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here.
    â€œSo, I see you’ve started reading,” she said, not only trying to change the subject but needing very much something else to focus on. The way he was studying her, with eyes that said he saw more than she was comfortable with him seeing, made her all the more determined to appear natural. It was a trait she’d learned growing up when Ty was making home life horrible and her parents expected her to act in public as if everything was just fine.
    It was only that Seth looked concerned for her, and it touched her.
    But she wasn’t used to dragging her family matters out into the open. The fact that he’d seen tears in her eyes earlier couldn’t be helped, but she didn’t have to explain herself—not that it wouldn’t be nice to have someone to talk to sometimes.
    No—she was crazy to even consider talking to Seth. Shoving everything aside, she resumed reading where she’d left off and felt relief when Seth did the same.
    â€œSo, tell me why you suddenly got this idea to do all this research,” he said a heartbeat later.
    She looked up. “I’m a history buff, as I’m sure you’ve figured out,” she said, grateful for the question. “And I’ve been teaching Texas history for the last three years. That combined with the fact that I didn’t have anything to do for the summer…I came up with this idea to do research. I mean, I was living where all this unrecovered treasure is supposed to be buried. Of course, I had no idea this treasure—” she swept her hand to indicate the house “—was sitting out here until I started researching Hill Country stage stops.” Melody was surprised how easy it was to talk to Seth. She was still a little uncomfortable around him, but the fact that he’d come here today interested in her work had gone a long way in easing that tension. Odd, though, since he’d seen her tears.
    â€œSo that’s when you called my brother,” Seth said, his voice a low drawl.
    â€œNo. Technically I called you. And believe me it took more guts than—” What was she saying? Her thoughts were crazy.
    â€œGuts, huh? So you thought I was a bully before I drove out here and acted like one.”
    â€œ No. ” How could she tell him she didn’t want to callbecause he was Seth Turner? The man was “sweet” as her students would say. Not “sweet” as in nice, but “sweet” as in “sweet to look at.” On the other hand, with his dark hair, lean angular features and smolderingly intense eyes, “sweet” might not be the right term. The small scar at his temple only added a bit of danger.
    â€œNo?” He raised a brow.
    Was he upset? “I didn’t know you were a bully—” Oh, what was she saying? “Oh, goodness, that’s not what I meant.”
    His eyes crinkled, and he started to chuckle. Which made her laugh because he was laughing and suddenly everything seemed surreal and unbelievable. She, Melody Chandler, was sharing this moment with Seth Turner…and she liked him. There was just no way not to. “I meant I’m just shy. Okay. Calling you up took guts.”
    â€œOh, it did, did it?” He leaned back in his chair, hooking a arm over the back of the chair.
    He looked totally relaxed and completely wonderful. Her mouth went dry. “For me,” she croaked. “Because it was me being assertive.”
    â€œNow that I can believe.” His gaze settled on her fingers where she was unconsciously still rubbing the leather corner of the journal.
    Melody’s insides went soft— er when he looked at her with a flirtatious light in his eyes…no, phooey. That was total nonsense on her part. If the look could happen to be misconstrued as flirtatious, it was simply out of total sympathy. The man knew she’d been having some kind of trouble; he was just too much of a gentleman to be