“Your brother Riley?” she asked, looking over his shoulder to see the truck parked next to his and the man sitting inside. Riley threw up his hand in a wave which she returned. She recalled meeting him that night at dinner. Jason was older than Riley by two and a half years.

“Yes, my brother Riley.”

She was confused. “Why is he here?”

“Because I’m going home to freshen up.” He tilted his head and smiled at her. “Are you awake yet?”

“Yes, I’m awake and I know you said you’re going home to change but why does Riley have to be here? It’s not like I need a bodyguard or something. A rock got thrown through my window, Jason. Not a scud missile.”

He merely kept smiling at her while leaning in her doorway. And then he said, “Has anyone ever told you how beautiful you look in the morning?”

She stood there and stared at him. Not ready for him to change the subject and definitely not prepared for him to say something so nice about how she looked. She could definitely return the favor and ask, had anyone ever told him how handsome he looked in the morning. However, she was certain a number of women already had.

So she answered him honestly. “No one has ever told me that.”

“Then let me go on record as being your first.”

She drew in a deep breath. He didn’t say “the” first but had said “your” first. He had made it personal and exclusive. She wondered what he would think to know she had drifted off to sleep last night with images of him flittering through her mind. Memories of his mouth on her probably elicited pleasurable sighs from her even while she slept.

“Doesn’t Riley have to go to work today?” she asked, remembering when he’d mentioned that Riley worked for Blue Ridge Management. She’d even seen his name on one of the doors when they’d exited from the elevator on the fortieth floor.

“Yes, but he’ll leave whenever I get back.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “And what about you? Don’t you have horses to breed or train?”

“Your safety is more important to me.”

“Yeah, right.”

He lifted a brow. “You don’t believe me? Even after I spent the entire night in my truck?”

“You were protecting your interest.”

“And that’s definitely you, sweetheart.”

Don’t even go there. Bella figured it was definitely time to end this conversation. If she engaged in chatter with him too much longer he would be convincing her that everything he was saying was true.

“You will have an answer for me in four days, right, Bella?”

“That’s my plan.”

“Good. I’ll be back by the time you’re dressed and we can do breakfast with Dillon and Pam, and then I want to show you what I do for a living.”