Chapter 6

Chapter

Six

Walker held Marci close and praised heaven above for this moment. He'd never felt anything so incredible, so right as her in his arms. Even though he knew he needed to let her go. He'd promised his brother to keep her safe but not make moves on her. Ah, this was a mess.

His roping partner Joey had come down with the flu and couldn't even get out of bed this morning. Easton received an emergency summons and had to leave to assist with a wildland fire. Walker had trained with Miss Sue for hours, showered, then come to the house to wait for Marci.

Was the switch heaven sent, or temptation from the other direction? Why did it feel like Marci was his missing piece and yet somehow his twin brother felt the same way? It was true Walker, Miles, and Clint had all felt something for Lily, but not like this. At least not for him or Miles. His Navy SEAL brother had told him his feelings for Eva Chevron the famous actress were a million times what he'd ever felt for Lily. Walker already felt the same regarding Marci. Hopefully Clint felt this way about Lily. From the way the two of them acted, Walker could bet he did. What about Easton?

He couldn't get his twin's parting words out of his mind. Watch over her for me, bruh. I know I can trust you to take care of her but not steal her from me.

Honest truth? The words ticked him off and made him feel loads of guilt. Marci and Easton weren't in a relationship, so how could Walker steal her? But ironically, he'd asked something similar of Clint regarding Lily a few weeks ago, so he was a hypocrite if he didn't listen to Easton and try to keep Marci safe without trying to secure her heart.

The guilt compounded because Easton was his other half and his twin hadn't been in a real relationship since Cassie had left ten years ago. Easton flirted, went on a date or two with a lady, maybe kissed her, but then the brick walls went up and the poor woman had no idea why she got a text writing her off.

If Marci truly was the right woman for his twin brother and could heal his shattered heart, Walker needed to step away and he needed to do it quick. Before he got even more invested.

He released Marci and stepped back. She clung to him and stepped with him. Gazing up at him with those gorgeous mahogany-brown eyes, she smiled enticingly. His heart raced, and it was all he could do to stand his ground. Was this how Revolutionary War soldiers felt when their commanders told them to hold the line or stand their ground and they knew a cannonball or volley of shots was going to rip through them and kill or maim a good portion of them and their friends? That was how he felt right now. He was going to kill or maim his own heart. To honor and support his twin brother, he'd step forward and take that cannon ball.

Hold the line.

When he didn't wrap her up again, Marci murmured, "Oh. Perdóname ." She released him and straightened, studying him as if he would explain why he pulled away, why he wasn't kissing her and making his own dreams come true. "I was so excited to see it was you," she said softly. "I lost my mind."

Walker knew the feeling. He lost his mind when he looked at her, heard her speak, touched her. He brushed at his hair, missing the shelter of his cowboy hat that he'd left on the entry table downstairs. "Easton got called out on an emergency. He volunteers as a wildland firefighter, they're short on qualified people, and it's mighty dry this time of year."

"Oh." She nodded. "That's impressive and it fits him, risking his life to help others."

"Yep." His stomach felt sick. Easton was heroic. Walker wanted to brag about how heroic he was being currently. He was unselfishly killing his own dreams with her for his brother. Would she be impressed? He shoved his hand through his hair. "Easton is very heroic."

"For sure. But why are you here? I thought you had a big rodeo. You should go. Don't miss out on that to watch over me. I'm certain I'm safe here. You can tell how excited I was to see you and I want you here, badly, but I can't be that girl, the one who holds you back from your dreams." She pushed at his arm as if she'd push him to go and fulfill his roping dreams.

He smiled and couldn't resist capturing her smaller hand in his. Her lips softened and the pulse in her neck thrummed quickly. He should release her hand, and he would. In a minute.

She wanted him here. Badly.

"My roping partner came down with the flu. No rodeo for me this weekend." His grin stretched across his face.

It was rotten to be happy that Joey had the flu and Easton was off fighting a massive fire that had already claimed a hundred thousand acres in the nearby Flathead National Forest. Easton said he'd be back soon, but Walker might have days mostly alone with Marci. Talking, laughing, touching, exploring the ranch on foot or on horses, doing chores, sleeping next door. He'd looked in on her earlier to make certain she was all right. She'd been sleeping. She'd looked enticing. He may never get the image out of his mind. His neck and cheeks went hot.

"Oh. So you're stuck with me, eh?" She looked at their joined hands and then back to his face.

His stomach gave a happy lurch, and he kept on grinning like a fool. "Or you're stuck with me. Depending on how you look at it."

"I don't mind being stuck with you," she said softly. " De nada ."

"Doesn't de nada mean you're welcome?"

"It does, but it also means not at all. I don't mind being stuck with you one bit."

Walker's heart took off at a gallop. If she chose him, could it really be betraying his brother? That was what had happened with Lily. Clint truly loved her, and Lily had chosen Clint. In the end, it hadn't mattered what Walker had felt.

If this situation was similar, if Marci chose Walker, he couldn't force her on Easton. Yet Marci hadn't had a chance to be around Easton for very long. She'd chatted with him about his career and seemed enamored with bull riding and drawn Easton out with questions. She'd cheered for both of them when they were fighting.

Easton was hilarious, brave, handsome, and charming, the type of man every woman pursued. Walker was always proud of his brother, except moments like this when he wanted to prove he was the man Marci wanted, and wished he and Easton were back in the sparring ring.

He needed to redirect before he claimed Marci's lips and Easton was the one with the right to hit him repeatedly. How was he going to take this slow and give Easton a chance when his brother returned?

