Raney held it up and studied her reflection in the full-length mirror on the closet door. “Flowers? Really?”
“It’s feminine, and they look more like paint splotches. You need to remind Dalton you’re not just another cowboy.”
“As if he cares,” Raney said, trying to pretend Dalton Cardwell wasn’t the main reason she was going out in the first place.
“Oh, he cares, all right.” Joss’s gaze met Raney’s in the mirror. She wasn’t laughing. In fact, her expression was serious. And troubled. “The question is, do you care whether he cares?”
Raney didn’t answer.
“I know he’s been to prison, Raney. He made a mistake and he suffered for it. But he’s a good guy and he deserves a second chance. Can’t you give him that?”
Raney turned and faced her. “I want to, Joss. I really do. But . . .”
“But nothing. He’s handsome, built like a brick shithouse, and obviously has the hots for you. You don’t have to marry the guy, but what’s wrong with having a little fun?”
“Says my fun-loving, pregnant, unmarried sister.” Raney said it as a joke.
But Joss didn’t smile. “I fell in love with the wrong guy, but at least I was trying. How long are you going to hold that against me?”
Raney immediately reached out to her sister. “Oh, Joss, I didn’t mean it like that. I admire the courageous way you’re handling the baby and the changes she’ll bring. Good changes. But scary, too.” She brushed a blue curl off her sister’s cheek. “I just worry about you, is all. Seems like I’ve spent most of my life worrying about my baby sister.”
“You don’t need to. You never really did, you know. I’m not as wild or crazy as my family thinks I am.”
“No?” Raney slipped off her jeans and tried on the skirt. She checked it in the mirror and liked the way it moved when she spun to check the back. “That wasn’t your bra hanging over the goalpost upright after homecoming?”
“Okay, maybe I was a little wild. But what choice did I have? That skirt looks better on you than me.” She ducked into Raney’s closet and came back out carrying a pair of boots with turquoise leather cutouts. “Here, try it with these.”
“Cowboy boots?”
“It’s a cowboy roadhouse. You’d prefer flats with support hose?”
Raney tried them on. They were perfect with the skirt. She should have Joss pick out her clothes more often.
Joss motioned to the vanity. “Now sit down and let’s do something with your hair. And no, you’re not wearing a ball cap or Stetson.”
With a wary glance at her sister’s mop of blue and green and hot pink streaks, Raney sat. “What do you mean, what choice did you have?”
Joss plugged in the hair straightener and began brushing out Raney’s hair. “Len was the smart one. You were the hardworking one—and Daddy’s favorite, I might add. And even as a kid, KD knew exactly what she wanted and worked to get it. The only role left was party girl and dream chaser.”
Raney looked at her in confusion. “But I thought that’s what you wanted to be.”
“Like you wanted to give up college?” She must have seen Raney’s shock. “Yeah, I know about that. And I saw how broken you were when Daddy died and how desperately you tried to fill his shoes. I wouldn’t have minded helping, too, but you and Mama had everything under control. So, I just did my thing. I think you’d look better with curls. Where’s your fat curling iron?”
While Joss transformed her nondescript hair into a mass of tousled curls, Raney stared into the mirror, her mind in turmoil. How had she not seen how Daddy’s death might have affected her little sister? Joss had been sixteen during that terrible time—still a kid—and Daddy had been her father, too. “Joss, I’m so sorry. I had no idea you felt this way. Why didn’t you say something?”
Joss laughed, breaking the tension between them. “And miss all the fun of being the wild one?” She gave that smirk Raney hated, although now she suspected her sister did it more in self-defense than an attempt to hurt. “I’d much rather be a party girl than a workhorse.”
“A workhorse? That’s how you see me?”
“No. Not really. In fact, I envy the way you take charge and everybody listens. I doubt Mama could have made it without you. But wouldn’t it be great if we were both a little of each? There, how’s that?”
Raney looked into the mirror. “It looks like I just got out of bed.”
“Exactly. Now hurry up. I hear the guys downstairs and you know how restless they get if they don’t eat on time.”
* * *
Dalton couldn’t take his eyes off Raney. He’d never seen anything so beautiful. Or sexy. Just looking at her got him worked up. Judging by the way Joss and her mother kept eyeing him, he knew he was making a spectacle of himself. But Raney looked too damn good to look away. He could hardly even concentrate on Mrs. Whitcomb’s usual questions about Rosco and how the colts had handled the storm last night. And it wasn’t until the meal was almost over that he realized he couldn’t remember what he’d eaten.
It was a relief when Joss asked Alejandro about his custody battle. They talked about that for a while, which gave Dalton cover to study Raney. He was pleased to catch her studying him back. He gave her a wink, which made her blush. A female with a Glock who blushed at a wink. The woman was a bundle of contradictions.
What she’d said last night about her mother pushing her on men had shocked and infuriated him. Raney didn’t deserve being treated like something was wrong with her just because she wasn’t married and didn’t have kids. He knew it wasn’t because she had an aversion to men. Despite her efforts to keep her distance, he had felt her response when he’d kissed her. But now he knew
