The Forester brothers left the saloon and walked down to the café with Gil, while Brad crossed the street to the hotel to collect Lori. As he climbed the stairs, he glanced at the Indian carving and frowned. There would be no time to waste in finding her a husband.

He tapped on her door calling her name. Then the key rattled the lock and she swung the door open. Instead of the damp and exhausted young lady he'd left earlier, she was primped to perfection.

"You look gorgeous, Kitten."

"Thank you. I am grateful you gave me the time."

"I enjoyed a beer as you suggested. Let's go, they're waiting." Brad swung the door closed as she stepped out and locked it behind her. "I ran into a good friend of mine down at the saloon and invited him to dinner with us. He's the Ranger for our area." He slid the key into his pocket as they walked down the hallway.

Lori walked by his left side to keep his gun arm free. "What's he doing here if he works out by the ranch?"

"The headquarters are here." When a door opened further down the hallway, their conversation halted. A man stepped from his room and glanced their way before turning in the direction of the stairs.

Lori had stuck her hand in her pocket to clasp hold of her gun. "Does your friend live around us?"

"No." They watched the stranger disappear, and she pulled her hand from her pocket. He gave her a smile of approval. "Rangers are sought out when they're needed for a job. That's why he's here and why he's going to Sweetwater. In fact, he'll be going on the same train with us."

Lori took the arm Brad offered her to walk down the stairs while keeping her eyes off the statue. She didn't want him distracted from telling her about his friend. "Did this Ranger say what kind of job it was?"

"He's after cattle rustlers. The local law can't cover the territory a Texas Ranger can. Simply knowing a Ranger is on the job keeps the ranchers from forming a group of vigilantes. They don't take it well when their cattle are messed with."

"Will he do this alone?"

They walked through the lobby and Brad opened the door leading outside. "He'll investigate it first. If he finds them, he'll round up a posse."

"Is his wife traveling with him, or is he like you, too busy to be tied down?" Lori stepped down from the boardwalk to cross the street.

Brad considered his friend as a potential brother-in-law for a moment but discarded the idea because of the age difference. "He's not hitched and too old for you."

Lori raised her skirt a few inches off the dirt to walk across the road. "There's no need for you to worry about me chasing after your friends. Frank already warned me they're forbidden fruit." She tipped her chin up. "Besides, I'm not the one who needs to get married. You are. Remember?"

He grunted, "I remember you telling me I was old."

"You'll have more of a choice at this age than with gray in your hair." After crossing the road, she lifted the skirt a little higher to step onto the boardwalk, and then let the material drop as they approached the café. "Tell me, what type of woman attracts you?"

"Actually, Lori, there's a lady I'm already interested in. With you around, it will give me an opportunity to be with her."

She yanked his arm making him stop. "Why didn't you say something before? I'll make sure you have all the opportunities you want—as long as I like her." Her voice was filled with excitement. "Is she pretty?"

He began walking again forcing her to come with him. A huge smile lit his eyes as he thought of her. "She's beautiful."

Lori grinned seeing his expression. "What do you like most about her?"

"She's easy to talk to and knows when to shut up." He paused in front of the café and swung the door open. The dining area held a little over a dozen tables with odd mismatched chairs. Lanterns with round black hoods lit the tables. The air smelled of chicken cooking. Lori hadn't moved since he'd opened the door. Instead, she stood scowling at him for his teasing remark, so he pulled her forward to go inside.

She cocked her eyebrow while she poked at his chest. "Then she's not right for you. You would have her cowed." She heard a deep chuckle and thought it came from Jacob, but when she turned to give him a piece of her mind, she saw a man with a star on his chest standing off to the side smiling as he stared at her. There was no question God wanted perfection when creating him. He was as handsome as her brothers. The man had a dark complexion with sunburst lines around dark brown eyes from long days in a saddle. Lori looked up at his gorgeous sable brown hair and frowned. The man was far from old, much less any signs of gray.

She glanced over her shoulder at Brad. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?"

He frowned and bit out, "I don't like that look in your eyes, young lady."

She tried to appear innocent. "Oh? What look is that?"

"Calculating." He leaned down to get in her face, and with a stern expression told her, "He's too old for you."

"That man would have to be sixty to be too old for me." Her eyes fairly twinkled with merriment. "It's too late to hide me now. You have no choice but to introduce me." With a smug expression, she stepped away from her obstinate brother intending to introduce herself.

Brad grumbled, stepping beside her. She lifted her hand in an invitation to be kissed. But a spark of humor came into the man's eyes before taking her fingers—and shaking them. Lori laughed.

