Rules of Contact

by Jaci Burton

  Jon gave a resigned nod. "I knew this would happen. I've already packed."

  Amelia laughed. So did Flynn.

  They moved into the dining room and they all helped Laura serve up the salad and the spaghetti, along with amazing homemade bread, despite Laura's protests that her meal was nothing but average fare.

  "What did you use in the meatballs, Laura?" Amelia asked as they ate.

  "Veal, beef and pork. I told you, just basic stuff."

  Flynn could have eaten all the meatballs, but he had to be polite and share. "I don't know what you consider average stuff, Laura, but these are damn fine meatballs. I'd serve them at Ninety-Two."

  "Really?"

  He nodded.

  So did Amelia, who said, "I'm thinking of stealing your recipe and serving them at the restaurant."

  Laura looked from Flynn to Amelia. "Now you're both trying to make me feel better."

  Jon had taken a sip of wine and laid his glass down. "Accept the compliment babe. They're right. This is exceptional."

  Laura beamed a smile. "Thank you. All of you. I might actually start cooking."

  "Don't tease me, woman," Jon said.

  Laura laughed. "Oh, shut up."

  After dinner, they had coffee and a buttery cake that Laura said she'd picked up at the bakery.

  "I would have liked to make dessert myself, but I pulled a double shift and couldn't manage it."

  "The dinner was amazing, Laura," Flynn said as he accepted a piece of the cake. "I appreciate you making dinner. I'm sure finding any spare time to cook is tough with the hours you work. Amelia said they're somewhat erratic."

  She shrugged. "We don't have kids yet, and Jon has similar crazy hours, so right now I don't mind doing the erratic times. At some point we'll start a family and I'll have earned the right to work more stable shifts."

  "What do you do, Jon?" Flynn asked.

  "I'm a software engineer, so I have the luxury of making a lot of my own hours. Which means when she works, I work."

  Flynn nodded. "Sounds like an ideal situation for both of you."

  "It works for now," Laura said. "I'm starting to feel the burnout of all the hours, so probably within the next year I'll be ready to start popping out some babies."

  "Really?" Amelia grinned. "I'm ready for that, too."

  Laura grinned. "To pop out babies of your own?"

  "Ha. No. To cuddle your babies."

  "Oh. But wouldn't it be fun if we had babies together?"

  "That would be great, but my timeline isn't the same as yours."

  "It could be." Laura shot a pointed look to Flynn.

  "Don't look at me. I mean, I like you and all, Laura, but I'm not having any babies in the next year."

  Jon snorted out a laugh.

  "Oh, you're no fun at all, Flynn Cassidy," Laura said.

  He grinned.

  "So I guess that means I'm back in the running as baby daddy?" Jon asked Laura.

  Laura sighed. "I suppose. And you are supremely hot and tall and exceptionally smart. I suppose your genetics will work for me."

  Jon smiled at her. "Nice of you to say."

  They spent hours talking about everything from sports to having babies to world events.

  It had been a great night. Flynn was surprised how at ease he'd been with Jon and Laura from the minute he'd walked in the door. He hadn't realized how much time had passed until Amelia nudged him and told him Laura had an early morning call, so it was time for them to leave.

  He shook Jon's hand, hugged Laura and thanked them both for inviting him to their house for dinner. Then he left them an open invitation to have dinner at Ninety-Two on him whenever they had a free night, because it sounded to him like they both worked damn hard and could use a night out.

  "I'd love that," Laura said. "How about tomorrow?"

  Jon laughed. "I don't think he meant tomorrow."

  "No, seriously. I mean whenever you want. Tomorrow is good. I'll leave your name at the front desk and whenever you want to eat there, you can have a table."

  "Thank you," Jon said. "That means a lot. And we will take you up on that."

  They said their good-byes and left. Flynn drove Amelia home and walked her to her door.

  "You're not coming in?" she asked with a concerned frown.

  "Not tonight. I have an early call tomorrow morning."

  She laid her palms on his chest. "I'll miss you tonight."

  "Me, too. I hope I did okay with your best friend."

  She smiled. "I think my best friend is slightly in love with you. Or maybe more than slightly. So I'd say you passed the test, even though there really wasn't a test."

  "Good." He drew her against him and kissed her, wishing he didn't have to get up so early tomorrow morning. Because as his mouth moved over Amelia's, he wanted nothing more than to feel his entire body moving against hers.

  But a little restraint was a good thing sometimes. So he took a step back.

  "I'll see you soon."

  She had a death grip on his jacket. "Yes, you will."

  "Good night, Amelia."

  She released her hold on him with a sigh. "Good night, Flynn."

  He walked away with a smile on his face.

  TWENTY-FOUR

  With Flynn's out-of-town game and her work being so busy, Amelia hadn't seen much of him the past week. And now it was time to leave for their Thanksgiving trip, and she was so stressed about it she could barely breathe.

