LITMIR.BIZ

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lips to the bottle’s rim and took a drink. He couldn’t take his eyes off the spot where her mouth met the smooth brown glass. Before he realized it, she was smiling at him again.

      His tongue and throat felt as arid as a dusty cow trail, and he wondered if he was suffering a bout of sunstroke or something. What the hell was the matter with him?

      Quick wit sparkled in her pretty baby blues. “I was only trying to offer you a compliment.”

      He nodded. “I appreciate it. We breed them, you know. So your praise is well taken.”

      Alva’s beat-up truck rolled over the hill then, and Dane couldn’t keep the surprise from his voice as he commented, “There’s my father-in-law now. I’d better go see what he’s up to.”

      He stood, and so did Lacy.

      “If you don’t mind,” she said, “I’d like to use your powder room. I’ve been on the road a good while.”

      “Sure,” he told her. “It’s—”

      “I’ll find it.” With a wink and a quick flash of a smile, she disappeared into the house.

      That flirtatiousness caused a series of warm vibrations to trill through Dane’s innards. He sucked air into his lungs, hoping to settle himself, and then he flagged Alva to a stop as he descended the porch steps on wobbly knees. Boy, oh, boy, his father-in-law would tease him for a month of Sundays if he got wind of the ridiculous reaction Dane was having to Miss Lacy Rivers.

      “Where are you off to?” he asked Alva. “I thought—”

      “I changed my mind,” the older man said. “I want some lasagna. And I’ve reached the age where I should certainly have what I want. Hellfire, Dane, I might die in my sleep tonight, so don’t try to talk me out of it.”

      Alva’s ruffled feathers didn’t fool Dane. He knew what the man was up to.

      One of his eyebrows arched high as he accused, “So, you’re just going to leave me here in the clutches of an encyclopedia salesman?”

      The delighted sound Alva emitted could almost have been described as a wicked cackle. “Saleswoman, don’t you mean, boy?” He paused long enough to grin. “You should buy yourself a set of books. A little reading never hurt any man.”

      Dane only shook his head at his father-in-law’s antics.

      Then Alva’s knowing gaze sobered. “But she ain’t selling anything, is she?”

      “How’d you guess?”

      “Oh, I don’t know,” he said, eyeing the door of Dane’s house. “The two of you looked…familiar sitting on the porch together as I drove up.”

      “Familiar?” Dane’s forehead knitted. “That’s a strange word to use.”

      Alva shrugged. “You do know her, though, don’t you?”

      “Sort of,” he had to admit. “We went to the same college together. But that was a lifetime ago.”

      “So the two of you have plenty of catching up to do,” Alva surmised. “You don’t need me hanging around. And it’s getting late. Be a gentleman. Invite the little lady to dinner. She can have my steak.”

      “You don’t need to do this—”

      “I told you,” the old man interrupted Dane’s protest, his grumpy tone back full force, “I feel like having Lottie’s lasagna tonight.”

      Dane only shook his head. There was no changing the man’s mind once it was set. “Well, I hope you’ve got some antacid tablets in your medicine chest. You’re going to need them later.”

      “Aw, now, you know my stomach is clad in iron.”

      “You’re gonna wish it was,” Dane quipped as he stepped back from the truck.

      More laughter rumbled from Alva. “You have fun chattering about old times.”

      The truck tires kicked up grit and pebbles as he pulled off down the lane.

      Hunger pangs pinched Dane’s stomach and he turned back toward his home. In that instant, Lacy opened the front door and stepped out onto the porch.

      “It’s got to be close to your dinnertime,” she called to him. “Let’s go into town and find something to eat.” Then she added, “It’ll be on me.”

      Her tone made him pause. That coaxing quality in her voice was enough to lead him to believe she was up to something. But that thought was pretty silly. He didn’t even know Lacy Rivers. And she sure didn’t know him. They hadn’t seen each other in years and years. If she was up to anything, he sure was stumped over figuring out what it could possibly be.

      “Maybe she does want you to buy some encyclopedias.” He murmured the words under his breath as he started toward her, doing his best to contain the humorous grin that the idea churned up.

      “Pardon?”

      He did chuckle then, taking the stairs two at a time. “I said, you don’t have to buy dinner. Besides, there isn’t a decent meal to be had in Oak Flat.”

      “It is a small town, isn’t it?” she commented. “As I drove through, I noticed a diner, a post office, a small grocery store and a church. Not much else.”

      “Sounds like you won’t be needing the grand tour. You already took it.”

      “Hmm…I was hoping to find a hotel…”

      He was vaguely aware of the concern shadowing her expression, but something more urgent called his attention.

      What was that scent? An enticing, exotic aroma he couldn’t put a name to. But whatever it was, it had his blood pounding. He swiveled his head, inhaling slowly, deeply, and he realized the perfume was floating on the air around Lacy. The sensuous fragrance made his gut tighten.

      The sensation overtaking him was so…odd. He drove agitated fingers through his hair.

      “I am hungry,” he admitted, louder than he’d meant, wanting to focus on something—anything—other than her…other than the stirring and utterly unique scent of her. “I’ve got steaks for the grill, if you’d like to stay for dinner.” He eyed her warily. “You’re not vegetarian, are you?”

      She grinned, and the dimple that formed in her left cheek caused a whirlwind of memories to buffet his mind. He remembered that sexy dimple. How he’d liked to make her smile just so he could see it. He remembered other things, too. The conversations they’d shared, filled with interest and fun. The utterly spontaneous laughter. The serious debates. That kiss…

      He shoved the dangerous thoughts from him.

      “I’m a meat-and-potatoes kind of girl.”

      “Good,” he said. “We’ve got plenty of that around here. Let me fire up the coals, and while they’re burning to embers, I’ll grab a quick shower. Then, over dinner, you can tell me what brings you to Oak Flat.”

      Before too long he left Lacy Rivers in the kitchen washing the fresh greens that would make the salad she’d insisted on helping with.

      In the bathroom, he stripped out of his clothes and turned on the shower. Full blast.

      Memories bombarded his brain. The indecision he’d suffered. The worry. The temptation. The sleepless nights he’d spent praying for resolve. The fear that he wouldn’t have the strength to do the right thing. But in the end he had. He’d succeeded in putting his own frivolous and selfish desires aside.

      But Lacy had come back into his life. And as the cool water sluiced down his body, he couldn’t help but conclude that he was once again experiencing the same reaction—or should he say the same uncontrollable attraction—he’d had to this woman all those years ago.

      Chapter

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