The Last Landry. Kelsey Roberts

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СКАЧАТЬ a loser.”

      “Whatever,” Seth grumbled. “At one point in the movie, the drunk husband says the only thing worse than two people making eyes at each other is two people trying not to.”

      “And your point is?”

      “You and Taylor are the actress and the director. I see the way you watch her when you think she isn’t looking.”

      “Everybody watches her. That doesn’t mean anything.”

      “So what are you afraid of?” Seth asked pointedly.

      “Aside from the fact that she’s smarter than I am? More educated? Hasn’t so much as hinted that she’s interested, you mean?”

      Seth nodded. “Besides all that.”

      “I don’t have anything to offer her. What’s she going to do on the ranch, show inkblots to cattle all day?”

      Seth snorted. “First, you are a smart guy. Secondly, who cares what degrees she has? Thirdly, you haven’t so much as asked her out on a date. Maybe you should start there.”

      “A date?” Shane repeated, as if the word was new to him.

      “Dinner, a movie? Surely you remember how to date.”

      “I know how to date. You’re the one who’s turned into girlie, movie-quoting guy.”

      “I don’t know if I’d cast aspersions, Shane. Not when you’re celibate guy.”

      Shane uttered a mild curse as he left the office. Problem was, he wasn’t completely sure which one of them he was consigning to the fires of hell.

      “LANDRY RESIDENCE.”

      “Taylor Reese?”

      “Speaking.” Taylor couldn’t tell if the voice on the other end of the phone was male or female. No response. Which was darn annoying since she was elbow deep in pastry dough. “Hello? Who is this?”

      “Doesn’t matter.”

      She rolled her eyes as she trapped the cordless phone between her head and shoulder in order to continue rolling out the pie shells. She didn’t have time for some teenager making prank calls on a rainy spring afternoon. “It does to me,” she said. “I’m in the middle of something. FYI, pal, this is the sheriff’s house. If you’re so much as thinking about harassing me, forget it. But have a nice day.”

      “I know who you are.”

      Was that supposed to be scary? “I got that when you used my name.” Annoying little creep. While she could sympathize with some poor kid stranded in what to a teenager would be the mind-numbing solitude of Jasper, Montana, she had pies to bake and deliver to the bunkhouse before leaving to make her seven o’clock class. “Bye-bye.”

      With flour-dusted fingers, she grabbed the phone, pressed the off button and went back to work.

      Not an easy chore, since the counters at the Lucky 7 Ranch were just a bit too high. She had to get on tiptoe in order to roll out the top crust.

      The century-old kitchen was a cook’s delight. In fact, everything about the house appealed to her. Everything up to and including its occupant.

      Shane Landry appealed to her in a lot of ways. Too many. Which was why she did her level best to keep her distance. She’d worked too long and too hard to do otherwise. She was not going to turn into a woman like her mother. Not going to repeat the pattern she’d learned at the feet of a master. She attacked the dough with gusto as she mentally reviewed her mother’s choices. Taylor had made that promise to herself on her thirteenth birthday. Until she had created a life for herself, no man was welcome as anything more than a temporary diversion. She’d never be dependent.

      Which was why Shane was such a dangerous temptation. Temptation being the operative word. It seemed unfair that one man should be given so many gifts. She frowned at her own lack of self-restraint. No good would or could come of fantasizing about him.

      Though she was weeks from graduation, she hardly needed an advanced degree to diagnose the fact that she was attracted to the wrong man. She blew out a breath of frustration as she lifted the crust on top of the sliced apples and began crimping the edges with a vengeance.

      “Killing it or cooking it?” Shane asked when he sauntered into the room a second later.

      His large hand snaked around her, snatching a slice of apple out of the pie before she could stop him. She slapped his fingers. The quick, fraction-of-a-second contact was all it took for her pulse to kick into gear. Damn! No touching, she reminded herself. Thinking about him was bad enough. Physical contact with Shane made her almost forget why he was off-limits.

      She nudged him back with her elbow. Did the blasted man always have to stand so close? “Stick your hands in my food again and I’ll kill you and cook you. Not necessarily in that order. Don’t you have someplace to be? Other than here?” Where I won’t smell the fresh scent of soap mingling with your cologne? Where I won’t feel the warmth of your body or know that all I have to do is turn around to be in your arms?

      “I belong here,” Shane reminded her. Taylor frowned again when she noticed a new bruise on his wrist as he stole another apple slice and his arm brushed hers. “You’re in a particularly nasty mood today,” he said cheerfully. “What happened, did they cancel Dr. Phil? Bummer.”

      “Do not mock Dr. Phil,” Taylor insisted, stepping away before she turned to glare up at him. “He’s a very insightful, intelligent man. Two things, by the way, you are not.”

      “But I’m the man who pays you, so how about something to eat?”

      “Sure. Put on your shoes and socks and go to the fridge.”

      His crystal-blue eyes glinted with humor. “Housekeeper, Taylor. From the ancient Greek phrase meaning ‘keep the people in the house happy.’ This is me…” he paused and waved his hands “…not happy.”

      “And this is me…” she gave him her brightest smile “…not caring.”

      He couldn’t help but watch as she put the pie in the oven, stiffened her spine and walked out of the room with all the airs and dignity of royalty departing the throne. There was the added bonus of seeing her hips sway with each step. Taylor had a killer body. She kept him awake nights. Which sucked, since there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about his attraction to her. Seth’s sage advice aside, Shane still didn’t think he was ready to hang himself out there just to have her slice him to shreds with that sharp tongue and even sharper mind. Especially not when she’d practically just called him stupid.

      Shane took a few minutes to clean up her baking mess, then rummaged around, finally settling on some cheese and crackers. There was a wonderful smell coming from the Crock-Pot, so he knew better than to spoil his appetite. In addition to her physical perfection, Taylor was a really great cook. He tried to tell himself that he’d kept her on for that reason and that reason alone after Sam, Callie and the kids had moved out last fall.

      After that, there really wasn’t a need for live-in help. Not when it was just him. And Taylor.

      And СКАЧАТЬ