Country Courtship (The Texas Two-Step Series, Book 2) (14 page)

Stretching as far as Bobby Gray could see was rack upon rack of men's and women's jackets and vests, followed by a sea of shirts and jeans for men, women and children. There were cowboy hats and belt buckles of every conceivable kind and material.

As the name implied, Boot City also had every type of boot imaginable, from exotics to handmade. Bobby Gray had discovered nirvana.

The store had more boot styles than he could imagine and he felt pretty pleased with himself. Life was looking very good.

He was beginning to realize that introducing Kelli to the banker wouldn't just soothe Monty Joe's temper. The man would also recognize Bobby Gray's business acumen. Monty Joe would forget all about such mundane topics as stud fees and the purchase price of foals. Life would be peaceful once again, but that wasn't all.

At last his brother would value him as an equal partner and listen to his ideas for expanding the Nelson holdings.

Bobby Gray could hardly wait.

But back to the business at hand. As he wandered through the display area, it dawned on him that the store was offering almost too many boot choices.

He eyed a pair of elegant black boots fashioned from elephant hide. A pair of iguana lizard boots looked pretty sharp and he thought they might do in a pinch. But when he ran his hand along the boot, he came to the conclusion that it was too rough for a work boot.

Suddenly, though, his gaze settled on perfection. He almost expected to hear heavenly music, these boots were so ideal. They were ropers, but nothing like his customary work boots.

These were the boots he could wear to take Kelli to dinner the night he introduced her to the banker. These were the boots of a successful man who knew just what he wanted from life and expected to get it.

A saleswoman appeared by his side as he scooped up one of the boots. She was middle-aged and her hair had been artificially lightened to the color of afternoon sunlight, although some of her dark roots had grown through. She was dressed in too-tight jeans, a button-down cowboy shirt with pearl snaps and a friendly smile. "May I help you, sir?"

"I'm interested in this boot."

"Good choice. It's a Lucchese Full Quill Ostrich boot. You prefer the shade of cognac? It also comes in black, black cherry and kango tobacco."

"Cognac will do." The rich brown shade exactly matched Kelli's eye color.

The saleswoman asked his size and disappeared into a backroom. A few minutes later she returned bearing three boxes. "I brought two others you might be interested in as well."

While he liked the others fairly well, only the cognac ostrich boots suited him perfectly. Within a short time he paid for the boots and left the store wearing them, feeling taller and prouder than usual.

Bobby Gray's next errand was to collect two of the horses he'd acquired from the Owens Ranch to take back to his sister's ranch temporarily.

He traveled down a small country highway in Davis's truck, with a horse trailer in tow and his mood soaring because his troubles were nearly over.

That was the thing about having a good plan that comes together before your eyes. He couldn't help but grin.

As he reached for a Travis Tritt CD on the visor, he abruptly slammed on his brakes. An old, starving, flea-bitten nag stood in a field on the side of the road. Bobby Gray could count the horse's ribs, she was in such bad shape.

The once-tawny mare's coat was dull and shabby. Mangled leaves, brush and twigs tangled her mane. It was beyond Bobby Gray's reckoning how anyone could mistreat a mare like that, no matter how ancient she was. There wasn't an animal alive that deserved such abuse. The near-barren field didn't boast any soft grass or more than spotty shade for the nag.

A narrow gravel drive at the far side of the field led up to a ramshackle cabin that hadn't seen new paint in two or three decades. He halted the truck in front of the house. A middle-aged, pot-bellied man squatted on the paint-chipped porch, drinking an imported lager straight from the condensation-beaded bottle.

He wore a pair of boots that Bobby Gray had just seen at Boot City boasting a four-figure price tag. The self-centered man spared no expense on himself and it seemed to be at the expense of the animals in the man's care.

A deep, angry red boiled in Bobby Gray's abdomen.

An old hunting dog, who had followed the truck from the field, wasn't in much better shape than the nag. He pitched pitiful eyes up at Bobby Gray, begging for any old scrap of food—or, better yet, rescue. The dog took a quick, nervous look at the man, and the timid tail wagging ceased. The animal dejectedly lowered his head and tail.

Bobby Gray's instant dislike of Mr. Self-Centered grew.

"No soliciting," said the man between gulps.

Bobby Gray didn't like the sound of the man's voice any more than he cared for the man.

Forty-five minutes later, and considerably poorer, Bobby Gray drove away with an old horse as well as a new best friend, "Grrr." Considering how friendly the mutt was, Bobby Gray figured the name would give the dog some much-needed confidence. Bobby Gray didn't have it in him to continue calling him "Dawg," as his prior owner had. Pets deserved names.

Grrr was very good friends with the mare—"Horse." Bobby Gray gave her a new sensible name, "Bluebonnet," after the Texas state flower. The name should make her feel both pretty and special.

He didn't head directly to the Owens ranch. It seemed he'd already made a different decision without thinking it through consciously. Instead he swung the truck toward Kelli's veterinary clinic.

Bluebonnet needed immediate attention. Besides, Bobby Gray didn't want to wait until Kelli was finished for the day before seeing her again. She was as sweet as newly mown hay and he couldn't get her—or her kiss—out of his head.

* * *

Kelli held a stethoscope glued to the stomach of Mrs. Sample's over-weight Maine Coon cat, straining to hear the gurgle of her latest rodent ingestion. Even the feline's exceptionally loud digestive noises were drowned out by the racket coming from the clinic's waiting room.

She heard the receptionist's raised voice, although she couldn't make out the words. Then the sound of Dax clomping from the exam room next door and heading up front. Next came a series of noises she didn't immediately recognize. It almost sounded like—

Could those clip-clops be the beat of horse hooves?

Kelli dropped the stethoscope and ran for the exam-room door. She opened it and nearly fell back when she saw that, indeed, the tumult surrounded a horse in the waiting room!

