Something More by Janet Dailey Read Free Book Online Page A

her attention to Luke, the shine of barely suppressed excitement in her eyes. “Meeting you practically the minute I arrived—it almost seems fated. You see, I planned on getting directions to your ranch so I could visit the place where his body was found. I know Grandma would have wanted me to do that. Would you mind showing it to me? Sometime when it’s convenient for you, of course.”
    â€œLuke would be happy to show you,” Ima Jane volunteered when he hesitated.
    A dry smile slanted his mouth. “In case you haven’t noticed, Angie, Ima Jane always sticks her nose into everybody’s business.”
    â€œLuke McCallister, that is an awful thing to say,” Ima Jane protested, both hands coming to rest on her hips in a combative pose.
    â€œIt’s also the truth,” he retorted, then glanced sideways at Angie Sommers. “Have you eaten tonight?”
    â€œNo.” But she seemed to hesitate as if she had a fair idea of what was coming next and was still trying to decide on her answer.
    â€œNeither have I. Let’s grab ourselves a table and over dinner we can settle on a time for you to come out to the Ten Bar.” He swung off the stool and picked up his drink to drain it, then added the warning, “Believe me, as long as you keep sitting here, Ima Jane will ply you with questions until she’s learned your whole life story. And she’ll do it so slickly you won’t even realize it until it’s over.”
    Ima Jane was quick to object. “I resent that, Luke.”
    â€œBut you can’t deny it.” A smile crinkled his eyes, taking any sting from his words.
    â€œYou’re right. I can’t.” She grinned and waved the towel in her hand, shooing them away from the bar. “You two go have your dinner. I’ll have my chance another time.”
    This time Angie didn’t hesitate, pausing only long enough to gather up the map, her purse, and her coffee cup before sliding off the stool. All the way from Iowa, she had driven with her fingers mentally crossed, hoping she would have the opportunity to talk at length with the owner or foreman of the ranch where her grandfather’s body had been found. She certainly hadn’t expected it to come so quickly—or that he would be so young. At least, young in the sense that she had expected him to be much older.
    She cast another glance at Luke McCallister as he guided her toward a vacant table. She had never been very good at guessing people’s ages, but she suspected he had to be somewhere in his middle to late thirties. Strictly speaking, he wasn’t handsome, but there was no denying his rugged good looks were attractive in a rough, masculine sort of way. And she would have been less than honest if she didn’t admit to a tingling awareness of him as a man. That was part of the reason she had hesitated about having dinner with him. That, and the possibility that a lot of time might be wasted fending off passes.
    â€œIma Jane meant what she said,” Luke remarked when he pulled out a chair for her. “She’s confident that she’ll get another crack at you.”
    â€œWhy’s that?” Angie placed her coffee mug on the table, then sat down in the chair, laying her purse across her lap.
    â€œShe figures you’ll need a place to stay tonight, and the closest motel is sixty miles away.” Luke sat across the table from her. “They have rooms upstairs that they rent out . . . usually to stranded motorists.”
    â€œI’m afraid she’ll be disappointed. I already have a place to stay tonight.” Angie saw the flicker of surprise in his blue-gray eyes and smiled. “I borrowed my uncle’s pickup camper to make the trip. It’s a gas hog, but I have a bed, a kitchen, and a teeny bathroom.”
    He chuckled, and the low rumble of it was decidedly appealing. “I can hardly wait to see Ima Jane’s face when she