The Sunstone Brooch : Time Travel Romance Katherine Logan (no david read aloud TXT) 📖

your ass or present the information in a way that compels you to act. And it wasn’t long after that book was released that she sold the ranch.

“You have a dark side, Austin. If you can harness it, you’ll go from good to unstoppable.”

“You are a damn shrink.”

“No, but I do read a lot,” she said quickly and then moved on to another topic. “So tell me this, if Remy and Tavis had asked you to go with them, what would you have done?”

“Told them to go to hell.”

This was her chance to tell Austin the truth and confess that she was the editor who rejected his manuscript. She opened her mouth, but closed it again. She couldn’t do it. If she told him the truth, it would destroy the delicate balance between them. He’d go back to being ugly and cussing at her. And she liked this version of him—a lot.

He took one of the stones from her and threw it. The damn thing skipped four times before it sank. Was there anything he couldn’t do?

Yeah, play basketball.

He took another stone from her. “It’s beautiful here. I can see why you love it.”

“It’s a serene prairie paradise full of natural wonders.”

“That sounds like a marketing tagline.”

“It does, doesn’t it? But it’s true. It has all four seasons, and it’s a leader in the agriculture industry and aerial drone development.”

He laughed. “Really? Aerial drones?”

“Yep, and look at the sky. Even in the twenty-first century, light pollution is almost nonexistent in this area. You have unfettered views of the stars, just like tonight.”

He glanced up. “It’s a beautiful sky.” And then he looked at her, and what she saw in his eyes took her breath away. It was an unbridled need, and she stepped back, almost gulping for air.

“Here,” she managed to say and held her palm open so he could take the remaining three stones. Her rock-skipping was off tonight. And she wanted to keep him talking so he wouldn’t look at her like that again. “Where’s home for you now?”

“I left New York City to attend a special high school in Napa. Then the University of Kentucky recruited me, and I moved to Lexington. And then I was drafted by Golden State and moved to San Francisco. Then I was traded to the Cavs. Since the accident, I’ve been rehabbing at the family ranch near Denver.”

He took the last stone, rubbing his thumb across her healed palm, and the brief touch tingled across her skin.

She cleared her throat. “Is the accident a touchy subject, or can I ask about it?”

“I had a motorcycle accident,” he said as if he still couldn’t believe it.

“Yikes.”

“I lost control of the bike. My mind flew through the options. I could jump off and probably break something or stay on and take my chances on a minor injury. I was wrong. I could have broken a leg and been out for a season instead of having a possibly career-ending injury.”

She reached up and put her hand on his arm, which was almost the diameter of her waist. “I’m sorry. When you have to make a split-second decision, you’ve got a fifty-fifty chance of getting it wrong.”

“Maybe, but I don’t see you having to make a split-second decision that could tear your body, and your life, to shreds.”

“Not anymore, but I participated in more rodeos than I care to remember and have constant pain in my hip.”

He looked like she’d sucker-punched him. “Rodeos? Like bucking broncs and roping bulls? Nah. Don’t believe it.”

She nodded. “Yep. Dumb, huh?”

He gave her one of his sexy half grins. “Yeah, pretty dumb, especially for someone as smart as you.”

“What makes you think I’m so smart?”

“Because you told me I’d used fuck as a verb, adjective, subject, object, noun, gerund, predicate, and even an appositive! I don’t know many people who are familiar with all those parts of speech.”

She chuckled. “How in the world did you remember that?”

“I have a pretty good recall and,” he said with a grin, “I also have two degrees—one in accounting and one in creative writing.”

No wonder he was such a good writer. The logical thing to ask at this point in the conversation was, “Have you written anything for publication?” But she wasn’t about to bring it up.

“Earning two degrees while playing college sports, that’s impressive.”

TR came through the trees, making enough noise to wake all the nocturnal animals that weren’t already awake. “It’s late, Mrs. Fraser. We’ll be up early.”

“Hi, Teddy. You’re right. The evening got away from me.” She looped her arm with his. “Goodnight, Austin.”

“’Night, cousin.”

She and TR walked along the river on their way back to their campsite. “Mr. O’Grady seems like a nice fellow. He’s certainly a good backgammon player,” TR said.

“I haven’t spent much time around him, but I think you’re right. He’s recently gone through a rough patch. This roundup might be good for him.”

“Norman said there was a third man who took your horse. What happened?”

“Tavis was worried about JC, so he rode back to Medora to send a telegram to his family’s farm. Since he’d already ridden so hard, I offered to switch horses. He didn’t want to at first, but then realized it made sense.”

TR scratched the side of his face, squinting. “He rode Tesoro? That’s a surprise.”

“Yeah, I know. But Tavis mounted him and rode off as if he’d been doing it for years. He plans to meet up with us tomorrow night.”

“Do they want you to leave?” TR asked.

She glanced back to where they left Austin. “They do, but I’m not ready to go.”

TR turned to face her. “I don’t want to sound improper, but I do enjoy your company, and I’m looking forward to the time we have here. I hope you’ll stay.”

The shadow of a tree in the moonlight hid his face, and he stepped farther back into it, as if he was suddenly shy, or feeling guilty, or even embarrassed by what he just confessed. It was a gesture