"Gil, this is my sister, Lori. Lori, this is Gil Parker."

"I can see why you're friends with my brothers, Mr. Parker. They love teasing me, which is why I can't resist getting back at them." She grinned up at Brad whose eyes rose towards the ceiling.

"It must be your reaction," Gil teased.

Jacob, who stood nearby, said, "She's an unending source of entertainment. We never know what she'll say or do next."

Her challenging blue eyes locked with his gunmetal gray. "Only because you goad me, Jacob."

Jacob leaned in close. "It's not my fault you're so easy to rile."

"You're mistaken, brother dear. You provoke and I stand up to you. Learn the difference."

Brad firmly told them, "This happens to be a public establishment with the best food in town. Save your arguments for later."

Instead of being embarrassed, Lori jabbed a finger in Jacob's chest and growled. "This is your fault."

Before Jacob said a word, Gil stepped between them causing Jacob to step back out of his way or be knocked over. Lori's head tipped way back. With a serious expression and a soft voice, he told her, "It doesn't matter what he says. You know he gets a kick out of rilin' your temper, and I'd hate to arrest ya."

"I haven't murdered him yet," Lori told him. "Though, he's pushing me towards the idea."

Jacob snickered, and Gil tried to keep his lips from twitching in at the need to laugh. "You would regret it; he's too much fun for you to tease."

"You're right. Besides, I'm too tired to sleep in a jail and I'm starving." Lori gave his chest a little pat like she would do to any of her brothers as a sign of affection, but as soon as she did, his eyes rounded in surprise. He obviously wasn't used to familiarity from total strangers. "Sorry. That was... never mind."

"Was what?"

"Foolish. Let's eat." She was more tired than she realized behaving that way. They moved towards the tables the waitress had scooted together for them.

Brad assisted Lori with her chair, then took the chair beside her at the head of the table. Gil pulled the chair out beside Brad directly across from Lori, and Frank sat on Lori's other side, while the rest of her brothers filed in around them.

Lori had given some thought to what he said. "Have you ever arrested a woman before?"

The question had Gil's lips turning up with wicked humor. "Not yet. You could be the first."

"Sorry, but I'll skip that experience." She grinned because Gil chuckled. "This behavior of disparaging remarks began before I could walk. I've concluded that sarcasm or avoidance is a male behavior trait." Her eyes swung to Brad in accusation and he shot out a hard bark.

"No doubt ya sassed them back."

"I learned quickly that tears or complaints resulted in name-calling. I was frequently accused of being a crybaby... even though I was a baby at the time."

Gil's eyes filled with laughter. He turned to Brad who also found it funny. "You've told me some stories of her, but not that young. Was she a hellion?"

Brad grinned as he remembered. "Her first word was 'no', and she screamed it. Her second word was 'mine', and that's when she learned to glare. It wasn't long before she started lifting her arms up as she demandingly shouted, 'Up!' As you can see, she was born bossy and has yet to outgrow it."

Lori told Gil, "If I didn't stand up for myself, I'd be a disappointment to them and they know it. They didn't raise someone who could be easily intimidated."

Brad grinned with pride. "Well, she has me there."

Gil sat back in his chair. "Brad told me you were only four-years-old the first time they let ya ride a horse by yourself. Is that right?"

"Close enough. If I wanted to go with them, I had to." She immediately changed the subject. "Brad said you plan to travel to Sweetwater on the same train with us."

He moved his forearms against the edge of the table as he leaned towards her. "Yep, he and Thomas generally put me up when I'm in the area."

"Then it should give all of us a chance to get to know you better, Mister Parker."

"I'll look forward to it. Why don't you call me Gil since your brothers do?"

Her eyes swung to Brad's to see if he would object, but he only sat there watching and listening. "Back East, it would be considered disrespectful since we don't know each other well."

"In Texas, we buck formalities. In fact, a man is generally given a nickname, or he's called by his last name unless there's a family of men like Brad and Thomas."

"Do you have a nickname?"

"Ya mean like Shorty?" Her laughter exploded into her hand causing him to grin. "My mom and dad call me Junior."

She was still giggling as she said, "I'm sorry, but that's as bad as Shorty, and you are anything but."

"Do ya have one in mind?"

Her eyes widened, "No, I don't even have one for my brothers."

The waitress finally showed up to take their orders and they chose the house special all around. When she hurried off, Jacob's eyes turned devilish as he leaned forward.

"We've given Lori a few nicknames. Maybe you could choose between them."

She innocently asked, "You want him to call me sweetheart?"

