Lyssa didn't know much about the two youngest Gentry men, but she'd heard bits and pieces at the dinner table. Jackson, next in line after Cody, had yet to make an appearance at the ranch. From what little Cody had said about him, she knew only that he was in law enforcement.
Brock, the youngest of the brothers, was as scarce around the house as Jackson, although technically he did still live there. He was a musician from the cradle, Cody had said. Every once in a while she'd hear the mellow sound of a guitar playing down the hall, and the haunting voice of a man singing of lost love. She knew it was Brock, but the way he'd hole up in his room, Lyssa thought he was more of a phantom.
She knew Cody didn't think much of Brock's choice to pursue fame and fortune in country music. She knew Mike Gentry approved of it even less. But at least Cody supported it because he knew it mattered to Brock.
"I don't know," she said, nibbling on her bottom lip.
"If you're nervous about us going alone, we can always ask Beau and Mandy if they'd like to come."
"Sure, more people to witness my fine dancing performance."
She sighed. She was really being ridiculous. There was nothing saying her time at the ranch had to be all work and no play. With Beau and Mandy tagging along it wouldn't really be a date. It'd just be a bunch of people together.
"I guess. Okay."
"Good. And don't worry about the clothes. Anything you have will fit in just fine where we're headed."
* * *
AS CODY HAD mentioned, Brock's reaction to having him go to one of his gigs was met with much enthusiasm. Their father regarded the youngest boy's musical aspirations as nothing more than a fleeting fancy and discouraged him at every turn.
But Lyssa had had a chance to listen through closed doors to the haunting words and music Cody's brother created. He had talent. She didn't need to know anything about music to appreciate it. And the fact that Cody not only recognized that talent but acknowledged it had brought a lot of satisfaction to Brock at the dinner table that evening.
Later, when Lyssa was plowing through what little she'd packed to come to the ranch, she tried to convince herself that tonight's trek out to see Brock play wasn't really a date. As she yanked a skirt out of the closet and tried to find a matching blouse from the drawer she continued building the illusion. This wasn't a date. It was merely a public test run, much like the ones she went on with all her students.
She'd exhausted all combinations of jeans, skirts, and blouses, until she finally decided that none of it mattered. Cody couldn't see what she was wearing, only she could. It wouldn't really matter to anyone else anyway.
She finally slipped into a cotton sundress that she realized with dismay looked like a potato sack over her slightly pear-shaped figure. A low pair of white leather sandals and a touch of makeup was all she'd allow herself to fuss with for this evening. Tossing the dress in her bag had been a last-minute whim, but now she was glad she'd had some semblance of foresight to pack it. The only other things she had were clothes she wore when working with the dogs.
She met Cody downstairs in the living room. The house was quiet except for the slap of her sandals against the heels of her feet. Cody rose up from the sofa when she walked into the room.
His colorful western shirt was pressed neatly, most likely by Isadore, as was the seemingly new pair of Wranglers he wore. His boots were polished to a shine and the straw hat on his head looked as if it were his Sunday best.
"You look beautiful," he said.
She smirked. "How would you know?"
"Because I just heard Isadore sigh in the other room when she saw you coming down the stairs, so she must approve. And that's saying something for Isadore." He leaned forward slightly and whispered just below his normal tone, but loud enough to be heard by anyone who was inclined to eavesdrop. "She's watching, even if she doesn't want me to know."
Lyssa heard the sound of what was probably a broom or mop hitting the inside of the pantry.
"See what I mean?" he said, laughing.
"You look nice and it makes me feel a little under-dressed."
"Don't worry about it." He sighed. "I wish I could see you."
Lyssa dipped her head. How did he always do that? How did he always manage to make her feel as if she were the most beautiful woman in the world?
She reached out and lifted his hand to her face. Lightly, he ran his fingers over her newly painted lips and then cupped her cheek. It brought a smile to his face and one to her heart.
"Brock left right after dinner. He had to set up early and do a sound check before everyone arrives at the club."
"Are we picking up Beau and Mandy or are they meeting us here?"
"Ah, they aren't coming. When I called the ranch, Mandy said Beau was wiped out, not that I blame him. He's been doing double duty here and at the Double T. Little Promise has an ear infection, so they're going to sit this one out. It's just you and me."
He extended his left arm for her to hook her own through.
"Right."
Cody stopped short. "No seriously. I asked, but they begged off."
Lyssa shook her head. "Give me your right arm. Use your left hand for Otis," she corrected. "Speaking of Otis, where is he?"
"Oh, I forgot."
"After a while you won't. It will become second nature."
"What I mean is I've decided not to take Otis tonight. He's upstairs in my bedroom."
She frowned. "Why?"'
"I'd like to try this first outing alone."
Knotting her arms in front of her chest, Lyssa said, "What are you going to do when you have to go to the men's room?"
Cody smiled devilishly. "I'll hold it."
She rolled her eyes. "I thought the whole point in going was to get you out in public with Otis?"
"Maybe to you."
"Oh, really. What was your purpose then?"
"Do you really have to ask?"
"As a matter of fact, yes, I do. I can never figure you out, Cody, and just when I think I have, you do something like say you want to leave Otis home when my whole reason for being here in the first place is to help the two of you bond and become best buddies."
