In His Brother's Place by Elizabeth Lane Read Free Book Online Page A

Lucas, so hungry for a father’s love, was falling under his spell.
    Was he working his spell on her, too?
    His “friendly” shoulder rub had aroused her to the melting point before he backed off, leaving her stunned and confused. Now she realized that Jordan had known exactly what he was doing.
    How could she have forgotten that New Year’s Eve in his car, when his kisses had made her ache for more? He’d had an agenda then. He had one now. And that agenda was never, ever about her. She was just the tool he used to get his way. Back then, he’d wanted to drive a wedge between Angie and his brother. Now, he wanted her closer...so that he could work his way into her son’s life. As always, he was out to win, and he was weighting the odds in his favor.
    With or without her help, Jordan was already making headway on his plans. Lucas loved the ranch, and he was over the moon about getting his own dog. For her to take him away and shut him into another cramped apartment would be devastating. She had to give her son this chance at a better life. But that didn’t mean stepping aside and letting Jordan take over.
    Tonight Jordan had been angling for her trust, reeling her in just before he remembered his so-called promise. The worst of it was she’d almost fallen for his act. For that, she had no one to blame but herself.
    Jordan’s touch had ignited a smoldering heat that burned through her body. His resemblance to Justin might have explained that. But deep down, Angie knew better.
    Tonight in the hot tub, she hadn’t been thinking about Justin at all.
    * * *
    Jordan pulled his Mercedes into the drive at 4:25 the next afternoon. His heart dropped when he saw that Angie’s beat-up Toyota was missing. Had he pushed her too far? Had she packed up and left?
    Relief dawned as he remembered she’d planned on taking Lucas to choose his puppy. Climbing out of the driver’s
seat, he saw her old blue sedan chugging up the road toward the house. That car would have to be replaced, he reminded himself. The tires were bald and the engine, he suspected, was on the verge of throwing a rod. Worse, it might not hold up in an accident. He wanted Angie and Lucas to be safe. He could only hope she wouldn’t be as stubborn about the car as she’d been about the dog.
    And speaking of the dog... Jordan braced himself as the car pulled up on the far side of the driveway. Growing up, he and Justin had shared a beautiful golden retriever named Sunny. He’d hoped to find a similar animal for Lucas. But Angie’s insistence had won out. What kind of dog would a three-year-old choose from the city pound? He was about to find out.
    He kept his distance as Angie got out of the car and opened the back door to unbuckle Lucas’s car seat. The boy tumbled out, gripping a red plastic leash.
    “Look, Uncle Jordan!” He tugged at the leash, pulling his new pet out behind him. “His name’s Rudy!”
    The dog that crept out of the car was past the cute puppy stage and of no discernible breed. With a short brown-and-white coat, droopy ears and a long nose, it might have been some kind of hound mix. The size of its feet hinted that it still had a lot of growing to do.
    Jordan groaned.
    “Come here, Rudy!” Lucas ordered, tugging at the leash.
    The dog glanced around shyly, then slunk over to its new master and wound its skinny body around Lucas’s legs. It had the saddest brown eyes Jordan had ever seen.
    Jordan caught Angie’s gaze, his eyebrows lifting in an unspoken question.
    “He was red-tagged,” Angie said. “They were going to put him to sleep. Lucas saved him. Just look at that face, Jordan. If ever an animal needed love...”
    Jordan sighed. The dog was no beauty, but Angie’s expression was so damned appealing that he wanted to grab her in his arms and kiss her till she whimpered. That wasn’t practical, so he decided on the next best thing.
    “We don’t know where all Rudy’s been,” he said to Lucas. “Before we give him the