She expected him to laugh. Instead, his gaze darted to the juncture of her thighs. "Don't grab me by the hair and shove my head under water for asking. Okay? One friend to another. Are you numb there?" Bethany wasn't sure how her face could turn so hot when she was still so cold otherwise, but somehow it did.

He immediately backtracked. "I'm sorry. Inappropriate question." He returned his attention to the water faucets, then checked the bath to see how hot it was. "Just curious, is all. You seem convinced you may not be able to have a normal physical relationship. If you've got any sensation at all there, I was just wondering why."

"For starters, I've been told flat-out by my doctor that I probably can't."

"Doctors can be wrong."

"I know, but given his reputation as a spinal specialist, his opinion carries a lot of weight. He's one of the best on the West Coast." Bethany trailed her fingertips over the surface of the water, keeping her gaze carefully averted. "Nerve damage is a strange thing. One nerve may work fine, but another nearby that's vital to the operation may be a dud. A bell with no ding, in other words?"

He chuckled. "Now, there's a way to put it." "However one puts it, who can say what I'll be able to feel or experience? I can only go by what Doctor Reicherton told me, which wasn't encouraging." He arched a dark eyebrow. "So you've never-you know-tried a solo flight to check things out yourself?"

Her gaze flicked back to his. "No. I, um-" She shrugged, feeling suddenly uncomfortable. How could she explain that she'd chosen to keep a lid on her sexuality? It made little sense to kindle physical needs and yearnings she might never be able to satisfy. "I haven't dated since my accident, and I guess I never saw much point in check-ing out the possibilities." She flashed him an impish smile. "Besides, one of my brothers nearly went blind from doing stuff like that."

He huffed with laughter. Then a ruddy flush crawled up his neck. It was his turn to avert his gaze. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked." He tested the water again. "I think that's about hot enough for now. What do you think?"

She thought he felt as uncomfortable with the conversation as she did, which had the odd effect of making her feel more relaxed. "It feels wonderful."

He shut off the faucets, then turned to sit on the floor beside the tub, his broad back braced against the creamy tile that went halfway up the wall. Lifting one knee to support a loosely bent arm, he settled a twinkling gaze on her.

She walked her fingertips down her thigh, stopping at her knee and then backtracking. When she glanced back up, he was tugging on his earlobe, a gesture she was fast coming to recognize as a nervous habit. "I honestly am sorry," he said huskily. "I don't know what possessed me to ask you such a thing. It's not really any of my business, and it was rude to pry."

She mulled that over for a moment. "I don't really mind your asking. I'm just not sure how to answer. It's sort of like living in town and owning a high-powered rifle. If you know you'll never have occasion to use it, you just lock it away somewhere safe and forget you've got it."

He smiled and nodded. "I can associate with that." He tugged on his ear again. "So ... tell me about your family. You and Jake seem very close. Do you have the same kind of relationship with your other brothers?"

Happy to change the subject, Bethany launched into a brief description of her siblings. "In a large family like ours, it's never easy being the youngest, and I think it was especially difficult being the only girl. Too many protectors. Someone was always watching after me. It took a lot of maneuvering on my part to get away with anything."

"I'm sure your folks appreciated your brothers' efforts."

"Oh, yes. They never had to worry about me much. When Jake went away to college, there was Zeke to take up the slack, and after he left, the twins were always breathing down my neck." "The veterinarians in progress." She nodded. "Next oldest was Hank, twenty-eight to my twenty-six. He was just close enough to me in age to be more of a friend than a pain in the neck. Occasionally he even aided and abetted." "And your folks? I've met your dad down at the store. He seems like a nice man. What's your mom like? I saw her from a distance last night. She looks like a sweetheart."

She is that." Bethany flattened a hand over her waist. "You have to know her to get the whole picture. She's- what are the words?-a plump nun in street clothes who just happens to be married and have six kids, all of whom she'll swear were magically dropped into Daddy's boot during the night while they were sleeping. Sometimes I almost think she believes it herself."

He laughed at the description. "I can tell by your expression that you love her a lot."

Bethany nodded. "She's a neat lady. Just a little naive. Daddy is from the old school, and he's always shielded her. Me, too, for that matter. He just wasn't quite as successful at the endeavor. If it had been left up to him, I would have been given information about the birds and the bees on a strictly need-to-know basis."

"That birds tweet and bees buzz?"

"Exactly. When we still had the ranch, he went to incredible pains to make sure I never saw the horses breeding." She flashed him a smile. "It caused me no end of difficulty."

"You sneaked to watch," he said with a knowing smile.

"Of course."

He shook his head. "Your poor dad. Raising you must have been a trial."

"For him or me? It can be incredibly stifling when you're daddy's little angel. If I had it to do over again, I would have been sexually active at twelve."

