When I went downstairs, I was surprised to see my two brothers and Bryce just getting in.

In a low voice, so as not to wake up anyone who might be sleeping, I said, “Where are the ladies?”

“They’ll be along. Marjorie dared them to go skinny dipping in the nude pool, and since it was dark, Melanie and Jade agreed to go.”

I laughed. “What are you guys up to?”

“I should ask you the same,” Joe said. “You took off after Ruby and we didn’t see you again. Is she okay?”

“She’s fine. She’s up in her room.”

“Anything we should know about?” Bryce asked.

“What do you mean?”

“You went after her pretty fast, and you were gone for a while…”

“No, nothing like that.”

“She looked great tonight,” Bryce said.

I eyed my brother’s best friend. He, like me, was single. The fact that he’d made a comment about Ruby’s looks didn’t sit well with me.

“And that body…” Bryce whistled.

I took a step forward but then backed off. My hands were clenched into fists. I was not going to haul off and punch my brother’s best friend. But damn, I wanted to.

“What’s going on between you two?” Talon asked.

“Nothing,” I said. “I’m down here, and she’s up there.”

“But…are you interested?”

“Of course not.” A lie.

“Too bad,” Talon laughed. “You could have one of those couple names, like Ry-bee. Or Roo-an.”

“Ruin? Ha. Doesn’t sound too promising.”

“Definitely Ry-bee, then.” Bryce laughed as he grabbed some highball glasses out of the stocked kitchen. “Who wants to join me in a nightcap?”

“You don’t have to ask me twice,” Talon said.

“I’m going to pass,” I said. “I have an early morning.”

“An early morning?” Bryce said. “We’re on island time here, man.”

“I’m working out with Ruby.” I yawned. “So I think I’ll say good night.” I headed toward my closed door, but Jonah stopped me.

“Ry.”

“Yeah?” I turned.

“I need to talk to you.”

“Sure.” I opened the door to my room. “Come on in.”

He shut the door behind him.

“What’s up?”

“It’s Ruby.”

“What about her?”

“Melanie says she’s been through a lot.”

“I know that. I mean, I assume that, considering who her father is.”

“So tread lightly there, okay? This wedding means everything to Melanie and Jade. I wouldn’t want anything to…”

“Fuck it up? What do you take me for, bro? You really think I’d screw up your wedding?”

“I know how you get when you want—” He patted me on the back. “Sorry. Of course not. I’m sorry, Ry. Really.”

“Okay…” Something wasn’t jelling here. Jonah wasn’t a bad guy, but he had a temper, and he didn’t normally back off so quickly when he got his mind on something.

“Sure you don’t want to join us for a drink?”

“No. I’m good. Thanks.”

Jonah smiled and left my room, shutting the door behind him.

Something was definitely off.

Maybe pre-wedding jitters.

No.

Even I didn’t buy that.

---

Music blasted into my ears. Five thirty a.m. Really three thirty a.m. Colorado time. I hadn’t drunk a lot last night, but damn, morning had come early. I rolled out of bed and headed toward my shower. Each room in this house had a private bath. Pretty cool. Marjorie had spared no expense.

Nothing was too good for my brothers and their brides. They deserved all the happiness in the world.

I thought again about my brief conversation with Joe last night.

He’d told me not to start something with Ruby, that she’d been through a lot, and not to screw up the wedding. Big brother crap. Classic Joe. What wasn’t classic Joe was how he’d backed off suddenly, as if he’d thought of something else.

I’d have to talk to him about that later.

For now, I had a date for yoga and a workout.

I toweled myself dry and put on some athletic shorts and a muscle shirt. I figured it wasn’t naked yoga, but on this resort, who knew? I’d strip if I had to. I wouldn’t mind a look under Ruby’s clothes. I ran my fingers through my wet hair. It would do.

I turned when someone knocked on my door.

I opened it, and there stood Ruby. Her hair was pulled back in that funky schoolmarm style, but it probably worked well for yoga. Her pretty face wasn’t made up, but she didn’t need it. Her lips were a dark pink. And that body… Workout clothes showed every curve, every muscle, every magnificent part of her shape.

Last night, I’d barely touched her, barely kissed her, but my groin had responded as if we’d been involved in some damned heavy petting.

And right now, it was tightening already, just from me looking at her.

Crazy shit.

I wanted to grab her and kiss her and then lead her to my bed and make gentle love to her.

Scratch that. I wanted to fuck her senseless, but I couldn’t do that. She’d need a gentle touch first, as an introduction. Because if she hadn’t ever been kissed—

Fuck.

That didn’t mean shit. Her psycho father could very well have raped her without kissing her.

Not exactly a question I could ask.

She’d need an ultra-gentle touch if that was the case.

Did I have that in me?

Any other time, I’d have walked away in a heartbeat. Too much baggage. God knew my family had enough to deal with.

But something about her…

“You look great,” I said.

“I look ready to work out.”

Couldn’t take a compliment, this one. How far was I willing to go? Did I like her that much? Want her that much?

Fuck, yeah. I did.

She carried a small cooler.

“What’s that?” I asked.

“Our protein shakes for after yoga. We’ll need some energy to burn for weights.”

“Sure. Of course. Did you get up early to make them?”

“Yeah. Didn’t you hear the blender?”

“I was in the shower.”

“Oh. Let’s go, then.”

