For His Brother's Wife

“That would be a good place for a studio,” Cole said, taking a bite of his steak. “With that wall of windows on the east side, the lighting should be perfect in the mornings.”

“I thought so, too.” His genuine interest made her smile. It was nice for a change to have a conversation while she ate, instead of dining alone in silence. “Craig gave me your father’s den for my office when he converted that room and since I don’t need two, I think it’s the obvious choice for a studio.”

Cole looked thoughtful. “You know, the lighting would be even better if the south wall was all windows, as well.”

“I thought about that, but I wasn’t sure it was structurally possible,” she admitted. “What do you think?”

“It would need to be braced up in the attic since that’s a load-bearing wall and a couple of beams added for support where the two walls meet in the corner, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work.” His smile caused her pulse to flutter. “I’ll check it out for you before I head back to Dallas and let you know for sure just what would need to be done.”

“I’d really appreciate that,” she said, excited at the possibility of having an artist’s studio with the perfect amount of natural lighting.

When she rose to cut them each a slice of apple pie, Cole carried their empty plates to the sink, rinsed them and placed them in the dishwasher. “No more work than I think it would take to make those changes, if you’d like, I could have my work crew get that done for you before we go back to Dallas.”

“Really?” she asked, her excitement for the project rapidly building. Craig hadn’t discouraged her love of art, but he had never encouraged it, either. “It could be done that soon?”

“Sure.”

Cole’s smile made her feel several degrees warmer. How could a man look sexy as sin with nothing more than a smile?

“There’s no reason not to go ahead if that’s what you want,” he continued, seemingly unaware of the effect he was having on her. “The work crew will be here, and even if it takes a couple of extra days, I doubt they’ll mind. It will just add to the small fortune Aaron and I have paid them in overtime and travel expenses over the past six months.”

“Thank you so much, Cole.” Thrilled that she was actually going to have her own art studio, she turned and, without thinking, wrapped her arms around him for a hug.

“No problem,” he said as his arms lightly closed around her.

They both froze in place, and to say the moment was awkward would have been an understatement. Aside from the fact that she had embarrassed herself with her impulsiveness, the feel of Cole’s solid strength surrounding her caused her knees to wobble. Staring up at him, she could tell that he was just as surprised by the embrace as she was. But it was an awareness in his dark green eyes that shocked her all the way to her core.

“I...um, thank you,” she said apologetically, feeling heat color her cheeks. Taking a step back, she hoped he didn’t notice her hands trembling as she dished up their dessert. “Would you like a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top of your pie?”

He shook his head. “Not this time. It looks and smells delicious just the way it is.” She started to reach for the dessert plates, but he picked them up and carried them to the table for her. “As long as we’ll be working on it, are there any other changes you’d like to make to your studio?”

His voice sounded just a bit deeper. Was he feeling the tension between them the same way she was?

“How much trouble would it be to put down a laminate or tile floor?” she asked, feeling a little more comfortable now that they were back on the subject of renovating the ranch house.

“No trouble at all,” he said, taking a bite of his pie. He seemed more relaxed, as well. “While we get started on the barn, why don’t you think about all the changes you want made and then let me know what you decide later on in the week?”

She smiled. “I’ll do that.”

As they continued to talk about the renovations to Craig and Cole’s childhood home, Paige couldn’t help but wonder again what had happened all those years ago. What had caused the twin brothers to have a falling out? And why had Cole left Royal without at least telling her goodbye?

Being an only child, she had no idea about the dynamics of sibling relationships. But she couldn’t imagine anything so upsetting that it would make them stop talking to each other for more than a decade.

When they’d first married, she had asked Craig about Cole’s departure, but he’d told her it didn’t matter and they had never talked about it again. Of course, Craig had rarely discussed anything of importance with her. She had always felt a bit like an outsider within her own marriage.

“Thank you for going to the trouble of making dinner,” Cole said, drawing her back to the present. He stood up and carried their empty plates to the sink, rinsed them and put them in the dishwasher along with the dishes from dinner. “It was the best home-cooked meal I’ve had in a long time.” He chuckled. “Actually, it’s the only home-cooked meal I’ve had in years.”

“I’m glad you liked it, Cole.” She rose to clear the rest of the table, but he was already reaching for their iced tea glasses. “I’m sure you’re tired from working on the barn all day. I can take care of cleaning up.”

He shook his head as he put their glasses into the dishwasher. “You cooked a great dinner. The least I can do is help with the dishes.”

