Taking Charge (Lone Star Burn #4)(22)

Mom. Dad. I know I’ve spent enough nights asking you to watch over me, but I need you to look away for a little bit while I sort this out.

And, Dad, do yourself a favor and stay out of your office. There’s nothing there you need to see.

Lucy turned onto her side and fluffed her pillow with a punch. Had Wyatt gone over to talk to David after leaving her place? Probably. He’d make sure David had everything he needed.

Lucy’s eyes began to close, and just before she fell asleep, she admitted to herself that she felt safer knowing David was in the bunkhouse. She didn’t agree with much he’d done that day, and she wasn’t proud of the ungracious way she’d responded to his help, but still, it was nice knowing someone was watching over her. She hugged her pillow closer and fell into the first peaceful sleep she’d had in a long time.



David was outside and ready for a day’s work at the crack of dawn. His stomach was rumbling, though. He considered going to town for supplies, but he wasn’t leaving until Wyatt came back with his family later that day. He’d worry less about Lucy once there were people around to keep an eye on her.

Until then, I’ll settle for a cup of coffee.

He knocked on the kitchen door of the main house, but there was no answer. He was about to turn away but impulsively tried the door. It was unlocked.

Not safe. I’ll have to talk to her about that.

He opened her kitchen door. Lucy would hide from him if he let her, and this time he wasn’t giving her a chance to find someone else. She wanted to deny the attraction between them. If his intention was to bed her and leave, he would have respected that, but seeing her again had confirmed his initial gut reaction upon meeting her: She belongs with me.

She felt the same. He’d seen as much in her eyes the night before.

She’ll come round.

David called out to Lucy. She didn’t answer, and he was turning to leave when an idea came to him. Could have been the way his stomach was protesting the length of time since his last meal, but making Lucy breakfast suddenly seemed like a good idea.

He started coffee and hunted through her fridge for eggs, bacon, and toast. He was no stranger to cooking for himself and prided himself on being better than most. His parents had made cooking a family event when he was young, and even though he didn’t talk to them nearly enough now, cooking was a way of remembering happier times.

He was sliding a second omelet onto a plate when he heard the familiar sound of a shotgun being cocked. He shut the stove off, set the plate down on the counter beside him, and turned. Lucy was pointing a shotgun in his general direction and shaking.

“You scared me,” she accused. “I thought someone had broken in.”

“Do criminals in these parts feed you before they rob you?”

Lucy uncocked the shotgun and lowered it. “I thought you might be—”

It was then that David felt like an ass for not realizing she might be afraid of her ex-fiancé. “Ted.”

Lucy shrugged a shoulder. “I wasn’t sure if he’d give being nice one more try.”

A thought occurred to David that he didn’t like one bit, but he couldn’t stop himself from asking. “Did he make you breakfast often?”

Lucy held his eyes for a long moment. She knew exactly what he was asking. He should say it was none of his business, but he didn’t. He didn’t want to picture her with Ted that way. Which wasn’t fair since she’d been engaged to him. Of course they’d—

“Never,” she said, then wrapped her arms protectively around herself.

His relief was short-lived. Her stance opened the front of her nightgown enough to give him a glorious glimpse of cleavage so that he almost forgot he’d asked a question. He shook his head as her answer sunk in. “Never?”

Lucy dropped her arms. “Not even close. That, by itself, should have been a warning sign that he had other reasons for wanting to marry me. I saw only what I wanted to see, I guess.”

David stepped toward her. “Lucy . . .”

“Please. I don’t want to talk about it.” She waved a hand through the air, then looked at the table he’d set and the fresh pot of coffee. “What happened to you staying outside?”

David flashed a smile at her. He was having the damnedest time trying not to focus on how the sunlight was making her nightgown near transparent. “A man could starve out there, but I made enough for two.” He placed the plates on the table and held out a chair for her.

Lucy sat in the chair and frowned up at him. “You can’t just come in and out of my house.”

He poured them both a cup of coffee and took his place across from her. “Door was open. Try the eggs, Lucy.”

She blinked a few times quickly, then slowly did as he instructed. The moan she made was just about the sexiest thing he’d ever heard. “These are good. What did you put in them?”

“Family secret. If I tell you, I either have to marry you or kill you.” Lucy went white, and David cursed his idiot mouth. “It’s a joke, Lucy. Well, partly. My grandma used to say that to her dates after my grandpa died.”

That seemed to calm Lucy. She took a sip of coffee. “How old was she?”

“A young eighty-two, and believe me, she never had a shortage of suitors. She had a smile that lit up a room. When you have that, it doesn’t matter how old you are, you’re beautiful.” He sighed.