She appeared young, too young for the accomplishments listed in her biography. He’d frowned. Although young, she’d built quite a name for herself in her area of expertise in law.
Now working primarily as the lawyer for the Wildes, from what Nick had been able to learn from his internet search, she’d also had dealings in corporate law. She had interned with a prestigious law firm in Cheyenne, Wyoming, before returning home. She’d listed the Wyoming Wilde Ranch as home and he’d frowned, wondering if she had grown up on the ranch.
Just as on the A’Kela Ranch, Nick knew that many of the larger, successful ranches had generations of family members that worked and lived on the ranch. He’d guessed she was a family member.
He’d reached out and called her. In a voice low and sexy, feminine yet husky, she’d had him hard as hell, sitting up in his seat and listening intently to the low-toned voice smoothly inform him of her clients’ wish to settle this unfortunate incident with as little “fanfare” as possible.
It had taken a minute for the insult to register.
And now, after four months of cyber interacting, she was on her way to the ranch. All that cyber interacting had him on edge.
He felt his cock stir at the thought. Unconsciously he adjusted himself within his jeans. If she made him feel in person even the slightest bit as she had during their previous interactions—verbal heated conversations, sharply worded yet oddly arousing emails and voice mails... He shook his head.
Hell, yeah. Things were about to get really interesting around the Kealoha ranch.
* * *
As he told his brother about his dealings with Sinclair Adams, Key remained silent throughout the conversation, down to Nick’s informing his twin of the woman’s upcoming arrival.
After he finished speaking, he waited.
It hadn’t taken long.
“What?” Nick asked, mildly irritated and somewhat unnerved by his twin’s silence and sharp regard—two things he didn’t necessarily like linked when it came to his brother and his uncanny ability to know what was on Nick’s mind.
Key simply raised a thick brow and shrugged, coffee mug in hand, his gaze steady and intense.
“What what? I didn’t say anything,” Key replied. He brought the rim of his coffee mug to his mouth and took a casual sip, his eyes still focused on Nick.
Nick’s brows bunched.
“Nothing to say, bro?”
“What do you want me to say?” Key threw back the question, shrugging. “I have better things to do. Besides, you know my stance on that situation.”
Nick pushed away from the counter where he’d been lounging, feigning a nonchalance he was far from feeling, and just as casually as his brother, refilled his coffee mug.
“Better things to do? Like you and Sonia producing the next generation of Kealohas?”
Two could play the game. Just as Key had an eerie ability to know what was going on with him, Nick could do the same with his twin.
One of the many perks of being an identical twin and for that same twin to be his best friend.
If he wasn’t in such a mood, he’d laugh at the expression on Key’s face.
“How did you...” Key began, only to stop. He shook his head and barked out a laugh instead. “Never mind.”
Nick laughed along with his brother, breaking the tension. He then went on to tell him the details of Sinclair’s impending arrival.
* * *
After listening to Key cuss a blue streak, telling Nick what he thought of his lack of brains, to put it mildly, for not letting the family know “what the hell was going on,” the two men sat at the kitchen table.
Although he really wasn’t up for a “Dr Phil” moment, Nick had haltingly opened up, slightly, to his brother. He was glad when his brother finally reacted.
He’d spared Key the more embarrassing details. Hell, there was no sense in telling his brother what was going on with him. He wasn’t sure what was going on in his own psyche, anyway. And to go into confusing feelings for a woman he hardly knew...? No. That wasn’t going to happen.
He laughed even thinking about it. He could only imagine how Key would look at him. Nick had never really been the type of guy to share his thoughts that easily. Even with his brother, the closest person in the world to him, Nick was still, at times, the clam.
But there had been times in his life, like now, where he’d felt a real need to break the mold. So he opened up a little, at least enough to tell Key that he wasn’t sure how to handle the situation with Sinclair. He’d known he’d have to come clean, if nothing else, to get a feel for his brother’s take on the situation.
As he spoke, Key listened, not saying a word. When Nick finished his succinct tale, Key stood from the table and slapped his brother on the back...hard.
“I’m sure you can handle it, bro. In fact, I know you will,” he stated, his voice emphatic, a tinge of humor laced in.
Nick sat back, puzzled.
His brother continued. “I’m so confident in your abilities that on behalf of the family I’m giving this to you.” The evil gleam in his brother’s eyes, blue eyes that matched his own, should have given Nick fair warning. “Consider this...‘situation’ solely your deal. Dad and I are out of it. I’m sure you’ll figure it all out.”
Again, his brother smacked him on the back.
“What the fu—” Nick bit off the curse, jumping up after his brother’s hearty smack on the back, toppling his chair as he rose. Swiftly he righted the chair and turned to face his brother.
“What the hell, man...that’s it?” he asked, staring at his twin as he calmly walked to the sink, coffee mug in hand.
“Yep. That’s it, Pika,” Key replied, snorting.
Whenever his brother used his nickname, it always set Nick’s teeth on edge. Not because he didn’t like his nickname... He’d been called Pika, which meant “strong” in the Polynesian language, since he was a boy.
Nicknames were nothing new. Key’s legal name was Keanu, but he’d been called Key for most of his life. It irritated Nick because he knew there were times when Key used the nickname simply to screw with him. Something both men considered their God-given right to do: give his twin a hard time.
Nick had always thought of it as good old-fashioned fun. Until he was on the receiving end.
Just as Key placed the coffee mug in the sink to rinse—no one wanted to deal with their housekeeper, Mahi, the longest resident of the ranch outside of the family, and his rants if the kitchen was left a mess—Sonia, his wife, entered.
She quickly spied her husband. A wide grin split her pretty face as she made a beeline for her new husband and wrapped her arms around his waist.
“Hmm, last night was amazing, baby,” Sonia purred, her voice low, throaty and intimate, once Key released the death grip he had on his wife’s lips.
“It’s been way too long, baby,” she murmured as Key reached down and captured her lips again. Finally he released her, enough to glance down at her, keeping her within the circle of his arms.
“Yeah, it felt like forever,” Key agreed, his voice barely recognizable it was so low.
Key had been away on an overnight trip, so really it hadn’t been that long, Nick thought, shaking his head.
“Little Alek isn’t going to magically appear, you know. It’s