He smiled. "If it's all the same to you, tonight I'd rather become your best buddy. If he's going to be sleeping with me later, then we'll have all the bonding time in the world. I don't need him snuggling in between the two of us all night long."
Lyssa stared wordlessly at him, her heart pounding as she fought the image that sprang to mind of the two of them locked in a tight embrace.
"Don't you dare ruin my dog, Cody Gentry," she managed to say after a few moments. "He will not be sleeping with you."
"I thought you said he was my dog."
Lyssa shrugged. "He's never going to stop being my dog, no matter how long he's here on the ranch. And I will not have you undo all the training that's made him a good guide dog."
"I'll behave."
"You'd better."
"Or what?"
"You're impossible."
The look on his face told her she was as big a wimp as she felt.
"Okay, he can stay home this once," she conceded. "But not this weekend. We're taking him to Fort Worth."
"The Coliseum can get pretty crowded," he warned.
"This is what you do, Cody. Otis needs to get exposure in the places you go frequently. You can't keep him home all the time, or what's the point in having him?"
His eyebrows raised beneath his sunglasses. She knew he was thinking about the fact that he hadn't been the one who wanted a guide dog in the first place. It had been forced on him from the beginning, first by his father and then by Lyssa.
She sighed. "He stays home tonight, but he goes to Fort Worth."
"I'll agree to that."
Cody reached into his pocket and extracted a set of keys on a leather strap.
"You don't mind driving, do you? I mean, I usually take the Mercedes when I take a lady out, but it's been sitting idle these last months col
lecting dust."
Lyssa's eyebrow rose in interest. "You want me to drive your Mercedes?"
"Yeah, Brock will probably be ticked off since he's the only one who's been driving it lately, but he'll get over it."
She smiled. A Mercedes. It sounded like fun.
* * *
THE DANCE HALL was more crowded than Lyssa anticipated it would be on a Wednesday evening. It had been fun driving the Mercedes out on the open road, but now that she was faced with parking an elegant car like this in a pot-hole-filled parking lot with cars jammed into every inch of available space, she was starting to sweat. Her stomach jumped as she navigated the car through narrow passages. Beads of sweat sprung out on her forehead. She blew a quick breath of air upward to cool herself down.
"Relax, you can't possibly do any more damage than Brock," Cody had said in response to the little murmur of distress she made when she stopped at the entrance to the parking lot.
"Want to bet?" she'd said.
And he had just laughed, making her nerves all the more jumpy.
Why was she so nervous, anyway? It wasn't just the car. And it wasn't as if she hadn't been out on a date before.
Her hands trembled on the steering wheel as she saw a couple walking arm in arm into the dance hall.
This isn't a date, she told herself. But suddenly Lyssa realized with dread that a date was exactly what this was. She was on a date with Cody. Otis was home. She wasn't in the company of any family members. It was just her and Cody, now walking arm in arm toward the dance hall just like the other couple she'd seen as she parked the Mercedes.
Oh, this evening was shaping up just perfectly.
For most of the night, they sat in a corner table close enough to the stage for Brock to bounce back and forth between their table and a table where some of his friends were gathered. Another band went on stage before his band.
The music was too loud for Lyssa's liking. That plus sitting too close to the PA system made it difficult to follow the conversation among the other people who stopped by their table.
Cody didn't say much. He mostly listened, leaning back in his chair with his arm draped casually over the back of hers, making it clear that they were together. As if they were a couple. And thinking about Cody that way, allowing herself to think of him purely as a man and not a student, was something that made Lyssa uneasy.
As usual, Cody kept his sunglasses on while inside, most likely to hide his eyes. And as they sat in the loud room among all the other people, Lyssa wondered about Cody's eyes. What they'd been like before the accident.
There were pictures, of course, scattered around the house, showing the various stages of growth of all the Gentry boys. All the brothers had light eyes. Cody's, though, had intrigued Lyssa from the start. In some pictures, they'd been a mixture of blue and green. Sometimes, when the sun was shining bright, they'd appeared a deep green. Other times, they were almost a dark blue.
Besides their color, Lyssa couldn't help but wonder what she'd see if she looked into Cody's eyes while he was looking back at her. Really seeing her. The thought made her catch her breath.
Cody glanced around the room as if he could see what was going on. In truth, it was a natural reaction to the sound around him. Voices maybe. As Lyssa scanned the room herself she saw more than a few women glancing in their direction, some overtly sizing her up and coming out a little smug.
"You've been hiding yourself out."
Lyssa glanced up to find one of the women she'd seen earlier scrutinizing them in the corner had finally sidled up next to Cody. She was rubbing Cody's arm up and down and practically inviting herself into his lap. The blue jeans she wore were snug enough to be a second skin, as was the red cotton shirt she wore.
Lyssa squashed down the sudden stab of jealousy that leveled her.
Cody's grip tightened on the table. His voice seemed forced when he spoke. "Haven't felt like dancing much lately. How are you, Susan?"
