By the time the first pale slivers of dawn crept into the sky, she was no more certain of what she needed to do than she had been when she’d crawled into her own bed the night before. Nor was she prepared for a face-to-face encounter with Grady so soon.

She crept downstairs, drank a quick cup of coffee and nibbled at a piece of toast, then all but ran to the barn and saddled her horse.

It was only a little past daybreak when she rode out on Ginger. The air was crisp and smelled of approaching snow. Thick gray clouds rolled across the sky. Karen rode hard for an hour, exhausting herself, the wind whipping at her hair and stinging her cheeks.

The exercise cleared her head, but as she rode back into the paddock, all of the turmoil came back with a vengeance at the sight of Grady waiting, a fierce scowl on his face.

“Where have you been?” he demanded, even as he helped her out of the saddle.

She shrugged off his hands. “I should think that would be obvious,” she said, leading her horse into the heated barn to be unsaddled and rubbed down.

“Not to me, it isn’t,” he snapped. “I thought we had agreed you weren’t going anywhere alone until we know what the hell is happening around here.”

She flinched at the worry underscoring his words. She had completely forgotten about the danger in her haste to retreat from a different kind of threat.

“I’m sorry if you were worried,” she said, meeting his gaze for the first time.

He sighed and raked his hand through his hair as he surveyed her from head to toe. “You didn’t run into any problems?”

“None,” she assured him. “I didn’t see a single soul, nor was there any evidence of more fence down, sick cattle or anything else out of the ordinary.”

Some of the concern faded from his eyes then, only to be replaced by what looked surprisingly like sorrow. “Why did you run?”

She thought about that, debated how truthful to be, then settled for total honesty. “I was afraid to see you because I knew I had hurt you last night.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, well, I’ll get over it.”

“You shouldn’t have to. What I did was unfair. I went to bed with you willingly. No, it was more than that,” she corrected. “I went eagerly.”

“And then you regretted it,” he concluded.

“But not for the reason you think, not entirely anyway.”

“You’re going to have to explain that one to me.”

It was hard to tell him, but she knew she owed him the truth. “The reason I felt lousy was because I felt so much more with you than I ever had with Caleb.” When Grady would have spoken, she held up her hand. “I’m not comparing exactly. What Caleb and I had together was wonderful-our life, our marriage, all of it. I will never forget those feelings for as long as I live.”

“How reassuring,” Grady said with an unmistakable edge of bitterness.

Karen saw that she was going about this all wrong, but she was still sorting through her emotions herself. How could she be expected to explain them so Grady would understand? She knew, looking into his shadowed eyes, though, that she had to try, or they would be lost before they’d even begun. He had too much pride to stay with a woman whose heart would always belong to someone else.

“You like steak, right?” she asked.

He was clearly startled by the question. “You’re going to get into a discussion of beef with me?”

“Just hear me out,” she pleaded. “I’m trying to say this so you’ll understand. Do you like steak?”

“I’m a cattle rancher. What do you think?”

“Okay, then-are all cuts of beef the same?”

“Of course not.”

“So, they’re the same, but different?” she prodded.

“Yes,” he agreed, though he still looked puzzled by the analogy.

“A plain old strip steak is tasty, right? Enjoyable?”

He nodded.

“But a filet takes it to a different level, wouldn’t you agree?”

Understanding flared in his eyes, followed quickly by a hint of pure arrogance. “Are you saying I’m filet?”

She bit back a smile at the typically male response. “In a manner of speaking, but I wouldn’t gloat about it if I were you,” she warned. “I’m still not all that sure I’m ready for a steady diet of filet.”

He grinned for the first time all morning. “I’ll bet I can change your mind.”

She regarded him with a mixture of amusement and impatience. “Men,” she muttered. “Give them a compliment and it goes straight to their heads.”

“Or other parts of their anatomy,” Grady said, taking a step in her direction, then another, until he had her backed against a stall door.

When his mouth slanted across hers, her pulse leaped and her doubts fled. The kiss was persuasive, needy, maybe just a little desperate. But then, she was feeling a little desperate herself.

Feeling her senses swim, she was somehow reassured that last night’s reaction hadn’t been a fluke. Passion seethed just beneath the surface once again, ready to claim her and him.

Just not here and not now, she thought with a resigned sigh as Grady moved away, clearly satisfied by having made his point-that he could make her crave filet…crave him…any time he wanted.

That knowledge filled her with hope, and guilt, all over again. But the guilt wasn’t as sharp somehow, she realized with a sense of bemusement. And that was something she would have to wrestle with another time.

Grady needed to get away. He’d claimed a victory of sorts with Karen in the barn. He’d gotten an admission from her that she wanted him just as badly now as she had the night before, even if she had a few demons left to fight.

But the temptation to haul her back upstairs was a little too powerful. That wasn’t the answer for either of them. A little time and space were called for.

He sent her in to fix them both the breakfast they’d missed earlier, then went in search of Dooley to make sure he and Hank would be around to keep an eye on things. Assured that they wouldn’t let Karen out of their sight, he joined her in the kitchen.

Over bacon and eggs, he announced his intention of going back to his place to make sure his foreman had everything under control and to pick up the things he’d need for the next few days.

“Now who’s running scared?” she taunted.

“Maybe I am,” he agreed, then offered, “You could always come along.”

He watched her as she considered the challenge, then shook her head.

“No, I have things to do around here.”

He regarded her intently, then warned, “If you leave the house, make sure Dooley or Hank knows where you are. Preferably take one of them with you.”

She nodded.

Grady paused by her chair and pressed a kiss against her cheek. “We’re going to work this out, darlin’. All of it.”

“I know,” she said softly, but with more conviction than she’d ever expressed before.

Once Grady was on the road, he found that the solitude he’d wanted wasn’t nearly as comforting as he’d anticipated or hoped for. Increasingly impatient, he floored the accelerator and made it to his ranch in record time. Too restless to deal with the packing he’d intended to do, he went to the stables and saddled the fastest, most temperamental horse he owned. He needed a hard ride and a challenge. He didn’t miss the irony of knowing that Karen had crept out of the house that morning, feeling the exact same desire.

At the top of a rise, he dismounted and surveyed the rugged terrain spread before him. It was enough. In fact, it was more than enough for him, for a legacy.

Getting the rest had been about pride, not need. He’d accepted the mission because it had been important to people he loved, to ancestors he’d wanted to honor. But maybe it wasn’t his fight. Maybe it was time to let it go and seize what mattered most to him-Karen’s love and the future they could have together.

Before he could be certain of that, he needed to see his grandfather one more time.