Damn it. He had to get that out of his head. His hands fisted in frustration. They weren’t doing that anymore. They were going to be perfectly normal from now on. They weren’t going to scare off good prospects with their perverse needs. It had been a year since the last time they had played out their ménage fantasies. Rye had tried dating without him. He’d seen some girl from Creede for a while, but broke it off. Max hadn’t dated at all. He’d buried himself in work. Rachel was the first girl to catch Max’s interest.
Don’t you fool yourself. You aren’t interested in Rachel. You’re half in love with her. For the first time in his thirty-one years, he was falling in love.
“Are you even listening to me, Max?” Rye’s voice cut through Max’s thoughts. “And what the hell is going on around here? This burger is actually edible. It’s nice and juicy. What’s wrong with this picture?”
This was why he wished Rye was still far, far away. Max tried hard not to flush. He needed to play this very cool. “They just got the order wrong. It’s no big deal.”
Rye’s mouth hung open for a minute. “Do we need to call in a doctor? Wait a minute. Is Stella still alive, or did you stuff her body in the trash compactor? I have ways of finding out these things, you know.”
Max pointed to the counter. “Stella’s alive and well and trying to talk Mel out of his latest paranoid fantasy.”
It was a mistake. Max realized it the moment he said it. Rachel stood right beside her boss. Those big green eyes were even bigger than usual as she stared at the two of them. For a moment, she looked like a kid who’d found the last cupcake on the planet. Then she obviously realized they were looking back because she suddenly looked intently interested in wiping down the counter.
Max turned to his brother, and sure enough, Rye’s face had gone slack. “No,” Max said. He set his jaw stubbornly. “I saw her first.”
Rye didn’t bother to look back at his brother. He just stared at the beauty with strawberry blonde hair. “But I saw her best, Max. You got a date with her, yet?”
“No, I’m working my way up to it,” Max explained, trying to salvage the situation. “There’s something up with her. She’s very nervous.”
Rye’s smile was brimming with self-assurance as he stood up and straightened his jacket. “You make a lot of women nervous, Max. Watch how it’s done, Big Brother.”
“Damn it, Rye.” But his twin was already making his way to the counter. Max stood up and followed. He was going to beat the crap out of the town sheriff if he scared Rachel off.
“Hello there, sweetheart.” Rye poured on the charm.
Stella snorted and muttered something under her breath before walking off to check the kitchen.
Max watched as Rachel really looked at his brother for the first time. He noticed her mouth tighten as she took in his uniform. It was another clue. He’d wondered if she was running from something. She had that look. He needed to make her comfortable, and then she would tell him what was wrong. He’d fix it, and they could have raucous sex to celebrate her freedom from whatever was bugging her. That was his plan. Now his brother was fucking up his perfectly fine plan.
“What can I get for you, Officer?” Rachel pulled out her ever-present notepad and a little pen. She was very professional.
Rye was not. “Oh, I think I can come up with a few things you could get me. How about your phone number? That way I can call you, and we can plan out our date.”
Max was satisfied when Rachel looked completely unmoved by his brother’s charm. “I don’t have a phone.”
Rye’s eyebrows shot up. “What do you mean you don’t have a phone? Everybody’s got a phone, darlin’. Most people have at least two.”
“I don’t have one,” she said dully. Max didn’t like the look in her eyes. It was like all the life in them had fled at the sight of Rye’s badge. “Is that a crime, Officer?”
“It’s Sheriff.” Now Rye’s voice held a little uncertainty. Max knew it had been a long time since a girl turned down Sheriff Ryan Harper. Max watched as the doubt in Rye’s face dissolved, and he gave her his high-wattage grin. “My name is Ryan Harper, but everyone calls me Rye. I see you’ve met my brother.”
She nodded at Max, but it was a polite thing. It held none of the shy curiosity from before. He was going to bash his brother’s skull in.
“Is there anything you wanted from the kitchen, Sheriff Harper?” Rachel asked. “I have other customers waiting.”
Rye scratched his head, and Max saw the moment he decided to retreat. “No, darlin’. I just wanted to say hello. It was nice to meet you.” His eyes flashed to her name tag. “Rachel. If you have any trouble, you give me a call, okay?”
Max followed Rye back to the table, where he sat down. His brother looked thoughtful as he munched on the burger he’d stolen. Max ate the fries as he waited for Rye’s brain to work through the problem.
“That girl’s in trouble, bro,” Rye finally said.
“No shit, Sherlock.” Max was damn glad there weren’t many crimes to solve in Bliss.
“Damn.” Rye sighed. “I hate it when I have to arrest someone that fine.”
Max tried to pin his brother with his most intimidating stare. “You are not arresting her, you understand me? If she’s done something, then I’ll take care of it. How bad could it possibly be? She can’t weigh more than 110 pounds. I don’t see her committing a bunch of violent crimes at her size.”
“Yeah.” Rye stared at Rachel as she took orders from a table of tourists. “She’s really pretty, but she could use a couple of decent meals.”
“You should have seen her two weeks ago.”
She’d been sickly thin. At first, Max wondered if she was one of those girls who eschewed food in order to look as skinny as possible. Her first break had set that out of his mind. Waitresses at Stella’s ate for free one meal per shift. Rachel had inhaled a chicken salad sandwich and a bowl of vegetable soup. She’d practically cried when Stella set a piece of chocolate pie in front of her. He’d wanted to scoop her up, take her back to the house, and make sure she never missed another meal again.
“She’s running then?” Rye asked.
“I think so.” Max could use his brother’s help on that part. Rye had resources that Max didn’t. If Rachel was on the run from something, it would be good to know what might come after her.
Rye nodded. “I’ll see what I can turn up. You really like this girl?”
“I do,” Max said quietly. It was odd to think about seeing a woman without Rye. Rachel was special, though. He had to see where it was going.
Rye was quiet for a long time. His blue eyes were sad as he turned back to his brother. “I’ll back off, then. I just want you to be happy, man.”
Rye was quiet as he finished off the burger. Max put down the fries. He took another drink and contemplated his situation. His twin was sometimes more like the other half of himself than a brother. He wondered if he could ever be happy as half a man.
Chapter Two
Rachel breathed a sigh of relief as Jen finished ringing up Max Harper. He tipped his hat toward her, and then he and his brother walked out the door. Jen immediately turned and joined her at the counter. Stella was hot on Jen’s heels.
“That man is crazy about you.” Stella slapped her well-manicured hand on the counter.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. He’s just a customer.” Rachel felt the slightest bit cornered.
“Just a customer?” Jen asked. “He’s practically become a tenant. He’s eaten breakfast, lunch, and dinner here every day for two weeks.”