Page 22 of Seaside Cowboy's Marriage of Convenience

Chapter Six

AUSTIN COULDN’T WRAPhis mind around this development, and it still chilled him the next evening.

“Why would anyone want to harm you?” he asked as he checked two new arrivals in the animal shelter for diseases and, well, parasites. Thankfully, both dogs seemed in good shape and healthy, though heartbroken over being abandoned. They didn’t try to bite him and didn’t pee on him, which he appreciated.

Lord, please keep Kennedy safe. And thank You for saving her assistant and please give him a full recovery soon.

Usually, his concentration was 100 percent on the animals, especially ones who suffered from human cruelty. He turned it back to them and petted them. The sad little furry ball mix of schnauzer and Yorkie just turned his head at him, then put his head on his paws, and closed his eyes as if unable to look atanyhumans. The beagle ignored him altogether. But they weren’t aggressive, a sad trait in some animals who weren’t just abandoned but also abused. Grinding his teeth, he suppressed anger at people who could do such things.

Neither dog had a chip, so the former owners couldn’t be traced. The dogs would get chipped at the shelter, of course. He’d post on social media and in the local newspaper, as well as ask his mom to spread the word, hoping the owners would be found. But if not...

Lord, please help these pets be adopted soon and into loving homes.

Yet he couldn’t help stealing glances at Kennedy, who’d surprised him by volunteering at the shelter. He sent up a prayer of gratitude that it turned out she wasn’t allergic to fur. That gave him more hope than he should be feeling. Now she was feeding yesterday’s arrivals, two white-and-brown pink-nosed stray kittens from the same litter, who’d already been thoroughly checked, chipped, and processed.

She shrugged, the gesture too nonchalant for someone who could’ve been seriously hurt, while the thought sent a shudder through him. “Different reasons. I have business competitors. There are rumors of someone opening a new resort here. They would love to elbow me out of the picture. I fired my former assistant who was trying to steal from me, and she vowed revenge. I was considering acquiring another hotel on the coast about an hour from here, and there are interested buyers there. And...” Her voice trailed off, and she didn’t say anything else.

What was after that “and”?

“I don’t understand whyanyonewould wish someone else harm,” he muttered. There was a bit of a ruckus while he made sure both new arrivals had the necessary vaccines. “Sorry, buddies, but there’s no way around it.”

“Are you going to ask me about it?” She loved on the kittens after they finished eating, and the tender image underscored their conversation about a bloodcurdling event.

He’d been attracted to her when she’d been a reclusive heiress he’d admired from afar. Now that he was getting to know her better, that attraction was growing into something more. If before she’d been like a sophisticated, beautiful but cold statue he looked up to, now she was a breathing, hurting human being who’d stepped off her pedestal.

Before he’d only seen her in chic clothes of mostly white and silver colors and designer shoes, her hair styled as if she were a movie star, and there had always been something mysterious about her.

Now she was in blue jeans, a white T-shirt with one of her hotel logos, and sneakers, hugging two adorable kittens, and so much more approachable. It was as if moonlight became a woman. She looked like a girl next door and, right by his side in an animal shelter of all places, seemed within reach.

His heart shifted. Yet so much distance remained between them.

Her honey-blonde hair, now swept away from her lovely face in a short ponytail, gave her a playful look that tugged at him. At the same time, it gave him a stab of guilt. She’d lost a chunk of her gorgeous hair due to his clumsiness.

“Ask what?” He needed to bathe the new dogs, but he couldn’t look away from her. So he just stroked the schnauzer-Yorkie’s head, hoping the poor dog’s faith in humanity could be restored eventually. He sent up a prayer for both dogs. Yes, he’d often prayed for pets.

Then his heart skipped a beat. He’d been dragging his feet about the marriage proposal, which was unfair to her. He didn’t mean to make her wait. The issue was he already wanted to be married to her so much that doing so felt selfish.

“I mean ask who’s going to inherit everything if something happens to me.” An absent smile appeared on her face as she picked up the kittens. She talked about it with such indifference as if it were an item on the menu. In fact, he talked about menu items with more enthusiasm.

Okay, he was saved by the bell. Or rather, a distraction. He knew such things were important, but the possibility of something happening to her made everything clench inside.

“Um, would you mind helping me give these dogs a bath?” He latched onto something he liked doing, something that brought him joy.

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