Page 24 of A Fortunes of Texas Christmas (Fortunes of Texas)

He stood at the foot of the stairway, resplendent in trousers, a gray Aran sweater and a dark leather jacket. Feet crossed at the ankles, his arms folded, with one shoulder propped against the staircase, he looked breathtakingly handsome. Her heart did a foolish loopy loop, and she battled the way her knees weakened.

Robin saw her brother’s back go rigid. “You must be the Frenchman.”

“I must,” Amersen replied, unmoving. “And you must be one of Robin’s overprotective brothers...correct?” He pushed himself off the staircase and took a few steps toward them. “For the record, she’s very capable of looking after herself. She’s also not...” His voice trailed off, as though he was searching for the right translation. “Easy or promiscuous. You might want to remember that next time you decide to question her principles.”

“I wasn’t,” Evan replied. “I was merely—”

“Sure you were,” Amersen said, cutting him off. “You implied that she had jumped into bed with me. If she had, it would be no one’s business but ours. If not, that’s no one else’s business, either.”

Robin stood in stunned silence. Evan looked unusually uncomfortable and tugged at his collar. No one ever stood up to her brothers. They were alpha males in the truest sense. But Amersen could easily stand toe to toe with them and not blink. She should have been outraged by the absurd machoism emanating from both men...but she wasn’t. She was foolishly flattered that Amersen had come to her defense. Because he was right—she could take care of herself. The fact he knew that and still managed to rattle her overbearing brother’s cage secretly thrilled her.

“You should go,” Robin said to her brother and hugged him. “I’ll talk to you soon.”

Evan looked as though he wanted to stay and argue the point, but to his credit, he merely nodded, inclined his head briefly toward Amersen and then left, retracing their steps toward the kitchen. Once her brother was out of sight and she heard the back door close, Robin exhaled a long breath.

“You’re here?”

He nodded. “I had a meeting with Kate. She had

to take a call, so I gave her some privacy.”

Robin managed a tight smile. “It’s...good to see you.”

“But unexpected?”

She shrugged. “I expected you would continue to negotiate business with Kate.”

“You said goodbye to me last night,” he reminded her.

“I was making a point.”

He laughed softly, and the sound reached her way down low. “I know.”

God, he was so damned hot. He made her belly do backflips. She had a serious case of lust for Amersen Beaudin, as she was sure he knew.

“I had a nice time yesterday,” he said and came toward her, standing on the other side of the pile of boxes. “Your parents are good people.”

Robin dropped her tool kit and stayed opposite him. “My mother doesn’t like you now,” she announced, smiling extra sweetly. “Evan told her all about you, and now she thinks you’re a player who has a different woman in your bed every night.”

He fiddled with the open cardboard lid on the top box. “And what do you think?” he asked, not looking at her.

“Does it matter?”

“Probably more than it should.”

His admission startled her and made her silently confess the obvious. She liked him. He liked her. A basic attraction between two people. It was simple chemistry. Alchemy. Sex.

“I bet you say that to all the girls.”

He met her gaze. “I’m twenty-five, single and straight, and yes, I’ve been with many women. That doesn’t diminish how much I want you. Or how much I respect your decision to not get involved any more than we already are.”

His words stroked her skin like a caress. The man certainly knew the right things to say. He was smooth and seductive, even when it was broad daylight and they were separated by a pile of cardboard boxes filled with Christmas decorations.

A deep-rooted and acute surge of awareness raced through her body, and she couldn’t fight the smile curling her lips. She didn’t want to hear about his other women. She didn’t want to listen to her brother or mother telling her how wrong he was for her. In that moment, Robin simply wanted to be a crazy free spirit and enjoy his company.

“Feel like helping out?” she asked and grabbed one of the boxes. “I have to start decorating the house today.”

He frowned. “I thought you were a landscaper?”

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