Millionaire in a Stetson Read Online Free PDF Page B

asked, half relieved, half distressed at having to wait even longer to bare her soul.
    “In the barn. Lame horse. The vet’s out there.”
    “Is everything okay?”
    “It’s not serious,” said Katrina. “Just interesting.” She paused. “For them.”
    Despite herself, Niki couldn’t help but smile at Katrina’s grimace. It was no secret that while the rest of the Terrell and Jacobs families were horse crazy, Katrina was afraid of the animals.
    Katrina pointed to a bottle of merlot on the table in front of her. “Join me? I’m on Asher duty.” She glanced up at an open, second-floor window.
    “Sure.” Alcohol sounded like a good idea. Maybe putting off the confession wasn’t the worst thing in the world. There was every chance it would be easier after a glass of wine.
    Katrina rose, selecting a second glass from the table and pouring the deep, red liquid.
    Then she turned and paused on Niki’s expression. “Everything okay?”
    Niki’s stomach tightened. “It’s fine. Why?”
    Katrina handed her the glass. “For a second there, you reminded me of Reed.”
    “You think I look like Reed?” Niki sure hoped not. While Reed was a ruggedly handsome man, he was all male, totally masculine.
    “Every once in a while, I can see it around the eyes, and the way you purse your lips. He does that when he’s worried.” Katrina considered her for a long moment. “It reminds me that he inherited some things from his father.”
    “I really don’t see a resemblance between us,” Niki responded honestly.
    She’d searched each of her brothers’ features on more than one occasion, and she’d never been able to identify any similarities.
    Katrina eased back down into her chair, gesturing for Niki to take the seat next to her. “It’s more an expression than a specific feature. But don’t tell Reed he looks anything like his father.” She tossed back her hair and took a sip of her wine.
    Niki followed suit, letting the warmth of the alcohol flow through her stomach and send an almost instant shot of relaxation into her veins.
    “I doubt I’d get the chance,” said Niki. “They never say much about Wilton.”
    She hadn’t wanted to pry, and aside from pointing their father out in a couple of pictures, and having initially expressed their complete and utter disbelief that he might have cheated on their mother, both Reed and Caleb had kept their thoughts to themselves.
    “They never will,” Katrina said softly, her eyes clouding.
    “I take it you know why?”
    “I do. It’s complicated. They had a very strained relationship.”
    Niki was sorry, if not completely surprised to hear it. There was obvious tension whenever Wilton was mentioned.
    “Does it hurt them to have me here?” she couldn’t help but ask.
    “What?” Katrina seemed surprised by the question. “No. Of course not. This is your home.”
    Niki gave a sad smile at the irony. “It’s not my home. I’m little more than a stranger to you all.”
    “No more a stranger than I am,” said Katrina.
    “You were born here,” Niki returned. “Your sisters and brothers are here.”
    “So are yours.”
    “It’s not the same thing.”
    The idea that Katrina could ever be considered a stranger to the Jacobs and Terrell families was preposterous. Even if she had spent many years at boarding school in New York City, Katrina had been the youngest Jacobs daughter her entire life. Everybody knew her. Everybody loved her.
    “I spend most of my life away from here,” said Katrina, continuing to sip her way through the glass of wine.
    Niki was grateful, but she wasn’t buying it. “I appreciate you trying to make me feel better.”
    “That’s not what I’m doing. Well, maybe a little bit. It’s obvious something’s wrong. Are you feeling bad because you don’t know much about Wilton?”
    “I don’t need to know much.” Niki downplayed her curiosity. She desperately wished she knew more about her father, good or bad.
    “The negativity