Page 3 of Forbidden Flame

She ran a hand through her straight hair, pulling it over one shoulder. “Let’s just say that it’s hard to meet anyone. Thankfully, Axel and Ryder live out of state. So it’s just the three of them. The one you met Teddy, then Jameson, and Weston.”

“Teddy said you’re a mom.”

She stiffened. “Is that a problem?”

“Not at all. I think he was just looking out for you. Can I ask whether you have a son or a daughter?” I wanted to get to know her, to fill in all the blank spots in my mind.

Daphne relaxed, and her voice softened. “I have a little girl. Izzy’s seven.”

I could tell everything about her love for her daughter in those two sentences. “She’s your world.”

A smile spread over her face. “I don’t think I knew what love was until I had her.”

A sharp pain shot through my heart. I wasn’t sure I’d felt that either. My father was physically present but emotionally absent, and my mom catered to his every whim, essentially ignoring me and my sister, Charlotte. “My cousin Sebastian said you bake pies?”

Daphne nodded. “Now that Izzy’s in school, I started my own business.”

“I’ve heard your pies are delicious.”

Daphne smiled wider. “Marley asked me to provide some for the dates tonight.”

“I can’t wait to sample your pies.”

Daphne’s laugh rang out, and it warmed my heart. I sensed that she had to be responsible, taking care of her daughter and getting a business off the ground. “I bet you do.” When she recovered, she asked, “Why did you bid on me?”

I reached across the dark cab and touched her hand that was resting on her thigh. Her skirt must have ridden up. The feel of her bare skin sent lust shooting through me. The hitch in her breath had me quickly removing my hand. “I saw something in your eyes when you were on that stage. You didn’t want to be there.”

She shifted in her seat to face me. “How were you so sure? What if I was interested in one of them?”

I glanced over at her, the lights my cousins erected on the lane after my uncle died illuminated her face. “Were you?”

Daphne smiled. “No.”

I let out a breath. “I got the feeling you didn’t want to be there.”

She shook her head. “It wasn’t pleasant being bid on like cattle at a market.”

I grunted my agreement. “I was only there to support my cousins.”

“You’re not one of the brothers.”

That was a fact I was keenly aware of. I wasn’t part of the family or the business, not in the way I longed to be. “I’m just a cousin.”

“You work on the farm?”

“I have from the time I was ten. I was always fascinated by the trees.”

Daphne nodded. “Those rows of trees are great when you’re a kid. You can get lost in them.”

“Is that what you were doing the day I met you?” I parked on the side of the lane and turned off the engine.

“You remember that?” Daphne’s tone was incredulous.

“I’ve never forgotten it.”

Her gaze lifted to meet mine.

I resisted saying it was fate because there were so many obstacles between us; I sensed we only had tonight. My cousins wouldn’t want me seeing her any more than her brothers did me.

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