“I just bet,” he replied with a grin that had the damnfluttertaking it up a notch, but he pulled into the pizza parlor parkinglot. “I’ll be right back.” It only took a few minutes before he reappeared with a big box of pizza and a bag balanced on top. He secured the pizza in the back seat, then drove again.
Conversation did not naturally return, and the silence made her nervous, so she figured he was going to have to deal with her annoying questions.
“So, Brooke is married to…somebody from the Hudson family from Sunrise?”
Royal shook his head. “No. Zeke Daniels. His brother and sister are married to Hudsons.”
“Right. Okay. And Zeke is a rancher?”
“Yeah. Or trying to be anyway. Him and Brooke seem to like figuring it all out.”
She could hear the bafflement in his tone. “No ranching aspirations?”
“Not a one. I had my fill of living out in the great wide open.”
“Bent County isn’t exactly a thriving metropolis.”
“Yeah, I haven’t got any interest in that either. I don’t want extremes. I want something…straightforward. Besides, I wanted to settle somewhere close to Brooke more than I cared what kind of place that was.”
She didn’t point out that straightforward wasnotexactly how she’d describe Bent County, because him wanting to be close to his sister was sweet.
He turned off the highway onto a kind of bumpy lane. In the distance was a house. It was a lot like Audra’s. A little…sagging around the edges, age and weather taking their toll, but a lot of effort to make it look like…home, she supposed. Lace curtains in the windows. A porch swing painted a pretty blue. Flowers planted along the base of the porch that popped in colorful summer blooms.
Royal parked his car next to a big truck and got out. Franny followed suit and the front door opened.
A dog came running out, barking up a storm as he rushed over to Royal, tail wriggling in excited pleasure.
Franny froze. It had been so long since she’d been in the kind of situation where she went to someone’s house that she didn’t know, she’d forgotten to ask.
Royal greeted the dog by crouching down to pet it. He let the dog lick his face while Franny stood out of the way, stock-still. He glanced over at her. Franny could practically see the fur flying through the air and toward her. Her eye almost twitched in anticipation.
“Afraid of dogs?”
“Uh. No. I love them actually, but I’m…fairly allergic.”
He narrowed his eyes. “What’sfairlymean in Franny world? Deathly?”
“I won’t…die.” She always had her inhaler in her purse. And it wasn’t a cat. But she didn’t think she had any of her antihistamines with her. She was just so good at managing her exposure, she didn’t carry around all the things she needed. Orhadbeen good at managing exposure.
Royal straightened, studying her with that expression that was vaguely disapproving, but not in a way that got her back up. She didn’t know how to describe it. It was closer to concern than…disapproval.
“Well, it’s not too hot out with the sun setting. I’ll suggest to Brooke we eat outside. She’s got furniture out here on the porch.” He got the pizza out of the back, holding it up high so the dog couldn’t jump at it. He started moving toward the porch and Franny scurried after him.
“You don’t have to do that. I can handle a little dog fur.” Maybe. She hadn’t had any allergy shots since moving to Wyoming, but what was a few hours? She’d take a pill when she got home, shower off all the fur, and befine. Ish.
“Don’t be a martyr, Franny,” he told her as he began to stride toward the door where Brooke now stood. She had an arm draped over an adorable baby bump and was smiling in warm welcome.
“You mind if we eat out here on the porch?” Royal said as he approached. “Franny’s allergic to dogs.”
“Oh, sure. No problem. I’ll have Zeke put her inside. Come here, Viola.” Brooke patted her thigh and the dog came running.
“Oh, you don’t have to—”
At Royal’s sharp look, she shut her mouth. “Thank you.”
“Good girl,” he murmured.
Which should be insulting. Not kinda hot.
