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“Aubrey invited me to dinner at her parents’ house.”
“First you two hook up before the cook-off and now you’re reconciling?”
Vic hadn’t exactly shared that he and Aubrey had hooked up, but Morgan had questioned why he’d been at the hospital guarding Aubrey like a sentinel. He’d answered that they’d had dessert together before the cook-off, and then Morgan had rightly concluded, “Oh my God, you’re sleeping together!”
He stood from his chair and grabbed his Stetson from the hook on the wall. He didn’t always wear it, but today felt like a good day to start. He could hide his lying eyes beneath the brim. “She doesn’t remember we’re not a couple, Morgan. She’s suffered a serious accident and is asking for my support. What the hell am I supposed to do?”
Morgan twisted her lips to one side. “It feels wrong.”
It did. And yet completely right. There’d been a time when he’d have done almost anything for Aubrey. Showing up for her in her time of need felt as natural as breathing to him. “Don’t worry. I won’t take advantage of her.”
Or take her to his bedroom in the private wing of the house, strip her naked and make love to her again. That sounded way too good to his own ears, especially since the memory of doing just that burned hot. But he refused to sleep with her when she had no idea they weren’t a couple. The night after the Silver Saddle last week had been different—she’d known what she was getting into. And, damn, had they gotten into it.
Morgan’s eyebrows bent as she twirled a lock of long red hair around a manicured fingertip. Unlike Aubrey’s auburn locks, his sister’s hair was pale red, her skin fairer. “I don’t like lying to her.”
“We’re not lying to her,” he said for his sister’s benefit. “We’re giving her room to remember on her own. Doctor’s orders.” He placed the hat on his head and sidled past her. “And for the record, I don’t like it, either.”
He left his office, shutting the door behind him and Morgan, and met his oldest sister, Chelsea, in the hallway, her folded arms and firm line for a mouth what he’d grown accustomed to.
“Say it quick,” he warned. “I’m late for dinner with Aubrey’s family.”
“You’re using her.”
“I’m not,” he said through clenched teeth.
“She hasn’t given you the time of day for ten years, and you’re waltzing into her life like you never left it.”
“It hasn’t been ten years. They were together recently,” Morgan said in his defense.
“I have this, Morgan,” he told his well-meaning but meddling sister. To Chelsea, he said, “Aubrey feels safe when she’s with me. I’m doing what her parents and her doctor asked me to do.”
“Safe? With you?” Chelsea laughed. “After you tried clipping her wings and making her the pretty little housewife of your dreams? If I recall, she dumped you for it.”
“Well, Chels, I don’t particularly care for your opinion on the matter.”
“I didn’t want your opinion on Nolan, either, baby brother.”
He gritted his teeth. He’d done his fair share of poking his nose where it didn’t belong in Chelsea’s budding relationship with Nolan Thurston, but that was different. He’d been looking out for the family ranch, his legacy. “I have a second chance with her, and I’m taking it.”
“You won’t win her back.” Chelsea raised an eyebrow.
“I’m not trying to win her back.” He’d settle for her no longer hating him. More than that would be a stone-cold miracle, but her not hating him would be a solid start. Since he’d taken her to bed last week, he’d realized not having Aubrey in his life had reduced him to a primitive version of himself. He’d been growling at his family, lashing out in his own defense and metaphorically pissing on what he’d perceived as his territory.
He wasn’t so arrogant as to think Aubrey would take him back, but if they could be cordial, and she could allow him to be in her life at some capacity, well, he thought he might be able to evolve into a halfway decent human being.
“I think it’s sweet,” Morgan said.
“Sweet!” Chelsea emitted another humorless laugh. “Vic, you are the most arrogant, self-centered man I’ve ever met, outside of Daddy. You are in this for you and no other reason.”
His temper warmed his cheeks and caused his fists to curl into tight balls. He reminded himself that Chelsea had never understood him. She had long accused him of resting on his laurels while she did the heavy lifting at the ranch. For years she’d seen only what she wanted to see: that she was losing the ranch to her selfish brother. The truth was he did more than she’d bothered to give him credit for, but he also wasn’t blameless. That was too big a discussion for the small amount of time allotted them in this moment.
“I gave up on trying to win your favor a long time ago, Chels.” He wearily pushed past her and walked toward the exit. To Morgan, he said, “Don’t wait up.”