The horse neighed and started to rear, but a man yelled, "Quiet, Bluebonnet," while a dog yapped at his feet as if defending the horse.

Her receptionist and Dax struggled with the man, trying to get the horse back out the front door. Barks and fearful meows chorused from her waiting patients and the cacophony was nearly deafening. Then the sea of bodies and struggles parted to reveal—Bobby Gray.

Of course. She should have known that he'd be at the heart of an uproar like this. Glancing heavenward, she wondered what she'd done to deserve this. Hadn't she just decided to never see him again? Hadn't she chosen to honor her relationship with her sister over someone who wasn't related?

So why had her heart skipped a beat merely at the sight of him?

Shaking her head, she came forward, with Mrs. Samples and her cat close behind. In a quiet, yet intense tone, Kelli asked, "What were you thinking, Bobby Gray?"

Instantaneously, the room went quiet and still, as if someone had hit the pause button. Bobby Gray's expression of horror was priceless, as was Dax's look of admiring annoyance. Even the animals in the waiting room seemed to be poised for flight or fight.

Then, from behind Bobby Gray's jeans-clad leg, she saw movement. A dog tail beat left to right like a metronome. Slowly a black nose emerged, followed by one of the mangiest and most abused dog hides she'd ever seen—and she'd seen
a lot
of mistreated animals. Then the mare grabbed her attention. Her condition was just as poor.

"Where did you get these animals?" she demanded. Although logically she knew Bobby Gray would never mistreat them, someone had. And her reaction was visceral. She wanted to do to the human what he or she had done to the horse and dog.

"I bought them off some jerk, just before I reported him to Animal Control."

"You shouldn't have brought the horse here." Kelli couldn't keep from reaching out and brushing the horse's muzzle.

"She's sick. Where else should I have brought her?"

"Don't you have a ranch?"

"In South Texas—I'm staying at my sister's right now."

"Doesn't your sister have a ranch?"

"Yes."

"You should have driven the horse there. I make
barn
calls."

At that, the horse began lowering herself to the lobby floor.

"Whoa, Bluebonnet," Bobby Gray gently said to the mare. He turned back to Kelli. "She's too sick to wait."

There was no point arguing with him any further. The poor mare did appear to need help right now. "Fine. Bring her around back. I share the practice with a large-animal vet. He has a stall we can use."

"I didn't realize there was more than one kind of vet." Bobby Gray touched the mare's head. "Come on, girl."

When he acted as if he'd bring the horse through the lobby, Kelli said, "Wait. Go outside, then around back. I'll examine her there."

After she'd treated both the horse and the dog, she turned to Bobby Gray. His worried expression tugged at her already weakened resolve to hold him at arm's length. "She and the dog are going to be fine."

He nodded. "Are you still mad at me?"

"I was never mad."

He snorted. "You coulda fooled me from the look on your face when you saw the mare in your waiting room."

There was no way she could have remained angry with him, even if he'd done something far more absurd. "Well, maybe a little angry. But not now."

No matter his image of tough-guy cowboy—it hid a tender and kind underbelly. What a softie, she thought, as she watched him stroke Bluebonnet's mane.

Grrr, ridiculously named by Bobby Gray, but a name that nonetheless made her happy inside, thumped his scrawny tail while watching the cowboy for any sign of attention. Evidently, the dog had decided to trust Bobby Gray with his horse.

Smart dog.

Kelli bit her lip to keep from grinning. Bobby Gray didn't need that kind of encouragement. In fact, he didn't require any encouragement. If she gave him one little smile, he'd insist upon an ocean of smiles that she had no business giving him.

Why did she have to like him so much? Why did he seem like the perfect guy, if not for having met Lori first?

* * *

He hadn't lost his touch, thought Bobby Gray as he gazed into Kelli's eyes. Whenever he shot her a soulful look, she returned it 100 percent, boding well for his plans.

All he needed now was to find a good way to ask her to dinner—in South Texas—with his banker. Not that she needed to know about the banker part.

Kelli continued tending to the horse and they lapsed into a companionable silence. The day was clear and blue, as only summer days in Texas can be, with a huge sky and dry intense heat that made his new boots feel somewhat too snug.

Lifting a foot to rest on the fence rail, Bobby Gray couldn't help but admire his shiny new boots.

And he'd been right, he thought, as Kelli turned his way with a shy smile. His boots were the same shade of brown as Kelli's eyes.

She pushed the hair from her face. "It's terrible how people treat elderly animals. That's why I'm involved with the North Texas Equestrian Rescue."

"Didn't you hit me up for a donation for that group?"

"Thanks for reminding me." Smiling, she stretched out a hand, palm-up, and wiggled her fingers. "Don't you owe me a check?"

"I would have—if you'd talked with my brother rather than having security go after me."

"Sorry about that. But the rescue society could make really good use of the money. How about if I call your brother now?"

This wasn't as hard as he'd expected. He couldn't believe how quickly she was falling head-first into his plan. It was easier than taking candy from a baby. If he didn't need her to come home with him so badly, he'd almost feel ashamed of how easy she was making it for him. "How about you meet Monty Joe in person—say this coming Saturday night?"

Her expression grew bleak. "I'd rather let my fingers do the walking. I'm happy to call him."

"The rescue society must not be that hard up."

"That's not it. We need all the money we can get. It's my sister Lori."

"What's she got to do with anything?"

"I told you before. I can't date you because of her."

He elected not to mention their kiss. Evidently kissing was allowed but dating wasn't. He narrowed his eyes as a faint flush climbed her cheeks. It seemed she preferred to pretend the kiss had never happened, but she wasn't that good a pretender. Two could play her game. "This is a business proposition. Who said anything 'bout a date?"