No Good Deed: A Small-Town Romantic Suspense Novel

2. No Fail

Piper’s heart rate slowed as Oreo gobbled the food. Then he moved to the water bowl and slurped that up as well. When both bowls were empty, he turned to stare at her with hopeful eyes. “Sorry, Oreo. That’s all for now. We don’t want you to get an upset tummy. You can have more later.”

He turned those pleading eyes to the man, and so did Piper. She’d been in too much of a panic to notice him before. And that was almost impossible to believe. Dark blond hair and scruff with a hint of red. Deep blue eyes that shifted from the dog to her. Sexy eyes that sparkled with humor.

“Hi.”

She smiled back, face flushing. “Hi.”

Oreo turned in a circle on her sweatshirt then plunked his little body down and instantly fell asleep. She ran her hand over him to make sure he was sleeping and not unconscious. Or worse.

When she turned back to the man, his gaze moved from her hand to her eyes. The heat there had her heart thumping all over again.

Wow. This man could sell pretty much anything on TV. It wouldn’t matter if you already owned whatever he was selling. You’d buy three more anyway.

He tilted his head as he studied her. “Are you okay?”

Piper drew in a deep breath and assessed. “I’m fine. Thanks. Seeing Oreo climbing the ditch and collapsing made me frantic.”

He grinned and then stood and held out his hand to help her up.

She was sitting on the floor of Phail General. Great first impression. Maybe this wasn’t the man she was supposed to meet. She accepted his help but was surprised when he squeezed her hand and released it. She managed not to sigh at the loss of his touch. Man, she was a mess.

“I’m Troy Phail, owner of Phail General.”

Well, there went that hope. “I’m Piper Keenan. It’s nice to meet you. Thanks for your help with the dog. I don’t know much about dogs and I wasn’t sure if he was okay.” She checked the floor, but Oreo looked comfortable, and his little body rose with his easy breaths.

“He looks fine, but we can get the vet to check him out. He was lucky you came along when you did.”

“His family’s probably looking for him. He didn’t have a collar, but I hope he has a chip. Poor little guy. I can pay you for the food and the bowls.”

Troy waved that away. “It’s fine. Nothing to worry about. Did you have any trouble finding the town?”

She laughed. “No, but that’s thanks to GPS. Living in Chicago, I haven’t driven much, and the snow was a bit scary, but once I saw little Oreo here, I forgot to worry about driving. I just worried about him.”

And now the dog was warm and snoring comfortably with a full belly. Piper waved her hands. “Anyway, sorry about bursting in like that. I was in a bit of a panic.”

Troy’s smile was instant and easy. “No problem. I’m glad you made it and happy you stopped to help your little friend. Have you been to the BB?”

She shook her head. “No. I had the GPS set to your store and it brought me right here. I’m glad it did. You knew exactly what to do.”

He laughed. The man had a really good laugh. “I gave him a little food and water. Do you want to meet the vet and get him checked over?”

“That would be perfect. I’ll worry that I should have done more until I know he’s okay. I bet she can find his family.” Her heart ached. She’d love to keep this cutie, but not only did she know nothing about dogs, she was jobless and homeless.

Troy nodded. “Do you want to stop at the BB first? Or we can take my car, and I’ll bring you back here afterward. That way, you can see some of the town on the way.”

Now that the emergency appeared to be over and Oreo appeared to be mostly okay, Piper felt herself settling, but she wasn’t quite ready to drive into unknown territory yet. “If you could drive, that would be great. You know the area and I’m still a little shaky about Oreo.”

Troy smiled softly. “No problem. Let me grab my keys and a jacket. Do you have one in your car or would you like me to grab one?”

Could she possibly look less competent? In her hurry to get the dog inside, she hadn’t thought about her jacket. I’ve got one in the car. I’ll just grab it and we can go.”

Troy disappeared into a hallway and returned within seconds, wearing a padded flannel jacket. When he reached the front counter, he leaned down to gently scoop up the dog, keeping him wrapped in the sweatshirt.

When Oreo stirred, he cuddled him close to his chest and whispered. “It’s okay, little guy. We’re going to go see Kimi. You’ll like her, and she’ll make sure you’re okay.”

Troy shifted him easily to one arm and used the other to set a sign in the door announcing he’d be back soon and locked up.

Her car was right outside the building, so Piper put on her coat, then grabbed her purse.

Troy smiled. “That’s better. Phail hospitality frowns on letting guests freeze to death on their first day in town.”

Even while she laughed, Piper wondered if women were still allowed to swoon because Troy Phail was definitely swoon-worthy.

* * *

Troy thought about his passenger as he headed out to the veterinarian’s property. The woman had rushed through the snow without a jacket and then stripped off her hoodie to wrap it around a dog she’d found in the road. The worry for the animal proved a lot about her character. Added to the bits he’d found online before he’d hired her to come to visit for a few weeks, and she was very appealing.

