Read Forever's Affection (Forever In Luck Series Book 3) for Free Online Page A

interrupted,
stopping the fight that was sure to follow.
    Looking
at her perturbed, Kris replied with the obvious, “A little tough to do when she
won’t answer personal questions.” Reaching for the rhubarb jam, he spread some
on his toast.
    Jake
shook his head at his apparent ignorance. “Don’t ask, doofus ,
look around her. See what she’s involved in and take an interest, you’re bound
to find common ground somewhere.”
    Kris
sat back in his chair and looked around the table in frustration. “Gosh, I
thought flowers or candy maybe, tell her she looked
pretty, or something else as equally nauseating.”
    Everyone
started shaking their heads, even his dad, and that was saying something.
    “Umm,
Kris, from the way things went yesterday, I don’t think she’d appreciate that,”
Jules answered. “Plus it seems too soon. You’re going to have to take it real
slow, it’s going to take some finesse, I think.”
    “I
don’t do slow,” he grumped, “and what the hell is finesse when it comes to a
woman?”
    Jules
answered with a kind smile. “Use of skill and tact in dealing
with a delicate situation.”
    Nik
laughed with glee, then said smugly. “Basically, your weakest area.”
    The
twerp was going to get it when the girls weren’t around.
    “I’m
with Jules,” Linnie added. “Think about it. I don’t think the tough girl
thing’s an act, she was pretty quick and savvy with the responses yesterday,
and as such, why would that be? I think she’s had to be tough, or risk being
taken advantage of and maybe still was.”
    Okay,
so the thought of that helped to put the brakes on things. He couldn’t help but
remember the scar on her cheek.
    “Besides,”
Nik spoke up, “you don’t tell a good looking woman they’re pretty, they hear
that come on all the time. And in her case, I guarantee you she’d hate being
valued for her looks. But if you decide to go for it, let me know first, I want
to be there to see her take you down, maybe get some pictures.”
    Why
did he have to have brothers? “Very funny. Okay then,
since you’re so smart, what do you say to a beautiful woman?”
    Grabbing
a hunk of meat, Nik answered, “Easy, you tell them how smart you find them, or
how talented they are, and talk about the details like you mean it. She’s so smart, she’d see a con artist a mile away.”
    “How
would you know?”
    Nik
knocked on his head with his knuckles. “Learned the hard way
on that one.”
    Taking
a drink of his coffee, Kris tried making things out like it was no big deal.
“Yeah, I don’t know, I’m thinking it’s probably not worth the hassle.”
    Jake
and Nik fell back in their chairs laughing, knowing better. “Giving up
already,” Jake asked, with a telltale grin. “I always knew you were a pansy.”
    Giving
him the bird, Kris looked across the table. “How about you Dad, what wealth of
knowledge do you have to offer?”
    Chewing
on his toothpick, his dad sat contemplating, then answered, “Listen to Jules and Linnie. Some of the best times your mother and I
ever had were spent just sitting together quietly or going for a walk. With
Dani it would seem that less is better. I do wonder though, she’s pretty young
to move away from everything and everyone she knows, and take on the
responsibilities of a ranch all alone, albeit a small one. Seen a lot in my
time, but something tells me there’s more to the story here, and given her
behavior...” He shook his head a little and took a drink of his coffee. “I
pretty much see red flags all over this one.”
    Well,
couple that with what Linnie had said, and Kris pretty much came to a complete
stop. Could she be on the run? “I’ll finish up with the morning chores and head
over there. We picked up supplies for a new fence yesterday and I’m sure she
wants me to put it up.” Well, at least he thought she wanted his help.
    “Head
on over there now,” his dad answered. “Help her out, see if you can get a handle on what’s