“The boys’d know how to take care of it back home,” Byron offered, stretching out his interlaced hands and letting his knuckles crack.

“An assault charge isn’t going to help us,” said Lucas, much as he’d love to take a swing at Steve right now. What was the man thinking, painting a target on both Devin and Amelia? How did he sleep at night?

“I don’t see the press attention interfering with the legal decision,” said Byron. “The judge is going to follow legislation and precedent. I doubt he’ll even be reading The Tattler.”

“So, Steve’s master plan is to aggravate us?” asked Lucas.

Seattle was a small city, and Pacific Robotics was a prominent business. Lucas had been in the spotlight many times before, and he knew the paparazzi would hound all of them for many long days to come. There’d be nowhere to hide.

“It seems like that’s the case,” said Byron.

“That reporter,” Devin began. “She asked if we expected arrests. What did that mean? Who would get arrested, and for what?”

Lucas avoided making eye contact with her. His instinct was to worry about her, but he had to stay angry. “The reporter was fishing. Steve dangled a story in front of them, and now they’re digging for the details.”

“I don’t want Amelia on the front page.” Devin seemed to instinctively shift closer to Amelia, who had relaxed and was now a soft, warm bundle against Lucas’s chest.

“Neither do I.” His tone was sharper than he intended, and Devin gave a slight cringe.

“But they can’t get on the estate?” Lexi questioned.

“Lucas?” It was Theodore Vick, who was hustling into the front hall. “Sorry. I was out on the water. I’ve got two men at the front gate now.”

“It’s under control,” Lucas told him. “At least for the moment.” Then he answered Lexi’s question. “They’d have a hard time getting on the estate. But it’s not a fortress.”

“I’ll bring in some extra men,” Theodore offered. “We’ve got the new lighting system installed at the back of the property, and Chad will make sure the dock is guarded around the clock.”

Devin reached out for Amelia, but she stopped herself short, pulling back in obvious surprise. “She’s asleep.”

Lucas glanced down to see Amelia’s closed eyes. Her cheeks were rosy and her pink mouth was relaxed, slightly opened as she breathed in and out.

Lexi stepped in. “Looks like Uncle Lucas doesn’t scare her so much anymore.”

Lucas knew he had to focus on security. They needed a plan to protect Amelia and thwart Steve. But for a brief second, he let the unfamiliar emotion flash through his chest. Amelia trusted him.

He silently vowed that he wasn’t going to let her down.

“Can you increase the video surveillance?” he asked Theodore.

“Absolutely.”

“What about long-lens cameras?”

“I can’t give you any guarantees,” said Theodore. “I can put on some extra guys, but there’s a lot of fence line to cover, and you’re open to the bay. It’s probably best to stay inside as much as you can.”

Devin’s eyes narrowed in concern. “For how long?”

“A couple of weeks,” Lucas admitted. “Maybe. They’ll go away once we have a decision on Steve’s challenge of Amelia’s inheritance. Byron’s trying to get more information on the timeframe.”

“And are you going to hide in the house?” Devin asked Lucas.

He shook his head. “I don’t care if they take pictures of me.”

“Should Devin care?” asked Lexi.

It was Byron who answered. “Does she want a private life after this is over?”

Devin glanced around the circle. “So, I’m a prisoner?”

“Unless you want to leave Seattle,” suggested Theodore. “It’s a local story. I doubt it would follow you out of state.”

Devin crossed her arms over her chest. “Unfortunately, I’ve been sentenced to stay here in this house.”

“You want to leave?” asked Lucas, thinking that it might not be such a bad idea to get Devin and Amelia out of town and away from Steve.

“Of course I want to leave. I want to go home.”

Theodore shook his head. “Your house is out of the question. There’ll be reporters there, too.”

The news obviously surprised Lexi. “Am I going to be ambushed when I get home?”

“You should stay here,” Devin declared.

“You can all come on down to Texas,” Byron offered.

Lucas scoffed at the idea.

But Byron widened his stance. “Ain’t nobody getting their boots on my land.”

“What?” Lexi mocked. “You gonna shoot ’em fer trespassin’?”

Byron didn’t answer, but his expression said he just might.

“You couldn’t-” Lexi paused “-really shoot them.” She cocked her head as she peered at Byron. “Right?”

Byron offered nothing but a self-satisfied smile.

Theodore spoke. “It’s not the worst idea in the world.”

Lucas met his chief of security’s eyes, mentally debating the pros and cons. Amelia and Devin would be well out of both Steve’s and the any reporter’s reach. And although Byron wouldn’t literally shoot anyone who trespassed, he definitely had some hard-bitten ranch hands on the payroll who would dissuade anyone from bothering the residents of the ranch. Long lenses would never find them from the road.

And it would throw Steve a curveball. It would throw Steve one heck of a curveball, which was exactly what Lucas needed right now. He’d been reacting to Steve’s maneuvers for days on end. It was about time he took some action on his own.

“Fine,” he said, nodding decisively. “We’ll go to Texas.”

Devin’s jaw dropped open. “But-”

“I’m coming, too,” Lexi immediately insisted.

“Isn’t that a bit drastic?” asked Devin. “First I leave my home to come here, and now you want me to traipse halfway across the country?”

Lucas understood the reason for her reluctance. If she was in Texas, she couldn’t snoop. There’d be no way for her to continue pawing through his private correspondence.

Too bad, honey.

They were so going to Texas.

Nine

Devin had never given any thought to the practicality of owning a private jet. But when they’d made the decision to head for Texas, they hadn’t looked up schedules, they hadn’t called a travel agent, Lucas had simply contacted his pilot to let him know they were going to Dallas.

