Chapter 2

Daniel sat in the arm chair beside Renee Tessler. A lot more stunning than he remembered, and his teenage hormones had thought she was just about the most beautiful creature in the world when Crane brought her home that summer. Now, she was… Wow!

All the brothers had known about Renee when they were dating. Crane had pictures of her and the two of them together, but photos had not done her justice. When she came to visit that summer, Daniel had been overwhelmed at his brother's luck and honestly couldn't figure what she saw in him. Crane was great and all, but Renee was centerfold beautiful, and she could've had any man she wanted. Someone rich and famous would have been more likely than a regular joe like Crane McFadden from Murphys.

Of course, when they broke up, Daniel wondered if maybe she'd just been passing time with his brother until she got tired of him, but Crane sure hadn't viewed their relationship that way. He didn't really discuss it, but he'd been torn up when they split. Couldn't room with someone all those years and not know when he was upset. Daniel had encouraged Crane to talk about it, but he didn't—at least not with Daniel. Maybe Crane figured his little brother was too young to understand—and, at the time, he might've been right. Daniel was pretty sure Crane had talked to Adam and Brian, though. Still, he'd dragged around for months after they broke up.

And now Renee was back in Murphys. And looking more amazing than ever. Or maybe Daniel had just grown up and could now appreciate that she was pretty much everything a man could want in a woman. Intelligent, beautiful, hard-working, funny. The whole package.

Daniel glanced back to the kitchen where Crane and Molly were putting the finishing touches on supper. He could see them wrestling in horse play and laughing at each other's moves. Of course, Crane had done just fine when he married Molly just as Adam had with Hannah. Both of his sisters-in-law could hold their own against Renee. Still, a woman like this didn't come along every day…

He turned back and saw Renee watching the lovebirds as well. "So, Renee, it's been a long time. I couldn't believe it when I saw you in town. You look amazing!"

After a long second, she turned to Daniel. "I never expected to be back in Murphys either, but I go where the job takes me."

"What is it you do now? I remember you were hoping to go into politics or something."

Her smile was dazzling. "That's right. I'm surprised you remember. That was a long time ago."

"You're pretty unforgettable."

Her eyes softened, "I should have realized Crane's brother would be a charmer."

Daniel tried to beat back his hope. She thought he was charming.

"Anyway, I'm a lobbyist."

Daniel didn't pay much attention to politics. He wasn't exactly sure what a lobbyist did but didn't want to seem ignorant. So he nodded encouragingly and hoped for more information.

"I'm in Carbon County to do research for a client, so that when his bill comes up in Sacramento, we'll be able to demonstrate to the legislators that they should vote his way."

Sounded important. And maybe a little sneaky, but Daniel was pretty sure he'd missed something about what the job entailed. "What kind of research? Maybe we could help."

She glanced back to the kitchen when Molly laughed. "I'm afraid I can't say. There are rules about client privacy, but I appreciate the offer."

Too bad. He sure wouldn't mind spending a little more time with her.

Crane brought a couple of dishes to the table. "Okay, you two, looks like we're about ready. Come and get it."

Daniel stood and offered his hand. "Shall we?"

She looked at his hand and then accepted it, turning her gaze to Daniel. Her smile was intriguing. "I suppose we shall."

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Crane watched, vaguely surprised, as Renee and Daniel conversed at the table, really hitting it off. Their heads leaned close together, and the smiles were flirtatious. Not that there was anything wrong, but frankly, Crane was…bewildered.

Next to him, Molly grinned her approval. He'd worried initially that she might be a little upset to come home and find her husband entertaining an old girlfriend. That concern had proven unnecessary when he tried to explain himself in the kitchen as she nodded, mockingly serious. But she was unable to sustain the charade and finally started laughing. She enveloped him in an embrace leading to a little groping that might have proven embarrassing in front of their guests. Fortunately—or unfortunately depending on one's point of view—they'd managed to get their hands under control before Renee and Daniel noticed.

Conversation flowed freely as Renee and Molly got to know a bit about each other and traded funny insults about Crane's habits. He didn't find it the least bit amusing and got a little ticked off when Daniel joined in. Daniel pointed out that he'd known and lived with Crane longer than the two ladies put together and if anyone had a right to comment and complain, it was him. Of course, then Crane was able to inform the girls about some of Daniel's more…endearing…habits. Turn about being fair play and all that.

The result was a night of enjoyable food and laughter. While still a bit thrown by a possible match of his old girl friend and his younger brother, Crane had to admit they seemed to hit it off. And he certainly couldn't begrudge Daniel's taste. Renee was a fascinating woman who had a gravity and magnetism that wasn't explained by her beauty alone.

When dinner was over, he and Molly cleared the table as their guests moved to the sofa to talk. Sitting some of the dishes in the sink, his wife turned toward him with a head tilt toward their guests. "So, this is an interesting development."

"Isn't it?"

"How do you feel about it?"

He shrugged a little. "I'm not sure. Peculiar? Not that he'd be interested in her—that doesn't strike me as strange at all. But that she'd be interested in him…?"

Molly offered a small grin. "I'm glad he didn't hear that 'cause I think you just insulted your brother. Almost like you don't think he'd measure up."

He breathed a wry laugh. "It's not that. See, Renee and I broke up because she didn't think I was good enough. I wasn't ambitious enough, I always planned to come back home. My goals were way too small. And from what I learned today about her career, I don't think she's changed all that much. So if I wasn't enough, then how is Daniel?"

Molly bit her lip pensively. "Well, people change. But if she hasn't, then I can think of a couple reasons. One—she's just looking for some fun and is attracted to him. Or two—she sees how happy we are and wants to get back at you by going out with your brother."

