Page 60 of Pure Temptation in Cowboy Boots

“Yeah,” Dozer said, walking in behind Tim. “Are we gonna play or not?”

Rhino crossed his arms over his chest. “It seems somebody’s already been playing.” He glared at Mac. “Our friend here, the one we all thought we could trust, has been playing house with our sister all summer.”

“What?” Dozer looked from Tess to Mac. “Tess, is this true? Did this guy...?”

“It was a mutual decision,” Tess said, “so don’t go⁠—”

“That’s it.” Dozer started across the room. “He’s toast.”

“Hold it, Dozer.” Rhino grabbed his brother by the arm. “It’s not that simple.”

“It is simple,” Tess said. “I’m the one to blame here, not Mac. I asked him to do this!”

“And he couldn’t pronounce the word no?” Hammer said.

“I didn’t want him to say no! I wanted to finally experience sex!”

Tim’s face grew red. “Aw, Tess! What did you have to go and do that for? There’s plenty of time for that after you’re married!”

“Oh, really?” Tess lifted her chin and surveyed her four brothers. “And I suppose all you guys waited until after you were married.”

There was a general clearing of throats and glancing everywhere but at Tess.

“That’s different,” Rhino said. “We’re guys.”

Tess stared at them. “Hello? Can any of you say women’s rights?” She threw up both arms and paced across the room. “I can’t believe we’re almost to the millennium and you’re still making such outdated statements. In case you hadn’t noticed, women aren’t considered helpless little flowers anymore.”

“Hey, we know all about that stuff,” Hammer said. “We got women in the mines now. Women driving the big ore trucks. Women everywhere. But, dammit, Tess, you’re our sister.”

“Yeah, and guys can be real sleazy!” Tim added. “We didn’t want you getting hurt or anything! A lot of guys only want to fool around. They’re not into the marriage thing.”

“Which reminds me of a very critical point.” Rhino narrowed his eyes at Mac. “Just what are your plans, now that you’ve had a real fun summer fooling around with a sweet and innocent young girl?”

“I’m twenty-six, Rhino!”

“That’s very young!” Rhino shouted back.

“Not that young,” Tim said. “I’m twenty-seven.”

“We’re off the subject,” Rhino said. He fixed Mac with an intimidating look. “What are your intentions, Mac?”

Tess panicked. She didn’t want to listen to Mac fumble around and try to dodge the question. Suspecting he had no interest in her as a wife was not as bad as hearing him say it. “No plans, folks! Nada. Have you forgotten that I’m going to New York in a couple of weeks to start a new job? I’m in no position to make a commitment at this point. In fact, Mac and I had that understanding from the beginning, didn’t we, Mac?”

If she expected him to look at her with relief and gratitude, she was disappointed. The blue eyes that had been filled with such passion not so long ago gazed at her without any expression at all. “Yes, we did.”

“That probably suited lover-boy right down to the ground,” Hammer muttered. He glanced at Tess. “And I still say you’re covering for him and he came up with the idea first. He probably figured this deal was too sweet to pass up — a girl who was leaving town at the end of the summer. Perfect, right, Big Mac?”

Mac’s nonchalant shrug broke Tess’s heart. That’s probably how Mac had thought of their lovemaking. A summer romance. Fun while it lasted. “Well, that was the beauty of it for me, too,” she said, forcing the words past a tight throat. “I couldn’t afford messy entanglements when I was about to leave.”

Rhino looked at her, his gaze far too perceptive “I don’t buy it, Tess.”

She squared her shoulders. “Well, I don’t give a damn whether you buy it or not. It’s the truth.”

“Let me get this straight,” Dozer said. “On the one hand we have a guy who’s been romeoing his way around the county ever since he was fifteen, and on the other we have a girl who’s lived like a nun until the age of twenty-six. What⁠—”

“I didn’t live like a nun by choice! You guys scared off all my prospects!”

“They were all terrible prospects!” Rhino said.