The Rancher's Rules

Jenny nodded.

“Good.” She took a deep breath. “As you know, it was not Grant. It was Tyler. And to be honest I don’t think he even noticed I was wearing only a towel and still wet from the shower.”

“I told you,” Tyler said.

“He was really upset. I guess you two had a fight?”

Jenny nodded.

“Well, he was beside himself at the thought of losing you, and he came over to beg me to talk to you.”

“I couldn’t stand to lose you, Jenny. I love you.”

Hearing Tyler’s declaration did nothing for Zoe’s mood. She gave him an impatient stare and went on. “He hugged me when I promised to help him, and that’s when you and Grant walked in.”

Jenny’s shoulders slumped. “I guess I owe you an apology.”

Zoe shrugged. “Just talk it out with Tyler.”

“I will.” Jenny stood. “Come on, Tyler. We need to talk.”

Tyler jumped up like a well-trained pup, which was pretty amusing considering how big he was. His look of eagerness resembled a pet as well. Jenny stopped at the door. “I am sorry I jumped to conclusions.”

Zoe did not want to know. “I forgive you.”

They left. She stood up, grabbed the coffee mugs and carried them to the sink. “You ready to go apartment-hunting?”

“Don’t you think we should talk first?” Grant spoke from right behind her. She had not heard him move. How strange.

“About what?”

“A couple of things come to mind. The first being, why didn’t you just go get dressed when Tyler got here?”

She lost it at the residual anger she heard in Grant’s voice. “Because I like entertaining men wearing nothing but a towel. Why do you think?” She turned around and brushed past Grant. “Maybe you should go do your Carlene thing, and I’ll search for apartments by myself.”

“Forget it. We’re going to discuss what happened here.”

She spun around to face him. “I’m through discussing Tyler. Either you believe the worst of me or you trust me. It’s your choice.”

As she said the words, she realized that she owed Grant the same consideration with Carlene.

“I’m not talking about Tyler.”

She sighed. The big confrontation. “Do we have to discuss the other? I already know you’ve got a rule against kissing me. I figure you’ve got one against what happened to me on the counter as well.” She looked at him. “Can’t we just leave it at that?”

Grant’s frown speared her. “At what? At the place where we both realize that I should not be kissing you but I keep doing it?”

“Uh, I think we did more than kiss. Well, I did anyway.”

He ran his fingers through his hair. “I know.”

“I’m sorry you didn’t. Is that what’s bothering you?” Men could get really cranky when they were left hanging, or so she had been told.

The look of horror was back. “No.”

“I’m losing my patience here. There isn’t anything we can do about what happened. Like I said, I know you did not want to do it. For some reason neither of us understands you have kissed me twice in the last week although you are firmly against the idea.”

He sat down in the chair and dropped his head in his hands. He looked so much like Tyler had earlier that Zoe laughed.

His head snapped up. “It’s not funny, damn it.”

She stifled her giggles. “I know.”

He fisted his hands against his legs. “We’ve got to do something about this attraction between us.”

He had already ruled out the most logical course of action—giving in to it. “Like what?”

“Maybe we shouldn’t spend so much time together for now.”

Fear clawed at her insides. Was he saying that he wanted to end their friendship? He couldn’t be. He had promised last night that he would not give up on their relationship even if she fed his boots to the goat.

“Please clarify.”

He smiled. It was strained, but nevertheless a smile. “Sometimes you sound like a college professor, not a kindergarten teacher.”

So? She’d talk like a blithering idiot if he would just explain what he meant by not spending time together. “Do you mean like not going with me to look for apartments, or not spending Christmas together, or what?”

He frowned. “I promised to take you looking for a place to live and I will.”

“Okay.”

“As for Christmas—we’ve spent every Christmas together since I was eleven years old. I’m not about to stop now. Besides, I like being in the good graces of my folks.”

Relief seeped into her in tiny increments. “What exactly are you saying, then?”