ChapterThree
As soon asBeau opened the door, Dixie squeezed through to scamper down the hall, arms brimming with the prizes they had won at thecarnival.
“Daddy! Daddy! Look what we won!” she cried as she ducked into Daniel’s office. Beau dropped his keys into the little bowl on the sideboard by the front door and heard Daniel indulge Dixie as she rambled on and on about their time at thefestival.
If Beau weren’t an adult, he might have been just as effusive with his recounting of the evening, but his focus would have been on their lovely lady companion than on the many rides and games. He could have gone on and on about her hazel eyes, her seductive curves and the way her voice wrapped around his head like a heady perfume. Of course, he couldn’t say any of that toDaniel.
He heard his name spoken a few times, but Tara’s name came up far more frequently and he wasn’t at all surprised to see Daniel come into the kitchen. Dixie was already in the middle of showing her stuffed toys their new home and introducing them to the others piled up in her room. While Beau was searching through the fridge for a snack, his older brother leaned against thedoorway.
“So who’s Tara?” he asked in an insinuatingvoice.
Beau grabbed the leftover burrito he stashed in one of the drawers. He had to hide it in a lettuce bag to keep Dixie from snatching it during one of her own snack searches. Apparently she inherited her veracious appetite from heruncle.
“You know her,” he said, trying to mask the mild disappointment in his voice. “She works at the dentist office on MainStreet.”
He straightened and looked at the befuddled look on his brother’s face. Daniel was still the mountain of a man he used to be in high school, and still as good looking. He was the superstar he had always been and Beau was forever in his brother’sshadow.
“You mean that blonde chick?Rebecca?”
Beau turned away, a little indignant that he wouldn’t remember a knockout like Tara. “No, theotherone.”
There was a long pause before he replied, “Oh… She’s cute, Iguess.”
Cute? Guess? If Beau thought he could get away with throwing a punch or two at his brother, hewouldhave.
“So why was she with y’all tonight?” he continued. “I thought it was just going to be you andDixie.”
Beau put the burrito, still wrapped up, on a paper plate and popped it in the microwave. “I met her at the coffee shop and I just thought she’d be able to help Dixie have a good time,that’sall.”
He turned and folded his arms before giving his brother a challenging look, daring him to probe deeper into his personal life. He hadn’t cared much before now, but maybe that was because it never involvedDixie.
“Well, I’d say she did a good job of that,” he replied with a laugh. “I haven’t seen her this excited in awhile.”
Beau saw the dark circles under Daniel’s eyes. “Got a headache?” he asked, knowing that look byheart.
Daniel shrugged, probably unwilling to admit his weakness like always. “I took something earlier.It’sfine.”
They talked business while the burrito heated up. Though it really wasn’t anything Beau needed to know, Daniel told him about the plans for moving the cattle to another pasture in the following week, and all the other little things with the horses and the ranch hands that theyemployed.
He wasn’t sure why Daniel thought to include him on everything. He had never been interested in ranch business, even when their parents were alive. But he would let Daniel talk until he was blue in the face because he certainly didn’t need to tell Dixie about any of this stuff. She cared even less thanBeaudid.
Beau slipped the burrito from the microwave, but allowed it to cool before peeling back the wrapper. “By the way,” he said after taking the first bite that slightly burned his tongue, “I invited Tara for dinnertomorrow.”
It took a moment for Daniel to switch gears, so he could fully comprehend the words and then his brows shot up. “You invited her fordinner?”
Beau opened his mouth and moved the chunk of burrito around in an attempt keep it from scalding his tongue further. Since he was unable to speak, he onlynodded.
“That’s pretty serious for a second date,isn’tit?”
It was a good thing his mouth was full, so he could formulate a good response to that question. Already, Daniel was assuming that Beau wanted Tara for himself. Dixie probably assumed the same, judging by her question while they waited at the carnival. He had to put a stop to that incorrect thinking before it went too far and Tara became off limits to everyone who reallyneededher.
Once he swallowed, he said, “She wanted to check out the ranch. We talked about it a little and when I said you were running the show, she seemed pretty eager to come visit. Dixie liked theideatoo.”
It wasn’t completely a lie, but perhaps eighty-percent of it was. Tara showed far more interest in Beau’s job on the oil rig than she did in the family business. And Dixie enjoyed her company enough that a second evening with her wouldn’t be turned down if Beau told heraboutit.
It was all to make Daniel at ease about the idea of a stranger coming into his home. If he thought Tara could be a good fit for the ranch and his family, then maybe he wouldn’t be so turned off to the idea of her becoming a more permanent part of their lives. It was worth a shotanyway.
Daniel seemed intrigued by the idea and nodded. “Okay… Well, I guess we can saddle up a few of the horses and take her down to see the cattle for a while. I assume you have a mealpickedout?”