"Fine. Just fine. I hope you'll be in the mood for some dancing tonight though. Brock usually sets this place on fire, but maybe we can convince your baby brother to put a slow number or two on his setlist. You be sure to save a dance for me, won't you now?"
She'd actually purred, Lyssa thought. Was she for real or what?
Petty. Don't go getting petty, Lyssa, she admonished herself.
"Sorry, Susan. My dance card is filled for the evening."
"Oh, don't break my heart," Susan said in a soft whine.
"Susan, this is Lyssa McEl... Geez, I never get your name right."
"McElhannon," Lyssa said, extending her hand in greeting.
Awkwardly, the two women shook hands. Susan's smile was forced, even seemed a little unsure.
Susan cocked her head to one side, her blond mane framing her face, and pasted a saccharin-sweet smile on her face. "You two been together long?"
It wasn't so much the question that threw Lyssa, but the bluntness of it. While she tried to find her voice, Cody answered.
"Lyssa's staying at the ranch."
Susan gave her a pointed glance, making her wonder just what kind of relationship she and Cody had shared before he'd lost his vision. No, she wouldn't go there. It was none of her business.
"Really? You must be loving it then, Lyssa. The trails through the ranch are beautiful. Cody knows just how to show you right."
They were loaded words Lyssa knew she was wise to ignore.
"Susan's a veterinarian, Lyssa. She's been out to the ranch quite a few times over the past few years when we've been in need."
Susan smiled with pride, as if that one bit of information Cody had revealed gave her the upper hand. Lyssa wanted to say there wasn't any reason for winning any hand where Cody was concerned. But the play of woman against woman was as old as time.
"In what capacity are you at the ranch?"
Cody laughed so hard it stopped the conversation between Brock and one of his backup singers, a girl named Cheryl, who was seated at the next table.
"She's my trainer," Cody said easily. But there was a tightness about him that suddenly made Lyssa think he wasn't enjoying this interplay as much as he let on.
"I train guide dogs," Lyssa offered, looking at Cody, trying to read the emotions changing on his face.
"Oh, well, that's right. I knew about the accident, of course, but I thought. . ."
"I haven't hidden so much from the world that the people around me don't know I'm blind. Besides, word gets around."
"I'm sorry, Cody. Brock mentioned some surgery you were having not long ago."
"Yeah, it didn't work." There was only a tinge of regret in his voice, but Lyssa knew it ran much deeper.
Brock got up from the table and climbed to the stage.
As if it were her cue, Susan said, "Well, I guess your brother is getting ready for his set."
"I guess so."
"It was good seeing... I'll be stopping by real soon."
Cody didn't look in Susan's direction as she walked away, her boot heels clinking on the shiny boards of the dance floor.
"She's a beautiful woman."
"Yes, she is."
"There's no reason for you not to dance—"
"Geez, Lys, you are so damned irritating sometimes," Cody said, reaching out and searching for her hand. He sighed. "I'm with you tonight. I'm not some good-for-nothing jerk who's going to go off dancing with every other woman in the dance hall just because they asked. I asked you to come tonight so I could get you in my arms, and that's exactly what I intend to do."
"You don't have to be so pushy about it."
His chuckle seemed to come from deep in his soul. "With you, lady, I most certainly do. Now let's dance."
Chapter Seven
* * *
"DON'T ACT AS if I haven't made my intentions tonight plain, Lyssa," Cody said, the deep timbre of his voice leaving Lyssa weak in the knees. "I kind of figured you wouldn't be too receptive to me pulling you into my arms back at the ranch. Chances are someo
ne would be around to witness it.
Isadore, most likely. You strike me as the shy type where embracing is concerned."
He wanted to hold her. This wasn't just some outing to test his boundaries. She closed her eyes at the thought of being in Cody's embrace, feeling muscled arms that she knew were strong and reassuring.
"I'm not shy," she said, swallowing the sudden lump stuck tight in her throat.
He nodded once. "Good, because I plan on getting the chance to hold you a lot tonight. For starters, right here on this dance floor."
"Do I have a say in any of this?"
"I figure you had your say back at the ranch when you decided to come."
He was smiling, something potent and telling. As if he could see just how flustered she was and was enjoying every bit of it.
She jut out her chin ever so slightly. "What about Susan?"
His brow knitted. "What about her?"
"She might have a thing or two to say about it."
"I couldn't imagine why."
It was her turn to laugh. "Oh, come on, Cody. The woman is so totally over the moon for you. I didn't have to look that hard to see it."
"Over the moon, huh?"
"That's right."
It was hard to tell if the slight irritation that was crawling just below the surface of her skin was also evident in her tone of voice. It wasn't very attractive to see and it certainly wasn't something Lyssa enjoyed feeling.
Cody leaned closer, dipping his head, and she could tell that he was a little unsure by the slight catch in his voice when he spoke. That put them on even ground.
"In case you haven't noticed, I'm pretty close to being over the moon for you. And obviously I'm not doing this right because if I were, we wouldn't be standing here discussing moons. You'd already be snug up close."
Her head was swimming and she had to catch her breath.
"So what do you say?"
He extended his arm just as Brock announced the band and began their first number. The crowd was full of fire and jumped to their feet.
Wounded Heroes Boxed Set Page 109
