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“No, I suppose not,” she returned frostily. She couldn’t see his eyes today, just her own reflection in his mirrored sunglasses.
“A little cold out this morning,” he joked and she could see he was obviously trying to lighten her mood. Why would he be doing that? Wouldn’t he have known what had just happened to her?
“Is this your son?” he asked, even as his eyes dropped to her hand, checking for a wedding ring. He saw none there. She’d never had the chance to wear one.
“I’m Jonah,” the little boy piped up, and Jeannette almost wanted to groan. He was too friendly. She’d talked to him about strangers more than once, but it obviously hadn’t gotten through.
“Jonah’s a great name. Where are you off to? That backpack looks new.”
Proudly, Jonah swiveled around so the man could get a better view.
“SpongeBob. All right. I guess you’re headed off to school.”
“Open house,” Jonah told him. “I’m gonna meet my teacher and other kids, too. Mommy says I have to sit still. I don’t think I’m gonna like that. But she says we’re gonna draw and make things and dance and jump around. So it might be okay.”
The mountain man had to laugh at Jonah’s unfettered enthusiasm. Jeannette wanted to bundle up her son and hurry him off to her car. But he really didn’t see many people, other than her, Edna and Mel.
“If you’re going to preschool, I’ll bet you’re about…four,” the man guessed.
“I’m four-and-a-half,” Jonah informed him. “My birthday’s in Febwary. Mommy says I was her Val-en-tine’s Day present.”
Jeannette could see the man was finding it hard not to laugh again. She just wanted to be on their way, even though she still felt that darn tug of attraction toward him. How could she when he’d gotten her fired? And yet he was acting so natural.
“We’ve got to be going,” she said stiffly.
But he didn’t move to the side to let them pass. After a moment of studying her, he said, “I’m sorry about yesterday. I overreacted when I first came in. I should have never been so…gruff.”
He was apologizing for acting rude when he’d gotten her fired? Somehow that didn’t make sense.
Jonah wasn’t getting the man’s attention anymore and he didn’t like that, so he tugged on his sleeve. “Mommy and I got up early this morning to come here. But she got fired.” He looked up at Jeannette. “But we didn’t have to call the firemen or anything.”
The man in front of her suddenly went still. He flipped off his sunglasses and hung them on his shirt pocket. “So that’s why you’re acting like this,” he mused. “You think I complained to the cleaning service.”
She wasn’t sure what was going on and her voice wasn’t quite steady when she asked, “Didn’t you?”
“No. I was coming here this morning to try to get you a raise—to compliment everything you’d done for me. I made a promise yesterday, remember?”
“Sometimes promises don’t mean all that much.” She remembered all the times Ed had told her they’d get married, but then he’d kept putting it off.
“I stand by my promises. What happened?”
“Well, if you didn’t do it…” She paused. “The manager said business is slow and it was just a case of last hired, first fired. So I guess maybe that was true.”
“I imagine not as many people are using cleaning services these days. It’s still hard times for a lot of folks. If you’d like, maybe I can get you reinstated.”
“How is that possible?”
His green eyes were probing as they assessed her, and she had no idea what he was looking for.
Out of the conversation now, Jonah was getting bored. “Can we go? You can come, too.”
She crouched down to her son. “Oh, no, Jonah, I’m sure he can’t.”
“I hope you learn everything you need to know at your open house,” he said to her son, then his gaze fell on her again. “Would you like to go to lunch and talk about this some more?” He motioned to Mops and Brooms. “Your job?”
She stood. “Oh, I can’t go to lunch. I start my other job at eleven, waiting tables at LipSmackin’ Ribs.”
The sexy stranger scowled and she wondered if he looked down on that kind of work. She’d been everything from a dog groomer to an assistant in a hair salon and said defensively, “It pays the bills.”
“I always stick my foot in it with you, don’t I?” He shook his head. “I’m a friend of Dillon Traub. His cousin, DJ, owns the Rib Shack. He’s not pleased about the new competition, and I’m not all that impressed with the atmosphere at LipSmackin’ Ribs. But that has nothing to do with you. Why don’t I meet you when your shift ends?”
“I have to pick up Jonah at his babysitter’s.”
“Coffee break?” he teased.