Her Master’s degree proved she was smart. Her resume had shown she was interested in supporting sustainable communities and the projects she’d worked on were innovative.

He needed his body to listen to his brain. Piper Keenan was here to help build his town, and that was where his focus needed to be.

Knowing his guest was worried about the dog, Troy drove directly to Kimi’s and didn’t point out any local sights. Kimi Twinishe owned a small cottage a few minutes beyond the outskirts of town. Behind the cottage, she had several fenced paddocks and a barn. Because Phail was in the countryside, there were lots of farms in the area. Kimi tended to all animals, not just family pets.

When Troy parked, Piper looked up and smiled. “It’s so pretty.”

The snow continued to fall, blanketing the property, trees and fences alike. Troy walked around the car to Piper’s side as she held the pup and admired the scene in front of her. Her wide eyes looked up at him when he opened the door for her.

“Oh. Thank you. Sorry, I got caught up looking at the scenery.”

“No problem.” And because she had her hands full, he offered her his hand to help her up. Another zip ran up his arm. The woman radiated chemistry, but he didn’t think she had a clue.

The sign on Kimi’s door told them to head to the barn, so Troy led the way along the path. “Stay on the path so your sneakers don’t get soaked.”

She laughed. “They’re still wet from my first adventure with Oreo. I didn’t think I’d need boots this early. I’ll set these out in my room to dry once I get to the BB.”

He watched her gaze as they moved through the path.

“There’s a horse. Two horses. And a cow. Is that a donkey?”

Troy chuckled but kept moving. “It is. That’s Snoops. Don’t get too close unless you want an imprint of donkey teeth on your arm.”

She clutched the dog tightly to her chest and stayed close to Troy on the path. “It’s okay, Oreo. We’ll keep you safe from the hungry donkey. He’d probably love you too, but we’re not taking any chances.”

Laughing, Troy opened the small door on the side of the barn and ushered her into the warmth. The space always made him smile. The soft scents of animals and hay were comfortable and pleasant.

Piper let out a delighted gasp. “It’s like a movie set. I’ve never been inside a barn before. I thought it would be dark and smelly, but it’s wonderful.”

Laughter preceded Kimi’s arrival from the back area of the barn. “Thank you. Not everyone appreciates a barn, no matter how clean it is.”

Kimi wore her typical jeans, work boots, and a flannel shirt over a T-shirt. She smiled in greeting. “Hey Troy.” She turned to Piper. “I’m Kimi Twinishe. What brings you here today?”

Piper gently uncovered the dog. “I was driving into town, and found this little guy trying to cross the road. He’d climbed out of the ditch, and collapsed.” She swallowed hard and whispered. “I thought he was dead.”

Troy pulled her into a side-armed hug and squeezed her shoulder.

She leaned her head into his shoulder. “I didn’t know what to do. I don’t know anything about dogs, so I wrapped him in my sweatshirt and brought him into the car. I gave him some water and then I brought him to Phail General, and Troy.”

Troy finished up the story. “We gave him a little of the food I keep in stock and more water. He ate and drank then lay down to sleep.”

The dog lifted his head and looked up at Piper. Then he wriggled in her arms, and she laughed. “Hey, Oreo. Are you feeling better? This is Kimi. She’s going to check you over.”

The dog wiggled again as Kimi expertly picked him up and cuddled him to her chest. His head immediately swiveled to check on Piper. She smiled and reached over to scratch him on the head. “It’s okay, Oreo. She’s going to take care of you.”

Kimi nodded. “That I will. I’ll also check to see if he has a chip. There are no obvious injuries, so I hope he’s simply hungry and scared.”

Piper gnawed on her lower lip, and Troy heard himself saying to Kimi. “You’ve got my number. Can you let me know?”

Kimi nodded. “Will do.” She lifted the dog so they were at eye level. “Now, let’s have a look at all the things.” Then she turned and walked back into the clinic area of the barn.

Piper heaved out a sigh and her eyes misted with tears before she blinked them back. “Okay. That’s good. I’m glad she’s going to help him.”

Troy wondered if she was trying to convince herself of that. She’d seemed to bond with the dog and didn’t enjoy letting him go with Kimi. Hoping to bring back her smile, he gestured to the barn door. “Why don’t I take you for some lunch, and we can make a plan. Or would you rather head to the BB? We can easily meet up tomorrow if that works better for you.”

She blew out a breath and peeled her gaze off the clinic entrance. “Lunch sounds good. What kinds of restaurants do you have here?”

Troy laughed as he pulled the barn door closed behind them and headed back to the car. “Restaurants might be a little grand for our town. My cousin Ginny owns the local eatery. The No Fail Diner.”

Piper stumbled, and he steadied her with a hand. “Are you serious? One diner? And it has the word Fail in its name?”

Her shock had him laughing. “I’m serious. Come on, you’ll love it.”

Her expression told him she didn’t feel his confidence.