Jennifer Morey - A Rancher's Dangerous Affair

“Eliza,” he complained, stepping past her with an admonishing look.

“Just tell me.”

He ignored her.

Sighing with exasperation, she stepped from the new marble flooring of the entry to the hardwood floor of the living room. Earth tones and splashes of red accents popped out at her. The exposed vaulted ceiling extended to a formal dining room. Brandon must have hired someone to do the decorating. She couldn’t picture him doing it. A lot of years had passed since she’d seen him, but he couldn’t have changed that much.

As she heard voices in the kitchen behind a partial wall, Eliza’s heart jolted with shock. There was a purse on the entry table. Brandon wasn’t alone. A woman was in the kitchen with him. Why was she nervous about seeing him, regardless of whether he was with another woman or not? She was married. There was no chance for them. There never had been. So why did she still put so much importance on him?

The woman laughed, flirtatious, warm and soft. Eliza’s stomach soured with more churning. “We should have called to let him know we were early.” They weren’t supposed to be here until tomorrow.

David stopped, turning toward her. “Don’t like it that he’s with someone else, huh?”

“Why would that bother me?”

“You tell me.”

She smirked. He’d started accusing her of marrying him to spite his brother shortly after their wedding. She’d fantasized about making Brandon jealous, that’s all. There had never been a time that she actually believed he would be. If only that were possible. Brandon didn’t care about her.

“They might want to be alone,” she said.

“Maybe you’d like to be alone with him.”

Now he was going too far. “Is that why you cheated on me four months after our wedding?”

“Yes.” He started toward the kitchen again.

His cruel reply dug deep. He hurt her when he talked to her like that. Did he really think she was still pining for his brother? Why had he married her then? Brandon was her first love. They were kids when they were together. She’d never forget him because he’d been her first. That didn’t mean she still wanted him.

Maybe this was about more than David’s insecurities where his brother was concerned. David shared her enthusiasm for parties, but he overindulged. Women. Alcohol. Drugs. If she didn’t know better, she’d think he was one of her famous Hollywood clients instead of a sports journalist and husband.

Eliza crossed the living room behind David, hearing dishes clanking and the soft tone of the woman’s voice. The dread she’d felt ever since boarding the plane in L.A. intensified.

She wished David would have done as she had asked and taken her to a hotel. She’d planned a big birthday party for her brother tomorrow night and had a lot of loose ends to tie up. She’d rather do that than face Brandon with his latest lover.

The dread wouldn’t ease. Normally, when she visited Vengeance, it was for business. She only squeezed in enough time to see her brother, and those visits she always kept deliberately short. Ryker Harvey never missed an opportunity to point out how lucky she was to have escaped this town. She didn’t understand why he wasn’t happy. He had a really great wife and two adorable children. He ran an auto repair shop in town and had a stellar reputation. Everyone loved him. What more could he possibly want?

She hoped her party would smooth things over between them. He hadn’t seemed very excited the last time she’d spoken with him.

“Always partying,” he’d commented blandly just before he’d thanked her.

Eliza entered the kitchen behind David. A news program broadcasted from a small television hanging in the far corner. Brandon’s deep chuckle ended abruptly when he looked up and saw them, those golden-brown eyes going hard as he spotted her. His thick, shaggy, dark blond hair was a little on the messy side, and stubble peppered his jaw. He’d aged but in an appealing, masculine way. Rugged. Just like she remembered.

The woman he was with had long dark hair like Eliza’s and beautiful blue eyes. Eliza’s were blue-green. Brandon’s tall, muscular body dwarfed her, his broad shoulders sloping and his biceps bulging as he held the woman around her tiny waist. Eliza was slightly taller than her. Did Brandon prefer smaller women? Not that Eliza was big. She had a nice shape.

He stepped back, and the woman’s smile slipped as his hands left her. “I didn’t hear you come in.”

David walked farther into the kitchen, stopping next to the long island. “We decided to come a day early. Eliza has a lot to do before her brother’s birthday party tomorrow night.”

Brandon continued to stare at Eliza.

“We’re planning to attend,” the woman said, leaning against him, angling her head as though trying to capture his attention.

“Eliza,” Brandon said.

“Hello, Brandon.”

The woman with him straightened, eyes taking on the threat that Eliza must present. “I’m Jillian Marks. Brandon’s girlfriend.”

“Sorry,” Brandon said. “Jillian, this is my brother, David.”

The woman extended a dainty hand to him.

“And this is Eliza Harvey.”

A flash of malice crossed through Jillian’s eyes as she extended her hand.

“Reed,” David corrected.

Eliza removed her hand from Jillian’s, wondering why her husband bothered with the name correction. He’d proven how much he cared for her when he’d slept with someone else. Unless he was jealous of Brandon and that was why he’d cheated on her. Eliza didn’t know what to do about that. Had her inability to let go of Brandon really driven him away before they’d even had a chance to get started? She couldn’t even feel guilty about that. Brandon didn’t want her. Why was David worried?

“You’re married,” Jillian said, smiling at Eliza.

“Mr. and Mrs. Reed,” Brandon said tersely.

“Could have been you, big brother,” David said snidely.

Brandon didn’t respond. His face became a blank mask as he looked at David.

“You and Brandon were…”

“In high school,” David finished her deduction.

While Jillian’s eyes went cold, David moved in a circle, checking out the huge, elegant kitchen equipped with every modern amenity imaginable. “The place looks good. Selling a lot of beef?”

It was a poor attempt to sound cordial.

If Brandon took offense, he hid it. “Record year.”

“Brandon is a smart businessman when it comes to cattle.” Jillian hooked her arm with his and smiled flirtatiously up at him. It was all a forced show, a defensive reaction to Eliza and what her presence meant.

Brandon didn’t return the smile. In fact, he moved away. Her arm slipped free of his, and her smile flattened.

“You always were good at taking care of yourself,” David said, fingering a bowl of fruit on the kitchen island as though making sure it was real.

Brandon ignored the barb and moved another inch or two away from Jillian. How long had they been seeing each other? Long enough for Brandon to feel cornered, it would appear.

Seeing the way David distastefully regarded his brother, she wondered if she was the sole cause of his unrest. When they were kids, she’d thought they had a normal relationship. Brandon was the older brother and acted that way. But Brandon was also taller, made more money and had stolen Eliza’s heart when she was a teenager. He had everything that David didn’t. And now he thought she still had feelings for Brandon. Though she’d tried to convince him he had nothing to worry about, he didn’t believe her.

That was the only reason she hadn’t left him after she’d caught him between an entertainment reporter’s legs. She still wasn’t over what he’d done. She wasn’t sure she could stay married to him. And she definitely hadn’t had sex with him since. He believed she loved Brandon and not him. Did that give him the go-ahead to cheat on her when she denied his accusations?