Read The Rancher's Marriage Pact for Free Online Page B

Once he reached the kitchen, he found Jenny loading the last of the dishes into the washer. “What in the hell did you put in those drinks?”
    Jenny turned toward him and had the gall to look surprised. “Why, honey, just the usual. A little mint, some sugar and water, bourbon. And maybe a touch of tequila.”
    That explained a lot. “You added tequila on top of the bourbon?”
    She didn’t bother to look contrite. “Yes. It gives the julep that special kick everyone raves about.”
    â€œIt kicked my date right into drunk mode.”
    Jenny grinned. “Your date?”
    â€œGuest,” he corrected, although he didn’t see much point in getting the details right.
    â€œMaybe I put a little too much alcohol into the drink,” she said, “but I thought it would help Paris relax.”
    â€œHell, she’s relaxed all right. She’s passed out in my bed.”
    â€œThen why are you in here?”
    He was asking himself that same question. “Because there is no way I’m going to seduce a woman who’s intoxicated.”
    Jenny leaned back against the counter. “Of course you wouldn’t, sugar. You’re too good for that. However, she won’t be drunk in the morning.”
    Of all the confounded suggestions. “I’m going to check on Paris and then I’m going upstairs.”
    â€œI’ll have a nice breakfast waiting for the two of you in the morning.”
    â€œGreat.”
    Without further comment, Dallas turned around and nearly ran into his other stepmother. “’Night,” he muttered, looking for a quick escape.
    Maria had other ideas, he realized, when she grabbed his arm. “Why is the woman still here?”
    He didn’t have the energy to explain. “Ask Jenny,” he said as he brushed past her and headed toward his bedroom.
    Once there, he opened the door to find Paris curled up on her side, the covers shoved to the end of the bed. She’d stripped down to a white strapless bra and damn if she hadn’t taken off her skirt, giving him a prime view of a pair of lacy, black panties.
    Damn, damn, damn...
    He should probably turn tail and run, but he worried about leaving her all night in her current state. He could crawl in next to her, or he could be the man Maria had raised him to be. A gentleman.
    With that in mind, he strode into the bathroom, dressed in his boxers and a T-shirt, then prepared to sleep in the lounger. But before he settled in for the duration, he paused a few moments to study the gorgeous woman in his bed.
    With her arm crooked beneath her head, her hair a sexy, tangled mess, she looked somewhat innocent in sleep, and someone he wouldn’t mind waking up to in the morning. He liked her wit, her brain and her body. Definitely her body. Too bad he hadn’t met her a year ago, when he still had time to court a woman in an effort to meet his match, and circumvent the terms of the will.
    But unfortunately that time had passed, and unless he wanted to propose to someone he’d met only a few hours ago, he could just let go of that pipe dream. Then something suddenly occurred to him. Something the mothers had suggested.
    Nah. That would be too weird, not to mention she would never agree to it.
    Following a quick shower, Dallas took one last look at the pretty lady, turned off the lights and kicked back in the lounge chair. He still had trouble shutting down his thoughts for several reasons, including the damned deadline on the will. He’d be better served if he accepted his fate—his youngest brother would have controlling interest over the ranch. Short of a miracle, that would come to pass. Unless...
    Maybe the harebrained idea could work if he handled it right. If he made it worth Paris’s while. Or she could laugh in his face and leave. Still, it couldn’t hurt to ask, if he found the courage to do it. Hell, he’d ridden some of the rankest bulls in the