know whether to punish or praise the hound. “Go.”
The dog moved ten feet away and lay on the grass. Frank kept his head low—his guilty look—and drool ran from the corners of his mouth and pooled on the ground.
A muffled sob floated down from above.
“Are you okay, miss?”
“Is it gone?” a shaky voice asked.
“It?”
“The monster attack d-dog with big teeth. I just wanted to see the front of the house and was walking by…” Her voice was unsure, quiet. Scared.
With five sisters, he knew the sound well. From bugs to snakes to killer clowns, he’d dealt with it all. “You must not be from around here.”
“How did you guess?”
First, he would have remembered that bottom. Second, most people in Berry Patch walked in the early evening after they were done with work and had time to chat with neighbors on the street. And third, she was up a tree. “Everyone in town knows Frank’s bark is worse than his bite.”
“Is Frank short for Frankenstein?”
Gabe grinned. “Frank Lloyd Wright.”
Her mouth tightened. She looked down and nearly lost her sunglasses. “Is he still here?”
“The architect is dead, but the dog is right here.”
“Real funny.” Her voice trembled.
She was really scared. That bothered Gabe. Worried him, too. “Did Frank hurt you?”
“He attacked me.”
That made zero sense. Gabe’s nieces did everything to Frank and the dog never cared. He sopped up love like a dry sponge. He didn’t even mind the baby bibs and bonnets they put on him. “Frank attacked you?”
“Well…not exactly,” she said. “He barked and ran toward me. I didn’t wait to see what he would do next. I saw this tree and ran.”
“Frank’s got a bad hip so he lumbers more than runs. Though if he gets excited he can sprint for a short distance,” Gabe said. “He must have wanted some attention.”
“Or breakfast.”
Gabe wouldn’t mind a taste himself. Another place, another time… “Come on down out of that tree. Frank might look intimidating, but he’s as harmless as a pup.”
“Cujo, or your average menacing canine that runs in a pack?”
Scared or not, she was showing some spunk. Gabe grinned. “Newborn puppy. Nearly blind.”
She scooted down, bringing her bare ankle and generic white canvas slip-on shoes to his eye level.
“It’s okay,” he encouraged. “Frank only wanted to play with you.”
“I…I don’t play with dogs.”
“I won’t hold it against you.”
Gabe hadn’t gotten a good look at her face, but she intrigued him. Berry Patch didn’t get many visitors, especially young females who could scale trees the way she had. He wondered why she was in town, where she was staying and for how long. Mr. and Mrs. Ritchey, the next-door neighbors, had a daughter who attended a swanky college on the East Coast. Was this one of Brianna Ritchey’s friends? He hoped not. Though Gabe didn’t like his women that young, if this were Brianna’s friend, he would take both girls out to make amends.
“How about I take you out to dinner tonight to make up for Frank chasing you?” Gabe asked.
“Thanks, but that’s not necessary.”
“Another night?”
No answer. Shot down. Ouch. He’d dated most of the available women in town and still hadn’t found what he was looking for. Guess he’d have to keep looking.
She tried to find her footing. Not an easy thing to do in those shoes.
“I’m sorry Frank scared you,” Gabe said. “He really is a good dog.”
“I don’t like dogs,” she mumbled.
A huge strike against her, but he really liked the way her jeans fit. And based on that ponytail, her hair had to be long. He liked long hair. “Why not?”
She scooted farther down the tree. “I got bit when I was little.”
His sisters had trained him well. He knew the necessary response. “That must have been scary. Was it a big dog or one of those ankle-biting, yipping rat dogs?”
“A rat dog.”
The sound of her voice made him think she was smiling. Good. He didn’t want her to be afraid. “Those little dogs will get you every time. They’re so small they have to assert their dominance.”
“Kind of like men driving cars and trucks with more horsepower than they’ll ever need.”
“Exactly.” He grinned. “Though some men do need that extra horsepower. Egos are pretty heavy to haul around.”
“Not many men would admit that.”
“I’m not ‘many men.’”
She glanced down at him, but her sunglasses hid her eyes. “What do you drive?”
He rocked back on his heels. “A pickup with heavy-duty hauling capacity.”
He caught a glimmer of a smile.
She climbed down a few more inches. He could see the back of her T-shirt, the band and straps of her bra showing through the stretchy white fabric.
“Would you like help?” he asked.
“I can do it myself.”
He knew better than to interfere with a woman on a mission. His mother had taught him that one. “I’m sure you can.”
Just then, she lost her footing and slid. He placed his hands on her hips to keep her from falling. She was soft and curvy in all the right places. Her scent, sunshine and grapefruit, surrounded him. Now this was the way to start a morning. Maybe today wouldn’t be so terrible after all. He would have to reward Frank with a bone later. Gabe smiled as he lowered her from the tree.
She stood in front of him and brushed her palms against her thighs. “Thank you.”
Gabe believed females were gifts from above. They deserved to be cherished and adored. He loved women, but he could really love the one standing in front of him. “At your service, milady.”
Most of the women he knew liked a little chivalry, but her full lips didn’t break into a smile as he expected. She did raise her chin, giving him a better view of her face. If only she’d remove those sunglasses so he could
