Long, Tall Texans_ Boone (Long, Tall Texans #35) - Diana Palmer Page 0,54
she ordered a whiskey sour with a smirk, as if she thought Keely was putting on some sort of Puritan act.
“Marquez would approve,” Clark said gently when Keely was served. “You’re not legal, yet.”
“What?” Misty asked.
“You have to be twenty-one to have a drink in a bar,” Clark said carelessly.
She frowned. “You’re not even twenty-one?” she asked Keely.
“I’ll be twenty on Christmas Eve, in four months,” Keely said without looking at her.
Misty was irritable, and it showed. She sipped her drink and ignored Keely.
Boone didn’t. He seemed restless. When Misty excused herself to go to the ladies’ room—with obvious reluctance—and Clark decided to go, too, Keely was left alone with Boone.
She couldn’t force herself to look at him. She sipped her soda with both hands wrapped around the glass and stared toward the bar.
“You haven’t said a word to me all night,” he said unexpectedly. “And you haven’t looked at me once.”
Keely did, then, and her eyes were blazing. “I didn’t want it to seem as if I were chasing you,” she told him coldly. “I understand that I threw myself at you at the charity dance and it offended you.”
His jaw tautened. He looked away, as if the comment embarrassed him. “There are things going on that you don’t know about. You shouldn’t be wandering around the state with Clark.”
“I’m as safe with him as I would be at home,” she said. “Clark is a wonderful man. I’m very lucky that your private detective turned him off Nellie. Apparently,” she added with a meaningful smile, “I’m more to his taste than she is.”
His scowl was intimidating. But before he could speak, Misty was back. She swept into her chair and leaned against Boone’s shoulder to distract him. Clark and Keely were stiff and uncomfortable, and they barely managed to remain civil for the time it took them to finish their drinks.
* * *
MISTY MADE A point of getting Keely momentarily alone on their way out to the cars.
“He’s talked about nothing except you all night, God knows why! Well, you won’t get him,” she said icily. “I’m going to fix you!”
Keely didn’t get a chance to ask her what she meant. Misty ran to Boone and almost tripped getting to their car. Misty was apparently jealous that Boone had mentioned Keely. She couldn’t imagine why, but it thrilled her to think he might be regretting his bad behavior.
* * *
“WHAT THE HELL is wrong with Boone?” Clark asked on the way home. “I’ve never seen him so grim.”
“I haven’t the slightest idea,” Keely said.
“I gave him the devil about that detective’s report. He swore he hadn’t put the man up to lying.” He glanced at Keely. “It’s hard for me to stay mad at him. But I’m sorry I couldn’t get us out of that drink.”
“It’s okay, Clark,” she replied. “He’s a bulldozer. It’s hard for anyone to say no to him.”
“Especially me.” He smiled. “When we were kids, Boone was always protecting me from the mean, older boys. He was never afraid of anything. I guess maybe he protected me too much. After our mom left, Dad was hell to live with. Boone took a lot of hits that were meant for me.”
“He loves you.”
“Yeah. I love him, too.” He glanced at her. “Boone said that Sheriff Carson was out your way.”
“Yes,” she replied. “I had to tell him what Dad did.”
“Excuse me?”
She bit her lower lip. Her father was a criminal. That was going to put Boone right out of her orbit forever. She was certain that Hayes Carson had already told him about Keely’s parents. The two men had been best friends forever.
“My father was a drug dealer, Clark,” she said quietly. “He supplied the cocaine that killed Sheriff Carson’s brother Bobby.”
“Oh, boy,” Clark said heavily. “You poor kid.”
“Now my dad’s back and he and his partner want money, lots of it…”
“I could give them whatever they want,” he said at once.
“No!” Her eyes were eloquent. “Don’t you see, the only way to stop them is to keep them hanging around while Mama puts the house on the market. The police might have a chance to catch them before they can hurt anyone.”
“Do you think your father would hurt you?” he asked.
Keely had never liked looking back. Her accident had hurt more than her body. When the little boy dropped into the lion pit, Keely’s father had been standing on the other side. He hadn’t made a move to help.
“Yes, he would, wouldn’t he?” Clark asked