She shook her head. “I can do it all by myself.”
He handed her a ticket. “You’re taking that, even if it’s all you’ll let me give you. I’ll be back before you miss me.”
She knew better than that. He might talk good, but he was still under Nellie’s spell. She’d have him convinced by the end of the evening that he couldn’t live without her. Poor man.
“Have fun,” she said.
He harrumphed. “You have fun.”
She got out of the car, closed the door and waved. She didn’t look toward Nellie. She would have happily thrown rocks at her if it would have spared Clark.
* * *
Music poured out into the cold night air. They were playing a Latin number. She imagined all the town’s excellent dancers, including Matt Caldwell and Cash Grier, were out on the dance floor dazzling the spectators. She was looking forward to watching them.
She gave her ticket at the door, tugged the fox fur closer and moved into the huge room where a live band was playing.
“I thought you’d be along when I heard Clark mention that he bought tickets,” a deep, amused voice said behind her.
She turned and looked up into Boone Sinclair’s dark, soft eyes.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Keely couldn’t manage a single word. Boone caught her hand and tugged her into the community center with him.
“Should I ask where Clark is?”
She felt as if her feet weren’t quite on the floor. “No need. I didn’t see your car.”
“That’s because I didn’t drive it here. I brought one of the trucks and parked it out back. I doubt Clark even noticed.”
“He didn’t.” She looked around. “Is Winnie here?”
He hesitated. “No.”
She stopped walking so that he had to stop, too.
He looked down at her appreciatively, his dark eyes lingering on the way the emerald-green dress fit her slender, pretty body. “Green suits you,” he mused.
“Winnie didn’t come…?” she prompted.
“Kilraven said he wasn’t coming,” he replied. “She said it was useless to let men she didn’t even like parade her around the dance floor.”
She cocked her head and looked up at him. “Maybe she has a point.”
He lifted an eyebrow and looked wicked. “Maybe she does.”
She felt suddenly uneasy. She looked around again, for Misty this time.
“She’s not here.”
Flushed, she looked back up into his amused eyes.
“I came alone,” he told her. “I mentioned that I wasn’t buying diamonds for a casual date and she took offense.”
“I heard.”
“Oh? Was Clark impressed?”
