Her throat tightened, and she struggled to speak. “Does Coop live here full-time?”

“No, he has a caretaker for his mother, but we fly out whenever we can.”

She exhaled slowly. “If I owned this place, I’d live here full-time.”

“Really, you’d give up the rat race and move here?”

“Yeah, I would. I never wanted to be in politics, Jag.”

He touched a strand of her hair, running it through his fingers. She shivered again, remembering the way he touched her body with those rugged hands of his. “What is it you wanted to do?”

“I wanted to be a teacher.”

“What did you want to teach?”

“It didn’t really even matter.” Sadness moved through her. “I just love kids and love being around them.”

“And now?”

She gave him a playful wink, not wanting to think about a life without her own kids. “Now, I think I’d like to be a cowgirl.”

Jag laughed. “Well, you came to the right place for that. And wouldn’t you just know it? We have children’s camps here at the end of the summer. Cowgirl instructors are always needed. That would certainly kill two birds with one stone.”

“What about you?”

“What about me?”

“Did you ever think about living here full-time?”

He shrugged easily. “Sure, I can work anywhere. I can hunt down cheaters in any city.”

“Then why don’t you?”

He pointed to the large homestead by the lodge. “Because that’s a big old lonely house to be in by yourself. It needs kids, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, I do.”

She looked at the house and pictured herself living in it. She’d have to freshen up that paint, of course, and it really did need a little garden out back, and that rail, well, every child needed a rail to slide down and that one wasn’t safe at all. She closed her hand over her stomach and felt a maternal pull. She quickly stopped herself from fantasizing. She couldn’t have kids, and in less than a week she’d be leaving here, heading back home to pick up the pieces of her life and figure out what was next. Jag didn’t exist in that reality, and she’d be wise to remember that.

“Hey, are you okay?” he asked, turning her to face him.

Concern danced in his eyes as they moved over her face. “Nelson wanted kids,” she said, baring her soul. “I couldn’t give them to him.”

He feathered his thumb over her cheek, brushing away a tear. “Alix? What’s wrong?”

“Last year the doctor said my chances of conceiving were slim.”

“There are other ways to have children.”

She snorted. “Yeah, like having sex with someone else?”

He frowned. “What?”

“Nelson wasn’t just cheating, Jag. He had a baby on the way.”

His eyes turned a darker shade of brown as he shook his head. “Nelson’s an asshole. You do realize that, don’t you?”

She nodded. “I don’t know why I just told you that.”

“Because he hurt you.”

“Maybe,” she said. “Or maybe because you’re easy to talk to, easy to be with…easy to trust.”

Her words seemed to trigger a reaction in him. He pulled her closer, and the tenderness that moved over his face did the strangest things to her insides. “He’s never going to hurt you again, Alix. Not if I have anything to do with it.”

She shook her head; the warmth and comfort he offered were like a healing balm to her soul. She snuggled into him. “It’s strange, really. I’m more angry than hurt. Angry that I’ve wasted so many years on him, all because I needed to play the role my mother assigned to me.”

He captured her hand. “Don’t waste any more time thinking about him, not when there are so many other important things to think about.”

“Yeah, like what?” She smiled up at him and felt a connection that went beyond their agreement of a weeklong affair. She’d crossed an imaginary line in the sand with him, and was treading on dangerous territory, one that could end in more tears.

This is so not good. So not good at all.

“Like me.” He gave her a boyish, lopsided grin. “And all the things you want to do today.”

“Okay.”

A noise sounded, and they both turned to see Colt climb out of his tent. Looking rugged, sexy, and sleepy, he stretched out his arms, tossed a blade of grass into his mouth, and said, “Mornin’.”

“Morning,” she and Jag greeted in return. A second later, two Barbie-doll blond women dressed in sexy short shorts and bikini tops came crawling out behind him. With sun-kissed skin, collagen-pumped lips, and manicured nails that belonged nowhere near a ranch, they gave Jag a once-over.

Feeling a sting of jealousy, Alix said, “I think I need to go back to the lodge for a shower.”

“That’s what the river is for,” Colt said.

“I think I’ve roughed it enough for one day,” she responded as Jag pulled her tight against him, draping a possessive arm around her that made her feel cherished, special—something she’d never felt before. “I need a real shower.”

“That’s no way to get an authentic Old West experience. Isn’t that right, girls?” Colt asked, grinning as the two women flanked him, touching his body intimately.

“No way at all,” one of them cooed.

“Don’t worry.” Alix looked at Jag and exchanged a hot, knowing look. “I’m getting all the cowboy experience a girl could ask for.”

Since this was a working dude ranch, Jag’s chore for the day included leading a group of guests on a horseback-riding adventure. He’d cleaned himself up and grabbed a bite to eat, then met a ranch hand, Blake Callahan, inside one of the many barns. A half hour earlier, he’d left Alix in her room, giving her some time to herself, not only because she needed it, but because he needed it, too.

In the few short days she’d been here, she’d totally rocked his world. He had a feeling they’d be good together, but he was falling harder than he ever thought he could. Christ, if she left here without so much as looking back, it would kill him as quick as Katy’s weapon.

“Hey,” Blake greeted with a tip of his Stetson. “Thought we’d catch up with you at Wrangler’s last night, but I ran into Taylor and Amanda, and they said you had your hands full.”

Jag grinned. “You could put it that way.”

Blake lifted a curious brow. “Oh yeah, who is she?”

Jag tossed his saddle onto his stallion and casually rolled one shoulder. “You wouldn’t know her.”

Blake shook his head. “Damn, there must be something in the water.” He shook his canteen, then set it aside. “I think I’d better find something else to drink. Otherwise, I might end up whipped like you, Coop, and Mac.”

Jag laughed. “There are worse things than being whipped.”

“Well now, that depends on what kind of whipping you’re referring to,” he said in a lazy drawl. “The kind I’m referring to has a ball and chain attached.”

“One of these days, Blake,” Jag began as he finished saddling the stallion, “you’ll find the right girl, and you’ll know what it’s all about.”

“Well, until then, I think I’m just going to have me some fun.” He gestured with a nod over Jag’s shoulder. “Now there’s a little filly who looks like she’s ready for a good time.”

Jag angled his head to see Alix. “She is, but not with you.” He jabbed his thumb into his chest. “That filly is mine, and I’m not into sharing. Not anymore.”

Turning from Blake, Jag walked to the doorway, wrapped one arm around Alix’s waist, and dragged her close. Her body melted against his, and he planted a hard kiss on her mouth, letting Blake know in no uncertain terms that this one was a keeper, and his days of playing were over.

A catcall whistle came from Blake, and Alix pulled back. Confusion moved over her face. “What was that?”

“That, cowgirl,” he said slowly, “was just the beginning.”

“The beginning?”

“Yeah, once I’m done with my chores, I have a surprise for you.”

“Oh, really?” Heat moved over her face, and he inched back when all the guests started filing into the barn for their afternoon ride. Then she crinkled her nose, like she just remembered something distasteful. “I don’t like surprises anymore.”