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behavior.
    “Baby, that is not okay. Don’t jump on Ty. Naughty girl,” Lexi said, holding the dog’s big face in her hands and talking to her.
    To Ty’s amazement, the dog appeared properly scolded and hung her head. Amused, but also sympathetic to the dog, Ty reached over and pat her on the head, giving her ears a good scratch. She perked right up, and scooted over, leaning against him with a relieved sigh.
    Lexi looked at Swede with a raised eyebrow but didn’t say anything. The dog was part of the reason they lost the last two mechanics she’d hired. In addition to not liking the isolated location of the ranch, they both were terrified of the dog. Neither of them lasted more than a few days before they packed up and left.
    From what she’d seen, Ty made more headway this morning than either of them had together. The other two never made it past inspecting the shop. True, it was hard to work with a hundred-pound dog growling at your every move, but over the course of a few days they should have made some progress. At least Ty had made it as far as knowing he needed parts.
    “You can give me a list and I’ll run into town or you can go into Burns, whatever you prefer,” Lexi said. As she waited for Ty’s response, she tried to draw her gaze from his full lips and scruff-covered jaw line. Annoyed with her runaway thoughts, she shoved her hands in her coat pockets. Overwhelmed with a sudden and completely irrational desire to run her fingers through the mechanic’s tousled hair, she had no idea what had come over her.
    “If you don’t mind, I’d like to get the parts myself. I can meet the people there and if I need to phone in parts another time or have questions, they’ll know who I am,” Ty said, struggling to keep his attention on the conversation and not on his employer’s glowing green eyes or kissable lips. She had the most amazing cheekbones he’d ever seen up close. He couldn’t help but marvel at how beautiful she looked, even in an oversized chore coat and cowboy hat.
    “Swede can give you directions. Now, if you boys will excuse me, I’ve got some paperwork I need to take care of,” Lexi said. Briskly walking away, she felt six pairs of eyes on her back. One in particular made her neck feel hot as she went through the back gate of the yard, up the porch steps, and inside the house.
    “I’ll run into town and get those parts, Swede, if you tell me where I need to go,” Ty said. After watching Lexi hurry across the ranch yard, he found it nearly impossible to focus on work. She had just enough sway in her walk to make him wish that coat didn’t cover her quite so completely.
    Ten months had passed since his last date. Being unemployed and homeless certainly dampened his interest in women. It was hard to think about having a good time when basic survival seemed much more important.
    As his hand continued to tingle from Lexi’s touch, he acknowledged an attraction to his boss that he’d never experienced for another woman. Ty needed this job too badly to mess it up. Any thoughts about his employer beyond a professional capacity would never do.
    With a beleaguered sigh, he ran a hand through his hair. A slap on his back drew his attention to the ranch foreman.
    “I’ll jes go along with ya, Ty. We can grab some lunch in town and I’ll show ya around. Ya might want to change before we go, though.” Swede pointed to the massive muddy paw prints down the front of his hooded sweatshirt.
    Ty hurried to the bunkhouse and yanked off the sweatshirt. Hastily washing his hands, he combed his hair and tugged on his coat before hustling back outside. Swede waited in the pickup that had been hooked to the horse trailer. The trailer was parked in a big open shed near the barn. A large Rockin’ R brand emblazoned the driver and front passenger doors of the truck.
    As Ty climbed in the passenger side, he leveled Swede with a scornful scowl, making the foreman cackle.
    “You could have warned me Lex