Page 18 of Texas Scandal

“That would be awful for anyone. The fact she survived and continued to bring up you and your siblings showed her true strength,” she said.

Those words were balm to a wounded soul. He didn’t realize how good it would feel to talk about his parents and what had happened in the past. Keeping everything locked inside for so long was like carrying a boulder on his chest. Remembering how much they’d loved each other lifted some of the ache.

But then it was easy to talk to Melody.

“Tell me more about your saddle business,” Melody said, pushing up to sitting. Her long waves had dried and fell down her back and around her shoulders.

“Orders have kept me working fourteen-to eighteen-hour days leading up to Christmas, which will be here before we know it,” he said, going with the change in topic.

“You’ve been off this entire day because of me,” Melody said as she glanced at the clock on the mantel. “I should let you get back to work.”

“Believe it or not, I’ve enjoyed getting to know you and doing something useful today,” he said. “I’ve been at the saddles for the past couple of months straight with no break, and helping someone else brings me back to my roots. It’s a rancher-like thing to do.”

He could have sworn disappointment flashed in her eyes. He couldn’t for the life of him figure out why.

“Are there more people like you and your family in Cider Creek?” she asked, a wistful quality to her tone.

“All ranching communities have people like us,” he said.

“Somehow I doubt that,” she said so low that he had to strain to hear. Before he could respond, she said, “I should try to get some real sleep. Tomorrow is going to come early.”

“Do you want me to work in another room?” he asked, not liking the wall that had just shot up between them. There wasn’t a whole lot he could do about it, either.

“Whatever works for you,” she said before adding, “But I’m good with things the way they are right now if it’s too much trouble for you to leave.”

Tiernan took the hint, picking up his laptop and rebooting. He made himself comfortable in the chair. A wall might have come up, but she trusted him enough to let him keep watch over her while she at least tried to sleep.

He pulled up orders and recalculated how much time he had left to finish them before Christmas. He’d intended to have everything delivered the day before Christmas Eve. Now, he’d lost a day, so he’d be working on Christmas Eve to get everything done on time.

On Christmas Day, he could collapse if he had to pull a few all-nighters. He could personally deliver at least one of the saddles, which would give him an extra day back since he didn’t have to ship. He could finagle the order in which he completed the saddles and still make this work.

People were depending on him, and he never let them down. Could he make the same promise to Melody?

MELODYOPENEDHEREYES, surprised she’d been able to fall asleep at all. The dim lighting in the room made it easy for her eyes to adjust. She glanced around the room to get her bearings. Her heart skipped a beat the second her eyes landed on Tiernan. The glow from his laptop cast shadows on his face that highlighted a strong jawline and cheekbones that could crack granite. The man was carved from perfection.

Her movement caused his gaze to shift to her. For a long moment, their eyes met, and it ranked right up there with one of the most intimate moments of her life.

“Hey,” he said, his voice gravelly.

“Hi,” she said, feeling like she could have thought of something better. As it was, her throat was suddenly dry, and forming words became a challenge. She cleared her throat. “What time is it?”

He glanced down at the corner of the screen and then his eyes came up again. She blinked to lessen the impact, but it was a fruitless attempt at best. She had the same reaction as a few seconds ago when their gazes touched.

This time, she took in a long, slow breath.

“Quarter after nine,” he said.

“That late?” she asked, surprised. “How did I sleep so long?”

“You were out like a light, so I closed all the blinds. I figured you needed as much rest as possible,” he said.

It occurred to her that she was wearing nothing but a bathrobe, so she performed a quick scan as she pulled the covers up. Relief flooded her when she confirmed nothing was out that shouldn’t be. The only bare skin he might have seen was her foot and a sliver of ankle. In some cultures and periods in history, that was enough to be considered scandalous.

“Can I interest you in a cup of coffee?” Tiernan asked, setting the laptop down on the coffee table. Loki snored from the other side of the room until the piece of tech tapped the wood. The dog jumped to attention before launching himself toward the living area.

“Coffee would be nice,” she said, still full from the lasagna last night. “Thank you.”

“Not a problem,” he said.

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