Page 23 of Disarming The Rancher

Brax took her hand in his. “Think about it. You can go somewhere else, but your fans will find you. They’ve already proven how quickly that can happen.”

He was saying all the right things to make her pause and think about it.

“I’m afraid we’d be in the way,” she hedged but it was a lame excuse. This place was massive.

“You and the guys could take over the west wing of the main house. I’ll grab a room next door to yours, so we’d have a wall in between us,” he continued. The spark in his eyes said he knew he was making progress with her. Why did he have to have such pure blue eyes? And be so damn tempting?

“I mean, it’s possible. It could work. I have a few songs due or we’ll have to push back my next album’s release. That’ll upset a whole lot of people, and I hate the idea of letting down my fans.” Could she stay at the Firebrand Ranch? The guys in the band would love it here. No question. They’d each have their own room—which she knew they’d see as a definite plus—and there was enough security that Hardy would have backup.

“I’d have to talk it over with the guys…my security guy would have to give final approval.” She didn’t want to make Hardy’s job any harder than it already was.

“Does that mean you’ll seriously consider it?” Again, that spark in his eyes made turning down his offer next to impossible.

But it didn’t change the fact that she wasn’t sure that she could sleep in the room next to his without wanting to knock on his door…

8

“I’ll talk it over with the guys,” Raleigh promised and Brax’s heart stirred. Being the one to ease her fears felt a little too right.

“Invite ’em over now for Mom’s meatballs,” he said. “That would seal the deal.”

She laughed and his chest swelled with pride at being the one to break some of the tension for her in what had to be one helluva week.

“I’ll call and see what they say.” She let go of his hand and fished her cell phone out of her back pocket.

As she walked away, he had to force his gaze off her sweet, round bottom.

Great job keeping it in check, buddy.

What could he say? Raleigh had grown into a beautiful woman. She had always been sharp and smart women were sexy as hell. Her feistiness only added to her appeal. What was it about redheads?

Brax had a soft spot for a sexy, smart, feisty woman. Too bad Raleigh fit the bill to a T. He had no plans to settle down anytime soon but could see himself with someone like her at some point way down the road.

Of course, Raleigh would be long gone by then. Heck, she’d be out of Dodge in a week give or take, so there was no threat this attraction would go any further. It sure felt good for now. Inconvenient as all get out that he found himself drawn to someone he knew better than to try to date.

Besides, she was most likely propositioned every night of the week while on tour, which was practically all the time. He wasn’t certain his ego could take the hits.

She spun around with a smile on her face that would melt ice in the freezer. She nodded and he took it to mean she got approval. A few seconds later, she ended the call and tucked her phone in her back pocket. A pair of jeans and boots had never looked so good on a person. Legs that went on for days. Legs he could envision tangled in bedsheets on a lazy Sunday morning.

Brax gave himself a mental shake.

“I take it your security detail approves,” he said.

“Yes.” She walked right up to him and placed her hands on his chest. With a big smile, she said, “I love being at Nana’s but waking up to the scene right outside my window this morning wasn’t good. Being here is the next best thing and the first time I’ve felt truly safe in a very long time. So, thank you.”

Those words were the equivalent of standing next to a roaring campfire on a cold day.

“If you want me to stop kissing you, it would be a good idea to keep your lips as far away from mine as possible,” he teased.

“Who said I wanted to stop? I believe I said it can’t happen again. Two totally different things,” she quipped with a wink before heading toward the backdoor.

He stood there, mute. A whole bunch of unholy thoughts roared through his brain.

She stopped at the door and turned around.

“Are you coming with me, or are you set on standing out here all day?” she asked.

Brax bit down on his bottom lip to stop from saying the first thing that popped into his mind about what he’d like to do that involved her.