We walked around the bungalows and hotel to a grassy area. The instructor was just setting up. She was a pretty Jamaican woman, her dark skin a nice contrast to the white yoga pants and tank she was wearing.

“Good morning.” She smiled. “I’m Herlinda. We don’t get a lot at this early morning class. It might just be you two.”

But a couple others showed up.

I had no idea how to do yoga, and some of the positions were a little out of my league, but Ruby executed them all beautifully, her muscles flexing.

Damn.

After class, Herlinda warned that we might be sore if we weren’t used to yoga and to use one of the hot tubs at the resort.

Hell, I worked on a ranch. A little yoga wouldn’t take me out.

Ruby opened her cooler, pulled out two thermoses, and handed one to me. I opened it and looked at the thick shake inside.

“Uh…Ruby?”

“Yeah?”

“This is green.”

She laughed. “Yes, it is.”

“What the hell is in it?”

“Whey powder, almond milk, bananas, pineapple…”

“And?”

“Kale, chia seed, and wheat grass. Try it. It’s really good.”

I shook my head. “If you say so. Bottoms up.” I took a drink. It wasn’t very sweet, but it didn’t taste like shit. Thank God.

“What do you think?” she asked.

“It’s okay.”

She laughed again. “You get used to it. Drink up. You’ll need it.”

It took some doing, but I managed to get the whole shake down.

“Now drink again.” She handed me a bottle of water. “It’s important to stay hydrated. Especially back home in Colorado.”

I knew that. I took a few sips of the water.

“Off to the fitness center,” she said. “Should we run?”

After I’d just drunk that shake? Doubtful. “I’ll walk, I think.”

“Good plan.” She packed up the cooler. “Follow me.”

“You know where you’re going already?”

“Of course. I worked out yesterday before dinner. I hate to miss a day.”

“You like working out?”

“It’s part of who I am. If I don’t do it, I get pretty antsy. I make sure I work out at least four times a week. Preferably six. You don’t work out?”

“Baby, my whole life is a workout. I’m a rancher, remember?”

“Yeah, but I thought you were the winemaker.”

“I am.”

“Do you actually stomp the grapes yourself?” She smiled a little.

“Of course not. No one makes wine like that anymore. This isn’t Italy in the fifties.”

“Then how exactly do you work out?”

It was a fair question. “I check the vineyards from spring until harvest. I go out during harvest and help if I’m needed. I’m always moving. Riding to one part of the ranch or the other.”

“Riding?”

“Yeah. On horseback. It’s how Talon and I like to get around the ranch. Joe not so much.”

“So let me get this straight. If you’re riding the horse, isn’t the horse doing all the work?”

“Baby”—why did I keep calling her baby?—“clearly you’ve never been on horseback. It’s work. Trust me.”

“Whatever you say.” She chuckled.

“You think it’s not work? When we get back, I’ll take you riding. How’s that sound?”

“I didn’t mean to—”

“I know you didn’t. But if you think riding is easy, you have another think coming.”

“Fine. Fine. Here’s the fitness center. I’m going to do some reps with the free weights. What do you want to do?”

I had no idea. I hadn’t been in a weight room in ages. “I’ll just do what you do. How’s that?”

“You can probably handle more weight than I can.” She smiled. “I’m going to start with the dumbbells. I use the fifteens because I don’t like to get bulky.” She looked me over. “You should probably start with the twenties or thirties.”

Twenties? Did she think I was that much of a wimp? I grabbed a fifty pounder in each hand and started doing some bicep curls. I’d show her.

My arms were strong, so I didn’t have much problem doing the first ten reps. I rested a minute and then did another ten. She had moved onto tricep curls by the time I started my last set of reps.

The weights got heavier.

Damn. But I finished. No way was she going to show me up.

I moved on to tricep curls. As before, the first set was easy, but then…

God, what had I gotten myself into? I was strong, true, but the muscles I worked around the ranch were different from the ones I was working now, apparently.

“Don’t overdo it,” she warned.

“Don’t you worry about me. I know my way around a gym.”

“Whatever you say.” She put down her dumbbells and picked up a yoga mat. “I’m going to do some crunches and push-ups. Go ahead and finish with the weights.”

While she was occupied, I took the time to rest my arms. Then I decided to do some squats. I knew my thighs could hold up. I couldn’t find anyone to spot me, so I decided to use the leg press machine instead. After a few sets on that, I looked over at Ruby. She was finishing up.

She walked toward me, wiping her face with a towel. Every part of her body that wasn’t covered sparkled with shiny perspiration. She looked good enough to eat.

“Ready for breakfast?”

Was I ever. I grabbed a towel and wiped my face. “Sure am.”

We each took a quick shower in the respective locker rooms and then walked over to the restaurant where the breakfast buffet was being served. Ruby piled a plate high with bacon, scrambled eggs, and pancakes. Then she added some fresh fruit.

“You’re going to eat all that?” I said.

“You bet. I’m famished after a workout.”

I went through the omelet line and then took a serving of ackee and saltfish, which I’d heard was a traditional Jamaican dish. The ackee looked a lot like the scrambled eggs on Ruby’s plate.

Ruby had already taken a seat at a table outside, so I went to join her. I noticed she had also taken some ackee and saltfish.

“How’s the ackee?” I asked.

“Good. Different.” She munched on a slice of bacon. “I like trying new things.”

I smiled. Good. Because I had a lot of new things in mind that I wanted to try with her.