theirs.
DANI WALKED OUT the front door and Jack hopped off that stool and was after her like a shot. Wherever she was going, he’d just tag along in case she needed…anything, anything at all.
All in the interest of repaying a debt, of course. Nothing more.
By the time he got out the front door, she was standing at the curb, looking around with great interest. He trotted up to her with a smile.
“Looking for something?” he asked in his most winsome tone.
“Is that just another good guess?”
“Yep. Maybe I can help you.”
“I don’t need any help, thank you.” She made a sharp right turn and walked quickly away from him.
He took that “thank you” as a good sign and followed. In a few long strides, he was beside her. She gave him an annoyed glance.
“Are you following me?” she demanded.
“No, ma’am, I’m being hospitable is all.”
“Ohh!” She clenched slender hands into tight fists. “If one more person calls me ma’am—!”
“It’s not your age,” he explained. “It’s your attitude. You are a tiny bit…intimidating.”
She didn’t miss a step. After about half a block, she said, “You don’t know me well enough to make that judgment. In fact, you don’t even know my—”
“Dani Keene,” he interrupted.
Then she did miss a step. “How did you know that?”
“Everybody does. We’ve been waitin’ for the Keene brothers of Montana to roll into town and here you are. I’m Jack—”
“I don’t care who you are.” She crossed the street and he kept pace. “I don’t take up with strangers on the street. If this is the way Texas men treat women—”
“Now hold it right there! Texas men don’t take a back seat to any men in their treatment of women. I’m tryin’ to be nice and helpful here, is all.”
“What part of ‘leave me alone’ don’t you understand?” She stopped so suddenly that he took a couple of steps past her. She was obviously checking out the two-story buildings in front of them.
“That one.” Jack pointed.
She blinked. “That one, what?”
“You’re lookin’ for the Snake-oil Building—excuse me, the Snaesull Building, right?”
“Yes, but how did you know that?” She faced him with fists on her hips and suspicion in her eye.
“Because John Salazar is your attorney.”
She looked on the verge of an explosion. “How do you know John Salazar is my attorney?”
“Because he was your father’s attorney.”
She almost flinched at the mention of her father, and some of the fight went out of her. “What else do you know about m-my…” she swallowed hard, looking suddenly vulnerable “…my father?”
“Quite a lot, now that you bring it up.” He wondered why she’d had so much trouble with the word father. “I grew up here and I’ve watched the Bar K…go through a lot of changes. If there’s anything I can do to help you while you’re here—”
“You make it sound like I’m on a vacation,” she said. “I’m here to stay.”
He nodded, pleased to hear it. “That’s fine by me, but…things may not be exactly what you expect. All I’m saying is that if I can help, I’ll be glad to do it. Any questions?”
She looked almost panicky for a moment, but a shaky breath seemed to steady her. “This isn’t a good time. Look, Jack, I don’t mean to seem unfriendly but I don’t have the faintest idea who you are and I’m in no mood for company, anyway.”
She remembered his name. That was a good omen. “Jack Burke, of the XOX Ranch, at your service.” He put out his hand, hoping for a shake so he could touch her.
She ignored his outstretched hand. Her blank look said that the next time they met she probably wouldn’t even remember him. “Thanks for your interest, but I have business to attend to. If you’ll excuse me…”
What if he wouldn’t? She didn’t wait to find out, just wheeled and walked into the Snake-oil Building. For a long moment, Jack stood on the sidewalk looking after her, thinking she might be as prickly as her old man.
But a whole helluva lot easier on the eyes.
BACK IN THE CAFÉ AGAIN, Dani sat down hard on the booth seat and looked at her startled siblings and grandmother. “He wasn’t in,” she said.
“The lawyer?”
Dani nodded. “His secretary gave me a set of keys and wished me luck. I got the feeling she thought I’d need it.”
Toni picked up a french fry. “At least you didn’t waste the walk.”
“I needed the fresh air to clear my head.” Not that it had succeeded. “I…” She saw the tall cowboy—Jack something or other, he’d said—at the counter again and she quickly turned her gaze away. The café had only emptied out a little. “I’m getting a funny feeling about this.”
Toni and Niki exchanged glances. “Funny how?” Toni asked.
“Funny…like the ranch isn’t all we’re expecting it to be.”
Granny leaned forward and patted her granddaughter’s hand. “Don’t be negative, dear. I’m sure it’s wonderful.”
“That’s right.” Niki nodded firmly. “We saw the brochures and brochures don’t lie.”
Dani had thought at the time that the brochures looked at least thirty years old, but swept up in the excitement, hadn’t mentioned that little qualm. “I’m sure you’re right.” She sighed. “It’s just that this has been a long hard trip and I’m tired. You all must be, too.”
Toni laughed. “Why should we be tired when you did ninety percent of the driving? Once we get to the ranch, you deserve a nice long rest, Dani.”
“We all do.” Somehow Dani didn’t think any of them would get much rest, but she wouldn’t rain on their parade. “Why don’t I pay the check and we can get out of here? Until we see the place, we won’t know what we’re talking about.”
“Uhh…”
“Uhh…what?”
Again those surreptitious glances, and Granny said, “It’s a little complicated—the directions, I mean. There are two ways, the long way and the short way. The long way is complicated, but the short way is practically a secret, from what the lady who runs this place
