Page 26 of Dairy and Deadly

He forced himself to shuffle his feet to the music. Though he still hated Valentine’s Day, he genuinely wanted to be her friend, and a friend would at least pretend to enjoy himself.

Caro pasted on a brilliant smile and started dancing beside him. No matter how careful he was, their elbows were constantly bumping and brushing as the dance wore on. The way she kept looking at him and laughing made him worry all over again that she wasn’t getting the message. It was unfortunate. However, he hadn’t been sent here to tiptoe around her feelings. He’d been sent here to find out if she had any connection to the body count piling up in Dallas, and that’s what he intended to do.

The line dance ended, and the band struck the opening notes to a slower song. Caro sashayed around to face him, sliding her arms around his neck. Though his shoulder’s tensed, he reminded himself this was his opportunity to do what he came to do — talk.

He kept his hands on her waist to keep her from plastering herself against him. “Good turnout tonight.” He nodded at the hubbub around them.

“Did you doubt my ability to fill a room?” There was a teasing lilt to her voice.

He ignored the question. “Hope you don’t mind that I brought another one of my friends with me.” It was a subtle reminder that he and she were just friends.

“Not at all.” Her mouth tightened, and her fingers uncurled from behind his neck, settling on his shoulders. “Who?”

“Josh Hawling.” He forced a smirk, trying to make it look like he was enjoying a private joke. “We go way back.”

“No kidding?” She relaxed and glanced around the room in search of him. “Did he bring his wife with him?”

He shrugged, surprised she knew so much about Josh already. “She puts in long hours.” Josh’s wife was the head principal of Heart Lake High School. “They both do. When he told me he was on his own this evening, I felt sorry for him and dragged him along.” He caught sight of his friend and burst out laughing. For real. No pretending required.

Josh was a few strides away from them, slow dancing alone. His miming skills were impeccable. Anyone watching him could practically see the invisible woman he was dipping and twirling with.

His antics weren’t going unnoticed, either. The cozy romantic setting in the barn was soon punctuated with hearty laughter and noisy cheering as his growing audience egged him on.

Caro was the only one in the room who didn’t look amused. “Not what I had in mind for this evening, but okay.”

“Oh, come on,” Johnny cajoled. “Everyone’s having fun. You’re a genius for coming up with this idea!”

She tossed her head airily. “That I am, darling!” Because of her accent, the word came out sounding likedah-ling.

He kept his voice casual. “How long have you been doing this?”

“Only a few months, actually.” It sounded like an honest answer. “When I lived in Dallas, I ran my own business. I think I told you about it.”

“You did.” He nodded eagerly. “Sunrise Solutions, right?”

“Ding. Ding. Ding.” She smiled warmly at him. “You passed the quiz, cowboy.”

“Guess there’s another genius in the room,” he bragged before plying his next question. “What made you decide to switch jobs?”

She adopted a faraway look. “Sheer boredom. My clients in Dallas mostly wanted housekeeping services. The dog walking gigs were few and far between. So were the personal chef orders.” She sniffed. “A girl can only clean so many kitchens and bathrooms before going out of her mind. I wasdesperatefor a change.” Her fingers twined around the back of his neck again.

“Looks like you found it.” It was difficult to keep his voice neutral with the way she was clinging to him.

“Yes and no.” She wrinkled her nose at him. “Farmer Monty just this morning asked if I’d consider trading some light housekeeping duties for room and board.”

Whoa!If his ears were working correctly, Caro was preparing to move in at Chester Farm! This was a big development and vitally concerning. Josh needed to be informed immediately.

He carefully schooled his expression, but it was becoming harder to do so. “Where are your new digs?”

She glanced laughingly up at the ceiling. “Right above us, cowboy. There’s a pretty roomy apartment up there that his foreman just vacated.”

Johnny pretended to scowl at her. “How’d you pull that off? Put a snake in his bed?”

“You’re hilarious.” She rolled her eyes at him. “He decided to get his own place, because he’s getting married.”

“Good for him.” It felt like everyone was getting married all of a sudden. “And you.”

“I thought so.” She looked smug. “As Farmer Monty pointed out, I practically live here already.”

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