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She gave a reluctant nod, and then Ash drew her into his lap. He cradled her head in one big palm, holding it against his chest.
Piers met his stare. After all these years, they rarely needed words to understand each other. They’d made a mistake. Their lack of communication with Sylvee had led to those tears in her eyes.
He went to the kitchen and began pulling food out of the refrigerator. From their youth, he knew that Sylvee never could resist a stack of pancakes, and over the years he’d become a master at making them.
He set a mixing bowl on the counter and dumped in a box mix along with eggs and milk. Focused on the pan sizzling on the range, a dialogue played in his head.
We want to make you happy. If that’s giving you a baby, then we’re here for you.
Even if it takes more than one roll in the hay?
Absolutely.
And what happens when it’s all over and I go home?
Not even his imagination had an answer for that. He sure as hell didn’t want to walk her to that dock and put her on the plane that would take her back to Washington, to her law practice and that chump Charlie.
As he flipped the cakes, one after another, Piers realized for the first time he might be out of his depth with this particular client…and when it came to Sylvee, they couldn’t fix it with sexual therapy.
* * * * *
Ash pushed Sylvee’s chair in as she took a seat at the small round table. Twisting her head toward him, she murmured, “Thank you.”
The sadness hanging around her like a gray cloud left a pain in his chest. Not even Piers’s pancakes could make it go away.
Across from him, Piers nudged the platter of food toward Sylvee. She didn’t immediately move to take it.
“C’mon now, Peachy. Are you still afraid of my cooking?”
She issued a low laugh.
“Piers has won awards for these pancakes. You have to try them.” Ash used the spatula to place three on her plate.
“Well, I can’t miss out on the award-winning pancakes made by a Boot Knocker.” She picked up the small jug of maple syrup made from the ranch’s own trees.
Piers and Ash traded another look. They’d been doing that a lot, but it was clear neither of them knew what the hell to do. Sylvee was upset—rightly so. They’d withheld the information about their contracts from her. While it was clearly stated in the terms and conditions on the Boot Knockers website that the cowboys had safety as their number one priority, and that condoms were provided to all the Boot Knockers and their clients…Sylvee didn’t know that it was cause for termination if they bucked the no-protection rule.
She must really have been distraught when she booked the trip. And who could blame her? Her marriage was six feet under.
She trickled syrup on her pancakes and picked up her fork. She didn’t immediately cut off a bite, though. She seemed lost in her own thoughts.
Ash dug into his food. He was always starving—between the ranch work and the ranch work, he burned a lot of calories. He also hoped that the simple act would put them all at ease and they could work through this.
Piers polished off two pancakes and moved on to the third. Sylvee nibbled slowly at first and then her appetite kicked in and she finished all three.
With an encouraging smile, Ash served her two more. Treating ladies with kid gloves, he knew. Finding a way to treat the woman he’d been in love with his entire life proved much more confusing.
“Tell me about this clause in the contract.” She brought the glass of orange juice to her lips but didn’t take a sip. “Is it even time for breakfast? I have no clue what time it is. That sunlight could be six a.m. or six p.m.”
“It’s late, baby, but we had to feed you. Orange juice goes with pancakes.” Piers took a drink of his own.
She nodded. “I overheard the cleaning personnel in the locker room. They were talking about a woman getting pregnant and the father is rumored to be a Boot Knocker.”
Ash swallowed the soft, fluffy bite before responding. “It’s true. The bosses are here from Texas to check on ranch operations, and this came to their attention. They questioned Piers.”
Her stare jerked to Piers.
“It wasn’t me. I’ve never been with anyone who was off-limits.”
