by Cindy Kirk
Cassidy was just lifting her paddle when she saw a redhead off to her right raise hers.
She recognized the woman in the sexy black dress that hugged a taut body and emphasized ample breasts. Leila Daltry was a customer at Clippity Do Dah. She stopped by regularly to get her hair cut and for an occasional color boost. A registered nurse, the striking redhead worked in the obstetrics department at the hospital. Though she wasn’t the right woman for Tim, Cassidy liked her well enough.
Nick asked for a two-hundred-dollar bid. When none was forthcoming he moved into his going once, twice speech. Cassidy stopped him by lifting her number. No way was she letting Leila get Tim that cheap.
Leila turned slowly and her cat-green eyes narrowed. Though the RN had always been friendly enough, Cassidy absorbed the feral gleam directed her way and grinned back.
If Leila thought a hostile glance could intimidate her, she was mistaken. Cassidy Kaye ate feral cats for breakfast.
“Three hundred,” Nick confirmed when Leila waved her paddle as he upped the bid.
The curious gazes of the well-dressed men and women in the room were now shifting between her and Leila. Once again, Nick upped the bid. Without even thinking, Cassidy lifted her number.
“Four hundred is the bid,” Nick called out. “Do I hear five?”
The redhead hesitated now, her gaze shifting from Tim’s impassive expression to Cassidy’s cool gaze. Though nurses were paid well, the cost of living in Jackson Hole was through the roof. Five hundred dollars was a lot of money.
Leila tossed her head and raised her paddle.
“We’re at five hundred dollars,” Nick pronounced. “Will someone give us six?”
Let it go, Cassidy told herself. Five hundred was a respectable bid.
“Going twice,” she heard Nick say.
Without taking a second to talk herself out of it, Cassidy shot her hand into the air.
“We have six hundred.”
Leila’s head snapped around and the satisfied smirk on her face vanished. If looks could kill, Cassidy would be six feet under.
“Going once, going twice. Six hundred dollars to number ninety-eight.”
It was a charitable donation, Cassidy told herself as she wrote out the check. Though she had to admit dropping that amount of money in a single night hurt.
Or rather it did until she turned and found Tim standing. Right. There.
“I’m sorry you got stuck,” he said.
Normally never at a loss of words, for a second Cassidy could only stare. Her heart gave a painful twist.
“I mean, I know you were only trying to increase the bid. I can give you the money to—”
She shot out a hand, stopping him before he could say more. “You’re not getting out of our date that easily. I bought you fair and square, mister.”
He smiled then, a warm easy lifting of his lips that did strange things to her insides. And when he took her arm, she realized he was worth every penny.
They strolled into the ballroom, where they both enjoyed a glass of champagne. After handing the empty glasses to a passing waiter, they wandered out onto the veranda, where the conversation shifted from mutual friends and future events to their upcoming “date.”
“I’ll pay for the evening.” Tim’s tone brooked no argument. “You pick where we go. Fair?”
Cassidy considered for a moment then nodded.
The moon bathed his face in a golden glow and a light breeze tousled his hair. He really was a great-looking guy. Not only did he have a fabulous face, his lips were firm and perfectly sculpted.
As she stared, she wondered what they would feel like, taste like...
“Sounds like we’ve got a deal.” He stuck his hand out but she ignored it, keeping her gaze focused on his lips.
Cassidy firmly believed hesitating or second-guessing was for wimps. Stepping close, she wrapped her hands around his neck and covered his mouth with hers.
Chapter Two
That smoking-hot kiss was still at the forefront of Tim’s mind two weeks later when he pulled into his parents’ driveway. Probably because this afternoon would be the first time he and Cassidy would be alone together since she’d surprised him so thoroughly after the bachelor auction.
Over the past four years, his friend Jayne had brushed several kisses across his cheek. Nothing that came close to the sensual feel of Cassidy’s warm full lips plastered against his mouth. Before he could get his rioting emotions under control, he’d kissed her back. And it had taken all of his willpower not to continue kissing her.
He wondered if that was how they’d end this evening, too...
“Yippee, we’re here,” one of his daughters called out from the backseat as he eased the car to a stop in front of the two-story white clapboard that had been his home as a child.
Large leafy trees protected the house and the lush green lawn from the late-afternoon sun. A variety of perfectly groomed bushes added to the home’s well-tended appearance.
By the time Tim pushed open his car door, the twins had already hopped out and sprinted up the sidewalk to his parents’ front porch.
Esther and Ellyn loved spending time with their grandma and grandpa. But this afternoon, Tim had found himself wishing Finley Davis, the teenage daughter of friends, was available. He knew his mother’s feelings about this date with Cassidy and he wasn’t in the mood to hear her tell him again that Cassidy was clearly out to snare herself a wealthy doctor.
Stepping out of his hybrid SUV, Tim expelled a resigned breath. Suzanne Duggan, retired grade-school teacher and A-plus grandmother, was a wonderful woman. But there was no denying she could be a trifle opinionated.
Thankfully, it wasn’t Suzanne, but his father who sauntered around the side of the house just as the screen door slammed shut and the girls disappeared from sight. His father waved a greeting, his gloved hand gripping a wicked-looking pair of garden shears.
