The Rancher's Surrender

Amid feet stomping and panting, huffy screams, Delia twirled in a circle, mindless, until the man reached out and touched her arm.

'Safe,' he claimed, not bothering to hide his amusement. 'Don't worry, I think you two managed to scare them all away.'

Delia stopped screaming, and Maddie just gaped in surprise. Zoe knew why, for though it took Delia forever to get riled, it took just as long to calm her back down. No one, and most certainly not a man, had ever been so effective in quieting her.

In the startling silence, the man who caused it winked at Maddie, who brought a hand up to her mouth.

Still hidden by the darkness, Zoe stood quickly, for she knew Maddie's unease around strangers, especially men, but she stiffened in shock when she realized Maddie was holding back a smile.

In less than ten seconds, the man had completely tamed her sisters. Unbelievable.

'You okay now?' Ty Jackson asked.

Delia smoothed down her clothes and shot him an apologetic smile. 'Yes, sorry, but rats just get to me.'

'Understandable.'

'Now, if you tell me you have batteries in that truck of yours,' Delia said, her smile warming, 'you'll really be my hero, Mr. Jackson.'

'Ty.' Any irritation at having been disturbed so late had apparently vanished, replaced by the pleasant surprise of a man who suddenly finds himself in the company of two beautiful women. He held out his hand. 'And you are…?'

Delia offered him a perfectly manicured hand in return, the one she'd spent an annoying amount of time this morning doing herself, nearly making them late for the airport. 'Delia Scanlon. And this is my sister, Maddie O'Brien.'

He took each of their hands in turn as though they were at a tea party, not standing hundreds of miles away from nowhere on a battered, neglected ranch. From her perch in the corner, Zoe rolled her eyes.

'It's a pleasure,' Ty said to Delia. 'And I always carry spare batteries.' He looked pleased with himself, as though he'd invented the darn things himself.

Zoe remained in place, thoroughly disgusted now. How could her sisters just cave like this? What had happened to their natural reserve of anyone and everyone?

They'd stuck together through thick and thin, mostly thin, but in all that time, Zoe had never, not once, seen either of them let down their natural distrust so fast.

Of course, none of them had ever been charmed by such a master, either.

Fine. If she was the only one with a thought left in her head, so be it. She'd keep them safe.

'I thought there were three of you,' Ty said, squinting a bit as he searched through the darkness, easily focusing to meet Zoe's gaze again. 'What happened to Zophina?'

'Zoe,' Zoe snapped, stepping into the light, having no idea why she was letting him get under her skin like this. He was just a stranger. 'The name is Zoe.'

'Well, hello there. Zoe.' That damn grin flashed again, the one that made her somehow want to smack him and melt at the some time. He tucked his thumbs into his front pockets in a stance of confidence… not to mention how his hands pretty much outlined the vee of his jeans in a way that showed off his… big build. 'Can we go inside now?'

'I'm sure we'll be just fine alone,' she replied coolly.

'I'm sure you will.' He didn't so much as blink, but Zoe could have sworn he was laughing at her. 'Maybe you'd like me to check it out first.'

'For more rats?' she inquired sweetly.

He didn't look in the least bit ashamed of himself. 'You never know.'

Before Zoe could suggest that there was a two-legged rat standing right in front of her, Delia firmly stepped between the two, her flattering, social smile in place. 'You'll have to excuse Zoe, Ty. She's tired, and a tired Zoe is a grumpy one.'

Zoe turned away, piqued for no particular reason. It was her own fault, she reminded herself. They'd come here at her insistence, at her excitement at completely starting over.

Not that Delia and Maddie hadn't wanted to come, they had, but they just hadn't been quite as sold on the idea as she. Yet they'd given up their lives, anyway, for her. A pressure built in Zoe's chest, a familiar one. The pressure of their love, which she was eternally grateful for. But deep down, somewhere in a place she didn't like to go too often, were the same old doubts.

She didn't deserve all they gave to her, not when she didn't-couldn't-give it back. She had long ago locked up her heart from hurt.

As if she sensed her unease, Maddie slipped an arm around Zoe's waist, giving her a quick squeeze. She reached for Delia's hand, uniting them without a word. As always, at the caring, kind, accepting touch, Zoe immediately softened; she couldn't help it.

'Ready, ladies?' When they nodded, Ty took the keys from Zoe, and before she could analyze why the slight brushing of his work-roughened fingers against hers made her stomach tighten, he'd unlocked the front door. 'This will have to be fixed,' he said, easily maneuvering open the rickety screen.

Standing just behind him as she was, with her level of vision at his shoulders and his own truck headlights highlighting his every movement, Zoe had no choice but to stare at the way the muscles in his back flexed and bunched beneath his shirt. No choice at all. Nor could she help but smell him, all fresh and delicious male. That he smelled so good made her annoyed all over again.

Ty flipped on his flashlight and beamed it inside. 'The door will have to be replaced, too.'

'That's not all,' Zoe said as she caught sight of the interior.

Ty hit a light switch on the wall and let out a low, heartfelt oath. The light illuminated what had been their hopes and dreams, and Zoe's stomach sank as they all crowded in. They hadn't gotten a good look at the outside in the dark, but she had gotten an image of a two-story sprawling ranch house in desperate need of repair.

The inside was worse, far worse.

The paint on the walls was peeling off in long strips. The wood floors were thick with dust. The light above them flickered warningly, but at the last second, somehow managed to hang in there. Standing in the midst of it, Zoe saw past the gloom and straight to the heart of the matter-this place was theirs. Theirs.

The thrill of that would never wear off, no matter what happened.

'But… how can this be?' Delia asked in a confused voice that didn't sound at all like her usual take-charge attitude. 'I thought Constance lived here.'

'She did, up until two years ago, when she had to move to a retirement home.' Regret and sadness filled Ty's voice. 'Had no idea it was this bad.'

Silence fell at that, and sadness welled through Zoe, overcoming her strange protectiveness of the house. If only Constance had found them sooner, she thought, then nearly laughed because that wouldn't have changed much. They couldn't have helped her financially.

But they could have gotten to know Constance, and at the knowledge they'd just missed that opportunity, her throat tightened. For years she'd yearned for more information about her past. Since she'd been so young when she'd arrived at the foster home, she remembered next to nothing. Yes, there was every possibility Constance hadn't been her grandmother, that she'd been Maddie's or Delia's, but it didn't change Zoe's need.

All her life she'd been an outsider, without a background, always a burden, always dependent on the kindness of others. It had left scars.

She needed to know more about herself, needed to really belong somewhere. To someone.

She needed, with every fiber of her being, for this place to be hers. And she hated herself for the selfishness, because her sisters deserved it every bit as much as she did.

'She couldn't swing all the work by herself and she couldn't afford help.' Ty's face was tight, and surprisingly full of compassion. 'I did what I could, but I have a ranch, too, and between my land and hers, there aren't enough