Ap, Elaina thought. Her daughter was accepting Nick as a second father, but Lexie craved a paternal bond. She still cried for her daddy, still fell asleep with tears in her eyes.
Emotion swirled around the room, the only sound the gentle tap of Lexie’s hammer. Elaina glanced at Nick and saw that he watched her.
“We should get some work done, too,” he said. Unable to draw herself from his gaze, she studied him. Brothers lent each other their wives; they became fathers to each other’s children. But that was in another century, she told herself as he brushed a lock of hair from his forehead.
His eyes had gone from brown to black, the pupils catching a glimmer of light. Elaina took an unsteady breath. He looked dark and erotic, a man who would kiss a woman in soft, secret places.
Why are you doing this to me? she wanted to ask. Why are you slipping into my subconscious? You’re my brother-in-law, and I shouldn’t be attracted to you.
“Elaina?“
“Yes?“
“Are you up for this?”
No, she thought, staring at the scatter of leather stars on her bench.
“Yes, of course,” she responded. Her involvement in this project was important to Lexie. It was Christmastime, and the stars were for the tree Nick had promised Lexie they would buy tomorrow. “Just tell me what to do.”
As he moved closer, his shoulder brushed hers. “There are a lot of different ways to decorate them.”
He reached into the box and withdrew samples of completed ornaments. Some were stamped with traditional Western patterns, and others displayed vibrant Native American designs, the points trimmed in suede lace. No two were alike. Instead, each creation reflected the level and skill of the artist. She didn’t have to ask if his students had made them.
Reaching for one that caught her eye, she held it up to the light. An intricate beaded design covered the entire star, shimmering as if it had just fallen from the sky.
“This is beautiful,” she said, looking from the ornament to Nick.
He looked back at her, and an unwelcome, unnamed heat filled her veins. He was beautiful, too. But unlike the glittering star, her brother-in-law was dark and dangerously forbidden.
Later that night, Nick couldn’t sleep. He got out of bed, slipped on a pair of jeans and boots, then shoved his arms into a jacket. Nothing calmed a restless night like the outdoors. Humidity, rain, snow, brisk winds. Nick didn’t care. No matter what mood Mother Earth was in, she managed to soothe him.
He made it as far as the living room before he saw Elaina. She sat on a sturdy recliner, her feet tucked beneath her. The television flickered with black-andwhite images, the volume barely audible.
Her hair cascaded in loose waves, and she wore silky white pajamas. In profile, her features were classically feminine, with a sweep of dark lashes and a slim nose. Her lips were neither strained nor relaxed. She stared at the TV in an almost trancelike state.
“Elaina?” He said her name, knowing he couldn’t slip out the front door unnoticed.
She turned, and then blinked when she saw him. “Nick.”
They gazed at each other for a moment, and he realized how often they got caught in one of those quiet, awkward stares.
“Is something wrong?” she asked.
“No.” He shifted his stance. She looked ghostlike in the flickering light, her pajamas shimmering against creamy skin.
“The horses aren’t sick?“
“No.” He glanced at the scuffed, turned-up tips of his boots. He was dressed to go out, yet he hadn’t told her why. But running into Elaina at this hour stunned his senses, dulling his brain. She wasn’t wearing a bra, and he could see the faint outline of her nipples. He hadn’t meant to look, but his eyes had strayed in that direction. And now he was examining his feet like a tongue-tied teenager.
“I’m having trouble falling asleep,” he said finally, lifting his gaze. “So I’m going to sit on the porch awhile.”
“Can I join you?” She pushed a wave of hair off her shoulder. “I can’t sleep, either.”
He wanted to say no, that he preferred to be alone. She was an elegant, silk-clad distraction. He was sexually attracted to his brother’s wife, and that made him uncomfortable, even though he had vowed to marry her.
“It’s been cold at night,” he warned. “And windy.”
“I don’t mind. I brought a winter coat.“
“All right.” Why argue the point? She must need a gust of fresh air, too.
He leaned against the wall while she darted into her room. When she returned, her silky pajamas were covered with a big, bulky sheepskin coat. Nick couldn’t hide an amused smile.
“You expecting a blizzard?“
“You said it was cold.“
“Yeah, I guess I did.”
Once outside, they sat in weathered pine chairs, the sky a vast shade of midnight. A maze of trees landscaped the yard. Some were shedding leaves and others were bare, tall and gray in the moonlight. The porch light cast a shallow glow, and Nick turned to look at Elaina.
Her collar was turned up, and her hands were tucked snugly in her pockets. The wind blew with a furious howl, tousling her copper-tinted hair.
Nick inhaled the chilly December air, and to keep himself from staring at Elaina, he focused on the sky. “There’s a few stars out.”
“Yes, just a scatter.” She angled her chair toward his with the scrape of wood against wood. “Do you do this often?”
He shrugged. “Often enough, I suppose. Sometimes my mind just won’t shut down, and that makes sleeping impossible.”
“I know the feeling.”
Her face was a blend of shadow and light, her voice quiet. She removed her hands from her pockets, and he glanced down and saw the diamond on her finger. Was he supposed to buy her a new ring or suggest she continue to wear the one Grant had given her? There were no rules to follow. Nothing he could count on to make this situation easier.
But Nick realized he had to do it tonight. He had to ask Elaina to marry him. Two years had passed, more than enough time for him to fulfill his vow.
They gazed at each other in the silence, and the moment turned soft and quiet. Moonlight shone in her eyes, tiny flecks of gold in all that impossible blue. He imagined touching her cheek, her hair, the delicate column of her neck.
Nick frowned. If he lost himself in lust, in the heat she made him feel, this proposal would be even more difficult.
“Elaina, there’s something important I need to discuss with you.”
She watched him, waiting for him to continue.
He did, after another second of nervous silence. “You know that my brother asked me to take care of Lexie, to teach her about being Comanche. But before he died, he talked to me about you, too.”
The light in her eyes flickered, and Nick saw a flash of pain, a woman missing the man she had loved. “What did he say?”
“Grant wanted me to protect you.” Pausing to breathe, he let the words settle. “The way a Comanche brother would have done in another century.”
Her voice quavered. “I don’t understand.”
Yes, you do, he thought. Deep down you do. You know what a Comanche