He ignored her, "Brad calls her kitten, I call her squirt, and Bo calls her brat. I was thinking you could choose from those after you get to know her."

Gil shook his head as he chuckled. "I take it Frank and Thomas are the ones who call ya sweetheart?"

Lori's eyes warmed. "Mostly, but even calling me brat or squirt can be as affectionate."

"But kitten is the one that fits," Gil teased. "You seem like a sweet little thing, but ya have claws." She hissed like a cat and scratched at the air, making him grin. "So what's your impression of Texas?"

"From what I've seen, it's dry and dusty, probably creates a harder life than it would have in Virginia, but I'm sure it has," she shrugged, "something that enticed my brothers to move here. Now, there are also cattle rustlers to contend with."

"He told ya?"

Lori cocked her head at his surprised tone. "Why wouldn't he?"

"Because it doesn't concern ya, that's why."

Her eyes turned to ice. "Brad, I'm not carrying my gun. May I please borrow yours?" She knew he had seen the gun in her skirt pocket, so her statement managed to break the tension with laughter, but she was still disgusted with Gil's answer.

Brad played along. "You aren't shooting him, Lori."

"It was an ignorant thing to come out of anyone's mouth, Brad, especially from a man who at least appears to be intelligent." She waved a finger back and forth. "Prepared actions create safety. If rustlers are in the area, it's best to keep your eyes open. I'm sure you look for clues by asking questions. Knowledge of the facts would also help the ranchers watch out for each other."

He paused seemingly to think about her opinion. "I always report it if I know there's trouble in the area. Brad already knows."

"Then you just believe women are incapable of a rational thought or the competence to deal with such things. They should be kept in the dark so they won't worry their pretty little heads about lurking danger. After all, it's a man's responsibility to look after the little woman. Right?"

Her brothers began chuckling at the corner she'd shoved Gil into.

Gil's eyes squinted as his lips turned hard. He suddenly shoved his face right into hers as he growled, "If I treated women like that, my mother and sister would make sure I didn't repeat that mistake."

She didn't back down an inch. "Thank God! You had me worried you were like those men in Washington. It's good to know your mama raised you right." He chuckled and relaxed. "Concerning our conversation about what I'm told... that's up to my brothers and you shouldn't worry your pretty little head about it."

He tried to stare her down but she didn't budge, blink, or show any emotion whatsoever. Her brothers had taught her that was a sure fire way to lose the argument. But the waitress arrived with their dinner and the staring contest ended. When Lori wasn't served first, she thought someone should inform her that ladies were always served first, but Jacob simply passed his plate down to Frank, who set it down in front of her.

"Thank you."

The waitress came back to the table again with more dinner plates and realized what happened. When Lori spotted the smile she bestowed on Jacob, it made sense. The young woman wanted the opportunity to be around him. Jacob said something to her to make her sweet shy smile brighten as he took plates off her arms until once again, they were passed down.

"Tell me, Gil, are you a good tracker?" His lips turned into a cocky grin. "I guess you'd have to be. Where do you think they're hiding out?"

He swallowed a drink of his tea. "I don't think ya have anything to worry about. Not with your brothers here to protect ya." He grinned at the hot glare that sparked from her eyes. "They're workin' a fifty-mile area close to Sweetwater."

"How do you plan to track them down in such a wide area?"

"I'll talk to the ranchers who've had cattle go missin' and see if anyone in the area has noticed anything out of the ordinary. Crooks make mistakes. It's only a matter of findin' where they've made them."

"It sounds like finding the impossible."

"Sometimes, it'll seem like it too." Gil watched her scoot the dumplings to the side of her plate after only cutting one in half. "Aren't ya hungry?"

"Yes. But I'm not fond of tough, chewy, dumplings. The meat will be enough. Tell me, where does your family live?"

"My folks have a ranch just outside of Dallas." Gil put a dumpling in his mouth and found she was right.

"What does your father think of you choosing the Rangers instead of working his ranch with him?"

Gil shook his finger at her. "That's sloppy investigative work, darlin'. You're assumin' too much. First of all, I have my own spread. I grew up hearin' about Rangers from my uncle, who fought alongside Sam Houston. Therefore, with the problems Texas has been havin', I volunteered four years ago."

"You run a ranch and you're able to be gone doing this?" She turned her attention to Brad. "Didn't you tell me how hard it would be to leave the ranch to take me home for a visit?"

Brad shot daggers at Gil who was trying not to laugh. "He has a foreman who runs..."

"And who did you say Sheraton was?"