Rugged Cowboy - Elana Johnson Page 0,3
be cooler.”
“Can you do two ponies?” she asked.
“Pigtails, sure,” he said, because he’d done those yesterday. Well, he’d done half of the hairdo. Amy had demonstrated how to do the first one, and he’d attempted to copy her on the second one. He’d only had to try twice before he got it tight enough.
Today, he sprayed and parted her hair, then began smoothing the hair on half of her head into a pigtail that sat just above her ear. The right side was easier than the left, and he secured that one on the first try.
The other side took a couple of tries, but he eventually persevered, and he grinned at Remmy. “All ready.”
“Thanks, Daddy.” She threw her arms around his neck, and Dallas’s heart swelled to three times its normal size.
“Love you, bug,” he said, calling on the familiar nickname from years ago.
“Love you too, Daddy.”
He was so grateful she did, and he hoped she wouldn’t have too many memories of his absence in her life. He adored her high-pitched, Texas-twang voice, and he threaded his fingers through hers.
“Let’s go wait for Ted out in the kitchen.”
Thomas was out there, wiping down the counter, and Dallas paused to look at him. When had he become responsible enough to clean up without being asked? Dallas barely did that.
“Thanks for doing that,” Dallas said, not sure how to relate to his son.
“There’s a bunch of chocolate on the floor right there,” he said, and Dallas went to the sink and got another washrag. He wetted it down and moved over to the floor where sure enough, chocolate had been tracked toward the door he’d entered from the garage.
He didn’t want to kneel down in his suit, so he bent over and started scrubbing the dried chocolate. After several minutes and several trips to the sink to rewet the washcloth, he got the floor clean.
“There.”
He stood up and looked at his hard work, a sense of pride moving through him. He’d felt like this after stitching up the arteries leading to a heart too, and after getting all the parts in the exact right spot to rebuild a motorcycle engine.
“I’m so late,” a woman said, and Dallas turned toward a tall, dark-haired woman he hadn’t seen in the brief time he’d eaten a sandwich earlier. “Excuse me.”
She ran toward him, her cowgirl boots making loud, slapping noises on the floor. He backed up, an alarm sounding in his head.
“The floor is—”
She yelped as she slipped, and time slowed into terrible bursts of motion. The woman flailed her arms.
“Wet,” Dallas finished.
He reached for her.
She grabbed onto his forearm.
But she was going down.
He blinked, and he was bending over, her hand still gripping his arm in a painful way.
She groaned, her eyes staring straight up as she was now flat on her back on the floor.
“I’m so sorry,” he said. “Are you okay?”
She blinked a couple of times, and a brand-new fire entered those dark eyes. Dallas felt sure he was about to be burned, and he actually found himself welcoming it.
Chapter Two
Pain radiated through Jessica Morales’s body, and while she wanted to get up, she couldn’t. She was used to going and going and going, and she was strong.
But her back was in control at the moment, and she was not moving.
Anger flowed through her like river rapids, and she stared into the light gray eyes of a man she’d never seen before. “What were you doing?” she demanded.
“There was chocolate on the floor,” he said, kneeling beside her. “Can you sit up?”
“I think so.” She groaned again, wishing she wasn’t in the presence of a handsome man with such a noise coming out of her mouth. Her back spasmed, and she stilled.
“I don’t have time for this,” she said. “I have to get out to the stables and get the horses ready.”
“I’ll help you,” he said, putting his hand on the back of her elbow.
“Who are you?” she asked.
“Dallas Dreyer,” he said. “I’m a friend of Nate’s.”
“If I don’t get those horses ready, the wedding will be ruined.” Another flash of impatience hit her. “Help me up. You’ll have to come help me. Do you know anything about horses?”
“Not really,” he said, practically lifting her off her feet.
“Great,” she muttered. She took in his appearance, and he wore a cheap suit. At least it was clean. His hair was cut short and spiked in the front, and if he stayed outside for longer than twenty minutes without a hat, he’d be fried