They’d taken a helicopter from the estate to the airport, leaving reporters at the front gate unaware of who had left the estate and who was still inside. Not that anyone expected a reporter to follow them from Seattle to Dallas. Still, it was nice to know their journey was all but untraceable.

On the downside, Lucas had remained aloof throughout the trip and throughout the evening after they’d arrived. Devin wasn’t sure what she’d expected. But after they’d made love a second time, and seemed to have come to a temporary truce, she hadn’t expected him to use every excuse in the book to keep from speaking with her.

And it proved easy for him to keep his distance. Byron’s homestead was more of a town that a house. Set on a grassy hillside a few hundred feet up from the picturesque Lake Hope, the complex consisted of a sprawling main house, with nearly a dozen other houses facing the lake. Two rows of smaller cottages sat farther up the hillside, and she was told they housed the ranch staff.

Teresa had come along to help with Amelia, while Devin assumed Lexi simply wanted to avoid the reporters who seemed likely to have staked out Devin’s house. The three women and Amelia were given rooms on the second floor of the main house, while Lucas had taken what he referred to as his usual house next door. Byron was in a massive master suite down the hall from the living room.

In true ranch style, the house was paneled in polished cedar, with hardwood floors, thick, patterned throw rugs and overstuffed leather furniture. The tables were pine, while the lamps bounced soft, yellow light to every corner of the rooms. The house’s oil paintings had one theme-horses. Byron had ridden in rodeos in his late teens and twenties, and he had an obvious admiration for the animals.

This morning, Lexi had declared a desire to learn to ride, and the two of them had headed for the barns. Teresa had taken Amelia to check out the duck pond, while Lucas had announced he had phone calls to make back at his house.

Devin was left alone with her anger and frustration. Now that they were out of harm’s way, she was furious with Steve. He’d thrown both her and Amelia to the wolves. They’d been defenseless against the press onslaught. Amelia’s face was undoubtedly plastered in the newspapers, while Devin and Lucas’s reputations would be dragged through the mud.

That wasn’t even counting the physical danger he’d put Amelia in. She could have been trampled in the rush. Thank goodness Lucas had been there to save her.

Devin knew she should be working on her book. She even took out her laptop, settling herself in a corner of the living room, in a big comfy chair, with a warm breeze blowing through the screened windows against her bare arms and legs. But there were too many things on her mind. She simply couldn’t focus on writing.

She wanted to rant about Steve. And she wanted to ask Lucas where he got off making sweet love to her one day, then pretending she wasn’t even alive the next.

It wasn’t as though they had nothing to discuss. They didn’t have a nanny. And they were supposed to be united in fighting Steve. Shouldn’t they be strategizing? Maybe investigating? Information gathering? Filling out forms?

After an hour’s frustration, Devin set aside her laptop and rose deliberately from the chair. She wasn’t about to spend any more time in here sitting on her hands.

She stuffed her feet into a pair of sandals and straightened the short denim skirt that she’d paired with a violet tank top for the scorching summer day. Then she left through the front door, crossed a long porch and followed the wooden walkway that led to Lucas’s house.

She knocked sharply, but there was no answer.

She waited, knocked again and finally decided to circle the house in search of him.

She followed a set of cement stepping stones that wound their way across the lawn. Once she cleared the building, she was rewarded. She heard Lucas’s voice and tracked it over a small knoll, where she spotted him at the duck pond.

Dressed in blue jeans and a plain gray T-shirt, he sat on the ground, knees up, with Amelia clinging to his shoulder as a duck waddled toward the two of them.

Teresa was nowhere in sight.

Lucas tossed some crumbs, and the duck came closer.

Amelia squealed in delight, causing the duck to scoot away in fear.

She speed-crawled a few feet after it, and Devin found her steps slowing down to take in the astonishing sight. Lucas was playing with Amelia. They were all alone. And the two of them looked happy.

Something squeezed her heart. But she wasn’t sure if it was joy or dismay. She’d have to admit Lucas would be the closest thing Amelia would ever have to a father. She shouldn’t be anything but happy to see that relationship develop. Still, from an emotional standpoint, she loved Amelia so dearly, she didn’t want to lose anything about her to Lucas.

While Devin watched, Amelia pushed herself to a wobbly standing position. Then she opened her hand and flung whatever she was holding at the duck. Devin couldn’t tell from this vantage point if Lucas had given her bread crumbs or not. Apparently, neither could the duck. It waddled closer to investigate, fanning its wings and shaking its glossy green head while it scoured the ground.

Amelia made another throwing motion, then she turned to grin at Lucas, obviously seeking his approval.

“Clever girl,” he cooed, with a deep threaded chuckle.

Amelia turned and took a step toward him, then another, and another. She walked until she was wrapped in Lucas’s arms, laughing with pride at her accomplishment.

Devin swallowed a thick, burning emotion.

Amelia’s first steps.

And they were to Lucas, not Devin.

Just then, he caught sight of her, and his expression sobered as he met her eyes.

Amelia wiggled out of his arms, and Devin pasted a bright smile on her face, crossing the remainder of the distance to the pair. Devin told herself there would be lots of steps in Amelia’s life, and plenty of other firsts, and she intended to be around for all of them. And it wasn’t as if she hadn’t witnessed the first steps. She’d simply seen it from a distance, was all.

“She seems to like the ducks,” Devin offered to break the silence.

Amelia crawled over and grabbed Devin’s leg. Devin sat down so Amelia could get into her lap. The physical contact made her feel better.