The Rancher’s Royal Bride (BBW Romance - Billionaire Brothers 4) Read Free Page B

her.
    He pulled the key out of the ignition. “We better go inside.”
    “Logan--”
    “We’ll talk about it inside.”
    He practically marched her back into the house. He wasn’t touching her any longer, but she knew if she made a run for it, he’d stop her instantly. And where would she run to? She wasn’t fit, and unless she wanted to hop onto the back of a cow, she was stuck on the ranch. Right now, knowing how to hot wire a car would come in handy. Unfortunately, she was too law abiding to possess that skill.
    Logan pulled out a chair for her in the kitchen. “Want to tell me what’s going on?” He loomed over her.
    “Could you sit down?” She didn’t know whether it was his ferocious scowl or the fact that he stood while she sat, but she felt at a disadvantage.
    He yanked out the chair next to her. “Now talk.”
    How much should she tell him? All of it? “I just want to get to the bottom of things,” she confessed.
    “So do I, Ellie.” His eyes never left her face. “Why were you trying to steal my car?”
    Her cheeks flooded with heat. “I wasn’t stealing it! I left you a note.” She gestured to the piece of paper in the middle of the table.
    Logan picked it up and read it. “At least you were going to leave it at the airport.” He exhaled. “I don’t like this situation any better than you, but I promised your father I’d keep you safe.”
    “Do you really think I’m in danger?” She gazed at him speculatively.
    “Hell, I don’t know.” He speared his fingers through his hair. “What exactly were your plans?”
    “I was going to catch a flight home. See if I could find any information in Dad’s safe.”
    “We were going to discuss that matter further.”
    She bit her lip. “I thought it might be easier if I just went ahead and found out if there was anything in the safe or not.”
    He folded his arms across his chest. “Easier for …?”
    She tried to ignore how attractive he was. How her pulse ratcheted up a notch when she was around him. Now was not the time to have those kinds of thoughts.
    When she didn’t reply, he said, “I thought about checking out the safe when I was outside, and I’ve decided it’s too risky. We don’t know what we’re dealing with if we go to Virginia. It’s safer to stay put here.”
    “But--”
    “I don’t like it any more than you do, but that’s my decision.”
    “Then how are we going to find out why Dad thinks I’m in danger?”
    He expelled a breath. “We might just have to wait until you can talk to him.”
    “His heart attack was a total shock. He’s only fifty-seven and keeps himself in good shape. I couldn’t believe it when the hospital called and said he was in coronary care.” She willed her lower lip not to tremble. “I can’t help thinking it might have been stress-related.”
    “You think worry over this situation is one of the reasons he’s in hospital?” He gave her a thoughtful look.
    “As far as I know, heart disease doesn’t run in the family. He doesn’t smoke and only drinks socially. What else could it be?”
    “You’ve got me.” Logan frowned. “But the one thing that’s guaranteed to make him feel worse is knowing you’re out there on your own. We’re going to sit tight and wait until he recovers. Then we’ll find out exactly what’s going on and how we can deal with it.”
    Ellie hesitated, then nodded reluctantly, unable to stop frustration and helplessness creasing her face.
    ***
    Maybe he’d pegged her wrong. He studied the blonde thoughtfully. “Borrowing” his car was something he hadn’t expected her to do. Nor was arguing with him. He was used to his team members respecting his decisions.
    Hell. He wasn’t a SEAL anymore.
    He had to remember that Ellie had never been in the military. She was an artist. His brief relationships in the past hadn’t brought him into contact with one of those before. But she wasn’t a flighty, wispy girl.
    She was real. And curvy. His groin