by Laurel Kerr
“Lou, she wouldn’t go out with me if I asked.”
Lou’s expression turned defensive. “Now don’t go start worrying again that you don’t have any fancy degrees or that you’ve never left Sagebrush for longer than a four-day weekend. Any woman would be lucky to have you.”
Lou’s faith in him never failed to warm Bowie. This time, though, it was a tad misplaced.
“Lou, I was a complete and utter jackass to Katie in high school.”
That didn’t even faze the older man. “Show her that you’ve changed.”
“That may not be as easy as you think.”
“The good relationships are never simple.” Lou leaned over the fence and laid his hand on Bowie’s shoulder. “Don’t be afraid to try. You’re not the same punk who spray-painted the zoo, and you haven’t been for some time. Let Katie see that.”
Bowie didn’t think she would ever forgive him for all of his pranks, and he didn’t blame her. But he didn’t want to keep rehashing his past with Lou, so he nodded noncommittally.
Thankfully, Lou focused his attention on Lulubelle. “Does she seem any better?”
Bowie shook his head. “Nope. I heard her crying again this morning when I went to feed Frida.”
Ever since one of the llamas had given birth a few months ago, Lulubelle had been out of sorts. It didn’t help that every time she had tried to mother the little cria, the mother had chased her away. Even the rest of the herd had become more standoffish. Poor Lulubelle had slipped in her ranking in the herd and had faced more than her share of llama spit recently. She had always been sensitive—even for a herd animal—and she felt her demotion keenly. Not only had she become more needy for human affection, but she’d taken to moaning.
Lou made a tsking sound. “She’s lonely.”
Bowie nodded as he walked over to scratch the old girl. In response, the gangly animal shifted her massive weight in his direction. Only practice kept him from being stepped on. Lulubelle had a tendency to try to act like a lapdog. For that reason, he never let Abby into the llama pen unless she was closely supervised.
“I think she wants a calf of her own,” he said. “I’m looking into some breeding programs. I’m hoping I can convince another small zoo to loan us a bull this winter. I’ll take a look through stud books.”
“A baby would be a good start,” Lou said, “but Lulubelle needs a permanent mate. It will be good for her to have more camels around.”
“The budget isn’t great, Lou, and I’d rather use any extra cash to diversify the stock.”
Lou responded with a meaningful look. “Lulubelle needs companionship, Bowie. It’s not good for a body to be alone.”
With one last hard stare, he left the llama enclosure. Bowie sighed as he patted Lulubelle’s side.
“I don’t think he was just talking about you, Lulubelle. What do you say, girl?”
The camel emitted a raspberry sound before she wandered back to join the herd. Bowie grinned, but the smile didn’t stay on his lips for long.
He had a thing for Katie Underwood. He couldn’t deny that. Oh, he suspected that his body turned her on. He’d caught a glimpse of heat in her eyes this morning when he’d accidentally flashed his abs. In high school, she’d clearly found him visually appealing, and it seemed that time hadn’t changed that. Which wasn’t all that surprising, even given Katie’s initial animosity toward him. Most women found his features attractive, even if they knew nothing else about him.
Bowie had always possessed good looks—something his dad and his drinking buddies used to razz him about when he was younger. He’d never had trouble picking up women at a bar. Half the time, they didn’t care what he did for a living. They just saw his face and build and made up their own romantic fantasies—not that he was complaining. It worked for him, especially right after Abby was born. Back then, he hadn’t been looking for a serious relationship. Then, when his daughter grew older, Bowie had taken over full responsibility for the zoo, and he hadn’t wanted the drama of dating.
Until now.
Even without their past history, Bowie doubted that Katie would accept a date with him. He wasn’t college educated. He was a single dad. He had more debts than assets. The only thing he was good at was taking care of animals in a zoo that was on the brink of folding.
Yep. He was a catch.
