Cattleman's Courtship

“Who’s there?”

“Quinn Bowdrie.”

Startled, Victoria stared at the oak panel for a moment before she twisted the dead bolt free and pulled open the door.

“Hello.”

“Hi.”

Quinn stared at her silently. Nonplussed, Victoria could only stare back. What was he doing here?

He glanced over her shoulder at the lamplit room beyond. He tilted his head to look down at her and the brim of his Stetson threw a faint shadow over the top half of his face.

“Can I come in?”

“Yes, of course.”

She stepped back hastily and waved him into the room. He moved past her and she closed the door, leaning against it for a moment while she stared at the blue chambray covering his broad back and shoulders. Her gaze swept down the long length of his legs encased in faded jeans and vaguely noted the black cowboy boots he wore while she struggled to get her bearings. What was he doing here? After he’d flatly rejected the possibility of visiting her at the pharmacy, he was the last person she’d expected to see at her door.

Quinn glanced around the room before he turned to face her.

“I’m surprised to see you.” She pushed away from the door, tugged the robe sash tighter and eyed him. “Didn’t you tell me that visiting me wasn’t a good idea?”

“I did.” He nodded briefly. “And I still don’t think it’s a good idea.”

Victoria’s eyes narrowed. “Then what are you doing here?”

“I heard you had a run-in with my stepmother this morning. I wanted to thank you for defending me…”

Victoria’s militant stance softened, a half smile curving her lips.

“…and tell you not to do it again.”

The smile disappeared and she frowned.

“That’s a left-handed thank-you if I ever heard one, and I’ve heard some pretty grudging thankyous.”

Quinn yanked his Stetson off and raked the fingers of his right hand through his hair. “I didn’t mean to sound ungrateful. I appreciate your standing up to my stepmother, but you’re wasting your time. Nothing you or anyone else can say will change what she thinks about my brother and me. All you’re going to do is stir up the gossips and start them speculating about your own character. Before you know it, the stories making the rounds will be wilder than you can imagine. I don’t want your good name ruined because of me—this isn’t Seattle. Small town gossip can be brutal.”

“Why do you care? I thought you believed that the fact that I’m an attorney automatically gave me a bad name.”

“That’s your profession—and your choice. This is personal and involves me.”

“It was just one small conversation with a few women.” Victoria waved her hand impatiently. “You’re overreacting, Quinn. And even if you’re right about this, I refuse to worry about small-minded people.”

“You’d better worry,” Quinn said grimly. “They can make your life hell.”

Victoria shrugged. “I won’t be here forever—six months isn’t that long. And when I go back to Seattle, they’ll forget about me and find someone else to talk about. In the meantime, I won’t listen to your stepmother spreading wild lies about you.”

“What makes you so sure that she’s lying?”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” Victoria said impatiently. “Don’t tell me that you expect me to believe that nonsense she told me.”

Her unquestioning belief in him was astounding. With the exception of Becky, Quinn couldn’t remember anyone else ever telling him that Eileen was dead wrong about him. A swift stab of emotion pierced his chest and he absentmindedly rubbed his fingers over his heart in an attempt to erase the pain.

Victoria’s gaze flicked to his fingers and then back to search his face.

“What’s wrong?”

Concern edged her tone.

Quinn quickly dropped his hand away from his shirt.

“Nothing.” He had to get out of her apartment and away from her. The quiet room, lit only by the soft glow of a lamp, was too intimate. He’d tried, and failed, to ignore the robe that clung to her curves and left her legs bare from just above her knees to her toes. Now he tamped down the urge to smooth his palm over her normally sleek blond hair that was tousled as if she’d just gotten out of bed. But the spark of worry and caring in her eyes was an enticement he could barely resist.