Rancher's High-Stakes Rescue. Beth Cornelison
I know flirting when I see it.” He walked around her and took another potato chip. “But the other lady, the one I actually think is pretty hot, seems...I dunno...kinda skittish.”
Piper pivoted on the stool to face him, folding her arms over her chest. “Back up, Doofus. You find her hot?”
“Damn right. She’s gorgeous.”
Piper arched a dark eyebrow at him. “This is a travel adventures business we’re trying to launch, bucko, not a dating service. The customers are off-limits.”
He paused with a potato chip halfway to his mouth. “Says who?”
“Says...everyone. Mixing business and pleasure is bad form.”
He gave her a withering scowl as he crunched the chip. “I disagree. If both parties are willing, why can’t I have a little fun on the side...if you know what I mean.” He gave her a wink.
Piper chuckled and shook her head. “Josh, even Zeke knows what you mean,” she said, referring to the family’s part–Maine coon cat, who was circling Josh’s legs, meowing for attention. “You’re about as subtle as a bat to the head.”
Josh stooped to lift the long-haired cat into his arms. Zeke immediately draped himself over Josh’s shoulder and commenced purring loudly. “You’re on my side, right, buddy? You think I should be able to romance the customers if they’re open to it, right?”
Piper grinned. “He’s been neutered. He doesn’t know what you’re talking about.”
Josh winced in sympathy for the feline, then gave his sister a wry snort. “His being neutered is not the reason he doesn’t know what I’m saying.”
“Case remains, you cannot mess around with the customers.” She stood and gave Zeke a scratch on the head, which the fur ball leaned into with relish. “It’s bound to end badly, and we cannot afford to screw anything up with the business.”
Josh shoved the cat into her arms, then took the last potato chip off her plate. “Maybe we’ll put it to a vote of all the partners.”
“Maybe we will,” she returned. “But in the meantime, we have a welcome dinner to put on and more guests arriving in another hour.” She looked him up and down. “And you smell like crap.”
“Because I was helping deliver a calf an hour ago.”
Piper perked up. “Really?” She set Zeke on the ground and dusted fur from her shirt. “Why didn’t anyone tell me? I would have helped! I love births!”
“Plenty more to come, sister dear.” He took his leave. “I’ll be in the shower if anyone comes looking for me.”
“Are you looking for anyone in particular?” Dawn asked Kate that night as they strolled into the small cluster of people gathered on the ranch yard around a festively decorated buffet table and smoking grill.
“Uh, no. Why?” Kate tucked a loose wisp of her hair behind her ear and felt a telltale prickle in her neck as she flushed with embarrassment. She hadn’t realized she’d been so obvious, craning her neck as she scanned the faces in the crowd for one in particular.
Dawn bumped Kate’s hip with hers and cackled. “You are the worst liar!”
Kate bumped her back. “Shut it.”
“You know you don’t need to look for him. I guarantee Josh’ll find you before this shindig gets started good.” Dawn straightened the neon multicolored scarf she had draped around her neck to accent her bright green blouse. “You need only sit back and wait.”
Kate questioned her friend with a furrowed-brow glance.
“Oh, come on, Katie! You did see the little heat waves rising off him when he looked at you this afternoon?”
Kate pulled a face and dismissed her friend with a buzz of her lips.
Dawn stopped walking and faced Kate fully, taking her by the arm. “No, seriously. His tongue was dragging the ground. Eyes popping out of his head. You didn’t catch all that?”
Kate laughed and brushed past Dawn. “You make him sound like one of those cartoon characters when they see the femme fatale.”
“Uh...bingo!” Dawn took a few quick steps to catch up with her. “He was seriously interested, sister, and you’d be crazy not to act on it.” Dawn tipped her head and narrowed her eyes. “Unless you have some problem with hunky dark-haired cowboys with eyes straight out of heaven. Or is his more clean-cut brother the one you’re considering?”
“Would you stop?” Kate said with a chuckle. “I’m not considering either. I’m here on business, not pleasure.”
“So?” Dawn persisted. “You could have both.”
“I was just telling my sister the same thing,” said a deep voice behind them.
Kate whirled around with a gasp. “Josh. Hi.”
The subject of their discussion gave her a devastatingly handsome grin and tipped his hat.
Dawn didn’t try to hide her smug grin as she muttered in a quiet singsong, “Told you...”
Josh had changed into clean jeans and a light blue polo-style shirt that set off his straight-outta-heaven eyes and hugged his muscled torso. His raven hair was still damp from his shower and combed back behind his ears, where it then curled slightly at his nape. And he smelled divine. Something woodsy and fresh, without the cloying and pretentious scents of the colognes the men in her Dallas office wore.
“Did you ladies get settled in okay?” He slid his fingers in the front pockets of his jeans and divided a look between them.
“Yeah. Just fine,” Kate said and clutched the thin straps of her purse so that she didn’t fidget. Good grief. She felt like some junior high girl with a crush on the school’s quarterback. “I love the way you’ve decorated the guest rooms.” Doh! Could you sound more banal?
“Thanks, but I had nothing to do with that. My mom and sister were the bosses of that part of the renovation.” His smile dimpled his cheek, and she felt her stomach swoop and her knees soften.
“Well, they have good taste. They split the difference between masculine and feminine decor perfectly.” She sensed more than saw Dawn easing backward, leaving her alone with Josh. She snuck a hand out and grabbed her friend’s arm before she could duck completely away.
“We have time before dinner is served if you’d like to go see the new calf now.” He waved his thumb toward the stables.
Kate couldn’t help but smile. She may have some bad memories of her parents’ farm, but she missed the animals. “I’d love that.”
Dawn lifted a foot to him, waggling her high-heeled sandal at him. “I’m not sure I’m in the right footwear. You two go ahead, and I’ll see the baby tomorrow.”
Kate tightened her grip on her coworker’s arm, sending her a look that said, Stop playing matchmaker!
“Are you sure? We have boots you can borrow down by the stable,” Josh said.
“Yes, Dawn,” Kate said through her teeth, “you can borrow boots. Come with us.”
Dawn pried Kate’s fingers from her forearm and gave her a disgruntled look. “No thank you, Kate. You two go on. I’ll just go get a drink and wait for you up here.” With a wiggle of her fingers to wave goodbye, her traitorous friend backed away, wearing a victorious grin.
“All right then. Guess it’s just us.” Josh put a warm palm on her back to direct her toward the stable.
Her pulse jumped at his touch, and a tremor of acute awareness shimmied through her. She walked beside him, silently cursing Dawn and mentally fumbling for conversation that didn’t sound as lame and juvenile as she felt. She was awestruck