Dreams of Forever. Brenda Jackson

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      Chapter 3

      The nerve of the man, Casey thought as she slipped into the soapy water in the huge claw-foot bathtub. Why didn’t he understand English? How many times did she have to say she didn’t want to work for him to make herself clear?

      She settled back against the tub and closed her eyes. The man was simply infuriating and like she’d told him, he would be the last person she worked for. She would consider going to work for Cal Hooper first, even though that man made her skin crawl each and every time he looked at her. At least she could defend herself against the likes of the Cal Hoopers out there, thanks to all those self-defense classes her brothers had made her take over the years.

      But when it came to McKinnon Quinn she was as defenseless as a fish out of water. There was just something outright mind-blowingly hot about a tall man in a pair of tight jeans, especially when he had a nice-looking rear end. Add to that an honest-to-goodness handsome face and any woman in her right mind would be a goner. Holy cow, she was only human!

      She eased down farther in the water, wishing for the umpteenth time that she could get the man out of her mind. He had made her madder than a pan of hot fish grease yesterday with his how-great-thou-art attitude. But today he’d shown up offering her the job that he’d told her he wouldn’t hire her for. Well, that was too friggin’ bad. Like she told him, he could take the job and shove it for all she cared.

      Deciding to rid her mind of McKinnon Quinn once and for all, she opened her eyes and glanced around. The room Abby had given her to use was simply beautiful. With all the silk draperies, cream-colored walls and extensive decorating, it was obvious the decor of the room had had a woman’s touch, as had the rest of the house. Corey’s ranch at one time may have been a man’s domain, but now it was evident that a woman was in residence, and that woman was Abby.

      Abby.

      From the first time she found out about her, Casey had figured she wouldn’t like the woman who held her father’s heart to the point where he hadn’t been able to love another woman—not even her own mother who had loved Corey Westmoreland until her dying day. But all it took was a few moments around Corey and Abby to know just how in love they were and probably always had been, even through his fifty-something years as a bachelor, and Abby’s fifteen-year marriage to a man she didn’t love.

      Casey smiled. She had to admit that she had grown fond of the very proper Bostonian her father had married, who happened to be the mother of Madison, her cousin Stone’s wife. Since finding out the truth about her father, Casey had come to realize that she’d had a slew of relatives—more Westmorelands, cousins from just about every walk of life—and they had been genuine in opening both their friendship and their hearts to her and her brothers.

      She glanced at the clock. Abby would be serving dinner in half an hour and dinner time, Casey discovered, was a big ordeal for Abby since she had a way of making things somewhat formal. So instead of wearing jeans like she usually did, it was during the evening meal that she would put on a skirt and blouse or a dress.

      She eased out of the tub to dry off and her thoughts shifted back to McKinnon. She hoped she’d seen the last of him for a while. Although she wouldn’t work for him, she was determined to work for somebody. She could only accept her father and Abby’s hospitality for so long. Although she knew they wanted her to stay there with them, Casey only planned to live here for so long. She needed and wanted her own place.

      She smiled, thinking that in a way her father and Abby were still newlyweds—or at least they acted like they were. More than once she had almost walked up on them sharing a very heated kiss. A part of her was happy for what they shared, but then those times had been a blunt reminder of what she didn’t have in her own life.

      Although she had dated while living in Texas, most men hadn’t wanted what she’d been determined to one day be—a virgin bride. Most wanted to try out the goodies before committing and she refused to do that; especially after being fed from knee-high her mother’s storybook rendition of how romantic things had been for her and Corey.

      Casey had been determined to find that same kind of special love for herself, and as a result, had decided the only man she slept with would be her husband. But since finding out the truth about her own parents, keeping her virginity intact hadn’t meant as much to her anymore. She just hadn’t met a man who’d drawn her interest enough to share his bed.

      Her thoughts went back to McKinnon and she gritted her teeth, refusing to consider such a thing. The man was as exasperating as he was enticing. And at the moment, she had much more important things to think about—like finding a job.

      She sighed and decided that after dinner she would return to her room. She had picked up a newspaper in town yesterday and intended to cover the Want Ads section. It was time she took control of her future. Making the decision to move to Montana to be close to Corey had been the first step. Now finding employment and a place to stay would be her second.

      * * *

      “I’m glad you took me up on my offer to stay the night, McKinnon,” Corey said, handing the young man a glass of some of his finest scotch. “Although you’re a skilled horseman, it’s too dangerous for you to attempt going back down that mountain this late. It would have been dark before you got to the bottom.” He then chuckled before tacking on, “And Morning Star and Martin would have my hide if anything were to happen to their oldest son.”

      McKinnon grinned knowing that was true. He had a very special relationship with his mother and father, as well as his three younger brothers. Matthew was twenty-seven, Jason was twenty-five and Daniel was twenty-three, and all three were unattached with no thoughts of settling down any time soon.

      It was hard for McKinnon to believe at times that Martin Quinn was actually his stepfather and not his biological father. He was in his teens when he’d been told that his natural father, a Creole of African-American descent, had died in a car accident before he was born, and that a pregnant Morning Star—a member of the Blackfoot Indian tribe, had gone to work for the esteemed Judge Martin Quinn as a bookkeeper, only to end up falling in love and marrying him before the child was born.

      “So, how are things with the horse business?”

      Corey’s question pulled McKinnon’s thoughts back. “They would be a lot better if I can get Casey to come work for me. I know I blew things yesterday but I had a reason for it. You know how I feel about another woman living at my ranch.”

      Corey nodded. Yes, he did know but then they weren’t talking about just any other woman—they were talking about his daughter. He wasn’t born yesterday. He knew about the heated sparks that always went off when McKinnon and Casey were within a few feet of each other. In the past they had pretty much kept their distance but things wouldn’t be quite that easy here in Montana, especially since Corey and McKinnon’s parents were the best of friends.

      “So how are you going to talk her into it?” he asked, knowing that McKinnon would make an attempt. When it came to the art of persuasion, biological or not, he was Martin Quinn’s son and Martin hadn’t moved up the ranks of powerhouse attorney to circuit judge in these parts without his persuasive nature.

      Corey СКАЧАТЬ