  "Did you remember to pack shorts?"

  Amelia looked up from her suitcase to stare at Laura. "Honey, it's November."

  Laura had come over at seven in the morning to help Amelia pack. Only her best friend would give up sleep in order to see her off for her trip.

  "Yeah," Laura said, flipping through her phone. "And I checked the weather in the part of Texas you're flying to. It's supposed to be eighty degrees there."

  Amelia frowned. "Wait. What? Eighty? Are you sure?"

  "Yup."

  "Well, hell." She stared into her suitcase, where she'd packed long pants and sweaters. "That could change, though, right?"

  "Doesn't look like it's going to. At least put a pair of capris and a sundress in your suitcase."

  "Fine." She pulled out one of the sweaters and her jeans, replacing them with a pair of capris and a sundress, which felt weird for this time of year. But Laura was right. The last thing she wanted to do was sweat all over Flynn's family.

  "You'll be much happier if you're cooler. And dressed appropriately."

  After thinking, she threw in another pair of capris and a couple of short-sleeved tops, along with her brown flat sandals and higher platform black ones, then closed her suitcase. "What would I do without you, Laura?"

  "You'd sweat without me, that's what you'd do."

  "You're right about that." She felt better about what she was taking.

  "So you're off work for a few days, and you're traveling to Texas to meet Flynn's family. How do you feel about that?"

  She sat on the bed and zipped up her suitcase. "You sound like my therapist."

  Laura laughed and sat on the other side of Amelia's suitcase. "I do, don't I? Are you ready for that big a step?"

  She slanted a curious look at Laura. "Is it a big step? I'm only going because Mia invited me. Flynn said he wanted me to go and it was no big deal, but I still think he kind of had to say, 'Oh, Amelia, sure, you're totally invited.'"

  Laura gave her that look, the one that said she was full of shit. "Really? He could have said nothing, which would have meant he thought his sister's suggestion was a bad idea. Instead, he invited you. More than once. He likes you, Amelia. Get on board with that because it's obvious you like him, too."

  She did like him. She more than liked him. Which meant her heart was getting involved, and that was scary as hell.

  "Yes, of course I like him."

  "But . . ."

  Once again, this was what happened when your friend knew you all too well. Amelia realized sh
e couldn't escape having this conversation.

  "But I'm afraid."

  Laura got up, shoved the suitcase to the end of the bed and sat next to Amelia. "What are you afraid of? That you're going to fall in love with Flynn and he's going to break your heart like that asshole you were married to?"

  She sighed. "You know, sometimes you cut right to the heart of the matter like a surgeon."

  Laura beamed a smile. "You sure know how to throw a compliment. I'm right, aren't I? Are your feelings for Flynn more than fun, dating and sex?"

  "Yes, they're more than all of those."

  "Are you in love with him?"

  Laura had softened her voice when she asked the question.

  "Maybe. I don't know. I thought I was in love with Frank. I gave my whole heart to him. I thought I knew everything about him, that we were destined for forever. That turned out to be a nightmare. He wasn't who I thought he was. So what do I really know about love?"

  "You're afraid to give a guy your heart again. You're afraid your feelings are going to be crushed. I totally understand. But don't let one jerk keep you from trusting in love. It's out there and it's waiting for you. The right guy is out there. The right guy could be Flynn."

  "Maybe. I don't know."

  Laura sighed. "You said that already."

  She lifted her gaze to her friend, needing Laura to understand, to be there with her. "Because it's true. I don't know what to believe in. I can't trust my own heart or my own feelings. I just need . . . time, I guess."

  Laura went quiet for a few seconds, then finally nodded. "You're right, and I'm being pushy. I'm sorry. I just want you to be happy. I want you to feel good again, to fall in love again. This time, with the right guy."

  Amelia leaned against Laura and laid her head on her best friend's shoulder. "I know you do and I love you for that. But this time, I'm going into it with my eyes wide open. I'm never going to let a man hurt me again."

  Laura put her arm around her shoulders. "It's good to be wary, but don't close yourself off to the possibility that love could be out there for you. Give it a chance. Give Flynn a chance. He's a nice guy and he seems really into you, so don't close the door, okay?"

  "I promise I won't."

  After Laura left, Amelia finished up the few things she needed to do around the house--washing dishes, taking out the trash--then took a shower and got ready, her eye constantly on the clock. Flynn was picking her up at nine, so she made certain she was ready to go by eight thirty.

  Her stomach grumbled and she realized in all the rush she hadn't eaten yet. Too late now. She'd grab a muffin at the airport or something.

  To calm her nerves while she waited for Flynn, she sat at her breakfast bar and made notes about three new dishes she planned to create for Ninety-Two's holiday menu. When Flynn knocked on the door, she put her pen and paper aside, grabbed her travel bag and opened the door.