When this man smiled, she felt something like hot butter running through her veins. She was amazed at his persistence. It had been about seven years since Ed had asked her on their first date. Since her fiancé’s accident, she hadn’t even thought about seeing another man.
But this one—
“You can even call Dillon for a reference if you need one.” He took out his wallet, found a business card and handed it to her.
Jeannette glanced at it. Dr. Dillon Traub. She’d heard gossip in the restaurant about the doctor who was an heir to an oil fortune. There were two numbers. She was resisting this invitation because her good sense was telling her that she should. Besides, she didn’t feel comfortable having to ask Ed’s parents to watch Jonah so she could go on a date. Still…She’d heard Dr. Traub had opened a clinic in downtown Thunder Canyon. He was more than a reputable citizen, even though she wasn’t sure about his brother Jackson. Other rumors that had made the rounds had said he’d caused a scene at his brother Corey’s wedding in June.
“I don’t even know your name,” she said with another glance at Dillon’s card.
When this stranger who wanted to date her didn’t respond, she lifted her eyes to his. He canvassed her expression, then answered, “My name is Zane.”
“Just Zane?” she asked.
Again he gave her a probing look. “Just Zane. For now.”
One thing she usually wasn’t was impulsive. How could she be with a son to think about? But right now, losing her job, not knowing what was on the horizon, she felt a little reckless. Not reckless enough to be alone with this man, though.
“Why don’t you come for dinner tonight at my apartment? Jonah can be our chaperone.” She thought that might put him off. She thought he might make an excuse, back out, run the other way. But she was sadly mistaken if she thought that’s what he was going to do.
He considered her suggestion long enough to make her think he might refuse. Finally he said, “I don’t want you to have to do the work, so I’ll bring the food. Okay?”
What man brought food when he was invited over? And what had she just done?
Jonah started jumping up and down again, proving he’d been listening to the conversation. “You’re gonna come to our place. Mom says my toys are everywhere.”
Zane shook his head and suppressed a grin. “When I come over, you can show me some of those toys.” His gaze fell on Jeannette then and she couldn’t seem to look away.
This stranger was coming to dinner at her apartment. Was she crazy?
“Second thoughts?” he asked, seeming to read her mind as his grin faded. He took his cell phone from the holster on his belt and handed it to her. “Go ahead and call Dillon’s cell. He doesn’t start seeing patients until nine.”
She studied Zane’s phone, which was a pay-as-you-go model. She’d thought about purchasing one of those. Before she changed her mind, she jabbed in the number. Obviously Zane wanted her to do it herself to prove he wasn’t scamming her.
Her call was answered on the second ring. “Hi, Zane. Did you—?”
“It’s not Zane,” she explained quickly. “My name is Jeannette Williams and Zane gave me your name as a reference. We’re going to have dinner. I guess I want to know…Well, I have a son and—”
There was a short silence, then the doctor’s voice telling her, “I’ll definitely vouch for Zane. We’ve known each other since we were little. He’s a good friend and always there when I need him. And he likes kids.”
When she was silent, he asked, “Is there anything else you need to know?”
Everything, she thought. But then she said, “No, that’s all for now.”
“If you need to call again, you have my number.”
Jeannette ended the call and turned to Zane. “Not as many second thoughts,” she admitted with a smile. She gave him her address. “Is seven okay?”
“Seven is fine.”
When she handed him his phone, their fingers brushed and she quickly pulled away, tingling from a current she didn’t understand.
She had a date tonight with a stranger with no last name but good references.
What was she thinking?
Chapter Two
Zane found himself actually jittery as he stood in front of Jeannette Williams’s apartment door. She lived on the second floor of a complex with a stairway leading up to her place. Unsure why it was so important for Jeannette to think well of him, Zane rang the bell.
She didn’t know who he was so he had a clean slate. That meant so much right now. The press had taken the story of Ashley Tuller’s fall, coma and death and run with it. Before coming to Montana, friends had invited Zane to have supper with them. They’d been trying to be supportive and he’d gone. But he’d left early because he just couldn’t eat or make conversation. The tabloids, however, had snapped a photo of him leaving while his friends waved goodbye. The caption had read, COUNTRY SINGER PARTIES WHILE FAMILY MOURNS. They’d used other false headlines and older photos, too, until he’d had to escape all of it.