Crane took a deep breath as he thought about that. He headed back to the table to pick up another load and glanced at the sofa where the two heads were close together in conversation. Coming back to the kitchen, he looked at Molly. "Either way, Daniel might get hurt. I sure don't see a possibility of her settling down around here."

"Maybe he'd go with her."

The idea startled him to a standstill. "You think?"

"If he loved her. Honey, I don't know—I just met her. She seems nice, but I don't know her. And really, since all this time has passed, you don't know her anymore either. And you're speculating on a relationship that might not even develop. Why don't you just wait and see what happens? It could be that you're worrying about nothing."

He glanced back as their guests laughed about something. Molly was right. He was putting the cart way before the horse. Renee and Daniel hadn't seen each other in years—Daniel had only been fourteen or fifteen the last time. And Renee was just in town temporarily. They were merely renewing acquaintances and finding out about each other as adults. He needed to take a deep breath and get his older-brother, worrywart tendencies back under control. "You're right. As usual."

His lovely bride smiled winningly. "You are so smart. It's why I married you."

"And here I believed it was because you thought I was sexy."

"Don't flatter yourself, mister."

Crane just looked at her. He was rewarded when she blushed and turned away.

"We have guests. Don't start that now."

Crane let loose a dirty laugh that made her grin as she washed the dishes.

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Daniel lay in bed, hands behind his head. It was early morning, and he could hear Brian in the next room, getting ready to head down to help Hannah with breakfast. For all the ribbing they gave him growing up—and even now—Brian had become a great cook over the years. Though he'd never admit it, it was clear he actually enjoyed time in the kitchen. And breakfast was his specialty.

It was still dark when Brian walked over to pound on their door. It'd be nice to sleep till sunrise, but that didn't happen too often on a working ranch in the fall. Too much to get done as the days got shorter. And since Daniel was covering for Walt this week, it left even more for his brothers to do. Which was one of the reasons Evan was home for a while.

But this morning, Daniel was already awake despite not getting much sleep. Renee had given him a lift home after dinner, so Daniel left the truck for Crane to drive to the ranch this morning. Good lord, she was amazing! Not that Daniel expected anything, seeing her again after all these years, but wow!

He'd kind of butted in on dinner last night, not really giving Crane and Molly a chance to kick him out. Not that he didn't enjoy spending time with them, but the real draw had been Renee. He'd done his best to be entertaining and interesting, let her know that he wasn't just a teenage kid brother anymore. He was his own man now outside of Crane's long shadow—one huge plus being that Daniel wasn't married to a brilliant and beautiful horse surgeon.

Crane must've told Renee some stuff about the family because she'd asked about the band. Daniel took that as a sign that she was possibly interested anyway, and he told her about the tours he'd done and the contacts he'd made in songwriting. She reacted with delight and encouragement, and it only made Daniel more hopeful about asking her out again.

Supper felt like two couples getting together for a double date even though it was really a couple and two singles. They laughed and told stories, and it was fantastic. And when she offered him a ride home, it just topped off a great night.

So he'd gotten in her hot rod, and they drove back to the ranch. He suddenly wished they lived a lot farther than a ten mile drive so he could spend a little more time with her. And even though it was dark, she'd looked at the house and buildings and said it was just as she remembered. And said it fondly, too. Daniel liked hearing that tone in her voice.

Then to finish off a perfect evening, she kissed him. Just a quick one, but still. Daniel was stunned; he couldn't believe she made the first move. And though he badly wanted it to continue, he stopped himself, remembering it was still a first date—well, not really a date, but since she kissed him goodnight, he figured he should treat it that way.

He suggested lunch as a follow up to a promising beginning and was thrilled when she agreed. He pulled one of Wally's cards from his wallet and gave it to her, telling her to call whenever she had time. He couldn't wait to see her again.

Suddenly, a pillow crashed into Daniel's face, abruptly bringing him back to Tuesday morning. "Hey!" He yanked it away and saw Evan dressed and pulling on his boots. When did that happened? Daniel hadn't heard him at all. Weird that he heard Brian's every move next door but not his own roommate. Where was his brain?

"You planning on getting up today?"

Daniel grinned, "Maybe."

"You're staring at the ceiling."

"It's an interesting ceiling, okay?"

Evan's lips twitched, "It's Renee."

Daniel couldn't help his grin. The family'd heard her car last night, and he'd had to tell them who'd given him a ride. And then bear up under the relentless teasing that resulted. Everybody thought he should've invited her in, but he suspected they'd had different motives. Adam and Hannah wanted to be hospitable, Brian and Evan so they could get a shot at her, and Guthrie so he could tease Daniel. Daniel wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he wasn't stupid by a long shot. "I'm gonna have lunch with her; did I mention that?"

"I'm riding fence, and you're having lunch with a beautiful woman. How is that fair?"

"Never claimed it was, Little Brother."

Evan shook his head with a wry smile. "I'm not leaving you any breakfast if you don't get to the table on time. Just so you know…" He headed out the door as Daniel finally crawled out of bed.

He realized he was infatuated—it was one sort of date—but he couldn't stop the possibilities running through his head. He'd never expected a chance with a woman like Renee. He frowned briefly, remembering the occasional looks he'd gotten from Crane last night…like he couldn't believe it either. He hoped Crane wasn't upset. Surely an old girlfriend wasn't out of bounds. Was she? In Daniel's experience, the only situation that came close to this was the thing between him and Brian and Tally Dean. And this wasn't really the same. Of course, no girl could ever come between Daniel and one of his brothers—he'd never let that happen. But he'd sure like to explore this possibility.