“Oh, dear brother, now I understand why you didn’t get to first base with her. She’s probably one of the Fortunes that moved here a few months ago. You know, the ones who moved into that mansion on the outskirts of town. I think they call it the Fame and Fortune Ranch or something. Other than a few horses, I don’t believe there are actually any livestock on the place. But you know how city folks are. They own a few acres in the country and get the idea that entitles them to call it a ranch.”
“Oh, so that’s what Sheri meant when she said Stephanie was one of ‘the’ Fortunes,” he remarked. “Obviously these people are rich.”
Shawn shrugged one of his broad shoulders. “Well, it appears so. Fortune Brothers Construction is the company that finished the pediatric center and the animal clinic. Now they’re working on some other properties in town. So apparently, they have money. And I heard tell that they’re related to the famous Fortune family in Austin.”
Seeing the coffee had finished dripping, Acton rose from his seat and poured two cups.
“I have some pecan pie. Want a piece?”
“Don’t tell me you baked a pie,” Shawn told him. “I won’t believe it.”
“Ha! Grandma was pretty good at teaching me how to cook, but she wasn’t that good. The pie came straight out of the bakery in the grocery store.”
“In that case, I’ll eat some.”
Acton cut two pieces of the dessert and carried everything over to the table.
Once they were both eating, Acton said, “Dr. Neil wasn’t at the clinic this morning so Stephanie treated Seymour.”
“Bet that was a wrestling match. No wonder she wasn’t interested in you, after she had to deal with that rowdy dog of yours.”
“Wrong, brother. Seymour was a perfect gentleman. He took to Stephanie like...well, I never saw anything like it. She could have told him to walk across the exam room on his hind feet and he would’ve done it for her.”
“Hmm. That’s a first. Frankly, it surprises me that this Fortune woman was working in a place like Paws and Claws. Dealing with sick and wounded animals all day isn’t exactly what I’d consider a glamorous job.”
“Stephanie doesn’t seem like the glamorous sort. But she sure is pretty. And she didn’t act uppity. Just a bit disinterested—in me.”
“Aww, my poor little brother. He finally met a female he couldn’t charm out of her shoes,” Shawn teased. “Sounds like trouble ahead for you.”
Acton frowned at his brother. “Trouble? A sweet little thing like Stephanie couldn’t cause trouble. Not with me.”
Shawn snorted. “Maybe in another five years you’ll learn about women.”
Acton let out a short laugh. “Like you’re an expert on females? Cows, maybe. But not pretty women.”
“Well, I have sense enough to know that a woman, pretty or homely, isn’t going to ever be serious about a simple cowboy. Men like us can’t offer a woman riches.”
“Not all women want riches,” he retorted.
Shawn’s response to that was a dry laugh. “Dream on, brother.”
Acton thought as he sliced off a bite of pie. “I guess this Fortune family must have tons of money. From a distance, that house of theirs looks impressive.”
“I wouldn’t call it a house. It’s a mansion.”
“Well, by Texas standards, it’s not the biggest or the best. But it’s hardly a shack,” Acton joked.
“I can bet you one thing,” Shawn said. “Stephanie Fortune’s kitchen doesn’t look like this one. I doubt she’s ever so much as cooked herself an egg.”
Acton could’ve told his brother he wasn’t looking for a cook, but he kept the remark to himself. He didn’t want Shawn or any of his family to get the idea that he was looking for one special woman. Their parents had already been hounding their three sons to settle down and give them more grandchildren.
Acton said, “I think I recall reading an opinion piece in the paper about Fortune Brothers Construction. Some of the folks in Rambling Rose aren’t too happy about these fancy new buildings and shops they’re planning for the town.”
Shawn shrugged. “You know how some of the older townsfolk are. They’re not keen on change. Especially the progressive kind. Frankly, I think it’s good to make improvements.”
“I get that part of it,” Acton acknowledged. “But I agree with the old folks about not wanting to turn Rambling Rose into some sort of tourist attraction. Hell, pretty soon it will be against the law to ride our horses down Main Street.”
Shaking his head, Shawn snickered. “Acton, since when have you ridden your horse down Main Street? Not since us three brothers decided to ride in the rodeo parade and that was five years ago!”
Acton carried his empty plate over to the sink, then refilled his coffee cup. “I’m only using that as an example of how things are changing around here.”
“Well, if you want to get to first base with Stephanie Fortune, then I suggest you don’t bring up the subject of her brothers’ plans for a ritzy hotel.”
Acton glanced at his brother. “A ritzy hotel? For real?”
“That’s what I’m hearing. But you can hear anything at the Crockett Café.”
The old eating establishment had been a fixture in Rambling Rose for as long as Acton could remember. When he and Shawn and their brother Danny had been small boys, their father would take them to the café on the weekend as a special treat for doing their chores. All three would get milk shakes. The kind that was handmade with real ice cream and so thick you had to eat it with a spoon. The café still made handmade milk shakes, but now that Acton and his brothers were all grown men, it wasn’t the same.
“A ritzy hotel in Rambling Rose,” he murmured, thinking aloud. “Don’t reckon that will ever work. But you can bet I won’t tell Stephanie Fortune my opinion on the subject—if I ever get the chance.”
Finished with the pie, Shawn pushed aside his plate and cast a taunting grin at Acton. “How do you plan on seeing her again? You going to take Seymour back for a special checkup?”
“If he doesn’t improve I’m supposed to take him back. Damn dog, I don’t think he’s scratched once since I got him home. So I doubt I can use him for an excuse.”
Clearly amused, Shawn said, “You can always gather up the barn cats and take them in for their yearly shots.”
“Dad always takes care of that chore,” Acton said, then snapped his fingers with sudden dawning. “I know. I’ll take Elizabeth and Ryan by Paws and Claws. The clinic always has a few cats and dogs to be adopted and the kids love to look at them.”
Elizabeth, age seven, and nine-year-old Ryan were their older sister’s kids. On some evenings, after Acton was finished with his ranch chores, he’d drive over to Gina’s house and take the kids out for burgers or pizza. Gina often accused Acton of spoiling her children, but to tell the truth, he probably enjoyed the outings as much, or more, than the kids.
“Oh, how low can you stoop, Acton? Using your own niece and nephew to snag the attention of a woman,” Shawn taunted jokingly.
Frowning now, Acton walked back over to the table. “Look who’s talking. I don’t see you making any headway in the love department.”
Shawn’s eyebrows shot up. “Love? Don’t try to tell me that’s what you looking for.”
Acton could feel his face growing hot and he figured he looked like a sun-ripened tomato. Damn it, there were times Shawn could make him feel like he was sixteen years old again.
“Well, what