Blood Blade Sisters Series by Michelle McLean

she?”
    “She’s just not used to having to explain herself,” Brynne said, gathering the dishes. “And she doesn’t trust you yet.”
    Leo helped her clean up the meal. “Do you?”
    “You’re Jake’s brother,” she said, as if that explained everything.
    “And you were Jake’s intended wife.”
    Brynne’s eyes narrowed. “I am his wife.”
    It was strange to be sitting in front of the woman his brother had loved enough to wed, no matter how strange the ceremony. Who now carried his brother’s child.
    An overwhelming sense of duty filled Leo. He couldn’t just walk away and leave them unprotected.
    “So the fact that I’m Jake’s brother is enough for you to trust me, even though you’ve just met me?”
    Brynne scraped the uneaten food into a bucket. “Jake loved you. And he wasn’t one to suffer fools. Besides, you jumped to our defense when Frank came barging in. It’s more than most folks would do. I guess that buys you a little leeway. From me, at least.”
    Leo smiled. “I take it your sister might be harder to win over.”
    “I guess you won’t know ‘til you try.”
    He grabbed his hat, ducking his head while he tugged it on to hide his smile. He was beginning to see why his brother had fallen so hard for one of the Richardson sisters. “Well, if I’m going to be staying a while, I might as well make myself useful.” He pushed in his chair and headed for the door.
    “Leo.”
    He looked back at Brynne, who gave him a sad smile, her hand lingering on her slightly burgeoning belly. “Thank you for staying.”
    His heart twisted at the sadness in her eyes. He didn’t know what had happened to his brother, but he knew from the bottom of his gut that Brynne, at least, hadn’t had anything to do with it.
    He tipped his hat to her. “My pleasure.”
    “Be careful out there,” she said, amusement dancing in her eyes.
    Leo snorted. “Thanks.”
    When he got to the barn, the girls were nowhere to be found. But two horses were gone. Leo started at the sound of Miguel’s voice coming from a stall. “Can I help you, señor?”
    “I was just looking for Priscilla and Lucy.”
    “So, you are married to Miss Brynne now. You’ll be good to her, sí ?”
    “Yes, of course,” Leo answered, though the thought of having a wife was still so foreign to him he had a hard time comprehending it. Especially since the girl in question was sort of his brother’s wife. Surely that was all kinds of sinful wrong, but damned if he knew a better way to keep her and his unborn niece or nephew safe. Or to get closer to her feisty, beautiful, and possibly murderous sister.
    He held out his hand. “I’m Leo Forrester.”
    “Miguel Sanchez.”
    Miguel sized him up for a moment. “This ranch, it’s good land. Rich pastures, good for stock. A lot of men might find it hard to give up.”
    Leo nodded. “A lot of men might.”
    “And you?”
    Leo smiled. He appreciated the whole father-figure warning behind the man’s questioning eyes. “I’m just here to find my brother. If I can help my brother’s wife and child along the way, I’m happy to do so.”
    “And if your brother is dead?”
    Leo’s jaw tensed. The possibility of Jake being dead was getting more and more likely, but until that moment, no one had bluntly said it. And to be honest, Leo had no response.
    “We’ll deal with that when we need to.”
    Miguel stuck a piece of straw in his mouth and chewed on it for a moment.
    “My wife, she’s just relieved that Miss Brynne is married. She wants her to be happy, of course, but the weight of Miss Brynne’s living in sin and bringing a fatherless baby into the world has weighed heavily on her. My Carmen…she is a bit…religious.”
    Leo echoed Miguel’s faint smile.
    “And you?”
    Miguel fixed Leo with a piercing gaze. “I just want Miss Brynne to be happy. Married or no.”
    Leo nodded. “That’s all I want as well. I will keep her and the child safe until my brother returns. And if he