Delia leaned back and studied her latest manicure, silver nails with gold sparkles. "I guess your silence answers my question pretty well."

"I could lie."

"And I'd know it," Delia pointed out calmly. "I always know when you're lying, I have since we were five and you dipped my hair in the red paint and tried to tell me Kenny Harkins did it."

"Well, how was I supposed to know you had eyes in the back of your head?" But the memory brought a smile to Zoe's lips, and they sat in companionable silence a moment.

"Is it that bad?" Delia asked softly. "Are we in that deep?"

"I don't know." Zoe shook back her hair and sighed. "I didn't count on spending nearly all of our nest egg on getting the buildings ready to house animals. I also thought there would be some animals."

"What are we going to do?"

Zoe thought about hedging, but in the end she had to say the rest, because if she didn't unload she was going to burst. "I don't know," she admitted. "Even if we had enough to stock the place with animals, not to mention hire the help to care for them, which we don't, we wouldn't have any extra for mistakes. Or even to allow for a bad season."

Maddie came into the office bearing a tray of tea and cookies. "You both look worried. Maybe this will help a little."

Zoe didn't have the heart to tell her sister that food wasn't going to cut it this time. But then her nose kicked into gear, going into overdrive at the scent of vanilla and chocolate. "Oh Lord. Are they warm?" she asked hopefully, leaning forward, her month watering, her fingers already reaching for a handful of fresh, still-hot chocolate-chip cookies.

"Of course they're warm." With a small smile, Maddie handed Zoe a napkin. "Help yourself. I'll pour you some tea."

Zoe moaned at the first bite as chocolate melted down her throat. "Okay, this will definitely help."

She didn't try to continue her conversation with Delia until she'd put away three more cookies and an entire mug of steaming tea with tons of lemon.

Delia restrained herself to a single cookie, watching disdainfully as Zoe stuffed herself. "God. How do you do that?"

"Easy." Zoe eyed the tray and decided she could have just one more. "I open my mouth and shovel. Chewing's optional."

"And you don't gain a pound. That's disgusting." Delia slid an elegant hand down her trim figure. "I'd pay for that binge for weeks."

"Well, maybe you oughta give up Oprah and bonbons and work harder," she suggested, ducking when without losing an ounce of her cool calm Delia flung a manila file with deadly accuracy at her head.

Zoe straightened and grinned. "Hey, don't hate me because I can pig out."

Delia sniffed. "Well, at least I'm beautiful. I can always diet. You on the other hand…"

Maddie sighed at the familiar bickering. "Girls… please. Here, Zoe-" she handed her another cookie "-put this in your mouth."

Delia laughed. "Yeah, Zoe, stuff that trap shut."

"Delia," Maddie said mildly. "Drink your tea."

Her tummy comfortably full, Zoe sat back, watching Delia carefully to make sure she didn't get clobbered again.

Delia watched Zoe with equal attention.

Maddie sighed, but the sound was full of affection. "Now, tell me what's up."

"We've got money trouble," Zoe admitted.

"So?"

"So?" Zoe laughed. "Didn't you hear me?"

Maddie shrugged. "We've got money trouble. What's new?"

Zoe stared at her and then laughed again. "Well, that's putting it into perspective."

"It should," Maddie said. "Don't tell me you've forgotten all those nights we sustained ourselves on nothing but a twenty-nine-cent box of macaroni and cheese."

"With water instead of milk," Delia added. She laughed fondly, then groaned. "Yuck. We might be back to that soon."

Zoe's stomach growled at just the memory. There'd been plenty of tight times after they'd left their group home together, determined to remain a family despite all the insurmountable odds.

Three eighteen-year-olds, innocent yet toughened by life. Eventually Delia had found her niche working in a beauty salon, catering to the rich who so fascinated her. Maddie had always cooked, first at Hamburger Palace, true, but she'd worked her way up to much fancier establishments.

And Zoe… she'd had the hardest time finding her place. She hadn't known what she wanted out of life other than she wanted more. Finally she'd ended up at a city college, then the university at night. She was the only one of the three with a degree.

Business management.

She nearly laughed. What would she do with it on a ranch out in the wilds of Idaho?

Hopefully she'd pull this off, that's what.

Delia stretched. "It sure is getting old, being poor. I want the good life, dammit. I want someone else to give me a manicure for a change. And believe me, when I do, I'm going to tip really good."

