Page 9 of Meant for Her

When she reached the ranch house, Luke jumped out. He mumbled a thank you and stomped up the porch steps and went inside. Not locking their door was the norm in these parts, but she hoped they changed their habits after what happened.

“Don’t worry about him. He’s just upset over everything that occurred. We might be the same age, but for some reason he thinks he needs to carry the success of the ranch on his shoulders.”

She didn’t know what to say. “I hope you get your cows back.”

“We’re sure as hell going to try.”

When he placed his rough hand on top of hers, it was as if she’d put a finger in a socket—only a lot more pleasant. Something was going on with her, but Malia needed to gather more information before she acted on it.

Ryan slipped out, jogged up to their house, and went inside. The home looked rather rundown from the outside. A few shutters were missing and the siding needed to be either stained or painted. Some chairs and a few potted plants would go a long way to sprucing up the place.

* * *

“What is wrong with you?” Ryan nearly shouted at his brother. “Malia took good care of us and treated us with respect, yet you were an ass to her.”

“I was protecting her.”

Ryan laughed. “That is rich. How the hell was sitting in the back seat of her car barely speaking, protecting her?”

Luke’s eyes darkened, and his hands clenched into fists. That wasn’t a good sign, but Ryan would not back down. They were talking about the woman he believed was his mate.

“What would happen if those thieves come back and Malia is here, sniffing around you?”

“Don’t talk about her like that. It may be premature to say this, but I think she just might be my mate.”

Luke’s laugh held no cheer. “You have no idea who she is, do you?”

“She’s Malia.”

“Yes, but didn’t you see her keychain?”

His brother was losing it. “Why would I be looking at a keychain when the most beautiful woman in the world was sitting next to me?”

“Because her keychain has two G’s in a circle.”

His mind spun, but Ryan didn’t understand what that implied. “Meaning?”

“The Double G ranch? As in the biggest ranch in this part of Montana.”

Ryan’s anger deflated at what that meant. “You think she’s a Granger?”

“Why else would she have that on her keychain?”

“Maybe a Granger gave it to her as a present?”

Luke waved a hand at him in disgust. “I’m taking a shower. I’m filthy.”

“Good. Go ahead.” Ryan hoped his brother would come back with a better attitude after he cleaned up.

Luke stomped upstairs to his room. Even though Ryan needed to shower, too, he decided to check the Internet to see if he could find any photos of the Granger family. He’d heard they did a lot of charity events.

It didn’t take him long to find information. From what he could tell, there were four brothers and one sister who were still alive. Josh Granger was the one who owned the forty-thousand-acre ranch in Wildwood. There was a family photo at the bottom of the article. And yes, Malia Granger was indeed Josh’s daughter—along with four brothers.Damn. That put her off limits.

Even if she was attracted to him as much as he was to her, there was no way she’d want to be saddled with a down-and-out rancher, not when her dad was so successful.

He didn’t know all that much about this mate stuff, but the more he thought about it, the more he was convinced that the two of them were destined to be with each other. How that would ever happen, he didn’t know.

Luke was right. Until they found their cows, he and Luke needed to focus on the ranch. Ryan just hoped that their pregnant cows were safe.

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