As she watched Cole finish collecting the dishes to load into the dishwasher, she couldn’t help but note one more contrast between him and Craig. Her late husband had never voluntarily helped her with anything around the house and she’d gotten the distinct impression that he considered anything domestic to be “woman’s work” and beneath him.

“If you don’t mind, I think I’m going to call it a night,” Cole said as she finished wiping off the kitchen island. “The crew will be here around dawn.”

“How many men will there be?” she asked, turning out the light as they left the kitchen.

“Seven, counting me. Why?”

“Tell them not to worry about bringing their lunch after tomorrow,” she said as they walked down the hall toward the stairs. “I’ll have something ready for them every day they work until the job is finished.”

“That’s very generous of you.” Cole placed his hand on the small of her back to guide her as they started up the steps. “But you don’t have to do that.”

“I know I don’t.” She barely managed a smile. “I want to do it.” His hand at her back was only meant to steady her. But the heat from his wide palm seemed to sear her skin through her clothing and made it difficult to draw her next breath.

“We’ll appreciate it,” he said when they reached the top of the stairs. “But don’t go to any extra trouble.”

Stepping away from him at the door to his room, she nodded. “I’ll be sure to keep it simple.”

They stared at each other a few moments longer before Cole opened his bedroom door. “I’ll try to be quiet in case you want to sleep in tomorrow morning.”

“Sleep well,” she said as she turned to enter her room across the hall.

Closing the door, Paige leaned back against it and took a deep breath. Why did she feel as if she was still that starry-eyed sophomore girl talking to the cutest senior boy in Royal High School whenever she was around Cole? And why had he broken his promise to ask her out when she graduated?

She shook her head at her own foolishness as she pushed away from the door and got ready for bed. She might have had a huge crush on him when she was younger, but that was ancient history. He had made his choice not to ask her out. Besides, some questions in life were just better left unanswered.

* * *

The following afternoon, Cole kept a close eye on the clouds in the Southwestern sky. They had been gathering since right after lunch, and unless he missed his guess, they were in for one of the legendary Texas gully washers. Hopefully the rain would hold off until they finished framing the barn, but he wasn’t going to bet money on it. There was more than a fair chance he’d lose.

Twenty minutes later, the first crack of thunder rumbled overhead and he knew their workday had come to an end. He motioned for his men working on the rafters to climb down the ladders.

“Go ahead and start putting away the tools,” he said when they were all safely on the ground. “We’re going to call it a day. There’s no sense in risking one of you being struck by lightning.”

“See you in the mornin’, boss,” they all called as they hurriedly loaded their tools into the company trucks.

When fat raindrops began to fall, raising tiny puffs of west Texas dust as they hit the bare ground, Cole grabbed the blueprints for the barn from the tailgate of his truck, threw them into the front seat to keep them from getting ruined and slammed the door. Waving to his men as they drove away, he jogged across the ranch yard to the back porch. He’d no sooner sprinted up the steps than the sky seemed to open up and pour.

Staring at the curtain of rain just beyond the shelter of the porch roof, he clenched his jaw so tight he could’ve cracked a couple of teeth as he struggled to keep from cussing a blue streak. It was only mid-afternoon, and just the thought of being confined to the house for the rest of the day and night with Paige had him tied up into a tight knot. How the hell was he supposed to do what was honorable and right when it seemed the universe was throwing every obstacle it could in his way?

Considering the attraction he still had for her, he knew beyond a shadow of doubt the hell he was going to go through being alone with her. The urge to take her into his arms had been almost overwhelming, and if he hadn’t realized that before, he did after she threw her arms around him for that tight hug last night in the kitchen. He had known it was her excitement over turning his brother’s office into an art studio that had caused her impulsiveness, but that did little to prevent his body from feeling as if he’d been treated to the business end of a cattle prod. Then, when they’d walked upstairs together and he had discovered she was sleeping just across the hall from him, he’d lain awake half the night wondering what she wore to bed or if she wore anything at all. The other half had been spent speculating about why she wasn’t sleeping in the master suite. Was the thought of lying in bed without Craig beside her more than she could bear?

“Cole, is everything all right?” Paige asked from behind him. “Why don’t you come in?”

Turning, he found her standing just inside the open back door. “Everything’s fine. I was just watching it rain,” he said, knowing that his excuse for not going inside the house sounded pretty lame.

“You might be out here awhile,” she advised with a slight smile. “It doesn’t look like it’s going to let up anytime soon.”