people, even in the subdued light of candles.

  Conversation flowed around the table. Most of it had to do with family matters that didn’t concern them, so after the food was all served Olivia and Wyatt were free to continue where they’d left off.

  “I trust you slept well, too,” she said.

  He chewed and swallowed a bite of toast. “Like a baby. Didn’t move all night long.”

  She lowered her voice. “I know that’s not true. You took Rodney outside again.”

  “And how would you happen to know that?”

  “I watched you walk him over to the spruce tree.”

  “Hmm.” He didn’t look at her, but his cheek creased in a smile. “That was a couple of hours after you went to bed, Olivia.”

  “So, maybe I didn’t sleep quite that soundly.”

  He continued to eat without looking at her. “I guess not. I was pretty quiet going downstairs.”

  “The stairs creak.”

  “Not much.” He concentrated on his meal for a few moments. “So you heard me go downstairs and went over to the window? Is that what you’re saying?”

  “I was just curious.”

  “And awake.”

  “Maybe.”

  “Too bad you didn’t slip on a bathrobe and come out there with me. It was nice. A half moon, some stars, a few stray clouds, the sound of a dog tinkling…”

  Fortunately she didn’t have a mouthful of food when he said that or things would have turned ugly. As it was she got the giggles and had to use her napkin to wipe her eyes.

  “What’s so funny over there?” Dominique asked.

  “Rodney,” Olivia said between fits of laughter.

  “Rodney’s in the dining room?” Sarah glanced around. “We need to move him out of here, then. We’re trying to break him of begging, but it’s slow going.”

  “Rodney’s not in here,” Mary Lou said. “I made sure he was in his bed asleep in the kitchen before we all came in. I think he had a hard night.”

  “Yeah, how did that go?” Tyler asked. “We could not get that dog to go outside in the rain. He was like this immovable object.”

  “They used dog treats,” Mary Lou said. “Right, Wyatt?”

  Tyler smacked her forehead. “Brilliant. So he went, then?”

  “Uh, no,” Wyatt said. “We got him out there, but he didn’t go. At least I don’t think he did.”

  Olivia did her best to look nonchalant during Wyatt’s explanation and hoped to hell nobody could tell from her expression that some hanky-panky took place under that spruce tree.

  “I took him up to my room so I could keep an eye on him,” Wyatt continued. “A couple of hours later, he started pacing, so I took him out again. This time the rain had stopped, so we had liftoff. Or ‘lift-up,’ I guess you’d say.”

  “I can see why Olivia was so entertained.” Dominique grinned at him. “You’re a funny guy, Wyatt. I’m glad you decided to pay us a visit.”

  “Me too,” he said. “And I apologize for the scruff at the breakfast table. I took Rod out first thing and then was lured into the kitchen by the smell of coffee so a razor blade never made it into the mix.”

  “Hey,” Tyler said. “Without hot water, this girl is not getting in the shower, so you can be as scruffy as you want to be, dude. I won’t complain.”

  Sarah beamed at him. “Besides, anyone who’s been that dedicated to my dog’s bathroom needs is not going to get a lecture from me about appearing with whiskers at the breakfast table. Thank you, Wyatt.”

  “Anytime.” He drank the last of his coffee. “But I’m starting to feel like the hobo who appears at the back door for a handout, so if you’ll all excuse me…”

  “The water will be cold,” Tyler said. “I know you’re a wilderness guide and all that, but if you want my advice, you’ll wait for the power to come back on.”

  “I don’t mind cold showers.” He pushed back his chair. “Oh, wait. My shaving kit’s over at the Bunk and Grub.”

  Sarah waved a hand dismissively. “No problem. I’m sure there’s a pack of disposables and a can of shaving cream in the bathroom next to your bedroom. Just use what you need. But I agree with Tyler. Wait until the power’s back on.”

  “But there’s no predicting when that will be, right?”

  “No,” Sarah admitted.

  “Then I’ll take my chances with the cold water.”

  “If you must, you must, then. I can’t remember what else is up there, but I’ve tried to keep travel-sized toiletries in that bathroom for whoever’s staying in that wing. Help yourself.”