five minutes you’re supposed to be at the corral—” he grinned and slipped into an exaggerated slow drawl while doing his best John Wayne impersonation “—to saddle ‘em up, pilgrim, and move ’em on out for the afternoon ride.” He stepped into the storeroom and looked around. “So, what are you doing in here?”
Nick attempted to sound casual as if nothing out of the ordinary had been going on. “I was checking on a guest who stayed here a few years ago. Her sister arrived this morning and mentioned it.” He handed the photograph to Danny and indicated Mamie. “Do you remember her?”
Danny took the photograph from Nick and studied it for a moment. “Oh, yeah. I remember this one all right. She was one hot little number.”
Nick stared at his brother, not sure exactly how to interpret what Danny said. “Oh? Do I take that to mean that you—”
“No, not me. I just meant that she seemed to be really hot for cowboys and was determined to get it on with as many as possible. I made it a point to stay clear of her.” A wicked little grin tugged at his lips. “She seemed to be more interested in quantity than quality.”
Nick returned the photograph to the file, stuck the file folder into the storage box and shoved it aside with the toe of his boot.
Danny shot Nick a knowing look. “Well, well, well . . . the sister who’s the newly arrived guest wouldn’t be that tasty-looking blonde you’ve been drooling over ever since the shuttle van arrived from the airport, would it?”
Nick hid behind a stern expression. “Knock it off, Danny. I haven’t been drooling over anyone.” He attempted to project a businesslike manner. “Lexi simply mentioned that her sister had vacationed here a few years ago and asked if I remembered meeting her. I was just looking through the old records to see if I could find a photograph to jog my memory. It’s no big deal.”
“Oh, I see.” Danny could no longer suppress a mischievous grin. “Then I can assume you have no personal interest in Ms. Lexi Parker? That you don’t have any objections to my making a play for her?”
Nick balled up his fist, gave his brother a loving punch to the shoulder, then broke out into a teasing smile. “You do and you die!”
Danny returned the feeling of closeness between the brothers. “That’s what I thought.”
Lexi forced a smile and tried to assume an upbeat manner as she stepped into the dining room. She turned to the attractive gray-haired woman seated at the front desk.
“Lexi Parker . . . one for dinner.”
The older woman extended her hand toward Lexi and offered a gracious smile. “I’m Gloria Clayton. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lexi.”
“Thank you. It’s nice to meet you, Gloria.”
“On behalf of my two sons and myself, I’d like to thank you for choosing to spend your vacation with us. The weather forecast says blue skies and sunshine for the next few days, so there won’t be anything standing in the way of your having a great time.”
Lexi could see the family resemblance between Nick and his mother. She was a charming woman who exuded warmth and sincerity. Lexi instantly liked her. “I’m sure I will. The scenery here is truly spectacular, and coming from a large city, I can assure you that I’m really enjoying all this clean mountain air.”
Gloria smiled. “It’s good for flagging appetites, too. Now, about the meals. They’re all served family style. That gives the guests an additional opportunity to get to know each other. So if you’ll just follow me, I’ll show you to your table.”
Gloria wheeled out from behind the desk and headed across the room. Lexi had not realized until that moment that Gloria was in a wheelchair.
Gloria showed her to a round table set with ten places. Not more than five minutes passed before nine of the ten places at her table were filled. She glanced around the dining room, noting that it was quickly filling with ranch guests. A festive mood prevailed with everyone enjoying themselves. She spotted Gloria seated at another table and a man she assumed to be Danny Clayton at yet another. A minute later, someone sat down in the chair next to hers. She turned toward the new arrival and found herself staring into Nick Clayton’s blue eyes.
“Good evening, Lexi. I hope you’re hungry. I just took a quick tour through the kitchen and everything looks good.”
She forced a smile. “Yes, it certainly smells good.” Nick Clayton . . . was there no way to avoid constant contact with him? It seemed that every time she left her cabin she ran into him. Her purpose in being at the ranch had been to confront him. Except now she wished she could stay away from his very disconcerting presence. He made her feel uncomfortable, arousing totally inappropriate longings and desires. She wasn’t sure which disturbed her more—how he made her feel or the implication of those feelings.
To her surprise, dinner turned out to be a much more pleasant interlude than she had anticipated. She was very conscious about her choice of words and tone of voice. She would occasionally slip and her conversation with Nick would border on adversarial, but only for a moment. She quickly brought it back to neutral. She reluctantly had to admit that he was a gracious host for the table. He managed to engage everyone in conversation and made sure all the guests were put at ease and felt a part of the group. She was surprised to find that he was very intelligent and conversant on a wide variety of topics. There was a lot more to this cowboy than a set of broad shoulders, a killer smile and brilliant blue eyes.
Lexi found it very unsettling. She had almost convinced herself that she would be able to ignore her unexpected yet very real attraction to him—almost. She still had not been able to set aside the threat of emotional upheaval every time he came near her. And now that she had seen that he was something other than just another libidodriven and self-absorbed handsome hunk, she did not know what to think.
A moment later, he jolted her once again.
Three
“I went back through the old files this afternoon and found a photograph of your sister taken at one of the barbecues. As soon as I saw her picture, it jogged my memory.” Nick saw a hint of something that looked like vindication dart through Lexi’s eyes, but he didn’t understand where it had come from.
“Oh? So you remember her now?”
He caught her tone of voice. There it was again, that feeling of being hit with a challenge of some sort. He certainly had no intention of telling her about her sister’s unseemly behavior. He wasn’t sure what to say. “I can see a definite family resemblance between you and your sister.”
Nick had not offered any further comment about Marnie and Lexi decided not to ask. For the time being, it was enough of a victory that he admitted knowing her. The rest would come later. She would take it one step at a time.
Most of the other people at Lexi’s table had left following dessert. Some had mentioned dropping by next door to the Hoedown Saloon for some dancing, while others had said they were going to take a walk to exercise off dinner.
Nick leaned over to her as he draped his arm across the back of her chair. He dropped his voice to a soft near whisper that sent little ripples of titillation across her skin. “Could I entice you to join me at the saloon for a dance, or maybe an after-dinner drink?”
“I