Yet Bowie’s mind kept replaying the image of Katie and Abby bent over the laptop. He hadn’t been fully awake, and the sight of them had been the first thing his brain had registered. They’d looked so natural and at ease with each other. Abby always got along better with adults than children her own age, and she and Katie just seemed to click.
He sighed again. He’d ruined his chance with Katie a long, long time ago. And he didn’t have time to dwell on past mistakes. He had a zoo to run. If his mind drifted occasionally to Katie as he worked, well, so be it.
* * *
“Are you going back to the zoo again tonight?” Katie’s mother asked a few days later, her tone brimming with hopeful speculation.
Katie paused in unloading groceries. “Mom, no matchmaking. You promised.”
Helen Underwood held up her hands in mock surrender. “I’m just trying to figure out your plans tonight, sweetheart. That’s all.”
Katie hmphed before she swiveled to place the packages of frozen vegetables in the freezer. Since the attack on her father, she’d done most of the grocery shopping. At first, her mom didn’t have time to run errands. Now, having Katie do them gave her a chance to get off her feet while her husband rested.
“Mom, you know that I’m committed to helping watch the cubs for at least a month,” Katie said.
“I’m sure it doesn’t hurt how cute their keeper is.”
Katie groaned. She couldn’t help it. Hoping to distract her mother, she handed her three cans of corn. Unfortunately, it didn’t work.
“You two must be getting pretty close,” her mother continued.
“Mom, this will only be the fourth night that I’ve slept over at the zoo.”
“Yes, but you’re also doing all that marketing,” her mom said. “The updates you’ve done to the website are terrific.”
Katie felt her annoyance drift away. Her mom was always her biggest fan. “Those are just the preliminary changes. Wait until we roll out the rest.”
Her mother beamed. “See? I told you that you could find business here in Sagebrush!”
Suddenly, it struck Katie that her mother’s desire to set her up with Bowie wasn’t just part of her campaign for more grandbabies. Other than Katie’s oldest brother, who’d joined the military, she’d been the only Underwood child to leave Sagebrush for any extended time. Even Alex now lived within a day’s drive.
“Mom,” Katie said quietly, “you know that I’m still considering finding a job in a major city. I even called Josh a couple days ago to see if he could put in a good word for me in San Francisco.”
“But Sagebrush has so much to offer!” her mom said brightly, although Katie could detect a flicker of hurt.
“Like attractive zookeepers?” she asked gently.
Her mother paused. “Well, yes.”
Katie reached forward and rested her hand on her mother’s. “Mom, do you really want me to stay in town just because of a cute guy?”
Even her mother had to smile at that. “All right, I see your point, but don’t sell your hometown short.”
“You know, Dad told me something similar when I drove him to physical therapy this week.”
“He’s a smart man. That’s why I married him.”
“And here I thought it was the uniform.”
“Intelligent men know what attracts the ladies,” her mom said crisply before she sobered. “Are you considering staying here?”
Katie sucked in her breath. She didn’t want to get her mother’s hopes up, only to
crush them when she left. Helen Underwood always supported her children’s decisions, but Katie knew that her mother had never liked her living so far away. Plus, her mom would worry if she lived in a large city.
“I’m not sure, Mom,” Katie said slowly, but even that weak statement was enough to cause a light to shine in her mother’s eyes.
Her mom clasped her hands together. “Oh, sweetheart, it would be wonderful if you moved back permanently. You could see your nieces and nephews so much more often.”
“Mom, there are a lot of variables. First, I don’t even know if that’s what I want. And even if I did, I’m not sure my freelance work is going to be enough to pay the bills.”
Her mom’s excitement did not lessen. Helen Underwood was a perennially optimist. “Look at all the work you’ve found here already! And there’s the national park too. Maybe you can do something for them. We’ve been getting more tourists, and there are so many new businesses starting up. Plus, you could get clients over the internet. And…”
Katie couldn’t stop her fond smile. “Mom, as much as I appreciate your faith in my abilities, building a graphic design company from scratch is difficult, and it’s not necessarily stable work.”
