Once they had made it through the door, Chase slammed Lucky against the exterior wall of the building. Lucky threw off his brother's restraining hands. "You have to ask what the matter is?" he shouted. "They were right. I might go to jail."

"So what does that have to do with what went on in there?" Chase hitched his chin toward the tavern.

"I was looking for information about her."

"Why?"

"Why?"

"Yeah, why?" Chase settled his hands on his hips and confronted his short-tempered brother. "You've been acting just plain weird all day. I think locating this woman means more to you than providing yourself with an alibi."

"You're crazy."

"Don't call me crazy. I'm not the one picking fights with Little Alvin two days straight over the same broad."

Lucky was ready with a vehement denial that she was a 'broad' when he caught himself. The protest would confirm Chase's suspicions. Belligerently he said, "Just leave me the hell alone and let me deal with this my way, okay?"

"Not okay. You're my brother. The Tylers stick together. If you're in trouble, we're all in trouble. And since you can't seem to stay out of it, you're stuck with me as your protector."

They looked away from each other, each trying to get hold of his temper. Lucky was the first to come around. "Oh hell, Chase, you know I'm glad you intervened. At least in hindsight I am. I couldn't afford to get my other eye pulverized."

Chase grinned and slapped him between the shoulder blades. "Follow me to our house. Mother's been so upset all day, Tanya offered to cook dinner for everybody."

"Her famous pot roast?" Lucky asked hopefully.

"That's right."

"Hmm," he sighed, smacking his lips. "Tell me—brother to brother—is she as good in the bedroom as she is in the kitchen?"

"You'll die wondering." He shoved Lucky in the direction of his car. "And we'll both die at her hands if we spoil her dinner by being late."

Lucky was tailing Chase's car into town when it occurred to him that his return to the place had gained him nothing. He was no closer to locating Dovey than he'd been when he first woke up that morning, finding her side of their shared bed empty.

* * *

Chapter 7

"Know what Susan Young is spreading all over town?"

In response to his sister's question, Lucky grunted with lack of interest from behind his morning newspaper.

"That y'all are getting married." Sage popped a fat, juicy strawberry into her mouth and chewed with sybaritic enthusiasm. "I've gotta tell you that if you marry the snotty bitch, I'm disowning this family for good."

"Promises, promises." Lucky lowered the newspaper to take a sip of breakfast coffee. "You've been threatening to disown the family ever since Chase and I hid your first bra in the freezer. So far, we've had no such luck." He retreated from her glare by burying his head in the newspaper again.

Sage slathered cream cheese onto a slice of low-calorie whole-wheat toast. "Well, are you?" she mumbled around the first creamy bite.

"Am I what?"

"Marrying Susan Young."

Lucky laid aside the newspaper. "Get serious. While you're at it, get your older brother some more coffee."

"Haven't you ever heard of women's lib?" she asked crossly.

"Sure, I've heard of it."

Picking up his mug, he wagged it back and forth while smiling at her guilelessly. With a theatrical sigh she fetched the carafe from the coffee maker and refilled his mug.

Tags: Sandra Brown Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net