"Are you starving?" he asked, releasing her hand and stepping back to give himself a breather. She smelled like coconut, like the beach. He'd only been to the beach a handful of times. He'd loved the warmth, the endless stretch of rolling waves, the soft sand, the scents.

"I am, actually."

"Mama's been stressing about you sleeping through breakfast and lunch."

"How did you know I was sleeping?" She raised an eyebrow.

"I …" He held her gaze, but only because his mama did not raise any wimps. "I looked in on you."

Her gaze grew smoky and warm, like hot fudge oozing over ice cream. Everything about her was delicious.

He cleared his throat and forced himself to clarify, "For your safety. You are under my protection."

She studied him perceptively, and he didn't know that his add-on was convincing. It appeared she liked being under his protection. "How did I look sleeping?" she asked, blinking up at him.

"Incredible," he admitted before he could stop himself. He would never forget seeing her stretched out on that bed, her dark hair contrasting against the white pillow, her lips soft and her eyes closed. It was a confirmation of their initial meeting. Marci was an angel sent from heaven, to him.

How would he get any sleep tonight? He rubbed at his neck and then shoved his hand through his hair again. It was extremely warm in the upstairs hallway at the moment.

She grinned and the hallway grew even warmer. "I've always wondered how the heroine would look to the hero when she was sleeping." She arched an eyebrow, imperious, adorable, alluring. "Can you describe it?"

His heart missed a beat. Describing how she'd looked sleeping would make him transparent. "Your dark hair contrasted with the white pillow. Your face and lips were soft. Your long lashes were resting on your cheek." He took a breath, thrilled by the happy sparkle in her eyes. "You looked like an angel sent to me from heaven."

The hall was silent as he finished. Marci beamed but didn't say anything.

"Forgive me," he felt he should say. He'd overstepped bounds.

"No!"

He jerked back. "No?"

"There is nothing to forgive. Your description was inspiring." She smiled at him, and the floor shifted.

Walker wished there was nothing to forgive. He was flirting with the woman his twin brother was interested in. There was a lot to forgive.

"Let's get you fed." His voice was too gruff. He gestured, and she gave him a lingering look before walking down the hall and the stairs. As her dark hair swayed across her white T-shirt, he wanted more than anything in this world to give her a cowboy hat, a white one that matched her shirt. He could envision her riding Tantrum double with him, that hat on her head, her dark hair bouncing with the horse's movements. They'd stop next to the lake and she'd turn to him. He'd sweep the hat off her head, bend, and claim her lips with his.

"What food options do I have?" she asked as they reached the main floor and walked toward the kitchen.

"Loads," he admitted.

Mama was out winterizing her garden, so Walker showed Marci all the different food options. Her eyes were wide as she surveyed the industrial fridge full of fresh fruits, vegetables, dairy, and loads of leftovers, then she looked to the counter full of fresh-baked breads and cookies.

"I've never seen so much delicious food in all my life," she admitted. "Homemade and loads of it."

"Mama raised six boys; she knows how to cook delicious food and a lot of it. The leftovers used to disappear before morning when we were all home. Now with Easton and me being the only ones here, and having our own cabins, she gets upset when nobody's around to ‘partake of her hard work'."

"Oh. I'll try my best to eat. We don't want Mama upset."

He smiled at her. How had the good Lord created this perfect woman, put her in his path, and Walker had to give her to Easton? "What looks good?"

"I'll have some homemade bread and chicken noodle soup. We don't have a lot of reason to eat soup in Florida."

"Perfect." He moved to pull the soup out of the fridge and she moved at the same time. Their arms brushed and then their hands touched. He should've pulled away, but it felt so incredible that he just stood there. The warmth of her pulsed through him. He glanced down at her. Her mouth was slightly open, her gaze trained on him.

She ran her hand up his shoulder and around his neck, her fingertips raising pinpricks of warmth and awareness. Walker's hand went to the small of her back of its own accord. Even the cold air from the fridge couldn't counteract the heat rushing through him as their gazes held and Marci arched up to him, her body pressing fully against his.

The door coming in from the garage to the laundry room opened and closed.

Walker jolted and pulled back, grabbing the soup and yanking it out. He heard the water running in the guest bath. "Chicken noodle soup, right? Mama makes the best soup I've ever had."

"Thank you," Marci said, her voice breathless and her cheeks pink.

His heart would not stop racing.

"There you are," Mama called as she entered from the laundry room. "Are you feeling all right, love? I got worried when you slept so long."

"I think I was just overwhelmed, stressed about Abuelita, and lonely," Marci said, catching Walker's gaze then focusing on Mama.

Lonely? Walker couldn't rescue Abuelita, but he had to cure Marci's loneliness. He was in charge of her protection now, after all.

"I'm sorry I missed out on breakfast and lunch and had you all worried."

"Don't you be sorry for a moment, you doll. The stress of what you're going through would take most people into a deep funk. Autumn and the rest of Aiden's people will save your grandma and you'll be home safe and happy before you know it." Mama looked from Marci to Walker and back again. She had to see how flushed they both were. What would she say or do?

"Thank you, Mama. I so appreciate all of you." Marci looked at him again.

She appreciated him? Could she love him?

Walker turned away and grabbed the loaf of bread and a cutting board. He couldn't love her. Easton had fallen for her and Marci might help his twin overcome his pining and broken heart for Cassie.

He put family first, especially his twin brother. He could not start being selfish now, no matter how drawn he was to Marci. No more opening fridges together or brushing hands and especially no more wrapping her up tight. He couldn't be the one to cure her loneliness.

A deep funk?

Yep. That was where he was headed.