Page 29 of The Way to a Cowboy's Heart

She gasped in mock horror. “No!”

“Yes. Be forewarned. You might even want to say hello back.”

“Oh, I think not. We Brits living in New York are notoriously standoffish.”

“Is that right?”

The middle-aged waitress with a bee-hive hairdo whose nametag identified her as Flo appeared with a pitcher of water. “More water, darlin’?”

Emily smiled broadly. “Oh, yes. Hello, Flo. And thank you so much.”

Amused, Flo winked at Liam. “You’re welcome, darlin’.” Then to Liam, “’Bout time.”

He pulled a frown, discouraging any more commentary on the subject from Flo.

“Just holler if y’all need anything more,” she said over her shoulder as she headed back to the cash register.

“That’s Flo,” he explained. “A town fixture. She’s been here as long as I can remember.”

“She seems to have a vested interest in your dating status.”

“Flo is a bit like everyone’s favorite aunt, who tries to look unconcerned while stealthily rooting us on from the sidelines. For that, we all love her.”

Emily tried to imagine being a waitress in a diner in this small town for all these years and, honestly, couldn’t. She supposed she’d gotten used to the bustle of the city and all the pressures there. Her job, the relentless push for more… She’d become immune to all that for the most part. It felt normal. But this place—the pace and the friendly rhythm of it was like hearing a foreign language for the first time.

“So,” he said. “Your sister is packing up your apartment?”

“I’m afraid so, yes. But she’s also using the time there to show her photography book around to try to get some work. She works primarily in London and some in Paris but would love to get a foothold here. Our father, naturally, doesn’t approve.”

“Why not?”

“Beyond the art she’s pursuing? He thinks America is… well, he’s tied in deeply to his roots in England and he’s a member of the House of Lords.”

“Your father is alord?”

“Technically, no. But that’s a title he’s addressed by now. And he’s not a peer. The House of Commons where he began as an MP is like your Congress. An elected position, but later he was referred to and admitted to the House of Lords. It’s more of an appointment. A prestigious appointment. At any rate, he considers art, and generally, America, beneath us. But Muriel is the youngest and that gives her some leeway.”

“And you?” Liam asked. “You’ve been in America for a while.”

She swallowed thickly and leaned in. “I escaped here, really. I needed to create a life of my own without him over my shoulder constantly judging me or pitting my success against my brother. There was no winning there.”

“Your brother, Malcolm.”

“Yes. We’re what you’d call Irish twins. Eleven months apart and, from the get-go, we were set in competition with each other. He’s brilliant and ambitious and everything I thought I wanted to be. But it’s never really been a friendly competition. After our mother’s death, after Muriel, our father had no idea really how to handle us, so he sent us to boarding school separately and Mal and I became strangers, really. Which is all more than you really wanted to know about the family Quinn.”

“Not true. I want to know everything about you.” His eyes were fixed on hers.

“I’m afraid you’ll be quite bored with my secrets. I never lived up to Malcolm’s achievements or my father’s. And, frankly, Muriel has a more exciting life than mine.”

“Who says they’re the standard?”

She blinked and looked away. “You see? That’s why I came. That cowboy logic.”

“There ya go. I’m all here for it. Honestly, I get the whole competition thing. After my older brother Will left to go play college football then the NFL, I was left to inherit the ranch. But as thespare, you might say, I never really expected to spend my life here. I thought Will would run the ranch and I’d do… something else with my life. Or at least not have the full responsibility. But for a long time, that’s exactly what happened. So, were things tense between me and Will? Hell, yeah. But we got over it. Now we work together. It’s good. Maybe the same can happen with you and Malcolm.”

She nodded, looking doubtful. “And if we don’t finish up here, soon, I’ll never get to meet your famous brother.”

“Don’t worry. I suspect all of them are going to casually show up to check you out once we get back home. Even though none of them is currently living at the ranch.” He laughed. “I apologize in advance for them.”

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