He took the basket and put it on the counter. “Beth Murphy, look at you, girl.”

She looked down at herself and back to him, a sparkle in her eye that he liked immensely.

“I’d give you a hug but—” She indicated his overalls, covered with grease and dust from crawling around under the truck he’d been working on.

“Sorry. Been a busy morning.”

Buck barked a few times, not a man to take being ignored lightly and she knelt. “Why hello there. Aren’t you handsome? I’m Beth. Who are you?”

Buck barked again, dancing around her, his tongue lolling as he checked her out. She laughed, scratching behind his ears.

“That’s Buck. Don’t get on her dress.”

Buck gave Joe a look that told him the dog had no intention of being on the outs with the woman.

“Did you come to work with him to keep him out of trouble?”

Buck barked again a few times, and laughing, Beth gave him one last scratch and stood. “Sounds like that’s exactly what he’s doing.”

“He likes to keep me company. I found him at a garage so he’s at home in one.”

“Someone abandoned him?”

Joe liked the outrage on her face.

“He was so tiny. I found him in the dumpster out back. Someone had thrown him away like trash. I wasn’t sure if he’d make it.” Hell, Joe had bottle-fed him for a while until he got stronger.

“Honestly! Some people aren’t fit to breathe air.”

Buck barked again and then plopped down, his head on her shoes. He gave a one-eyed glance Joe’s way, as if to tell him not to let her go. Joe would have to explain the meaning of best friend’s little sister to Buck later.

“Well you did the right thing and he looks like he’s got a good home now.” She leaned close and he caught her scent. Jasmine. On another woman it might have been too much, but on her it was rich and sensual.

She held up a cream envelope with his name on it. “This is an invitation to Nathan’s wedding. Lily—you might remember her though she’s a little younger—anyway Lily wanted me to drop this off for you while I was here.”

She had a lilt to her voice. A drawl that also seemed sort of breathless as she delivered her words at top speed. Joe had no idea how she managed both at once, but she did.

“William said he was engaged. Figured Nathan would never settle. He sure did love the ladies.”

She laughed. “He still does, but Lily’s all the lady he can handle. They’re good together.” She paused and that smile crept back over her mouth and his heart skipped a beat.

“You’re worrying me with that smile.”

It brightened, and he became fascinated with how glossy her bottom lip was. Plump and juicy. He wanted to lean in and lick over it.

“You’re awfully big and brawny to be askeerd of a girl like me.”

He laughed. It’d been a long time since he’d teased back and forth with a woman and it had felt this natural. “You forget I grew up around you Murphys. A girl like you is exactly who I’m scared of.” That and her big brothers.

She took his hand and squeezed. “So, Joe Harris, you should take me to lunch so we can catch up.”

“Should I now? What if I brought my lunch?”

“But you didn’t. The Sands is delightfully air conditioned and they have lunch specials. And pie. I may be able to sweeten that deal with some gossip. I’ll even let you pretend you don’t care about that sort of thing.”

How could he turn down pie and air conditioning? She was his friend’s sister after all. No need to be unfriendly after she’d come over to welcome him back so nicely. And Buck was going back home for the afternoon anyway because it was too damned hot in the shop.

“All right then. William sort of caught me up on all the Murphy stuff, but he’s a man of few words. I imagine you have more to say than he does, and you’ll give me all the information about who is up to what.”

She smiled again. “Good. I’m at the salon right up there.” She pointed. “Tate, Anne and I own it. Come by and collect me when you’re ready.” She turned and headed to the garage door before pausing and looking back over her shoulder. “Don’t make me wait too long, I get grumpy when I’m hungry.”

With a wave she was gone, but he sure as hell watched that delightful sway as she moved across the street and then to her salon.

“So I think Thunderbirds are go.” Beth gave double thumbs-up as she moved to her desk. Anne and Tate did most of the hair work while Beth did the books. She did the occasional shampoo if she was needed, ran errands, handled supply orders and pretty much everything else.

The sisters were all so close, so used to having to work together, that it was smooth and efficient when others may have had a struggle.

“Do tell.” Tate stood behind her client as she spoke.

“Delivered the goods. A man’d have to be blind to overlook a basket full of your baked goods.”

“And your boobs.” Anne grinned up from where she’d been mixing some color.

“Well, yes. I did wonder if it was too much a gamble to go with a dress that didn’t show any cle**age.”

“He has an imagination. They’re right there under the material, after all. Men are pretty good at remembering where your boobs are.”

Beth grinned at Tate. “Yeah. Good point. Anyway, I pretty much cornered him into going to lunch with me today.”