Colton Cowboy Protector. Beth Cornelison

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СКАЧАТЬ gave her a smile that twinkled in his trademark Colton-green eyes. “My dad’s right. You don’t want to meet my brother on an empty stomach. Besides, the brisket is so tender it will melt in your mouth. Follow me.”

      He tugged her hand as he led the way out to the pool, where a small acoustic band was playing the country tunes she’d heard inside. Brett steered her to a buffet table piled high with beef brisket, rolls, fresh fruit, veggies and dips, cheeses of all types, and an array of the most sumptuous-looking desserts Tracy had ever seen. Her mouth watered, and she decided it would be a good idea to have at least a little something to eat. She and Brett both picked up plates and started down the buffet. “Wow!”

      He chuckled. “I know, right? Abra knows how to put out a spread, huh?” He used the tongs from a tray of cheeses to pile sliced beef and bite-size meat pastries onto Tracy’s plate. When melodic laughter drifted to them from a small group by the desserts, he called, “Hey, Ryan, save some of those brownies for the rest of us.”

      “You snooze, you lose,” a muscular man with telltale green eyes marking him as another Colton quipped. “Greta said I could have hers.”

      The brunette woman beside Ryan elbowed him. “I said you could have mine, not the rest of the tray!”

      Brett hitched his head toward the group. “Tracy, have you met this crew? My brother, Detective Ryan Colton of the Tulsa PD, and of course, the honorees, my baby sister, Greta, and her fiancé, Mark You-Better-Be-Good-to-Her-or-I’ll-Kick-Your-Ass Stanton.”

      The russet-haired man next to Greta laughed as he offered his hand to Tracy. Brett’s face sobered, and he gave Mark a squinty-eyed glare. “I’m not joking, man.”

      Greta shoved her brother’s shoulder. “Brett, stop trying to intimidate my fiancé, you big goof.”

      Brett grinned broadly. “Yeah, okay.” But when Mark smiled in relief, Brett blanked his face again in an instant and raised an eyebrow. “But I mean it.”

      “I already warned Mark that I know a hundred ways to kill a man and hide the body without being caught,” Ryan deadpanned.

      Tracy gave Mark a sympathetic look. “Tough gig, marrying into a family with this much testosterone.”

      “Yeah,” Mark said with a sappy grin as he kissed his fiancée’s temple, “but Greta’s worth it.”

      Brett made a gagging noise, then flinched as a cold jet of water spritzed them all.

      Tracy heard a youthful giggle as Brett spun around with a playful growl. She leaned to her left to see who was behind him and spotted a familiar-looking little boy with a water gun.

      Her heart seized. Seth.

      She gaped at the boy who so obviously resembled his paternal family, and a knot of emotion clogged her throat. Seeing her cousin’s son, her only living family, in the flesh for the first time was no less poignant in this setting than if she’d been greeting him five years ago when he was a newborn in the hospital nursery.

      “All right, pal. You asked for it!” Brett said, sweeping him up and over his shoulder.

      Seth’s laughter rang over the party sounds as Brett took three long steps to the deep end of the swimming pool and tossed his nephew in, clothes and all.

      Tracy gasped and took a step toward the pool, prepared to dive in after Seth if needed. But the little boy broke the surface of the water, still grinning from ear to ear and clutching his water gun. He swam skillfully to the ladder to climb out, calling, “Okay, Uncle Brett, this is war!”

      Brett grinned as his nephew shook his wet hair. “Bring it on, Seth. I’m ready for you, buddy.”

      Seth aimed his gun and blasted Brett and several other guests with a jet of cold water. Tracy bit her bottom lip to cover a smile.

      Abra strode briskly through the French doors, clearly not amused. She clattered out onto the patio, her high heels clicking on the concrete, and gave Brett a stern frown. “The two of you cut that out at once! I’ll not have you ruining Greta’s party,” she said, barely keeping her tone above a hiss. She quickly schooled her face and smiled at her guests. “I’m so sorry for my grandson’s behavior. He can be rather a handful sometimes.”

      Tracy bristled, ready to fly to Seth’s defense, just as Greta touched her arm and spoke to her. “So, Tracy, are you a friend of Mark’s?” She divided a curious look between Tracy and her fiancé.

      Mark shook his head, at the same time that Tracy said, “Um...actually, I’m not here for the party. I came to see Jack. On a personal matter.”

      Greta’s eyes widened, and she sent Ryan a knowing look that said, Well, well...interesting.

      Tracy’s cheeks flamed again, and she cleared her throat. “Could you point me toward him, please?”

      Greta blinked. “You don’t know what he looks like?”

      “Well, no. I mean, based on the Coltons I’ve met so far today, I’m assuming he’s green-eyed, dark-haired and gorgeous, but beyond that...”

      An amused grin tugged the corner of Ryan’s mouth, and he sent a glance around the area, using his advantageous height to see over the heads of the assembled guests. With the glass in his hand, he motioned to the far side of the pool. “That’s him over there, wrapping Seth up in the towel.”

      Tracy turned to look, and her breath caught. The man draping Seth in a beach towel was none other than the cowboy she’d encountered in the foyer. Mr. Tall, Dark and Surly himself.

Chapter 2

      With his gaze, Jack Colton followed the sounds of splashing water and his son’s playful laugh to the swimming pool and cracked a small grin. Seth’s carefree, sometimes mischievous nature reminded him of himself when he was younger, before life, fatherhood and the demands of a large cattle ranch replaced his wild ways with a more responsible attitude. The mirthful sounds were silenced by a rebuke from Jack’s mother, and he tensed.

      Wasn’t it bad enough that Abra was putting on this dog-and-pony show, flaunting Greta’s engagement to the world in order to boost her own social standing? The media was here, for cripes’ sake! Not that Jack wasn’t happy for his sister. Greta’s engagement deserved to be toasted and celebrated. Just not so publicly. This spectacle was an embarrassment.

      Jack strode quickly to the pool to retrieve his son, noting that Brett had been the one egging the boy on. Jack appreciated the rapport his brother had with five-year-old Seth, but not when it led his son down the wrong path...namely one that crossed Abra’s.

      “Seth,” Jack said calmly, but with a tone and volume that brooked no resistance. His son glanced up, and Jack gave a subtle head jerk. As Seth obediently scurried out of the water, Jack turned his gaze to Brett and sent him a false smile. “Thanks.”

      His brother held up both hands, laughing, “He started it.”

      “Yeah, but you’re an adult. Act like one.”

      Brett gave him a who-whizzed-in-your-Wheaties look and turned to join the conversation behind him. No doubt ragging on his grumpy big brother. When had Jack become such a grandpa?

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