Beauty Salon.”
“And all these women came from that salon?”
“Yes.”
“I imagine the exodus closed down the shop, didn’t it?”
She nodded. “We’ve had some…tough times in the salon, so Delilah, who owns and runs it, decided she was due a one-week vacation. None of the women with us are married. They may have beenmarried at one time, or had significant others, but there was nothing in their way of enjoying a trip out to the country.”
“This had everything to do with Mason’s e-mail.”
“Yes. And his photo was attached. He looked reasonably trustworthy, and some of us are going to need new jobs soon. Delilah decided we could start here on our vacation-slash-opportunity hunt. We’re taking buses through all of west Texas checking out small towns.”
“Once you leave here, you mean.”
“Hopefully tomorrow.”
“This is just a fun hiatus, a lark, to see if we’d hire one of you?”
She shrugged. “No. As I said, the shop isn’t doing all that well lately. Delilah’s going to have to cut back staff. We thought you were looking for help. Your ranch seemed as good a place to start as any.”
Scratching his chin, Frisco said, “I didn’t realize there were employment issues. All I knew was that we’d been descended upon by a herd of females.”
“And your standard reaction is to run females off?”
Her brow was quirked at him, kind of sassy. He knew she was teasing him, and he wanted to put her in her place, but he couldn’t think how. “Generally we don’t respond too well to women coming ourway without warning,” he said dryly. “We prefer to have our visiting hours elsewhere.”
“Mm. Leaving you free to hit and run.” She looked down at her fingers, which were free of rings. “Well, that seems sensible.”
“We were talking about you,” Frisco reminded her a bit tersely, since he didn’t like her reference at all. He was pretty certain he saw pain on her face, and he didn’t want her lumping him in with a possible woman-snaking weasel who “hit and ran.” “So, you’re on vacation…”
“Oh, yes. Well, I didn’t really want to come. Delilah and everyone talked me into it. They didn’t want me to stay there and…be alone.”
Okay. There was a weasel—he was still close to the poultry, near enough to bite, and Delilah was guarding the chicken house.
He looked at Annabelle’s smooth blond hair, the way it fell over her shoulders as she stared down at her fingers. It was like gazing at an angel. Even if the angel had a fast tongue on her, she was still a nice girl. His heart shifted as he thought about someone bruising her heart.
This is why I don’t get involved with girls like her. They get their feelings hurt so easily when they want promises instead of a good time.
Emmeline shifted, then sighed. Frisco glanced down at the baby. He wanted to know why Annabelle had fallen for someone who’d broken herheart, a loser who didn’t care enough to take care of his own child, but he didn’t dare. It was none of his business. “And now that you’re here? Still wish you hadn’t come on vacation?”
She wrinkled her nose at him. “I feel like I’m working.”
He looked at her. “What does that mean?”
“That talking to you is kind of hard. You want answers but you don’t offer any of your own.”
A shrug would have been nice, but he was afraid to joggle Emmie. “Ask anything you want to.”
“I don’t have any questions. I just thought you might want to offer some conversation. Some minor details about yourself. Like why you say you don’t want to have women around, but then pick up a baby the first chance you get.”
“She was crying—” he began defensively.
“And I would have gotten her.”
“You were in the shower. I wanted you to be able to finish.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. I didn’t know Emmie would fall asleep for me. But once she did, she kind of put a warm spot on my chest and it relaxed me and I dozed off. And
“And all these women came from that salon?”
“Yes.”
“I imagine the exodus closed down the shop, didn’t it?”
She nodded. “We’ve had some…tough times in the salon, so Delilah, who owns and runs it, decided she was due a one-week vacation. None of the women with us are married. They may have beenmarried at one time, or had significant others, but there was nothing in their way of enjoying a trip out to the country.”
“This had everything to do with Mason’s e-mail.”
“Yes. And his photo was attached. He looked reasonably trustworthy, and some of us are going to need new jobs soon. Delilah decided we could start here on our vacation-slash-opportunity hunt. We’re taking buses through all of west Texas checking out small towns.”
“Once you leave here, you mean.”
“Hopefully tomorrow.”
“This is just a fun hiatus, a lark, to see if we’d hire one of you?”
She shrugged. “No. As I said, the shop isn’t doing all that well lately. Delilah’s going to have to cut back staff. We thought you were looking for help. Your ranch seemed as good a place to start as any.”
Scratching his chin, Frisco said, “I didn’t realize there were employment issues. All I knew was that we’d been descended upon by a herd of females.”
“And your standard reaction is to run females off?”
Her brow was quirked at him, kind of sassy. He knew she was teasing him, and he wanted to put her in her place, but he couldn’t think how. “Generally we don’t respond too well to women coming ourway without warning,” he said dryly. “We prefer to have our visiting hours elsewhere.”
“Mm. Leaving you free to hit and run.” She looked down at her fingers, which were free of rings. “Well, that seems sensible.”
“We were talking about you,” Frisco reminded her a bit tersely, since he didn’t like her reference at all. He was pretty certain he saw pain on her face, and he didn’t want her lumping him in with a possible woman-snaking weasel who “hit and ran.” “So, you’re on vacation…”
“Oh, yes. Well, I didn’t really want to come. Delilah and everyone talked me into it. They didn’t want me to stay there and…be alone.”
Okay. There was a weasel—he was still close to the poultry, near enough to bite, and Delilah was guarding the chicken house.
He looked at Annabelle’s smooth blond hair, the way it fell over her shoulders as she stared down at her fingers. It was like gazing at an angel. Even if the angel had a fast tongue on her, she was still a nice girl. His heart shifted as he thought about someone bruising her heart.
This is why I don’t get involved with girls like her. They get their feelings hurt so easily when they want promises instead of a good time.
Emmeline shifted, then sighed. Frisco glanced down at the baby. He wanted to know why Annabelle had fallen for someone who’d broken herheart, a loser who didn’t care enough to take care of his own child, but he didn’t dare. It was none of his business. “And now that you’re here? Still wish you hadn’t come on vacation?”
She wrinkled her nose at him. “I feel like I’m working.”
He looked at her. “What does that mean?”
“That talking to you is kind of hard. You want answers but you don’t offer any of your own.”
A shrug would have been nice, but he was afraid to joggle Emmie. “Ask anything you want to.”
“I don’t have any questions. I just thought you might want to offer some conversation. Some minor details about yourself. Like why you say you don’t want to have women around, but then pick up a baby the first chance you get.”
“She was crying—” he began defensively.
“And I would have gotten her.”
“You were in the shower. I wanted you to be able to finish.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. I didn’t know Emmie would fall asleep for me. But once she did, she kind of put a warm spot on my chest and it relaxed me and I dozed off. And
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