Nate laughed and shook his head. “Asshole. I’m going to beat him when I get home.”
He wouldn’t. Nate loved Zane. It was one of the things she’d adored about being close to the threesome. They weren’t just about Callie. Zane and Nate would never touch sexually, but the love between them was plain. They were committed to their friendship and their family.
Rachel walked up and put a hand on her shoulder. “Hope, we’re all worried about you.”
“Yes. We’re worried.” James’s voice cut through the talking. Hope’s eyes went straight to where he stood in the doorway between the kitchen and living room. “Doc wouldn’t let me back to see you.”
He’d wanted to see her? “I’m fine.”
“Stubborn. I can respect that,” Rachel said. “We’ve all brought casseroles. Mine’s a lasagna. Laura sent some enchiladas, and Nell has stir-fried something granola.”
“It’s black beans and rice,” Nell said with a smile. “Totally vegan. Cruelty-free.”
Hope liked meat, so she wasn’t sure about the “cruelty-free” part, but she smiled anyway. It was tradition in Bliss for the women of the town—and some of the men who liked to cook—to keep casseroles on hand. There was always someone in need, and Bliss came out to support. Of course, she wasn’t sure how she was supposed to cook the things. “I appreciate it, but my apartment is unlivable right now. I don’t have a fridge.”
“You can stay here.” Noah joined his brother. Hope could hear a collective intake of breath from the longtime Bliss residents. Max and Rye both turned, their jaws coming open.
“Noah?” Max and Rye asked, their voices one.
Noah’s face flushed. Noah was a gorgeous slab of man, only slightly shorter than his brother. Noah was tall, dark, and handsome, and James was an all-American hunk with broad shoulders and golden-brown hair. But there was a hesitancy in Noah’s eyes that let Hope know he was worried about his welcome. She knew that feeling. It made her heart go out to him.
Noah cleared his throat before talking. She loved the deep timbre of his voice. She’d gotten a little hot when he’d turned that dark voice on her out on the highway. “Hey. It’s good to see you guys. Been a while. Are you two still the bane of women all over the valley? I remember when no woman could resist the two of you.”
James snorted, obviously enjoying the fact that his brother had no clue. Rachel turned, frowning.
“They better not. Really, you two? The bane of women? I can probably buy that. I have no idea who you are, Noah, but any woman looking at those two will have to deal with me and our baby girl. Married. They’re married.”
“Max and Rye got married?” Noah asked, looking like the world had changed.
James huffed a little and started pointing around the room. “Callie’s married with two kids. Max and Rye are married and have a baby. Logan’s gone out of his damn mind and is on his way to Dallas where someone thinks BDSM is going to save him. Mel has a girlfriend he apparently met during an alien abduction. Stella married Stef’s dad. Stef married an artist. You remember the pretty blonde lady who came to town a couple of months before you left? Laura Niles? Turns out Laura was on the run from a serial killer, and she’s now with her two former partners who managed to kill the serial killer. Holly is getting it on with an ex-Russian mobster and the gruffest people doc any of us has ever met.”
Caleb looked up. “That’s fair.”
“It more than fair, Caleb. You are far too interested in prostate exams,” Alexei said with a frown.
Noah looked poleaxed. “Max got married? I get Rye, but Max?”
Rachel threw her head back and laughed. “Okay, I like him. Someone tell me who he is.”
Rye sidled up to his wife, his hand tracing the curve of her hips. “Jamie’s brother.”
Rachel’s eyes widened. “The one Max curses every time he has to call in the animal doc from Del Norte?”
“I curse everyone,” Max admitted, coming up on the other side of his wife. “Except you, baby.”
Rye shook his head. “I have tapes. I’ll play them when I need to.”
Noah stepped forward. “I think Hope needs to stay here. She doesn’t have anywhere else to go. She should rest here.”
“I came to take her back to our place.” Rachel hugged each hubby and then turned to Hope. “She needs someplace quiet.”
“And your baby is quiet?” James asked. “Not to mention Max. I’ve heard he even growls in his sleep. You have people coming in and out of that place all the time,” He frowned her way, his brows forming a V over his handsome face. “I might be pissed at my brother and wondering why he’s inviting women to stay at my ranch, but he’s right. This is the best place for Hope. People Doc says she needs rest and to be less stressed. She can do that here.”
That was a terrible idea. She needed to leave Bliss, not sit around and stare at James Glen and his impossibly gorgeous brother. “I can go to the Movie Motel.”
“No.” James and Noah managed to say it at the same time and with the same inflection.
She had to make them see reason. She couldn’t stay here. Watching James with all his conquests would kill her. Being close to Noah and knowing she couldn’t have him would make her crazy. “You have too many guests, James. You have your brother and Trev and his family. They haven’t moved out of the big house, have they?”
James smirked. There was no other word for it. “They took over the guesthouse. I have three free rooms, darlin’. You want to bring a friend? And I haven’t decided if I’ll let that one back in.”
Noah’s jaw tensed. “I can always leave.”
Noah seemed like the only piece that didn’t fit. He’d been so kind to her before. She wasn’t sure what his whole story was, but she liked him. It was easy to see these were two brothers who had a lot to work out. James had never even mentioned he had a brother. “I think you should talk to your brother. And it would be easier for you to work out your differences without another person in the house. I’ll be fine. I have a little money saved. I can stay at the motel.”
“I hear Gene say motel is all booked,” Alexei said, dashing her hopes. “Many witches come to town.”
She’d forgotten about the annual psychic festival. It wasn’t organized by anyone in Bliss, but it was a nice a way for the businesses to make a little money in between the end-of-summer hiking crowd and the snow bunnies who would be out in full force in eight weeks or so.
“God, I hate Woo Woo Fest.” Max put his head in his hand and groaned.
“I don’t think that’s the proper name,” Laura pointed out.
Nate seemed to agree with Max. “I’m planning on getting Callie pregnant and having the baby every year at this time so I don’t have to work through Woo Woo Fest. Congrats, Cam. You’re going to get to be sheriff to the freakiest people in the world.”
“I am deeply disappointed in your intolerance, Sheriff,” Nell said with a frown. Her husband stood behind her. It was obvious Henry was ready to protest the Sheriff of Bliss’s attitude.
“Well, you should be used to it,” Nate replied.
The argument started fast and furious. Caleb zipped up his bag and then looked at James and Noah, pointing to the kitchen. He crooked his finger, an obvious order for her to follow. She walked out of the living room as Nell accused Nate of trying to start another Salem witch trials.
Caleb leaned against the countertop, frustration evident in his stance. “Hope, you need a place to stay. I would offer to take you in, but Holly’s cabin is small and the guest room is now my stepson’s room. This is the best place for you. James has already offered. Why aren’t you accepting?”
For a multitude of reasons that Caleb didn’t need to hear. The worst reason was that she wanted to. She wanted to stay right here and play house with James and his brother. “It doesn’t seem right.”