Luke's Would-Be Bride. Sandra Steffen

have nothing to do. Everybody knows that the only way Brenda Townsend could figure out what letter came after T was to recite the entire alphabet from the beginning. So you don’t have to try to protect her reputation.”

      She smiled to herself and reached for another stack of files. “Then it wouldn’t be wrong of me to surmise that the gum stuck on the bottom of the chair belonged to your former office assistant?”

      “You catch on fast.”

      She glanced at the name on the next file, wishing his simple compliment didn’t make her feel so…complimented. Last night she’d vowed to set Luke straight about her presence in Jasper Gulch. It hadn’t taken her long to realize that that was easier said than done. It wasn’t that she hadn’t tried. It was just that Luke Carson wasn’t an easy man to deter. He had a restless energy that didn’t permit him to stand in one place very long. She didn’t know how a man his size did it, but he moved like lightning…without the thunder.

      Reining in her thoughts, she asked, “Where did this Brenda go? When she left Jasper Gulch, I mean.”

      “To Sioux Falls. The girl hated to type, but she sure seemed to enjoy chasing me around the desk.”

      Being careful to keep her voice neutral, she said, “I would have thought it was the other way around.”

      He made a sound only men could manage and said, “Give me some credit. The girl was nineteen and thought the olden days referred to the years before microwaves were invented. Believe me, I never chased Brenda Townsend around the desk, and I give you my word I won’t chase you. But don’t worry, I won’t hold you to the same rule.”

      Jillian hadn’t intended to turn around, but once she had, she couldn’t look away. There was a maddening hint of arrogance about this man that was impossible to ignore. He might have been a country vet, but he was no country bumpkin. He had his masculine swagger down to an art form, and his smiles, well, they were just rare enough and just unexpected enough to chase nearly every coherent thought right out of her head.

      Jillian stared wordlessly at him from her side of the cluttered old desk. He was watching her, his gaze steady, his expression thoughtful. His skin appeared even darker beneath his dusty black cowboy hat, his jaw square, his chin strong. As far as she was concerned, she’d noticed entirely too much about him. In fact, the first thing she’d done when she’d stepped foot inside the office that morning was notice he’d shaved. The second thing she’d done was give herself a mental kick for noticing in the first place. She gave herself another one, this time keeping her expression under stern restraint.

      “Trust me, Luke. You have nothing to fear.”

      “Do I look afraid, Jillian?”

      She fought against the urge to smile and lost. Tipping her head ever so slightly, she said, “I think you know exactly how you look.”

      “And how is that?”

      She thought about all the words she could have used to describe him, but ended up shaking her head and saying nothing.

      “Spoilsport.”

      A strange sensation of déjà vu washed over her. The same thing had happened yesterday. Studying him intently, she said, “Have you ever been to a little town in Wisconsin called Maple Bluff?”

      “No, I can’t honestly say that I have.”

      “How about the University of Wisconsin? Have you ever been there?”

      He took a step closer and shook his head. “I studied veterinary medicine at Michigan State, why?”

      “It’s nothing, really. I just can’t shake the feeling that I’ve seen you someplace before.”

      Stopping on the other side of his desk, he said, “We’ve never met.”

      “How can you be so sure?”

      “Because if we had, I’d remember. And so would you.”

      He didn’t move, not even when the telephone started to ring. For a long moment neither did she. She thought she’d been prepared for the advances of the bachelors in Jasper Gulch. After all, it stood to reason that men who’d advertised for women would be interested in pursuing the new women in town. But she hadn’t been prepared for Luke Carson’s straightforwardness or his persistence. Actually she hadn’t been prepared for anything concerning this man, least of all her instinctive response to him. Truth be told, she was strangely flattered by his interest. But Jillian couldn’t afford to be distracted by romantic notions. Since she had no intention of leading him on, she knew she had to put an end to these feelings arcing between them once and for all.

      By the time the telephone had jangled four times, she’d managed to gather her thoughts enough to ask, “Do you want me to answer that?”

      He shook his head and reached for the receiver. With his voice a low drone in the background, she took another deep breath and turned back to her task. By the time he hung up the phone, she was well on her way to getting back on an even keel. “Another emergency?” she asked conversationally.

      She felt his eyes on her back, but she didn’t turn around.

      “I guess you could say that, but not the way you mean. That was my brother, Clayt. I’m still not sure how it happened, but he, Wyatt McCully and I somehow managed to get ourselves roped into planning the town picnic. We put our heads together at the Crazy Horse last night, but I’m afraid we didn’t get very far. DoraLee Sullivan, the owner of the Crazy Horse, said it was like watching three nuns plan a stag party.”

      Smiling at the mental picture his words evoked, she took her first casual breath since she’d found him lounging in the doorway several minutes ago. “Is the Crazy Horse the local saloon?”

      “The one and only.”

      Keeping her eyes focused on the filing cabinet, she said, “Is that where the people of Jasper Gulch go for fun?”

      “Aside from rolling up the sidewalks at eight every night, there isn’t much to do in Jasper Gulch. Every now and then I mosey on down to the Crazy Horse to watch the old-timers play poker or listen to the local bachelors complain about the weather and the long, lonely nights out here.”

      Jillian couldn’t imagine Luke Carson moseying anywhere, but she didn’t think it would be wise to mention that particular observation or to ask about those long, lonely nights he’d mentioned, so she remained quiet. Unfortunately her stack of files had run out and so had her diversions. As if he knew it, Luke said, “There’s been a noted lack of women in these parts lately, you know.”

      She turned around, smiling in spite of herself. “So I’ve heard.”

      “Have you also heard that things are starting to look up around here?”

      Jillian wanted to believe he wasn’t referring to her arrival in town, but the tone of his voice left little room for such possibilities. He was a decent man, and probably a lonely one. She wanted to warn him not to get his hopes up where she was concerned. More than anything she wanted to let him down easy, but how?

      “I’d be happy to show you around the Crazy Horse sometime, Jillian. What are you doing tonight?”

      He tipped his hat up, and for the first time since he’d stepped foot back inside the office, she saw the expression in his gray eyes. A zing went through her, and although she tried, she couldn’t look away.

      Luke didn’t know what was going through Jillian’s mind, but he knew what was going through his body. Damn, it felt good. He had half a mind to stride to the other side of the desk and reach for her hand, slowly drawing her closer, to tip her face up a little and gently cover her lips with his.

      He took a step closer and then another. Before his eyes the expression in hers changed. Slowly, deliberately, she pulled her gaze away and turned her back on him.

      Luke’s footsteps froze in mid-stride.

      He