Sally scratched Phoebe behind the ears and caught a little drool in the process. Hank tapped his thigh, and the dog heeled. With a hand signal, he had her sitting.
“Impressive,” Sally said.
“She’s willing to humor me because you’re not as appealing as you were last night. If you were splashing around in the lake she’d be all over you.”
“And you?”
“The only part that didn’t appeal to me last night was the water.”
“You were wonderful,” she said, and he questioned her with a look. “Today. Your music. You play beautifully, and you sing like—”
“Thanks.” He swung his jacket down from his shoulder. “It’s a good song.”
“It’s a lovely song. Perfect. I don’t think I’ve heard it before.”
“Aw, c’mon. You gotta love those Dixie Chicks. I had to change a couple of words to make it work.”
“You made it yours. Theirs. Annie’s and Zach’s. That’ll be their song now.” Feeling a sudden chill, she hugged herself and rubbed her bare upper arms. “What a gift, Hank. That’s something they’ll take with them throughout their journey together. Their song.”
“You’re layin’ it on a little thick, there, Sally,” he teased as he laid his jacket over her shoulders.
“Never. I’m no gusher. If anything, that was an understatement. My little sister just got married, Hank. If I could sing, I’d be…” She adjusted the jacket and began to sway. “You know what? I can dance.” She did a tiny two-step, added a slow twirl, and then a more enthusiastic two-step and a spin. “I can dance. I can…“
She lost the twinkle in her toes, stumbled, and landed in a hoop made of two strong arms.
“Oops. I tend to be a little clumsy when I get excited. All I need is a strong partner.” She copped a feel of his working-man’s biceps as she steadied herself and eased up on him, catching a knowing look beneath the brim of his hat. He thought it a pratfall.
She smiled. “How about it?”
He took his time about tilting her upright, the corner of his mouth twitching. “How about I do the singin’ and you do the dancin'?”
“They didn’t set this up very well. The best man is married. What fun is that for a maid of honor?”
He bent to retrieve his jacket from the grass. “What kind of fun are you looking for?”
“The loosen-your-tie-and-kick-your-shoes-off kind. How about you?”
“If I start taking more clothes off, the party’s over.” He draped his jacket over her shoulders again. “I’ll settle for a good meal and a little music.”
“Ah, the quiet type. A challenge is always fun.” She linked arms with him and made a sweeping gesture toward the lodge. “Shall we? Dinner’s coming up soon. Right now the bar is open and the drinks are free.”
“Free drinks would take away any challenge if I didn’t have this booze-sniffin’ bitch with me.” The dog whined and perked her ears. “See? Phoebe don’t miss a trick. No way am I goin’ near any open bar, so just save me a seat at the dinner table.”
“I’ve already arranged the place cards. You’re next to me on the wagon.” She had him walking now. Ambling. She was in no hurry. “Have you thought about my suggestion?”
“What suggestion?”
“Think of it as sort of a working vacation. Not hard labor, mind you. More like backup. Hang out with Hoolie and me. We can be quite entertaining. And according to Zach, you’re unattached and somewhat flexible in your schedule.” She looked up and gave a perfunctory smile. “I asked.”
“Why would you do that?”
“Filling out your résumé. I didn’t tell him you were thinking about applying for the job. So far, this is just between you and me.”
“You’re serious.”
“Of course I’m serious. I want my sister’s wedding to be perfect, and the perfect wedding includes a fabulous honeymoon.” She gave his arm what she hoped felt like a winning squeeze. “I don’t know what your somewhat flexible schedule looks like for the next few weeks, but you wouldn’t have to miss any rodeos. Come and go as you please, but stow your gear with us for a while. That way there’s another man around, and the honeymooners have nothing to worry about.”
“What about the man? Should I be worried?”
“You don’t strike me as a worrier.”
“Long as I’m not hangin’ with troublemakers, I got nothin’ to worry about.”
“No worries, then.” She laughed. “I really don’t make trouble. I fall into it sometimes, but who doesn’t?” She looked up. “You?”
“Not lately.”
“Maybe you need a little adventure in your life, Hank. Get out there, you know? Try new things. New people. I like to get while the gettin’s good, but I’m always careful. You gotta be careful with the good stuff, right? Good people, good ideas, good times—there’s a certain balance. A little daring goes a long way with a lot of careful.” She wagged an instructive finger. “If we had an emergency, we’d call you.”
“There’s nobody crazier than Zach Beaudry when it comes to risking his neck, and you can tell him I said so.”
“And he’ll say he’s changed.” She stopped, turned, blocked his progress. “Will you think about it? What’s three weeks?”
“How much time do I have to think about it?”
“About three hours.” She pulled his jacket in tighter. “Do you have horses? I could pay you in horses. You know, the Indian way.”
“Yeah, I know the Indian way. But you’re talkin’ Sally’s way, and I’m goin’ Hank’s way. Nice try, though.” He smiled. “I do like the way you swim.”
“Dance with me tonight, and I’ll swim with you later.”
“For me, that’s a whole lotta daring and not much careful.” He slipped his arm around her shoulders. “Be damned if I’m not tempted to jump in.”
Hank generally steered clear of big parties, but the Beaudry wedding was turning out to be a pretty good time. With beef for dinner and the prospect of Sally for dessert, he was happy to loosen his belt now and put his boots under her bed later. She hadn’t been kidding about arranging the place cards. She’d given up her seat at the bride’s table, supposedly so the best man could sit with his wife. She’d grabbed Hilda Beaudry and nodded toward Hoolie and Hank, who’d claimed a table on the sidelines and started in on the bread basket. It was a good setup. Hank wouldn’t presume to guess where Hoolie pictured parking his boots tonight, but he secretly wished the old man whatever he could score. Hilda was definitely enjoying the company.
“It’s too bad you can’t dance tonight, Hoolie,” Hilda said, genuinely grieved.
Hoolie checked all his pockets. “Too many hidey-holes in this monkey suit. I don’t know where my pocket knife went to. You got one on you, Hank? I’m gonna cut this damn thing off.”
“No nudity here, Hoolie.” Sally winked at Hank. “Wait till we’re back in camp.”
“Is