But now—
When Jeannette opened her door, Zane felt as if he’d been sucker punched. The first time he’d seen her she’d been wearing a yellow T-shirt and jeans, her hair in a ponytail. Earlier, she’d worn those same jeans and a crisp, white Oxford shirt. Tonight, however…she was wearing an above-the-knees khaki skirt with a silky red blouse. Her blond hair was long, loose and wavy. He felt an excited thump in his chest as his blood rushed faster. Whoa, he’d have to put a lid on that. After all, a four-and-a-half-year-old was going to be their chaperone.
“Hi,” he said, knowing that wasn’t a foray into great conversational territory.
Nevertheless, she smiled back. “Hi. Come on in.”
He was carrying a bag of takeout from DJ’s and he stepped into her small kitchen, setting it all on the table. Glancing around, he saw that the room was charming, with its yellowand green-flowered café curtains, matching mixer cover and placemats. The appliances weren’t new, but everything looked spotless, from the off-white countertop to the pale green tiled floor. “This is nice.”
“It’s small, but we like it.”
They gazed at each other for a few seconds, a buzz of electricity shimmering back and forth between them. He motioned to the packages on the table. “I brought ribs from DJ’s so you can taste the real deal.”
“You want me to judge which is better?”
“I have no doubt which is better.”
She laughed—a sweet sound that pleased his ears as much as music did.
Taking off his sunglasses, he hooked them in his shirt pocket, half expecting her to recognize him. But she turned away and went to the refrigerator, taking out a pitcher of iced tea.
Jonah ran into the kitchen and skidded to a stop beside him. “I put my toys away. Mommy said I had to.”
“I didn’t want you to trip over something,” Jeannette explained with another one of those smiles that made him wonder if this was a good idea. Every time they looked at each other the room shook a little.
“Can we eat? Somethin’ smells good,” Jonah decided with a child’s propensity for getting to the bottom line.
Zane laughed. “We’ve got barbecued ribs, mashed potatoes, a fine helping of green beans because you do need something healthy, corn bread and a fresh-baked apple pie.”
“Wow!” Jonah said, impressed, his eyes big.
“Wow!” Jeannette agreed. “You really went all out.”
“That’s easy at DJ’s.” He’d seen the ads for LipSmackin’ Ribs with the manager, Woody Paulson, pointing to their offerings. Zane didn’t think they could compare to DJ’s food.
Going to the cupboard, Jeannette pulled out a few serving dishes to go with the place settings already on the table. “Sweet tea okay? Or would you rather have a beer?”
“Tea,” Zane said, knowing he needed to keep a clear head tonight.
Jonah headed for the arch leading to the living room. “I’m gonna wash my hands.”
“Good boy,” Jeannette complimented him.
Alone again, Zane asked, “So what did Dillon tell you about me when you called him? I mean, you gave me your address, so I must have passed the test.”
She gave him a sly smile. “The verdict’s still out.”
He thought about the civil trial he was facing, and the verdict that might come in that could change lots of people’s lives.
His expression must have gone all serious because Jeannette assured him, “Hey, I’m kidding. Sort of. I’ll make my own opinion about you.”
He took a step closer to her. “That’s the way it should be.”
He was still wearing his hat. Jeannette seemed to be staring at his mouth. He’d thought about shaving, but had decided against it. Before the past few months, he’d always had a neat, clean-cut persona—short hair and no beard. But now he really was another person, and he was becoming more comfortable with that person each day.
He noticed the pulse in the hollow of Jeannette’s neck was beating fast. It seemed to match the tempo of his. She picked up the pitcher to pour the tea. “Dr. Traub said he could vouch for your character, that he’d known you since you were both kids. He said you were still a good friend and always there when he needed you and that you liked children.”
Zane had always been grateful for Dillon’s friendship, never more so than now. “That’s a lot to live up to.”
“From the way it sounds, you already have. I know Dr. Traub is from Texas. I hear bits of conversation at the restaurant. You both have a Texas drawl.”
“Dillon and I are from Midland.”
“You’re a long way from home.”
“Yes, I am.” He realized she wanted more, but he didn’t know if he was ready to give it right now.
“What about you? Where did you grow up?”
“In Bozeman.”
