Crockett's Seduction. Tina Leonard

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      “And what is whatever? Just so I’ll understand.”

      Crockett slapped his brother on the back of the head. “She’s a nice lady. I like to look at her.”

      Last moved away from his older brother’s reach. “And if I don’t like whatever? If I need more time to get my own deal worked out with my family? Then what?”

      “Have at it.” He looked his brother in the eyes. “Don’t get competitive, Last. You don’t like hanging around her, I do. Deal with it.”

      Last got up from the couch, agony on his face. “I am trying to be as good a father as Maverick was.”

      “I’m not stopping you.”

      Last sighed. “I feel like I need something that’s mine, where none of my brothers overshadow me.”

      Crockett could relate to that feeling. “We’re just friends. And I’m only interested in spending time with her because it seems I’ve recently turned into a butt-man.”

      “Butt-head, you mean.”

      “No, butt-man. Valentine has a great tush. It inspires my creativity. That’s all I’m thinking about. Nothing deeper than that.”

      Last nodded, then left Crockett with the TV while he headed down to Valentine’s. He hesitated before knocking on the door. Crockett was pretty much correct: Last had avoided Valentine for a long time.

      The realization that he was a father had changed his life and frightened him. He’d doubted his ability to be a proper role model. He hadn’t wanted to be tied down to a woman. At the time, it had felt as if he’d gotten roped in. Later, he realized that the few pounds of squealing flesh that bore his name wasn’t all that frightening. He’d slowly begun to worm his way into Valentine’s good graces, and he’d moved just as slowly over the first bumps of fatherhood.

      He’d been feeling pretty good about matters—until Crockett had started eyeing his family.

      The door opened and Valentine looked out at him. “Hi, Last,” she said, her tone somewhat surprised.

      Of course she was surprised. “Is Annette asleep?”

      “Nearly. Did you want to see her?”

      He shifted. “Actually, I wanted to ask you something.”

      Her big eyes widened. “All right.”

      “There’s never going to be anything between you and me, is there?”

      Valentine was so shocked by Last coming to her house and asking her this question that it took her a second to shake her head. “I think we’re better off as friends. You don’t want more than that, do you?”

      “I want to be first in my daughter’s life.”

      “And you’re worried that you won’t be?” This was a side of Last she’d never seen before.

      “Maybe.”

      “Last, Annette knows who you are,” Valentine said softly. “That should be reassurance enough.”

      “Yeah.” He backed away from the door. “Okay.”

      Valentine took a deep breath. “For what it’s worth, Last, I never set out to trap you with fatherhood. If you avoid me because you think I’m after you, it’s not true. I don’t remember much about our night together, but I know it got out of hand pretty quick and that neither of us were ourselves. Nor were either of us under any delusions.”

      He looked grim. “Sometimes I wonder if it really happened.”

      “I know.”

      His mouth settled into a tense line. “I think, Valentine, I owe you an apology. I had some wildness in me, and I never thought about the consequences of my actions. For either of us, but especially for you.”

      Valentine smiled slightly. “Thank you. But it doesn’t matter anymore. We have a daughter we both love.”

      “We sure do.” For the first time, he smiled. “I’m still kind of amazed that I’m a dad.”

      “Scary?”

      “Scary, but awesome.” He stepped down off the porch. “By the way, do you have a thing for my brother Crockett?”

      Her smile slipped, and she gave him a warning glare. “Haven’t you asked the one question you came here to ask?”

      He laughed and put up his hands in mock surrender. “All right.”

      She opened the door. “I have to get to work early in the morning.”

      He nodded. “Good night.”

      “Good night.” Closing the door, Valentine wondered which of Last’s questions he’d really come to ask. She’d never know—but one thing she did know, she had a thing for Crockett.

      OKAY, SO IT WAS WRONG to be hiding in the bushes. Crockett knew that. But he wasn’t so much hiding as skulking, he figured, in the old-time manner any villain from a black-and-white movie would appreciate.

      But what else could a man do? The second he’d realized Last had a major burr under his saddle and was heading down to Valentine’s house, Crockett had to tag along to eavesdrop.

      He’d heard everything, amazed that Valentine and Last spoke with each other so easily about such a difficult subject. And how dare Last ask her if she had a thing for him? Crockett was just honest enough to admit his ears had stretched out about a foot to hear her reply, his heart hoping for an affirmative answer of some sort.

      Well, he hadn’t gotten an affirmative, but he hadn’t overheard a negative, either. Wasn’t that a good sign?

      He untangled himself from the bushes and headed back toward the main house. Half of him wanted to go pound Last for muddying the waters; he’d have to keep an eye on that brother of his. But right now the other half of him wanted to express his joy.

      She didn’t say that she didn’t have a thing for me, he repeated to himself happily.

      IN MIMI’S TOWNHOUSE the next day Mimi and Mason were seated at the kitchen table drinking tea and glaring at each other. Mimi’s daughter, Nanette, sat in Mason’s lap, playing with a doll he’d given her, completely oblivious to the tension in the room.

      “I don’t want to be your deputy,” Mason said. “It’s a harebrained idea, as usual.”

      “Sometimes you like my ideas,” she reminded him.

      Mason wondered if he’d truly liked her ideas, or if he’d simply been driven by the inner devil that sometimes took the wheel of the Jefferson boys. “I may have lost my sense of direction and allowed you to lead me astray a time or two.”

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