She did take her youngest brother with her, and he enjoyed playing in the woman's backyard. Mrs. Carson was a retired grandmother who'd once worked as a schoolteacher. At one time, Pan and her sisters had attended the local elementary school—mostly to get four young girls out from underfoot while her parents worked the ranch. Mrs. Carson had been her teacher until her parents had made the decision that the school was just too far away and that they needed the girls home. She thought Mrs. Carson enjoyed hearing Parker's tales of making a movie almost as much as her younger brother enjoyed telling them. Still, by the time she was done cleaning Mrs. Carson's place she was more than ready to go home.

It was getting ready to storm. She had intended to get at least one other place done for the day, but that wasn't going to happen. She'd been hoping to speak with the client about giving her a reference to use with the Preston family. They were the most well-to-do family in the greater Masterson County area, even more so than Levi and his brothers. If she cleaned for them at least once a week, it would beef up her savings enough that she might actually be able to afford to replace her car soon. Or at least get it tuned up. Because Levi was right. There was something wrong with her fan belt now.

She didn't really have enough money to spend on fixing it; she hadn't been going to tell him that there were some things he just didn't need to worry about.

She wasn't going to let him feel responsible for her; she wasn't about to start depending on him, either. Pan wasn't going to let that man get under her skin any more than he already had.

Damn him. Pan just didn’t know how she was going to deal with the way he made her feel. Short of running up into the mountains that lined the back of Levi’s property. Running. Tylers didn’t run.

Parker chattered at her as she drove the forty miles back toward the Masterson place. Her little brother was significantly cute and always had been. He'd been born when she was fourteen and she'd spent a lot of time helping care for him. She and her sisters had taken turns helping their mother with him and the other young children after their mother had given birth to Parker.

She missed living with her brothers and she wouldn't deny that. It wasn't that she didn't see them as much, because she did.

It just didn't feel the same.

She sighed. That was the way things happened, right? You wanted change, then when you got it you missed everything from before. Pan hated feeling this confused.

And most of it was Levi’s fault. That man…she just couldn’t stop thinking about him.

"Are you sad today?" her little brother asked.

"No, not really. Why do you ask?"

“You have that face again."

Parker crunched up his face in a way that made her laugh.

"Do I?"

“Yes. It’s the one you have when you are thinking. Or sad. I don’t like it when my Pan is sad.” He shot her a chiding look—for a moment looking just like their mother. And her. She and Parker really favored the mother she missed every day.

"I'm not really feeling sad today, Park. Just a little tired, and lots to think about."

"Like Levi. I know. I heard, you know."

Levi. Again. She just couldn’t escape him, could she? "What did you hear?"

"Daddy and Perci. Perci thinks he's really cute, but he's not serious. Daddy thinks he is serious. And that he loves you."

"They do, do they?" It didn't surprise her that her father and her sister had been discussing her and Levi. It seemed like everyone everywhere was. Even Mrs. Carson had had good things to say about ‘Pandora’s young man’.

Like they were inevitable, or something. Like Perci and Nate were, too. Mrs. Carson had had a lot to say about that fine young doctor her sister had ‘caught’.

Urgh. Like they were man-fish or something.

"A few days ago. When Mr. Clark asked Perci if you were dating anyone."

"Oh? Mr. Clark, from the movie?"

"Yep. He was talking to Daddy about the horses, and about you and Perci and Pip and Phoebe. And how pretty and nice you all were. Perci and me were in the barn. But then she took Skye outside. Perci told him that you weren't dating anyone; daddy told him that you kind of work. I think daddy likes Levi. I do. He's going to take me fishing, you know."

"Again?” Levi had taken her brother fishing before. She'd watched him and little boy walked down to the pond from Levi's kitchen window. It had struck her, not for the first time, just how beautiful Levi was. How kind.

Parker and Patton both admired him. Liked him. Actually wanted to spend time with him—and not just Matt and Joel.

Levi was just…a part of everything now. Easy.

Except for her.

"He said anytime you wanted. He's like my big brother now, too. You know? Even though Matt's married to Pip and Joel's married to Phoebe, Levi said he gets to be my brother, too. A guy could never have too many brothers. I think you can have too many sisters some times, though."

"Parker, which one of us would you get rid of then?"

Her youngest brother just grinned.

Pan was still laughing when the large dark SUV pulled out in front of her and slammed on their brakes.

Pan cursed. She jerked the wheel to the left, sending her little car careening into the ditch. Just before her head slammed into the steering wheel, she reached out with her right arm and did her best to hold her little brother in place. She tried to protect him as much she could as the air bag deployed.

Then Pan felt nothing but white-hot pain, followed by blackness.