Page 153 of Rocky Mountain Home

Joel laughed. “You’re just figuring that out now?”

“Yeah.” He’d been clueless, but in this case he didn’t mind so much. Something about having finally come to his senses created this wonderful sensation. He wasn’t going to regret he had taken this long to figure it out, because holy fucking hell, he was in love.

There was nothing more to think about.

Wait, there was more to think about. How was he supposed to go about telling Dare?

He turned on the spot and slammed smack into Joel who was standing there with a stupid grin on his face.

“I need to go find her,” Jesse insisted, attempting to push past his brother. “I need to tell her.”

Joel didn’t move. “It is so amusing to watch you turn into a love-struck fool.”

“You’re in my way,” Jesse warned.

Joel raised a brow. “I thought you were going to look through the house.”

Suddenly Jesse didn’t know which way to turn. He wanted to look at the house, but he needed to tell Dare that he loved her. Hell, he wanted to go find Dare so he could tell her about the incredible, unbelievable house, and so he could tell her he loved her.

“Your feet stuck to the ground?” Joel teased.

Jesse whirled toward his voice and nearly tipped over, he was so out of control and discombobulated. His brother was a dozen paces away on the path leading back toward the horses.

“Where are you going?” An out-of-the-blue thought struck. “Oh my God, what if Dare doesn’t love me? Wait, that’s stupid. Of course she loves me, but if she doesn’t, I’m going to find a way and make her fall in love with me, because this is crazy, and there’s no way that—”

A laugh escaped Joel. Soft at first, then with rising volume and enthusiasm until he was shaking his head and nearly crying. It was contagious, and Jesse caught himself grinning as well.

“So. You’re in love, are you?” Joel patted him on the shoulder when they finally pulled themselves back under control.

“I think so. If wanting to act like the world’s biggest dork, and do anything I can to make her smile means I’m in love. Also, I want to step in and protect her from anything that could remotely hurt her.”

Joel nodded, walking at his side back to the horses, his arm strong and supportive around him. “Sounds like love to me. Now, what are you going to do about it?”

Jesse was ready to shout it to the mountains. “I’ll make it up as I go along.”

His twin laughed. “Now that sounds like the Jesse I’ve always known.”

She spent the first ten minutes after Jesse left kicking her own butt for being cranky.

It had to be hormones. Stupid freaking pregnancy hormones.

Guilt slipped in, and she had to admit the truth.

She patted Buckaroo fondly, even though by this point the enormous bubble in front of her seemed more determined to get in her way than cooperate. “Mama is sorry she’s in a bad mood. I need to tell your daddy something important, but I keep chickening out. You need to learn from my mistake. It’s important to always be brave.”

She wasn’t the fastest home decorator at the moment, and she had wonderful plans Jesse had nearly spoiled by refusing to get out of her hair. But he was right, there were some things she just couldn’t deal with on her own.

While she waited for her help to arrive, she pulled the pile of pictures and wall hangings out of the closet where Vicki had stashed them for her a couple of days earlier.

An hour later the bedsheets were in the dryer, the pictures were all hung, and she popped her feet up on the coffee table and closed her eyes for a few minutes.

The rest time was perfect because she had energy again when the doorbell rang. She awkwardly pulled herself to her feet, thrilled to see a delivery van outside.

“Right on time,” she offered as she swung the door open.

Jesse’s brother Daniel stood on the doorstep, workmen behind him carrying parts for a new bedframe and mattress.

Daniel offered an enormous hug, careful of her belly. “Show me which rooms you want set up, and I’ll get the guys to make the switch.”