"Twelve? That terrifies me. Heidi's twelve."

"Who's Heidi?"

His eyes shimmered with fondness as he described Maggie's little sister. "She keeps asking me to wait until she's grown so she can marry me. She keeps me on my toes. I love her to death, and I don't want to wound her. At the same time, I don't want to encourage her, either. It's a fine line."

"She sounds darling."

"Yeah." The slash in his cheek deepened as he grinned. "Won't be long before the boys line up at the door. I'll have to go over to help Rafe kick butt." "I was so crazy about horses as a teenager that I wasn't much interested in boys until I met Paul. Maybe Heidi will be like that."

"Maybe. She wants to barrel race."

"Really?" Bethany's interest was piqued, and she was about to pursue the topic when he broke in with, "Speaking of Paul. How did it happen that you tied up with a kid that age who didn't know squat about kissing?"

"We were young, for one, and Paul was a minister's son and very devout. We mostly just-" She felt suddenly embarrassed and wondered how they'd ever gotten off on such a subject. "We were waiting until we got married."

His mouth hardened. "Too bad he didn't keep his fly zipped with your little friend. What was her name?"

"Nan. How'd you know about her?"

Something dark flickered in his eyes again, and he suddenly became unaccountably interested in the ceiling. "Their marriage was announced in the newspaper as I recall. Not exactly a state secret. Right?"

Bethany's nape prickled. "Why do guys always stare at the ceiling when they lie?"

His gaze dropped back to hers. "You have too many brothers."

"Jake?" she whispered. It wasn't really a question.

Ryan sighed. "You're very lucky, you know. Having an older brother who loves you so much. He'd fight a mountain lion for you, bare-handed." "He called to talk to you." He sighed again and said, "Damn. Me and my big mouth. I never meant to rat on him." He shook his head. "And, no, he didn't call. He showed up here Saturday night. We had a nice, long chat."

"Nice? You and Jake?"

"Well, it wasn't nice initially. But he settled down once we talked, and I convinced him my intentions toward you are honorable." "That we just want to be friends?" He smiled slightly. "Yeah. The best of friends. He's okay with that. He meant no harm by coming out here, you know. He's just watching out for you. I admire him for that."

"Stick around. Soon your admiration for him will know no bounds."

"I plan to," he assured her.

"Plan to, what?"

"Stick around."

Lying before the fire with his wife clasped in his arms, Keefe felt the tension in her body. After the intense lovemaking they'd just shared, he felt confident her mood wasn't due to lack of sexual gratification.

"What's wrong, Annie mine?" he asked, smoothing a hand over her hair and kissing her brow.

"A guilty conscience," she confessed. "I should have gone over to Ryan's. Normally, not interfering would be all well and fine, but 1 keep thinking about that poor girl. If she had another woman to help her, she'd feel much better."

"Hmm."

"Do you think I should run over?"

"It's so nice, lying here. A snowmobile ride doesn't sound appealing."

"You don't have to go."

He sighed. "And risk letting my wife drive off in the lake in a snowstorm?"

"I won't drive off in the lake. I know the way blindfolded."

Keefe pushed up on his elbow. "If I stay here, I'll miss getting to meet my new daughter-in-law."

"He hasn't married her yet."

Keefe chuckled. "Yeah, well... Ryan always has been slow to do things. He'll get around to it."

"Slow? By whose standards?"

"Kendrick standards. Been me, I would've had her to Reno and back already. Never have understood that boy. He thinks every damned thing half to death before he does it." Ann hugged his neck. "I'll let you go with me, under one condition." "What's that?" "Don't give him any advice." Keefe scowled. "Why not?" "Because he's managing just fine on his own, and I don't want him doing anything harebrained, like abducting her."

"I didn't abduct you."

"You pretended we were lost and kept me out in the wilderness for five days. If that's not abduction, what is it?"

"A damned smart move. By the time I got you home, you'd agreed to marry me. I saved myself weeks of frustration." He winked and grinned. "I also did you a big favor. By the time I took you home, you knew that skinny little college boy wasn't so hot, after all. There was also no question in your mind that I could take care of you, regardless of the situation."

"Ah, yes." Ann rolled onto her back, chuckled, and closed her eyes. "You even started a fire with two sticks. Remember that? Later I found out you had a cigarette lighter in your pocket the entire time." "I also had another blanket in my saddle pack."

"What?"

Keefe leaned over and kissed the end of her nose. "You heard me. I had two blankets."

Ann grabbed him by the ears. "You rotten, conniving scoundrel."