“Your father and I will help you out during the thin times.”
Katie didn’t doubt that for a second. “I know, Mom, but I don’t want to rely on you two. I’m almost thirty years old. I came home to help with Dad, but now that he’s better, I need to restart my career. I’ve always dreamed of working for a big company. I’m not sure if I’m ready to give that up.”
Her mom’s joy dimmed, and Katie felt terrible. “I just don’t want to disappoint you if I ultimately decide to leave.”
“Sweetheart, you could never disappoint me.”
But Katie could. She knew that with absolute certainty. And she needed to be careful not to give her mother any more false hope that she might make Sagebrush her permanent home again.
* * *
After Katie’s discussion with her mom, she checked in on her dad. To her surprise, she didn’t find him resting or watching TV. Instead, he was working on a model ship. Although building the intricate vessels was one of his hobbies, he hadn’t felt up to the detailed work since he’d been shot.
“Someone must be feeling better,” Katie said.
He looked up and smiled at her. “Well, I’m not ready to go for a run yet, but this I can do.”
“Did you know Mom has it in her head that I’m going to move back to Sagebrush?”
“Honey, that thought has been swirling in your mother’s mind since you first left for college,” he said. “She’s a mom. She’s always going to want her babies around her, but that doesn’t mean she wasn’t happy when you were living in Minnesota.”
“Could you talk to her? Let her know that I might not be staying? I don’t want her getting more hurt than necessary.”
Her dad nodded. “I can do that, kiddo.”
Katie studied him carefully. His color looked good, and his old spirit seemed back. “I was thinking about heading over to the zoo early today. I’d like to see more of the animals so I can get pictures for the website. And I need inspiration for the new logo. Will you and Mom be good here?”
“Go.” He waved her with his hand. “I’m not about to keel over anymore. We’ll be fine.”
“Don’t tell Mom that I went to the zoo ahead of schedule. She’s already imagining a grand love affair between the zookeeper and me.”
Both her father’s eyebrows shot up. “Lou Warrenton?”
Katie laughed. “No, even Mom isn’t so desperate to keep me here that she’d set me up with an eighty-year-old. There’s a younger guy in charge who’s my age. Lou still lives on the property, though, and helps out with the animals.”
“Your mother means well.”
“I know,” Katie said as she bent to kiss her dad goodbye. “But this is probably the last guy in town who could convince me to stay.”
* * *
“Which animals would you like to see today?” Bowie asked when Katie arrived at the zoo. She’d called him before she left her parents’ house to let him know she’d be dropping by early.
“None in particular,” Katie said. “I just want to get to know more of the zoo’s residents so I can write better bios. The photos on the website need an update too, so I brought my camera.”
“The animal park isn’t too big,” Bowie told her as he led her from the zoo’s office toward the bear exhibit. “A lot of the species are local, but it still gives kids a chance to see wildlife up close. We’re too small and understaffed to be accredited, but we take in the animals that no other zoo wants. One thing we do have is space, and we make sure we follow all the recommended guidelines for the enclosures, even those that are stricter than what the law requires.
“Lou still has a lot of ties with licensed wildlife rehabilitators. If they can’t release an animal back into the wild, they call us. One of the park rangers at Rocky Ridge National Park interned with us years ago, and she sends abandoned young our way who won’t survive on their own and who won’t be able to be rehabilitated. Sometimes, law enforcement or even other zoos call Lou when they learn about an exotic pet that someone has been keeping illegally.”
“How about you?”
Bowie shot her a quizzical look, so she continued. “Do you have connections to the conservation community?”
He glanced away quickly but not before Katie detected a glimmer of something. Regret? Frustration? Embarrassment? Maybe a combination of all three?
