Were they?
Was she woo-able after all?
“But,” he allowed patiently, still holding her eyes, “if that is true, then you have nothing to lose, do you?”
“You have a point,” Kelly countered just as mildly. Although, she thought in amusement, maybe it wasn’t the one he was trying to make. “There’s only one way to put an end to your current quest.” Only one way to prove to him that she had already failed at matrimony once and wasn’t about to give it another go.
The meaning of her words sinking in, his eyes radiated pure pleasure. “Give me what I want?”
“Once,” Kelly stated. So he would see what she already knew, that she was not “the one” for a marriage-minded man like him.
He could then put her in the Rejected Candidates column. Move on to the next female hopeful. And she could put this crazy, ill-conceived attraction she felt for the sexy husband-wannabe behind them.
* * *
WEDNESDAY NIGHT DAN stopped by his sister Lulu’s Honeybee Ranch to pick up a gift en route to his date. The petite dark-haired spitfire looked him up and down. “Aren’t you all fancy!”
He stayed a good distance from the hives where she had been working. “It’s just a shirt and jeans.”
Lulu stripped out of her protective white bee suit, hat and gloves. Surveyed him with a wry smile. “Ironed shirt and jeans. Shirttail tucked in. Your good brown leather boots. Freshly shaven and showered, smelling of aftershave, and did you also get a haircut by the way?”
He grunted. “It was time.”
“Mmm-hmm.” Lulu rolled her eyes. “Who’s the lucky lady this time? Must be someone special if you’re going to this much trouble.”
“Kelly Shackleford.”
His sister did a double take. “Well, what do you know, stud. The pretty preschool teacher finally agreed to go out with you?”
With way too many stipulations.
Dan nodded, happy after months of trying to have gotten that far. “She has.”
Lulu’s eyes narrowed. “On a school night?”
“She was only able to get a sitter from seven to nine.”
“Where are you going?” Lulu led the way into her ranch house.
“The concert in the town square.”
Another pitying glance. “Your choice or hers?”
“Hers,” Dan allowed.
A smirk. “That’ll be nice. And public.”
Beginning to lose his temper, Dan groused, “What’s your point?”
His only sister sobered. “I’m just saying Kelly’s put a lot of safety nets into this outing. Weeknight. Setting with a lack of intimacy or privacy. A short overall time period and early end.”
Put that way... “You’re saying I should read something into this?” Other than the fact she’d been so eager to go out with him she couldn’t wait until the following weekend?
“Aren’t you?”
Hell, yes. Unfortunately.
The irony wasn’t lost on him, either.
He’d spent a lot of time going out with women he suspected might be all wrong for him, just to be sure he wasn’t missing out on a chance to get married and have a family. Now that he finally felt differently about a woman from the outset, she was preparing to simply go through the motions with him in order to officially eliminate him as a viable romantic prospect.
Much to his chagrin, there was no denying the universal payback of that.
Lulu gently patted his arm. “Want my advice?”
Lord knew he really appeared to need it in this case. “Always.”
Lulu handed him a gift set of four kinds of honey. “Make every second count, cowboy.”
Dan planned to.
* * *
UNFORTUNATELY, THE MINUTES were ticking away before they even got started.
Kelly’s teenage babysitter was late and had not arrived yet. The triplets—who had been sent to let him in the door—were thrilled to see him yet very unhappy he was taking their mother out.
“It’s not fair,” Michelle pouted. “We wanted to go to the park, too.”
Dan was trying to figure out how to handle that when Kelly came breezing down the staircase in a burst of flowery perfume.
Damn, she was gorgeous. Her full-skirted sundress hugged her torso, accentuating her full soft breasts and slender waist. She was still fastening her earrings.
She accepted the four-pack of Lulu’s famous Honeybee Ranch honey from him with thanks and a smile. Set it aside. Then turned back to her daughter, her caramel-blond hair flowing over shoulders, explaining gently, “I told you. Dan and I aren’t going to the part of the park where the playground is. We’re going to the bandstand to listen to music.”
“But I like music!” Michelle folded her arms in front of her and pouted all the more.
“Are they going to sing ‘Farmer in the Dell’?” Matthew wanted to know. “Or ‘Hokey Pokey’?”
“No,” Kelly said firmly. “In fact,” she said levelly, with a telltale look Dan’s way, “I’m pretty sure it’s all very boring music. Isn’t that right, Deputy Dan?”
Getting her cue, he nodded soberly. “I think your mommy is right. You all would be really fidgety if you had to sit through that for two whole hours.”
“Well, then,” Michael declared, independent as always, “I don’t want to go.”
A knock sounded.
Kelly opened the door and Tessa Lowell came in, hair still wet and smelling vaguely of chlorine. Briefly, introductions were made. “Sorry, Ms. Shackleford,” the sitter said. “The swim meet ran late, and I couldn’t leave until I got my ribbon.”
“I completely understand,” Kelly said.
Dan looked at his watch. It was nearly seven thirty. “Any chance you could stay until nine thirty then?”
“No problem.” Tessa grinned.
Kelly looked like she wanted to interject. Then grabbed her shoulder bag instead. “You know where all the emergency numbers are.”
“I do. But not to worry, Ms. Shackleford.” Tessa beamed. “We’re going to have even more fun than you-all are!”
“Walk or drive?” Dan asked as they hit the driveway.
He’d waited for this moment for so long, he could hardly believe his good fortune. Kelly seemed to be having a similar “is this really happening after all” moment.
With a shrug, she tilted her head at the clear blue sky with a few scattered white clouds. “Well, it’s not that hot or humid. Parking along the town square can be hard to find, and,” she said, drawing a breath that lifted and lowered the enticing swell of her breasts, “it’s only four blocks.”
He fell into step beside her. “Then we walk.” He debated whether to take or hand or not. Decided not. “You look pretty tonight.”
“Thank you. So do you.” She shook her head. Tried again, more succinctly this time. “I mean you look handsome.”
He grinned. “Good to know.” And deep down it delighted him that she was obviously as acutely aware of him as