Page 35 of Love’s Silver Bullet

“No, I’m being a responsible brother who knows Sheridan a lot better than you, darlin’, so I’m asking you for the last time to trust me in this, not her.”

“But, Blaze—”

He bludgeoned the headboard with his palm. “For the last blasted time, Maggie—she’s my sister, so butt out!”

The harshness of his words halted her air as his face blurred before her, the sting of her tears burning in her eyes as she stared at the man who promised to cherish her all the days of her life. “All right, Blaze, I’ll butt out,” she whispered, rising from the bed with her pillow in hand as she moved toward the door, “out of this conversation, and out of your bed.”

“Maggie, wait—”

But she didn’t.

Instead she closed the door on her husband’s words, swiping at her eyes while she hurried to Sheridan’s room, suddenly painfully aware that something had just drastically changed.

Because the honeymoon was definitely over.

CHAPTER TWENTY

Clutching her pillow to her chest, Sheridan sighed, the wispy sound lingering in the air along with her memories as she curled into a ball of contentment, reliving one of the most romantic days of her life.

Her mouth crooked. Of course it was only one of two romantic days in her life—the other being the kiss with Jake—thanks to the men in her family, who were bound and determined to protect her from the male element.

She gave a lazy stretch as she plopped on her back, a near-giddy smile sneaking across her lips. But what they didn’t know was that she was even more bound and determined to experience the romance she’d dreamed about since the age of four.

With Jacob Michael Sullivan.

But my oh my, who knew it was going to be this fun to make him jealous? A tiny giggle popped out while she stared at the ceiling of her moonlit bedroom, her grin growing as she thought of the scowl Jake had worn from the moment Clay arrived. Her chest gave a little heave as she expelled another quiet sigh.

Of course, since “the kiss,” Jake pretty much scowled all the time these days anyway, at least around her. So, she wasn’t sure if she should be happy or sad that she had single-handedly transformed the easy-going big brother with the perennial smile into the resident grouch of Silver Lining Ranch.

Her smile returned. But Clay had certainly ramped Jake’s scowl up several degrees, a situation that convinced Sheridan once and for all that Jake cared about her more than he wanted to admit.

Which is exactly what she had to get him to do—admit his feelings for her. And she was pretty sure Mr. Clay Morgan was just the ticket, and a mighty handsome one to boot.

Tap. Tap.

Sheridan sat up in the dark with a pinch in her brow. “Come in.”

The door slowly squealed open, revealing what looked like a shadow in a chemise. “Sher? I didn’t waken you, did I?” Maggie’s voice was quiet and low, tinged with just a touch of nasal.

“No, of course not, Maggie. Is … everything all right?”

Sheridan heard her sister-in-law’s sniff before she closed the door behind her, quietly making her way to Sheridan’s bed. “No, not really,” she whispered. “Blaze and I had a fight, so I was wondering if maybe I could sleep with you?”

Sheridan blinked, eyes spanning wide at both the moonlit trail of tears on Maggie’s cheeks and her own shock that Blaze and she were fighting at all. “Oh, Maggie, absolutely!” She scooted over and lifted the quilt coverlet for her sister-in-law to slip in, her own heart aching along with her. “What on earth happened?” she asked as she reached to tug a clean handkerchief from her nightstand drawer, handing it over.

“Thanks.” Burrowing deep beneath the sheet, Maggie took the handkerchief and dabbed at her face with another sodden sniff. “Blaze is mad at me because of Clay.”

“What?!” Sheridan sat straight up. “Why?”

Maggie expelled a shaky breath. “He’s angry because Jake saw us talking to Clay at the Wild West Show, so he thinks I had a part in Clay coming over. That I should have stopped you from talking to Clay in the first place, giving him the idea he could come to the ranch.”

“Oh, Maggie, I am so sorry!” Sheridan laid a gentle hand on Maggie’s arm. “I never meant to get you in trouble with Blaze. But I suppose that’s a side effect of making Jake jealous since the two of them are in cahoots.” She wiggled her brows. “And it did work like a dream, given Jake’s nasty mood because goodness, I’ve never seen him so cranky and out of sorts.”

Her smile dimmed a hair as she blew out a wispy sigh. “Except, of course, when he had to teach me to shoot, that is.” Her chin rose with a definite pinch of pluck. “But with Clay in the picture now, I’m hoping that makes Jake Sullivan forget all about Megan Joy and focus a little more on me.” She grabbed Maggie’s hand. “Either way, I’m just sorry for getting you involved.”

Sitting up against the headboard, Maggie blew her nose. “No, Sheridan, it’s Blaze who should be sorry for not letting you live your own life or me living mine! Aunt Libby always told me a woman has to be strong and stand her ground in a marriage or the man will ride roughshod over her, and now I see she was right.”

“So, what are you going to do?” Sheridan whispered, “besides sleep here tonight?”