They collected their gear and Kaylee followed Bennett outside.
They both looked…well, a little bit ragged.
“You’re wearing a dress,” he said again.
Yes, she supposed that bore paying attention to, considering her typical uniform was plaid button-up shirts and worn jeans. If she was feeling really fancy maybe a belt with some rhinestones on it.
“I was on a date, Bennett,” she said, articulating the Ts a bit more sharply than necessary.
“Were you?” he asked, crossing his arms over his broad chest and leaning against the truck.
She pushed her now-completely-tangled red hair off her face. “I was.”
“Anyone I know?” he asked, his tone overly casual.
He was asking so he could cast aspersions. It was what he did. And it rankled. He was never going to be her boyfriend. And yet he took great delight in judging every single one she’d ever had, and finding them unworthy.
“Depends,” she said, keeping her tone sweet. “Do you know Clarence the dachshund?”
He arched a brow. “I do not.”
“Well, I had a date with Clarence’s owner. And since you don’t know Clarence that doesn’t mean anything to you.”
“I didn’t think we dated the owners of patients,” he said frowning.
“Well, that’s much easier for you, Bennett. If I eliminated every man in town with a pet then I would never be able to date.” She pretty much didn’t. And actually, tonight was the first time she’d been on a date in over a year.
Bennett let out a very masculine-sounding sigh and she ignored the slight shock wave it sent through her. “Do you want to come over and have a beer?”
She really, really needed to say no. She was supposed to be on a date with another man, she was definitely not supposed to end the night platonically hanging out at Bennett’s house again. It was her default. She did it too often.
She had done it all throughout his dating Olivia Logan, feeling so pointlessly jealous of everything the cute, petite woman was. Certainly everything that Kaylee wasn’t. Refined. Fine-boned. Short. Definitely able to wear giant heels around any man without towering over them. Not that she would tower over Bennett in heels.
At six-four he was definitely tall enough to stand next to her in most shoes. Which had made his association with Olivia even more irritating, since the woman was barely five foot three. That was how that always worked. Tall men with tiny women. Irritating for women like her.
But he and Olivia had broken up a few months ago when Bennett had failed to propose quickly enough for Olivia’s liking, and then, much to everyone’s shock, Olivia had gone and fallen in love with Luke Hollister, who was her polar opposite.
She was from the town’s most prominent family. She was prim. Luke was…not.
She hadn’t really been able to gauge how Bennett felt about it, and selfishly, she hadn’t really wanted to either. She was just relieved. Relieved he hadn’t married her, because even though she didn’t harbor hopes of marrying him herself, if Bennett did get married, things would change.
She didn’t want that.
“I…”
Bennett’s phone rang, and he fished it out of his pocket and answered it. “Hello?” He frowned.
Kaylee took a moment to take stock in her appearance. Her dress was rumpled now, and she was…well, she was a mess. And Bennett still wanted to have a beer with her. Well, because she was like a guy to him, really.
He would invite a guy over to have a beer even if he was dirty.
“Really?” Bennett sounded suddenly irritated. Or maybe, irritated wasn’t quite right. Intense. “Really,” he repeated. “We’ll talk about it later. I’m out dealing with a calf.”
He hung up the phone, and looked at Kaylee. “That was Wyatt.” Wyatt Dodge was Bennett’s oldest brother, and the boss at Get Out of Dodge Dude Ranch.
“Really?” She unconsciously parroted Bennett. “What did he say?”
“Luke called him. Apparently, he and Olivia are having a baby.”
***
Bennett’s about to face a lot of truths he’s been trying to avoid… will his feelings about Olivia be one of them?