Though in his mid-sixties, Steve Duggan could pass for a man ten years younger. The recently retired engineer was tall, topping Tim’s six-foot frame by a good three inches. His sandy hair still held the red all three of his children had inherited, although in recent years more and more silver strands had been added to the mix.
Tim met his father’s warm hazel eyes and realized, not for the first time, how fortunate he’d been to grow up in a home with two loving, supportive parents. From the moment his daughters had been born, he’d been determined to give them that same experience. Except now, with Caro gone, he had to be both father and mother.
They need a mother.
Tim ignored the voice inside his head and the accompanying fear that gripped him, fear that he was somehow shortchanging the girls by choosing to remain single. But his situation was different than most widowers. His practice was challenging. At the end of the day, there was no time left for the demands of a wife. He’d already failed one woman. He wouldn’t make that mistake again.
At ease with his decision, Tim gestured with his head toward the shears. “Looks like Mom is keeping you busy.”
His father smiled ruefully. “The woman’s honey-do projects will keep my free time occupied into the next millennium.”
The two men laughed, both aware that was no exaggeration.
As his father fell into step beside him, Tim sensed his curious gaze. Steve paused at the bottom of the porch steps.
“I was surprised when Suz mentioned you’d be dropping off the girls at four. That seems a bit early for a date.”
It seemed early to Tim, too. But Cassidy had paid six hundred dollars. Six hours or so of his time didn’t seem much to ask.
“Cass has a full evening planned,” he told his dad. “Beginning with grabbing some pizza, then checking out Brew Fest.”
When Tim had stopped by Cassidy’s salon
earlier in the week to find out what she had in mind for their “date,” she’d asked if he had plans for Old West Days, a popular yearly event held the last Saturday of May. Other than taking the girls to watch the parade in the morning, Tim had been available.
“I’m surprised the woman could take time off today,” his mother said in lieu of a greeting as she stepped out onto the porch. Suzanne was a slim, attractive woman with a sleek bob of light brown hair and bright blue eyes. “If you’re a beautician, Saturday is a big day.”
“It’s her salon. I imagine she sets her own schedule.” Tim deliberately kept his tone mild, refusing to get drawn into a pointless discussion. He glanced around. “Where’d the twins disappear to?”
Suzanne’s tense expression softened at the mention of her “girls.” Esther and Ellyn were his parents’ only grandchildren. But something told Tim it wouldn’t be long before his sister and her husband added to that number.
“The moment they hit the front door they made a beeline straight for Miss Priss and the kittens.”
Tim smiled. “And how is Prissy?”
His parents had reluctantly taken in the calico last year when Silas, an elderly neighbor, had moved to a nursing home. The older gentleman had been panicked at the thought of his best friend going to an animal shelter. He’d assured his neighbors that Miss Priss had not only had all her shots but she’d also been spayed.
Six weeks ago, the supposedly neutered cat had given birth to four kittens.
“Prissy is a sweet girl,” Suzanne said with a fond smile. “And an excellent mother.”
From his mother, that was indeed high praise.
“Darn cat is spoiled rotten,” his dad groused. “Do you know she won’t drink from a bowl? Miss Particular will only drink running water from the spigot in the tub.”
His father’s tone said clearly what he thought of that practice.
“Hush, Steve. From what I’ve read about cats, it’s a primal thing.”
Before a parental argument ensued over an animal neither of them had really wanted, Tim changed the subject. “Have you found homes for the babies?”
“For three of them. So far, no takers for the runt,” his mother said with a sigh.
Runt was a mischievous male with a black head, a white body and a raccoon-striped tail. An odd combination to be sure.
Steve fixed his gaze on his son. “Your girls adore the runt.”
At his father’s raised eyebrow and the pointed look that accompanied the comment, Tim lifted his hands, palms out. “One day I’ll get them a pet. Now is not the right time.”
Tim expected his father to come back with some pithy comment. Instead his expression turned thoughtful. “I’ve found the best things are often those that are unexpected.”
If his father’s cryptic remark was intended to make Tim reconsider his decision to punt on kitten number four, the play failed. “I’m not changing my mind.”
He slanted a glance at his mother and found her staring.
She gestured toward his jeans and white polo, frowning slightly. “What made you decide to dress so casually for your date?”
Though Suzanne had made it completely clear she thought the whole bachelor-auction-date thing had been a mistake, obviously in her mind that didn’t negate the fact that her son had an image to uphold in the community.
“It’s Old West Days.” Tim glanced down. “And this isn’t really a date.”
He didn’t know why he’d added the last part. Actually, this was as close as he’d come to a date in the four years since Caro had passed away. While he may have escorted Jayne Connors—a media specialist at the local high school—to various functions over the years, that was because he and Jayne had an understanding. They’d agreed to fill in as each others’ plus-one when needed.
“You’re absolutely right. It’s not a date.” His mother’s lips tipped in approval. “In fact, that’s exactly what I told Paula when she called in a panic.”
