Page 19 of Must Love Mistletoe

“Plenty of people already know my preferences. Apparently.”

“Icould help if I knew what you wanted.”

He pinned her with his gaze again and she fidgeted and turned away rather than wear it. “Beth Ann Evans, are you planning to pimp me out? Because I gotta say my brothers have tried and it never ends well for them. Think of me as an acquired taste.”

Well, she wouldnow.

“I’m not handsome.”

“You’re very rugged.”

“I’m a big guy. There’s a lot of me to handle.”

Her eyes widened. Was he talking about… Did it even matter what he was talking about?

“Sometimes that can make people nervous. Me included.”

Funny how she was suddenly thirsty. “How enlightening. So, you’d prefer a woman of substance, maybe. On the larger side?”

He shrugged. “Could be more comfortable for everyone involved.”

“I’ll keep an eye out for a six-foot Amazonian for you. And for the record, I’ve never felt intimidated by your size. That crouch you do around little kids is very cute. That and removing your hat. Very John Wayne.”

“Tends to stop the crying,” he offered dryly.

“Do you like to cook? Would your partner need to be a good cook? Or are you mostly a food is fuel kind of guy and anything will do?”

“The second one.”

“Bet you like your mom’s cookies.” She knew he did.

“They were her secret weapon throughout my childhood. Mere mention of ice-cream cookie sandwiches could get every one of us to behave for at least twenty minutes. I have all her recipes and I know how to use them.”

“I’m just going to mark down your future partner as being capable in the kitchen. Who knows—if they like baking, they might even turn you on to chocolate brownies or apple pie.”

“I do like your cherry chocolate brownies.”

Magnanimous of him. She had a tray of brownies in the freezer she could fish out, and why not? It wasn’t every day she sold a ranch and gained a whole new outlook on life. She retrieved it and put it in a carry bag and handed it to him. “Take that one with you. What else do you look for in a woman?”

“Someone who knows what it takes to be a rancher’s wife. Doesn’t matter how they came by their knowledge, just that they know what they’re in for and won’t bail as soon as the going gets tough.”

Count her out, then.

His eyes narrowed. “That comment wasn’t aimed at you. You’ve done it tough for years. There’s strength in knowing when to let go.”

“Bet you never would.”

“Don’t be so sure. There was a time last year I was looking into buying a place in South Dakota. I figured what with me and Mason at each other’s throats all the time, someone had to go.”

He’d shocked her speechless.

“Mason got a job that put him on the road and left me to it, so I never had to follow through.”

“Your family would never haveletyou go,” she murmured finally. “Not if they had any sense. I can’t imagine it here without you.”

He put his hand in the front pocket of his trousers and pulled out a sheet of paper. “Here’s my offer for your herd. I ranked the cows by quality. Even the poorest of the breeders would fetch well above market price. The money’s already in your account.” He set the paper down on the kitchen bench. “Better get to work.”

“Thanks for chopping the wood.”

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