Standing His Ground: Greer (Porter Brothers Trilogy 2)

“Your wife may have something to say about that.” Holly pulled the mound of clothes out of the box, dumping them onto the bed.

“My wife will do what I tell her.”

Her blood began to boil. Picking up the box, she thrust it into his arms. “How do you know what she’ll do? You can’t even pick one.”

“Got it narrowed down to two.”

Her eyes narrowed at his smug grin.

“Which two?”

“Kentuckygirl and Jo. Diane didn’t make the cut. She burnt the meatloaf she cooked for me last night. Woman can’t make a meatloaf without burning it, I’m not going to trust her to cook me a steak.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh my goodness. Can you tell me how Kentuckygirl is still on your list? Did she make a meatloaf and send you a picture of it?”

“Now you’re being ridiculous. I’m going to ask for her recipe.”

“Greer …” Holly didn’t know what to say. His method of trying to find a bride was too asinine to be believed. “Okay, forget Kentuckygirl. How about Jo? How do you know she cooks?”

“Ate a couple of things she brought to the church potlucks.”

Holly was ready to pull her hair out. “She brings things that she pays Willa to bake.”

“I ain’t got no problem with a woman being resourceful.”

“You can’t eat cake and cupcakes every night. If I give Logan something sweet to eat for dessert, you blow a gasket, saying I’m going to make him fat.”

“I don’t want Logan to end up dead like his mother. The doctor said we have to watch his sugar intake.”

Stunned, Holly sat down on the side of the bed. “That’s why you’re always watching what he eats?”

Greer frowned. “Yeah. And that’s why I don’t eat them in front of him.”

“The doctor told us to monitor his sweets, not to never give them to him. I’m very careful with what I give him. That’s why I make cakes with no sugar, using unsweetened applesauce, and I ask Willa to make special cupcakes and other things to keep him from being deprived.”

“How was I supposed to know that? You could have told me there was no sugar in them.”

“Because I didn’t want Logan to know.”

“Damn, now I feel bad. I just thought you were a lousy cook.”

“You think I’m a bad cook?”

“Where dinner is concerned, you’re not bad. But where desserts are concerned, yeah, you’re pretty bad.”

“Have you ever tasted any of those sugar-free desserts?”

Holly tried to keep a straight face but couldn’t when Greer gave her a cocky grin. It was the same infectious smile he had given her the night of the carnival.

She tried keep the protective barrier that steeled her heart against him. She was still furious at the way he had talked to her that had led to her moving out, but every time she was about to write him off, he managed to find a way back inside.

She had tried too many times since she had met him to hate him, but she couldn’t. Each time, he would find another way to become entrenched, making her fall in love with him even more.

Logan came running back into the room, dressed in his pajamas.

“Daddy said, since you won’t let me sleep with you, he’ll stay and sleep with me in my bed. Is that okay? If you want, my bed is big enough for you, too?”

Holly laughed, picking Logan up and cuddling him close. “How about I tuck both of you in and then come down and sleep in my bed? Your daddy snores, and I have to be at work early in the morning.”

“Dustin doesn’t snore.”

“Yes, he does.” Holly carried Logan out of the bedroom, going to the foot of the stairs.

“I’ve had to share the same bedroom with him for most of my life. I’d know if my brother snored.”

Holly frowned. “Maybe it was his TV I heard then. I just assumed the sounds coming from his room were snoring.”

“I’m going on home. Lock the door after me.” Greer took Logan from her arms. Reaching into his back pocket, he pulled out his comb then parted his damp hair to the side that he normally lay on. “You remember what I told you?” he asked when he put his comb back in his pocket.

“Yes, sir. I won’t forget.”

“Good.”

Holly locked and bolted the door behind him.

“What aren’t you supposed to forget?” She couldn’t stem her curiosity about the stern warning Greer had given his nephew.

“That’s a family secret. I’m not supposed to tell you.”

Holly paused at the foot of the stairs. “I’m part of your family, aren’t I?”

“Yes.”

“Then you can tell me.”

“No, this secret is just between me and Uncle Greer. Not even Daddy knows.”

“Darling, you can tell me. I won’t tell your uncle you told—”

Logan’s jaw set stubbornly, just like Greer’s. “A man doesn’t break his promises.”

Holly’s worries melted into a puddle. “No, he doesn’t.”