Free If You Dare by Liz Lee Page A

control.”
    Damn. His twenty-four year old sister wanted to give him pointers with the opposite sex. How had his life dissolved to this?
    He shook his head determined to do the one thing guaranteed to preserve his sanity. Walk away.
    But her words stopped him short. “I saw her when I was looking for the paper. She’s cute. Looks like someone you could bring home to meet Momma. Especially with those PJs. Do you think she likes cats? I know you always threatened to kill Mr. Twinkletoes, God rest his soul.”
    Cats. PJs. Someone he could bring home. His sister was a raving lunatic sometimes. And Mr. Twinkletoes had been one hell of a demented feline.  
    “You’ll have to ask her about the cat thing. I don’t know about the pajamas; I didn’t see them. She’s not meeting Mother. And Mr. Twinkletoes lived to be fifteen. I don’t even know how old that is in cat years. But he was evil all fifteen of them. Besides, I don’t dislike cats. I’m allergic.”
    Taylor’s wicked grin let him know what part of the answer she’d focused on. “Well, since you didn’t see them, they’re gray flannel. And they have sleeping cats all over them. I swear, they almost looked like the PJs you boys bought Momma last year.”
    Joe couldn’t hide the goofy grin at the thought of Cordelia in gray flannel pajamas. He wondered if Taylor was exaggerating a little. It seemed odd that she’d wear more clothes to sleep in than anything else. The pajamas were probably a gag gift from her sister.
    Nope. He pretty much figured she was a naked sleeper. Completely in tune with her body. Egyptian cotton sheets like those they’d tangled last night or maybe silk. Red. Or navy blue.
    Taylor interrupted his thoughts. “So, you’ll let me talk to her today. What do you have planned? Don’t worry about me. I can take care of myself. But if you really want to impress her, I guarantee I can help.”
    The day he had to ask his baby sister to help plan a seduction was the day he’d move back home. “I think I’ve got this under control. But yeah, you can talk to her. Maybe before she leaves you’ll see why you don’t want to stick around a town like Vegas. You need to go home, Taylor.”
    His sister wasn’t having any part of it. She’d opened up a local job search home page and was surfing for future employment. “You hate home, Joe. You hate the stifling nature of it. You hate how everyone knows everyone’s business. You hate the fact that the only money in town is old money and it’s not up for grabs. I want to live the American dream. I can do that here. I can’t at home.”
    Joe had to agree with her words. He did hate home. And if the American dream was money, she was right. You couldn’t get rich in Daryl, Oklahoma.
    You could be born rich. The end.
    He hadn’t been born to a wealthy family. But he was certainly wealthy now. And his entire family reaped the benefits of that wealth.
    “A-ha!”  
    Taylor’s exclamation caught his attention. “A-ha what?”
    She pointed to the computer screen. “Receptionist. Filing and computer skills necessary. I can do that.”
    Joe didn’t know whether to be relieved his sister wasn’t looking for a dancing job or disheartened that she seemed determined to at least try the move.
    “I’ll find something I’m sure. In the mean time, you can sit here and tell me about tonight.”
    Back to this again. “Like I said…”
    Taylor interrupted. “I mean, you know, formal? Fun? Do you want me to check into a room on the strip? I’ve always wanted to stay in a castle.”
    Joe couldn’t help but shake his head. But she had given him a great idea. He could call in a few favors and who knew where the night could end.
    He might end up owing his sister after all if everything worked out.  
    As he watched Taylor pull up another job on her search he wondered just what it was about Cordelia that reminded him so much of her.
    It just didn’t make sense. Cordelia and Taylor were polar