Relaxed from her bath, Bethany toasted in front of the fire while she waited for Ryan to return from the welding shop. From where she sat, she could gaze out the sliding glass doors at the falling snow, which created a pretty winter scene. The lake gleamed like polished black glass, its shores lined with thick stands of towering, snow-laden trees. Dusk had already descended, making everything look misty and ethereal near the ground, the shades of charcoal turning to soot against the sky.

Snuggling deeper in her chair, she savored the quietness, which gave her some thinking time to come to terms with her predicament. Not that this really qualified as a predicament. She'd had a wreck, and now she was stranded here for the night, a situation that had all the earmarks of a disaster for someone in a wheelchair. But so far, Ryan had seen to her every need and managed to do so in such a way that she felt cosseted rather than embarrassed.

Just as predicted, he had gotten her dressed with little difficulty. After lining her chair with a bath sheet, he had lifted her from the tub, set her on the terry, and left. She removed the wet T-shirt, dried off, and put on a fresh one. Then he had returned to help her into a pair of gray sweat-pants with elasticized cuffs and a drawstring waist, which had gone on as easily as her skirt and panties had come off. Her oversize ensemble was complemented by a gigantic pair of gray wool socks with red triangular patches at toe and heel.

After getting her dressed, he had pushed her into the great room to sit near the fire, tucked a sofa throw around her shoulders, and then moved some of the furniture to create wider traffic paths. Before leaving for the welding shop, he had fixed her a cup of hot cocoa. Considering the dire circumstances she'd faced less than two hours ago, Bethany felt as if she were caught up in a lovely dream, where nothing was quite as it should be.

Ryan. Thinking of him brought a smile to her lips. How many men would have thought to use a clothespin to keep her T-shirt from floating up? He was so sweet and wonderful.

"Yo! It's me!" a deep voice called out.

Bethany jumped with a start, then turned to see Ryan in the entry. "That was fast."

She no sooner spoke than she realized it wasn't Ryan after all, but a stranger who looked enough like him to be his twin. The man froze in his boot tracks, clearly as surprised to see her as she was him. When he jerked off his black Stetson, the melting snow on its brim sent droplets flying.

"Howdy. You must be Bethany." He brushed at the flakes on the sleeve of his lined denim jacket. "Sorry for dripping on the floor. I tried to shake off outside, but more snow just blew in under the porch overhang."

"You must be ..."

"Rafe. You met my wife Maggie last night."

Bethany nodded. "She's lovely."

"I think so." He finger-combed his hair, the gesture reminding her of Ryan. She'd heard that the Kendrick brothers closely resembled each other, but she hadn't realized until now that they were dead ringers. "I'm sorry for barging in on you." He glanced at her borrowed clothing. "I didn't know Ryan had company."

"Yes, well, it came as something of a surprise to Ryan as well." She quickly related the string of events that had led to her being there.

"You're not hurt, are you?"

"Not even a scratch. It really wasn't much of an accident. The worst of it was all the wrecks, making it difficult for anyone to come get me. Weather allowing, someone in my family will come collect me in the morning."

"I doubt Ryan's in any big hurry to get rid of you. More like, dancing to the snow gods."

"Pardon?"

A ruddy flush crept up his dark neck. He tugged on his ear, yet another gesture that reminded her of Ryan. "Noth-ing.

Cold air coming in the open doorway curled around Bethany's shoulders, and she drew the throw more snugly around her. Rafe snapped erect, reached to close the door, and then hesitated. "Do you care if I shut it?"

Bethany couldn't help but laugh. "No, please do. I've already been chilled to the bone once today."

"I'm sorry." He closed the door. "I just-well, you know-me being a stranger and all. I thought you might be leery. Leerious, as Sly would say." Bethany laughed. "I'm not the leerious type." Even with the jacket providing camouflage, she saw his shoulders relax. "No, I can see you're not. That's good. We don't stand much on ceremony."

"Most ranchers don't."

He grinned, the crooked twist of his mouth once again putting her strongly in mind of Ryan. "That's right. You're no stranger to cows, are you?"

"No, although it's been a long while since I've been around them. You look so much like Ryan, it's astounding."

"People do say we look a little alike."

"A little? You could pass for identical twins."

"Nah. I'm a lot better looking." The corners of his mouth twitched. "Maggie tells me so all the time."

"I'm sure she's speaking from the heart."

"And seeing through rose-colored glasses, to boot."

"We only chatted for a couple of minutes, but she left me with an impression of warmth and sincerity. I liked her immensely." "I like her a lot myself." He rested a shoulder against the door. Once again, the way he stood, with most of his weight on one long leg, reminded her of Ryan. He studied her for a moment, his gray-blue eyes seeming to miss nothing. Then he smiled slowly. "Where is Ryan, anyway? I'm surprised he's not joined to you at the hip."

"He's over at the welding shop, wherever that is."

"What's he doing over there?"