Tim knew Paula was Paula Connors, Suzanne’s BFF and Jayne’s mother. The women talked every day. When they weren’t on the phone, they were texting each other. The two friends belonged to the same clubs, volunteered at the hospital and served together on too many-community committees to count.
He’d have thought the women had more important things to discuss than his personal life, which was nonexistent. “Why does Paula care if it’s a date or not?”
“Oh, Tim.” His mother clucked her tongue. “She cares because of Jayne. You know she and I still hope the two of you will get together.”
Tim stifled a groan. He’d walked right into that one. It had been about a year after Caro died that he’d revived his childhood friendship with Jayne. From the start he’d been clear he hadn’t been looking for anything more than friendship. Thankfully, Jayne felt the same way. The only ones who couldn’t seem to get the message were their respective mothers.
“Jayne and I are friends, Mother.” Tim wished he’d recorded those words so he could simply pull out his phone and push Play each time Suzanne put on her matchmaking hat. The thought of how she’d react to that stunt made him grin.
“I’m happy you find this so amusing.” Suzanne took a step forward, her compact body rigid and stiff as any soldier. Though only five foot three, she was definitely a force. It was easy to see how she’d been able to keep classes of rowdy fifth graders under control during her years of teaching. “Well, son, let me tell you what I know.”
His father shot Tim a sympathetic glance before pivoting on his sneakers and retreating around the side of the house.
“You and Jayne are perfect for each other. She’s a good person. While this Cassidy creature—”
“Not. One. More. Word.” The steel in Tim’s voice brought his mother up short. He didn’t want to be a hard-ass, but on this matter, he’d brook no argument. Up to this point, he’d tried to ignore his mother’s subtle digs against Cassidy, but he’d had enough. “Cassidy Kaye is a well-respected businesswoman in this community. I won’t allow you to disparage her character.”
Suzanne blinked. She opened her mouth but when her eyes met his steely ones, she appeared to reconsider and closed it without speaking.
Seizing the blessed moment of silence, Tim changed the subject. “Are you certain keeping the girls overnight isn’t a problem? I don’t anticipate being out late. I can easily swing by and pick them up.”
“No, no.” Suzanne waved a dismissive hand, regaining her composure. “They’ve been looking forward to a sleepover with Grandma and Grandpa.”
“Okay, then.” He thought about going inside to tell his daughters goodbye, but knew it wasn’t necessary. This was their second home. “Thanks again.”
Tim was almost to the car when his mother called his name. He turned, cocked a brow.
Suzanne hesitated, chewed on her lip. “I hope you have a wonderful evening.”
Tim accepted the olive branch she’d offered with a smile. “I’m sure I will.”
* * *
Cassidy took a bite of the Philly steak pizza and nearly groaned in ecstasy. “Oh-my-gosh.”
Across from her in the booth, Tim grinned and picked up a slice. “That good, huh?”
“Positively sinful. Take a bite. You’ll see.” She let the flavors linger on her tongue. Even as she savored, she watched Tim from beneath lowered lashes, eager for his reaction.
When she’d asked what kind of pizza he liked, he said anything that didn’t have anchovies, while admitting hamburger was a particular favorite.
She’d nearly grimaced, stopping herself in the nick of time. Hamburger pizza? Boring with a capital B.
Then she noticed that Perfect Pizza—a popular eatery in downtown Jackson—had added a Philly steak option. She’d immediately known that was the one she wanted them to share on this special night out. He�
��d been agreeable and it now sat on the table between them, a gooey mass of cheese and perfectly spiced meat.
“Wow.” Tim’s eyes met hers. “This is good.”
She shot him a wink. “Told you.”
As he chewed, he glanced around. Following the direction of his gaze, she took in the dining room area. Even though it was only a few minutes past four, the place was packed.
“I can’t believe all the people that are here in the middle of the day.” His voice reflected the surprise in his eyes.
Cassidy decided the man really needed to get out more. Anyone who ate out with any regularity knew Perfect Pizza was always busy. “In an hour it’ll be standing room only.”
“Good call on coming early.” He took a sip of soda. “Are you going to tell me now what’s on the agenda for the rest of the evening? Or is that still a secret?”
Cassidy picked up her slice of pizza, her lips slightly curving as she took a bite. Tim was a planner, a busy OB doctor who scheduled his personal life with the same precision he used in his medical practice.
When she’d told him she’d chosen the Saturday of Old West Days for their date, he’d fished for a detailed outline of the evening. She’d deliberately been vague, hoping the uncertainty would keep his thoughts on the evening...and on her.
Of course, she had no illusions anything would develop between them. They were from two different worlds. Even back in high school, she’d known her crush on him would go nowhere. Guys like him didn’t date girls like her.
The pizza caught for a moment in her throat before she determinedly swallowed it down. Only one thing mattered. Tonight, he was hers and they would have fun. She’d make sure of it.
“Cassidy.”
Startled, she blinked away thoughts of her past and looked up to find him staring. At her. More specifically, at her bright pink lips.
Her heart played hopscotch in her chest as Tim leaned forward, reaching out to her, carefully avoiding the pizza that sat between them.
