Page 24 of Cowboy's Sinful Bargain

The men walked out of the room without saying anything. I knew they had a lot of questions, but it wasn't my place to answer them. Miko would let them know what he felt they should know.

I glanced up when I heard footsteps on the hardwood floors on the second floor. When Miko appeared, I frowned. He had changed out of the black pajama looking things he'd been wearing before, but this outfit didn't look much different.

It was all black except for a sliver of white I could see around the collar. The pants flowed a little with each step he took and the shirt had a high collar that was closed with a button on one side and fell down past his hips.

It was a very conservative looking outfit. It made me wonder what he was hiding underneath all that black fabric. Not sure if that had been the intention, but that's where my thoughts immediately took me.

"Breakfast is about ready," I said when he reached the bottom of the stairs. "Are you hungry?"

Miko stood in front of me, his hands clasped together in front of him, his body as stiff as a board. "Yes, thank you."

He still wouldn't look me in the eyes and it was driving me insane. He had the prettiest caramel colored brown eyes in a beautiful almond shape. I especially liked it when they shimmered with excitement or joy.

That was not what I was seeing right now.

I held out my arm, waiting for him to take it. Miko stared at my arm for a moment before raising his gaze to my face. I wiggled my elbow up and down a couple of times and then waited again.

Miko's movements were slow as he reached out to lay his hand on my arm. I tried to send him a reassuring smile as I grabbed his hand and then looped his arm through mine.

"The ranch hands will be here for breakfast so you can meet them. Not all of them are here, but you can meet most of them. The others are out on the range watching over the stock."

Miko glanced up with the first bit of interest I'd seen in his eyes since yesterday. "Stock?"

"Mostly cattle, but we also have some horses."

Miko nodded. "Ah."

"Your father wanted to invest in some sheep for wool, but it wasn't feasible so he got a goat."

Miko blinked up at me. "A goat?"

I let out a little snort of disgust. "Damn fool thing head-butts me every time I go into its pen." It was little more than a glorified pet at this point. It had better accommodations than the cows did. "His name is Bambi."

Miko's brow flickered. "Bambi?"

"Don't ask me why your father gave it that name because I don't know. It was the name of an animated deer in a kids' movie. Not a goat."

Miko looked perplexed.

"You've never seen the movie Bambi?" I asked.

"Never seen a movie," Miko replied. "Was not allowed to watch American television. First Uncle does not like the influence the west has on the Japanese culture."

I didn't like the influence First Uncle had on Miko.

"Maybe we can rent it and watch it later, although I do have to warn you, there are some sad parts to it."

Miko gave a brief nod, his eyes dropping away. "Thank you, but it is not necessary."

Now, what the hell was that supposed to mean?

Before I could ask, Monty came out of his study.

Miko removed his arm from mine, pressed his hands together, and gave a respectful bow. "Good morning, Father."

"Miko." Monty smiled at his son, giving him a hardy enough pat on his shoulder that Miko stumbled forward.

I shot him a glare.

---