“I don’t have the right letters after my name,” Bowie said, his voice curiously neutral. “I’m hoping the cougar cubs will help make the zoo more credible as a sanctuary for confiscated exotic pets and animals that can’t be rereleased. It would be great to eventually become an accredited zoo. That would take years, though. We’d require more volunteers and a bigger staff. Although Lou’s done a better job at keeping up with medical equipment than he has with other technology, we’d need to update the animal hospital and other zoo facilities. I’d also have to get a degree myself.”
“Oh,” Katie said. She kept her tone light, realizing that she might have just prodded an open sore. Lou had told her that Bowie had never gone to college. That fact didn’t surprise her. Bowie had never put any effort into school. Half the time, he’d either skipped class or he’d been serving an in-school suspension. That didn’t necessarily mean Bowie didn’t regret the lost opportunity. It had to be difficult to convince scientists that he was running a legitimate zoo when he didn’t have any higher education.
“What other kinds of animals do you have?” Katie asked, steering the conversation away from him.
“Well, there’s Frida here,” he said, jerking his thumb in the direction of the grumpy grizzly. “She’s about nineteen years old. You might remember her from when you were a kid. She was brought to Lou as a juvenile with a damaged foot. Poachers had set up a bear trap in Rocky Ridge National Park, and Frida had been caught in it for days before a ranger found her. She’s walked with a pronounced limp ever since, so she couldn’t be reintroduced into the wild.”
“Poor girl.” Katie leaned against the fence to get a better look at Frida. The bear lifted her head to emit a long-suffering sound halfway between a grunt and a roar.
Katie laughed. Bowie joined her by the rail, his T-shirt brushing against her bare arm. Unwanted desire flared within her. She almost succeeded in suppressing a tremble, but then he chuckled—the sound low, deep, and most of all warm. The husky timbre of it washed over her. Despite the wave of heat, she shivered.
Bowie’s gray eyes darkened at her reaction. With the summer sun beating down on her back, Katie couldn’t claim a chill to explain away her body’s instinctual reaction to him. Instead, she changed the subject.
“I guess Frida doesn’t like to be called ‘poor,’” she said.
“Frida has her dignity,” Bowie said. And then he grinned. Devastatingly.
Katie’s heart squeezed. A rush of sweet fire swept through her again, threatening to burn through her shields of self-preservation. She straightened before she did something very foolish, like trying to capture Bowie’s smile with a kiss.
“So, what’s the name of your camel?” she asked as she pushed back from Frida’s fence. “She always trots right over to me for a pet when I pass by on my way to watch the cougars.”
“That would be Lulubelle,” Bowie said as he led Katie around the corner. “She’s always been a little needy, and she’s been having a particularly hard time lately.”
Katie knitted her brow in concern as they approached Lulubelle and the llamas. “How so?”
“She’s lonely,” he said. “Ever since one of the llamas had a baby, Lulubelle has seemed to be longing for one of her own. Lou thinks she wants a mate too.”
“Awww,” Katie said as they approached the llama pen. Lulubelle instantly raised her large head and raced toward them. She thrust her neck at Bowie in clear demand. Katie swore that the animal sighed as he scratched the thick patch of fluff on top of her head. After thoroughly nuzzling him, Lulubelle turned her attention on Katie. Finding her line of vision full of insistent camel, Katie laughed and petted the old girl. When she dropped her hand and both she and Bowie began to turn, Lulubelle emitted a plaintive rumble.
“My goodness,” Katie said as she whirled back around. “It’s okay, Lulubelle. I’ll be back tomorrow.”
The camel made a raspberry sound in response. Bowie shook his head. “She’ll keep you here all evening if you’ll let her.”
“But that cry was awful!”
“I know,” he said as he ignored his own advice and rubbed the camel’s neck. “I wish we had the funds to purchase and take care of another camel or two. I’m hoping another zoo will at least lend me a stud.”
A thought struck Katie. She spun toward him, unable to stop her exuberance. “Bowie, I think I have a brilliant idea!”
He seemed to freeze. Too excited to pay much attention to his reaction, Katie spoke in a rush. “You can use Lulubelle as part of a fund drive.”