The Renegade Returns

“Really?”

Luke’s drawl should not send shivers down her spine. And his slow perusal over her body should not make her mouth water. As if satisfied with what he saw, he broke out a wicked grin. “Lucky for you, adventure just walked through your door.”

“I’m doing just fine on my own, thankyouverymuch,” Avery said, embarrassed by the childish huff that ended her words.

Luke’s glance across the counter at Cindy was answered with a sad shake of the woman’s head. As Avery flushed from head to toe, she vowed to murder her receptionist—as soon as she got Luke out the door.

Those amber eyes swung back to study her. “You sure about that?” he asked.

The intensity of his gaze caught her, held her. His expression was still amused, but gone from his eyes was the teasing, smiling Luke. In the amber depths she saw darkness simmering beneath the surface.

“I keep telling you,” Cindy said, “what you need is a nice man who will give you lots of fun without having to resort to stunts like this.” She waved the recovered brochure in the air.

With a single lift of his brow, Luke added, “What are the men in this town thinking?”

“They sure don’t know what they’re missing,” Cindy teased.

Had Avery’s blush reached lobster levels yet? “I don’t need sex to have fun.” Oh dear, had she really just said that out loud?

“Nobody said you did, sugar,” Luke said. His teeth bit into his full lower lip, but that didn’t stop his grin. “But why don’t you tell me exactly what kind of adventure you’re looking for? I might be able to help.”

The ring of the door chime saved her from answering. “Gotta go,” she mumbled as she moved, only to stumble over her own feet.

Luke was quick to catch her arm, helping her upright again. “Why don’t we talk about it over dinner?” he asked, too soft for anyone else to hear.

Or maybe not. Cindy’s happy dance in the background had Avery’s face burning once more.

“Nope,” she said. “I’m good.”

Again his husky voice played along her nerves. “I’m sure you are, but with me it would be better.”

Oh, Lordy. Avery almost choked. She wanted nothing more than to get out of here. Forget whoever had come through the door.

Twisting out of Luke’s grasp, she chose the other direction and the safety of the therapy room. She threw an “I’m sure you have better things to do,” over her shoulder as she escaped, praying she didn’t damage her dignity by falling flat on her face.

Heaven help her, Luke Blackstone was gonna be a handful.

* * *

“Has she made you cry like a girl yet?”

Luke quelled his sudden urge to smack his twin. After all, they weren’t twelve anymore. “No. There’s been no crying.” Though his control had been shaky sometimes, he’d held it together. Jacob was teasing, but thankfully he didn’t know how close to home his statement hit.

As the oldest brother, Aiden obviously thought he had a say, too. “I thought for sure she’d pulverize you after what you said at the country club.”

Of course, someone had to bring that up. “I’m too cute for her not to forgive me.”

Aiden smirked, then made a quick retreat behind his desk before Luke’s swing could connect. So his restraint hadn’t lasted long. He’d always been a big kid.

Unlike Aiden, who looked perfectly at home behind the heavy desk in the study at Blackstone Manor—though the studious furniture and shelves full of books were slightly deceiving. Aiden had been born too big for his britches. Luke’s earliest memories were of Aiden being punished in this very room by their grandfather for some teenage rebellion or another. The adult Aiden refused to back down, either. It was there in the artistic tumble of his dark hair and lack of a tie.

His brothers shared a grin that awoke suspicions in Luke’s mind. “Spill it.”

“Just be careful, that’s all,” Aiden said.

Luke looked from one to the other, settling on the familiar face of his twin. “What’s he mean? What could little ol’ Avery do to me?”

“Oh, it’s not Avery you need to watch out for,” Jacob said. “It’s the town.”

Huh?

Jacob went on. “Avery is notorious in Black Hills. This entire town has tried to marry her off ever since her mother died. They’re relentless.”

“Why?”

Aiden smirked. “You’ve been away from a small town for too long if you have to ask. She’s young, pretty and single. Every matron in the county sees her as a princess in need of someone to take care of her.”

They both eyed Luke, who quickly held up his hands in surrender. “The last thing I need is a princess.” He moved over to one of the long windows, hiding his reaction from the others, because deep inside he couldn’t deny his attraction. He could ignore it as long as he wanted, but it was there all the same.

“Just be careful,” Jacob said. “They’ll marry you off before a first date.”

“Not. Me.”

His twin just laughed, making him look more like Luke despite his close-cropped hair. “Yeah, right. The princess and the local celebrity—they’d eat that up.”

Definitely time to change the subject. “Didn’t we meet here to talk about something more important than local gossip? Like this spying job you have for me?”

Aiden choked, so Jacob answered, “Well, I wouldn’t call it that.”

“Why not? Don’t think I can pull off the James Bond bit?” He mimed straightening a suit jacket and tie, just for kicks.

“I don’t think he went in for corporate sabotage. A little too tame for him.”

Luke shrugged. “Hey, I’ve got to start somewhere.”

Jacob threw up his hands and dropped into one of the chairs, obviously knowing when he’d been verbally outmaneuvered. But Aiden didn’t give up. “I’m hoping, if you come in with the stated purpose of inspecting the mill to bring you up to snuff as a full partner, then maybe you’ll see something Jacob and I have missed.”

The brothers, along with their new head of security, Zachary Gatlin, had been secretly investigating a saboteur who seemed intent on ruining Blackstone Mills. The brothers had eliminated several suspects, but still had no clue who the actual culprit was. Or if they were even still out there. Whoever it was intent on destroying Black Mills would end up destroying the whole town in the process, since they were the biggest supplier of both jobs and housing in the area—heck, the whole county. Without the mill, Black Hills would cease to exist.

It had been a grueling year for his brothers, dealing with all of that on top of Luke’s car accident. “Anything new?” Luke asked.

“Nothing I can prove, yet,” Jacob said, his amber eyes darkening.

“That sounds promising.”

His twin nodded. “Zach has one of his men following the trail, but it looks like we also have some embezzling going on.”

“That’s bold,” Luke said. “The orders, company equipment, our cotton supply and the Manor itself...now money. Is there anything this guy isn’t afraid to put his hands on?”