A Miracle for the Confident Cowboy (Love in Sweet Bloom)

Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

Duke prayed Sophie wouldn’t show at the shelter the following day. Normally she didn’t come on a daily basis—neither did he for that matter—which was why he’d felt somewhat secure about coming.

The way fear had gripped his heart when she’d nearly been plowed down by that truck had stuck with him late into the night. No amount of counting sheep would get the image out of his head. He’d wanted to shake some sense into her while at the same time pull her into his arms to ensure nothing ever harmed her.

The more he’d dwelled on it, the more he realized just how much trouble he was in.

Sophie stirred things inside him he wasn’t prepared to look at with any sort of scrutiny. Her eyes, her smile, the way her chin dimpled when she tightened her jaw—all of it had grown on him.

He released a frustrated growl as he tossed a bag of garbage into the dumpster behind the shelter. He’d hoped being here today would give him time to sort his thoughts without anyone interrupting him, but it was only making him fall deeper into a hole in which he had no business being.

She didn’t like him, and that was only the tip of the iceberg when it came to why his feelings weren’t smart. Duke had seen enough one-sided relationships to know nothing good would come of it. He could tell himself to forget her. She was far too stubborn and defiant for her own good, after all.

But those excuses barely held any water.

Sophie was gorgeous. Every inch of her practically begged to be worshiped. She was funny and smart, too.

Nope. He wasn’t going to go there. Why couldn’t he evict her from his memories? Duke pulled open the door with a swift, jerking movement and growled again. It wasn’t often he had such conflicting issues to work through and his frustration had hit a breaking point.

Duke passed a few people in the hallway before he turned down an adjoining one where the dogs were housed. He offered them a polite nod and a smile. One was a familiar volunteer. Her bright red and green Christmas sweater was already covered in white cat fur.

One of these days, Duke was going to bring a change of clothes just so he could spend some time with the felines. For now, he was stuck taking care of Sophie’s mongrels—a term he’d just made up and one he was proud of.

A smile touched his lips. She’d hate it when he told her about it. The thought gave him more delight than he was probably supposed to have. It wasn’t that he wanted to annoy her—it was that when he did annoy her, she had more reason to talk to him.

What was he thinking? They weren’t teenagers. This wasn’t high school.

Duke pushed the door open to the large room where the kennels and crates were set up in rows and his smile faltered.

Sophie turned at his arrival and her expression mirrored his own. “What are you doing here?” She groaned.

“I could ask you the same thing,” he muttered. He couldn’t play nice, he reminded himself. No smiles, no chit-chat. They weren’t friends and they weren’t going to be anything more than two people who could barely tolerate one another.

Except that wasn’t entirely accurate. The only reason he needed to keep her at arm’s length was for his best interests. He’d been hurt before. The women who were drawn to him usually toyed with him until they found something better. When Sophie had accused him of using his accent to draw women in, she’d hit a nerve. It wasn’t that way at all. Women flocked to him because of it but they never stuck around long enough to get close to them.

Sophie turned away from him, digging in a tote she’d brought with her. “I’m here because I figured you wouldn’t be,” she snapped.

She had the same idea he’d had. Well, this was just great. If they were going to both avoid one another then they were likely to cross paths more frequently.

Her eyes found his when she glanced over her shoulder at him. “What are you doing here?” she asked again.

“Same.” It was all he was willing to say. He scowled at her and moved farther into the room so he could get to work. “The dogs need baths.”

Her irritated look said more than anything else. “I’m not stupid. I saw the schedule when I checked in.” She took ahold of her tote and turned around with one of the most genuine smiles she’d given him since they’d met. “That’s why I brought these.” She lifted up an assortment of Christmas themed ribbons and bandanas. Her gaze landed on him, the excitement almost blinding. Then she frowned. “You don’t like it?”

Duke stiffened, realizing his expression was still hard. Maybe pretending to dislike her would work after all. He heaved a sigh and waved a dismissive hand. “That’s too much work,” he lied. In truth, it was a fantastic idea. If they groomed the cats regularly, he would have been all over putting ribbons around their necks and adding little jingle bells to their collars.

She made a face. “You’re just saying that because you didn’t think of it first.” She scooped up her things. “The vet tech in charge said it was a great idea. She even said she’ll make sure to take some Instagram pictures to post online to help with the adoption numbers this holiday season.

Sophie was right, of course. But he wasn’t about to tell her that. The shelter was overcrowded as it was and if there was anything they could do to alleviate the number of animals in their care, he was on board.