"You'd never let anyone give you a manicure," Zoe pointed out with a laugh. "No one would ever do it just right and you know it."

"Well, that's because no one is as good as I am." Zoe rolled her eyes and turned to Maddie. "If we've always struggled, why am I so stressed-out over this one?"

"Because it's different this time," her sister said wisely. "It means more."

"It does, doesn't it," Zoe murmured, staring off into space. "Because it's ours." She straightened, determined. "And we won't lose it."

"No, we won't lose it," Maddie said, equally determined.

"No failing allowed," Delia agreed. "But I have to say here, if you'd just let up a little with the whole Ty situation, you could have it much easier."

Here it was, Zoe had known she wouldn't be able to avoid it forever. "You want to let him in, don't you. You want him as a partner."

"Would it be so bad?"

"Yes."

"Why?" Maddie asked, and Zoe didn't have an answer. "I mean, have you seen how that man fills out a pair of jeans?" Delia asked her incredulously. "Good Lord. He's got the greatest-"

"Delia!" Maddie broke in, horrified, laughing. "How his bottom looks is absolutely irrelevant here."

"How did you know I meant his butt?" Delia lifted eyebrows so high they disappeared into her perfectly aligned bangs. "You've been noticing, too, Maddie, haven't you? Admit it."

Maddie blushed to her roots. "Knock it off."

"You have." Delia laughed. "It's okay. I mean, he's gorgeous. You'd have to be dead to-"

"Got it." Zoe gritted her teeth at this candid discussion of the center of her nightly fantasies. "I don't care how he looks in jeans-"

"Oh, yes you do," Delia said calmly, smiling in a way that made Zoe want to smack her. "I've seen you drooling with lust."

"It was anger! That man is annoying as hell."

"Uh-huh."

Zoe looked to Maddie for help, but Maddie was giving her a small, knowing smile. "You know," her supposedly shy sister said slowly, "the way you lose it around him is very telling. I think maybe you protest too much."

Delia grinned and nodded. "Yes. Yes, she does."

Maddie's eyes weren't teasing but serious when they landed on Zoe again. "Did you know that Ty grew up on the streets of Chicago, without any supervision or attention or money or anything?"

Zoe blinked at Maddie, unsettled by the quick shift between lust and life. "What? He told you this?"

"Sure." Maddie poured more tea for herself. "He seemed to really understand the bond between us. So I asked him why and that's when I found out how hard it was for him. His parents didn't take care of him. He grew up pretty rough."

That day in the truck, when Zoe had blurted out how guilty she felt about losing Constance before she'd gotten to know her, she'd sensed Ty's deep understanding, his deep grief about something she didn't understand.

And she hadn't pressed for answers, not wanting to pry.

No, that wasn't quite true, she admitted. She hadn't pressed because she didn't want to get to know him well. If she got to know him, she might care. And she didn't want that.

Only problem-it was far too late, she did care.

And now she yearned on top of that caring. Ached for the boy he'd been, all alone, just as she had been.

But at least she'd had her sisters.

Who had Ty had? She didn't want to know, didn't want to picture Ty as a lonely, frightened boy. "Let's leave Ty out of this," she suggested.

Delia gave her a knowing look. "Can you?"

"Of course I can."

"Uh-huh."

"Look, can we just get back to the fact that we're drowning here and I'd like to make this work? Without a partner?" Zoe let out a breath at both Delia's and Maddie's faces, which reflected both amusement and doubt. "I know you guys like and trust him, and I know it would be far easier if we let him in, but I just think we can do this alone."

There was a moment of thoughtful silence. Then Maddie reached across the desk for Zoe's hand. "I do like him, but I won't force you to do something you don't want."

Delia held back another minute and let loose a disgusted sigh. "Hell, hon, if you want to pass that fantastic man up, I think you're a fool. But I'm with you. We do this alone."

Zoe blinked, for the first time considering that maybe Delia wanted Ty. It wasn't a silly thought, both Ty and Delia were adults. Human ones. But clearly Delia sensed the attraction between Ty and Zoe, and she'd never jeopardize that Zoe opened her mouth to tell Delia to feel free to make a move on Ty, but something held her back-a sort of strange ping to her midsection.

Too many cookies, she told herself. Yeah, that was it, too many cookies.


* * *

Ty relaxed and bit back a grin, taking a moment to enjoy his view.