Page 93 of Unmasking Mr. Crown

She pulled it on, along with a pair of yoga pants. Her hair still looked great, but her makeup needed serious attention. She took a minute to fix her face in the full-length mirror on the back of her bedroom door. As she tucked her feet into a pair of Birkenstocks, she took in her reflection again.

Let’s see if this gets a reaction.

Every muscle in Natalie's body tensed when she heard voices at the back door. Sitting on the floor, head down in what she hoped gave the impression of unbothered concentration, she flipped Scrabble tiles over. Foster sat a few feet away, kicked back in his favorite chair, nursing his second drink of the night and reading the newspaper.

"Who's hungry?" Kate hollered from the kitchen. "We've got dinner!"

"She cooked dinner? At the barn?" Natalie locked eyes with her father. "Are you kidding me?"

Foster responded with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Pop?" Kate's voice rang out again.

"We're in here!" Foster called out, folding and dropping his newspaper on the floor beside his chair.

Kate and Dash surfed into the living room on a wave of laughter with pizza boxes and beer cartons in hand.

"Nat!" Kate squealed and came to an abrupt stop. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be back in Chicago."

"Flight got canceled and rescheduled. I fly out early tomorrow morning."

"This is perfect!" Kate flopped down on the floor and gathered Natalie into a tight hug. “Except for that sweatshirt. Pop, how can you allow her to diss you like this in your own home?”

“The things we do for love, my dear.”

“It’s the only clean thing I had left in my suitcase,” Natalie fibbed.

Kate’s eyes flicked to Dash. “I know someone who’ll give you full points for it.”

“Hook ‘Em,” Dash said.

His gaze latched on to Natalie. Was the gleam in his eye a spark of true recognition?

Foster held up a hand. “Okay, okay … one Hook ‘Em is all you’re gonna get in this house. You two up for a game of Scrabble?”

“Absolutely. I was just telling Dash about Board Game Night when we were kids. Nat, I say we take them down. Ladies versus Gents?” Kate winked at Dash. “What sayeth you, Mr. Benning?"

Natalie's gaze bounced between her sister and Dash. She watched his smile widen … and felt herself go numb.

Dash spoke to Foster. "Exactly how cutthroat are these daughters of yours, sir?"

"Let's just say these apples had an extremely short fall from their old tree," Foster said with a chuckle. "In a word: ruthless. Worth seventeen points, by the way."

"I'm sure we can take 'em," Dash said with a nod.

Natalie stood. "Y’all give me two seconds. I'll be right back."

"Hurry, Nat. I'm ready to commence with the ass-whooping,” Kate said.

Natalie disappeared into the kitchen for a few minutes to engage in an emergency staff meeting … with herself. Out of view from the others, she braced herself against the sink. The lights at the barn and the practice arena shone bright. She took in the view while her mind preached a familiar sermon.

And you thought facing Hart in a public airport would be hard? Oh, babe, you thought wrong! Now you have to sit here and watch your sister flirt her ass off with the man of your dreams while you try to be cool and charming and not make an absolute fool of yourself.

You'll never make it.

She grabbed plates and napkins for their casual dinner and returned to the living room. The coffee table had been shoved closer to Foster's chair, deep divots in the rug from the table’s legs now visible. Boots off, Dash sat parked on the floor, twisting the top of a longneck. Kate stood at the stereo, loading up the CD player with a collection of Foster's favorite country artists.

"Plates and napkins!" Natalie announced, flashing a ridiculously large grin while holding up the wares.