Duke continued to frown as he followed her out of one room and into a different one they used for grooming. He stood in the doorway, watching her set her supplies on an empty table. His shoulder rested against the doorjamb and his arms remained folded. She only glanced at him once, irritation filling her gaze. When he didn’t move from his spot, she let out an exasperated groan.

“I thought the whole point for volunteering was that you actually—you know—volunteered. If you’re going to be here, you might as well be useful. Go get me a dog, will you?”

He knew only the one. A smile tugged at his lips and he whistled as he wandered down the hallway back to the dogs. There was one in particular he knew was in need of a bath—and coincidentally was the exact same one Sophie would never suspect him to bring.

Duke stopped at the kennel and the Great Dane hopped up from his bed, tail wagging. Chuckling, Duke grabbed at one of the leashes that were strung up next to the kennel. “Let’s get you a bath, shall we?”

The large dog pulled and tugged with excitement as they made their way down the hall to the room where Sophie waited. She got one look at Duke the dog before she shot Duke the cowboy a dirty look. He wasn’t certain, but he thought he heard her mutter a curse under her breath.

Surprisingly, she didn’t tell him to take the dog back and pick a different one. All she did was snatch the leash and pull the dog to the oversized shower area for the larger breeds. “Okay Duke, you’re going to be a good boy, aren’t you?”

“Always,” Duke murmured.

She sent him one more withering look then set to work with the shampoo and the sprayer head. True to his personality, Duke played around in the shower, shaking off water in all directions. By the time he was bathed and ready for the dryer, Sophie looked wetter than he did—and absolutely miserable.

Duke almost felt bad for what he’d done. He nearly insisted on offering to dry the dog so she didn’t have to work so hard, but he held his tongue. Each time Sophie scowled at him, he knew he was doing the right thing.

Distance. That’s what they needed from each other. Only now, the arguments he’d had for why he needed to keep his distance were starting to fade away. He couldn’t quite remember why he’d made the decision in the first place.

Duke left the room to retrieve another pup, racking his brain for the reasons he’d set out to avoid her. She was a dog person, but it wasn’t a big deal—he could deal with that. She was stubborn as all get out, but that also wasn’t a deal breaker.

Then he remembered.

She’d thought he was a liar—that he wasn’t really from England and he was only using his accent to win over the fairer sex. He frowned at the memory, though not nearly as offended as he’d been the first day. Everyone had flaws—even he had to admit that. He hadn’t done more to visit his family back home like he should have. He could have insisted on going with them on holiday.

That’s what he should have done.

Instead he was here, working. The worst part about this situation wasn’t that he was working, it was how much he was enjoying it and the guilt associated with the realization.

Duke returned to the room where Sophie and Duke the dog were finishing up. The latter now had a red bandana around his neck—one patterned with green Christmas trees. The scent of something homey and inviting wafted through the air and he lifted his nose in appreciation. “What is that?”

“What’s what?” she asked, not meeting his gaze as she adjusted the bandana.

“It smells like… I don’t know how you did it, but it smells like Christmas in here.” It was warm and spicy at the same time—with a hint of clove. He closed his eyes, and it was like he’d been transported back home for the holidays. “What did you do?” When he opened his eyes he found her holding up a small red bottle, a smile touching her lips.

“This?”

His eyes narrowed.

“It’s called Christmas spice cologne for dogs. That’s probably what you’re smelling. I like to put it on Daisy after I give her a bath. It makes her smell good for days after her bath.”

Daisy must be her dog. One good thing about cats is the rare need to give them a bath, but it was tempting to look into cat cologne now that he knew this one existed. “It’s… nice,” was all he could muster to say before leading his pooch to another bathing station. “Mind if I use it?”

“Be my guest,” she responded.

That was it. No more words were spoken between the two of them. They spent the afternoon giving as many pups a bath as they could get to. True to her word, the vet tech showed up toward the end of her shift to take pictures of several dogs for the center’s social media pages. Each and every dog who had come into Sophie’s care even looked happier when she was done with them. There was something about being near her that could turn even the orneriest person less so.

Duke swallowed the thought with frustration. She had a soft spot for animals. She was gorgeous. And dang it, if she wasn’t one of the sharpest people he’d met in a long time. It had been a long time since he had been able to banter with a woman like he did with Sophie.

As much as he wanted to avoid her, it was becoming increasingly harder to do so. He craved being in her presence, and yet his heart only sank with the knowledge she felt the opposite about him.