Should've Been a Cowboy Read Online Free PDF Page A

now.”
    “Yeah, she’s talked about going to high school in Jackson.” Alex paused to pick up Tyler’s flowered suitcase and she grabbed her black leather purse before they headed up the winding staircase to the second floor. “So you didn’t fall in love with the place?”
    “We were only in Shoshone for about six months. I was thirteen and miserable because I had to wear hand-me-downs to school. I wasn’t paying much attention to my surroundings.”
    “That’s a tough age. I don’t know if anybody’s happy at thirteen.” He was willing to bet she’d been a knockout, though, even at thirteen and wearing hand-me-down clothes. “So what do you think of the area now?”
    “It’s beautiful. And Morgan’s so happy here.”
    “So’s my sister Josie. She came out on a skiing trip and made the decision to move. I wouldn’t have discovered this place if she hadn’t come here first.”
    “And now she’s married to Jack. Were you the DJ for the reception then, too?”
    “I was. They got married, along with Nick and Dominique, in early October.” But there had been no Tyler O’Connelli on the dance floor that night, no woman stirring him up and tempting him with hayloft sex. “Like Sarah said, we barely beat the snow, but now all the Chance men are hitched.”
    “Wow.” Tyler laughed. “Must be something in the water.”
    “Yeah, you might want to stick with bottled.”
    “No kidding. Does Josie still own the Spirits and Spurs bar in Shoshone?”
    “She does.” They reached the top of the stairs. “To your left.” He gestured in that direction. “Now that Josie lives out on the ranch, she’s not constantly at the bar, but she loves that place and I think she likes having her own income, too.”
    “I sure get that.” Tyler’s voice grew more animated. “I would never be financially dependent on a man. My mother and father seem to have worked it out, but sometimes I wonder if she’d had her own money whether she might have vetoed some of his crazy ideas.”
    Alex filed that statement away as a valuable insight into Tyler’s attitude. She wanted to maintain control over her life, and he admired that, too.
    He paused beside the doorway into Gabe’s room on the right side of the hall. “This is it. Home sweet home for the next five fun-filled nights.” Probably shouldn’t have said that, either, but it was cruise lingo and…okay, he was flirting, even if she wasn’t.
    She glanced up at him. “And where is your room?”
    He pointed across the hall.
    “Oh.”
    He put her suitcase on the floor. “Look, Tyler, that wasn’t my idea. There are some plumbing issues in the other wing, like Sarah said.”
    “I know. I just—”
    “You just wanted to pay a surprise visit to your sister,” he said gently. “You didn’t count on dealing with me, and you certainly didn’t expect me to be sleeping across the hall.”
    “Right.” Relief softened her dark eyes. “Thanks for understanding.”
    “Oh, I understand, all right. I’m as conflicted about this situation as you are.”
    “Because of your ex? Are you still—”
    “Hell, no, I’m not still hung up on Crystal.” He looked into her eyes and figured the truth would work as well as anything. “But I’m afraid I might get hung up on you.”
    Her pupils darkened and her full lips parted. Then she glanced away, as if she wanted to cancel that involuntary reaction.
    Too late. He’d seen desire flare in her eyes and it had created a predictable response in him. He hoped she wouldn’t notice the bulge in his jeans. “Are you afraid you’ll get hung up on me?”
    Her breathing quickened, making the turquoise fabric covering her breasts quiver. A turquoise pendant nestled in her cleavage and silver-and-turquoise drop earrings peeked through her dark curls. Her outfit was sexy, but he knew that had nothing to do with him. She hadn’t expected to see him today.
    The dress, the shoes, the jewelry, the hair—they were an expression of