His Country Cinderella. Karen Smith Rose

she felt a little reckless. Not reckless enough to be alone with this man, though.

      “Why don’t you come for dinner tonight at my apartment? Jonah can be our chaperone.” She thought that might put him off. She thought he might make an excuse, back out, run the other way. But she was sadly mistaken if she thought that’s what he was going to do.

      He considered her suggestion long enough to make her think he might refuse. Finally he said, “I don’t want you to have to do the work, so I’ll bring the food. Okay?”

      What man brought food when he was invited over? And what had she just done?

      Jonah started jumping up and down again, proving he’d been listening to the conversation. “You’re gonna come to our place. Mom says my toys are everywhere.”

      Zane shook his head and suppressed a grin. “When I come over, you can show me some of those toys.” His gaze fell on Jeannette then and she couldn’t seem to look away.

      This stranger was coming to dinner at her apartment. Was she crazy?

      “Second thoughts?” he asked, seeming to read her mind as his grin faded. He took his cell phone from the holster on his belt and handed it to her. “Go ahead and call Dillon’s cell. He doesn’t start seeing patients until nine.”

      She studied Zane’s phone, which was a pay-as-you-go model. She’d thought about purchasing one of those. Before she changed her mind, she jabbed in the number. Obviously Zane wanted her to do it herself to prove he wasn’t scamming her.

      Her call was answered on the second ring. “Hi, Zane. Did you—?”

      “It’s not Zane,” she explained quickly. “My name is Jeannette Williams and Zane gave me your name as a reference. We’re going to have dinner. I guess I want to know…Well, I have a son and—”

      There was a short silence, then the doctor’s voice telling her, “I’ll definitely vouch for Zane. We’ve known each other since we were little. He’s a good friend and always there when I need him. And he likes kids.”

      When she was silent, he asked, “Is there anything else you need to know?”

      Everything, she thought. But then she said, “No, that’s all for now.”

      “If you need to call again, you have my number.”

      Jeannette ended the call and turned to Zane. “Not as many second thoughts,” she admitted with a smile. She gave him her address. “Is seven okay?”

      “Seven is fine.”

      When she handed him his phone, their fingers brushed and she quickly pulled away, tingling from a current she didn’t understand.

      She had a date tonight with a stranger with no last name but good references.

      What was she thinking?

       Chapter Two

      Zane found himself actually jittery as he stood in front of Jeannette Williams’s apartment door. She lived on the second floor of a complex with a stairway leading up to her place. Unsure why it was so important for Jeannette to think well of him, Zane rang the bell.

      She didn’t know who he was so he had a clean slate. That meant so much right now. The press had taken the story of Ashley Tuller’s fall, coma and death and run with it. Before coming to Montana, friends had invited Zane to have supper with them. They’d been trying to be supportive and he’d gone. But he’d left early because he just couldn’t eat or make conversation. The tabloids, however, had snapped a photo of him leaving while his friends waved goodbye. The caption had read, COUNTRY SINGER PARTIES WHILE FAMILY MOURNS. They’d used other false headlines and older photos, too, until he’d had to escape all of it.

      But now—

      When Jeannette opened her door, Zane felt as if he’d been sucker punched. The first time he’d seen her she’d been wearing a yellow T-shirt and jeans, her hair in a ponytail. Earlier, she’d worn those same jeans and a crisp, white Oxford shirt. Tonight, however…she was wearing an above-the-knees khaki skirt with a silky red blouse. Her blond hair was long, loose and wavy. He felt an excited thump in his chest as his blood rushed faster. Whoa, he’d have to put a lid on that. After all, a four-and-a-half-year-old was going to be their chaperone.

      “Hi,” he said, knowing that wasn’t a foray into great conversational territory.

      Nevertheless, she smiled back. “Hi. Come on in.”

      He was carrying a bag of takeout from DJ’s and he stepped into her small kitchen, setting it all on the table. Glancing around, he saw that the room was charming, with its yellowand green-flowered café curtains, matching mixer cover and placemats. The appliances weren’t new, but everything looked spotless, from the off-white countertop to the pale green tiled floor. “This is nice.”

      “It’s small, but we like it.”

      They gazed at each other for a few seconds, a buzz of electricity shimmering back and forth between them. He motioned to the packages on the table. “I brought ribs from DJ’s so you can taste the real deal.”

      “You want me to judge which is better?”

      “I have no doubt which is better.”

      She laughed—a sweet sound that pleased his ears as much as music did.

      Taking off his sunglasses, he hooked them in his shirt pocket, half expecting her to recognize him. But she turned away and went to the refrigerator, taking out a pitcher of iced tea.

      Jonah ran into the kitchen and skidded to a stop beside him. “I put my toys away. Mommy said I had to.”

      “I didn’t want you to trip over something,” Jeannette explained with another one of those smiles that made him wonder if this was a good idea. Every time they looked at each other the room shook a little.

      “Can we eat? Somethin’ smells good,” Jonah decided with a child’s propensity for getting to the bottom line.

      Zane laughed. “We’ve got barbecued ribs, mashed potatoes, a fine helping of green beans because you do need something healthy, corn bread and a fresh-baked apple pie.”

      “Wow!” Jonah said, impressed, his eyes big.

      “Wow!” Jeannette agreed. “You really went all out.”

      “That’s easy at DJ’s.” He’d seen the ads for LipSmackin’ Ribs with the manager, Woody Paulson, pointing to their offerings. Zane didn’t think they could compare to DJ’s food.

      Going to the cupboard, Jeannette pulled out a few serving dishes to go with the place settings already on the table. “Sweet tea okay? Or would you rather have a beer?”

      “Tea,” Zane said, knowing he needed to keep a clear head tonight.

      Jonah headed for the arch leading to the living room. “I’m gonna wash my hands.”

      “Good boy,” Jeannette complimented him.

      Alone again, Zane asked, “So what did Dillon tell you about me when you called him? I mean, you gave me your address, so I must have passed the test.”

      She gave him a sly smile. “The verdict’s still out.”

      He thought about the civil trial he was facing, and the verdict that might come in that could change lots of people’s lives.

      His expression must have gone all serious because Jeannette assured him, “Hey, I’m kidding. Sort of. I’ll make my own opinion about you.”

      He took a step closer to her. “That’s the way it should be.”

      He was still wearing his hat. Jeannette seemed to be staring at his mouth. He’d thought about shaving, but had decided against it. Before the past few months, he’d always