  "Hi. I'm ready."

  His lips curved. "A little anxious about the trip?"

  "Maybe a little."

  "Don't be. It's going to be fine. We're going to have fun. And good morning." He stepped in, grasped her arms and pulled her against him for a kiss. She leaned into him and let the warmth of him surround her for a few seconds. But then she realized they were on a timetable, so she pressed her hands against his chest and took a step back.

  "Okay, enough of that."

  "You're no fun," he said.

  "I'm tons of fun and you know it. Grab my suitcase."

  He shot a frown at her. "You're very bossy when you're stressed."

  "I am not stressed. Can we go now?"

  She was totally stressed and she didn't know why. Okay, she knew why. There was a lot of pressure on this visit, and it was all pressure she was putting on herself. She really needed to relax. Maybe she'd have a muffin before the flight and a glass of wine on the plane.

  Though the combination made her wrinkle her nose.

  They got to the airport with plenty of time to check in and make their way to the gate. She also grabbed a muffin and an orange juice.

  She was surprised to discover they were flying first class. She'd argued with him a couple of weeks ago when he'd told her he was paying for her ticket, but he'd won that argument. If she'd known then it was a first class ticket, she would have argued more.

  "First class is frivolous," she said as they waited to board.

  "You won't think that when we get on the plane."

  "Whatever. I'm fine with coach, you know."

  He gave her a look that told her he was just about out of patience with her. "Want me to switch out your ticket?"

  "No. I want to sit with you."

  "Then we're sitting in first class. I'm a big guy. I like bigger seats. And I can afford first class seats for both of us, so quit complaining about it."

  She rolled her eyes and decided to let him have this one. Plus, the seats and extra legroom were awesome, so complaining did seem bitchy.

  The plane took off. Not long after that the flight attendant asked her what she wanted to drink. She looked at her watch and saw it was ten thirty. Too early for wine, she supposed, so she ordered a sparkling water. They also took orders for lunch, and she had her choice of grilled chicken salad or pasta. She chose the grilled chicken salad.

  She settled in to read a book on her e-reader, while Flynn took out his netbook, shoved in his earbuds and started watching a movie. It wasn't long before she was peering over his shoulder at the movie he was watching. He finally noticed and took out his earbuds.

  "You want to watch with me?"

  "That might be hard to do."

  "Not really." He handed her one of his earbuds. She laughed and shoved it in her ear, nestled close to him and watched the movie over his shoulder until their lunch arrived.

  Lunch was amazing, and included wine--and dessert--which made her very happy. Then they showed an in-flight movie, so she put in the earbuds they provided. The flight went by so fast that before she knew it they were landing in Austin. Which made her wish she hadn't turned down that refill on the wine, because now she was nervous again. But she kept her nervousness to herself and followed along as Flynn picked up the rental car and they climbed in.

  "It's about an hour to the ranch from here," he said after he pulled out of the lot. "Do you need to stop for anything? Do you want a drink?"

  An entire bottle of wine would be good. But she doubted that arriving blitzed to meet Flynn's parents would go over well. "No, thanks. I'm fine."

  She could already imagine the greeting she was going to receive. What would his parents think of her?

  She knew what they'd think. That she was head chef at Flynn's restaurant, sleeping with Flynn in order to get ahead. God, why had she agreed to this? In the back of her head she'd known it was a bad idea from the start.

  "You look a little pale, Amelia," Flynn said after about twenty minutes on the road. "Are you sure you're feeling all right?"

  She turned and offered up her best smile. "Oh, I'm fine. Totally fine. Very excited to meet your family."

  That hadn't sounded at all sincere.

  Ten minutes later, Flynn said, "You know, they're not ogres."

  She frowned. "Who?"

  "My parents. They're really nice people. Warm and welcoming. I think you're mentally working yourself up over nothing. This isn't a big deal."

  "Maybe not to you. But I can't help but think they're going to assume I have some ulterior motive in dating you."

  Even though he was wearing sunglasses, she saw his brow go up. "What kind of ulterior motive?"

  "Like the evil chef screws the hot football player and owner of the restaurant where she works in order to get a leg up in the business."

  Flynn stared at her for a few seconds, then snorted out a laugh.

  "It's not funny."

  "Hell yeah it's funny. How exactly would sleeping with me help your career?"

  She crossed her arms, miffed that he wasn't taking her seriously. "I . . . don't know e
xactly. But I'm sure I could take advantage of you in some way. If nothing else, it would give me better job security at Ninety-Two."

  "Your cooking stands on its own. You don't need to sleep with me to keep your job. As for helping you in the industry, I know very few chefs and have almost no contacts in the restaurant industry. How much help could I give you?"

  When he put it like that, it did sound stupid. "I don't know. I just don't want your parents to think I'm using you."

  "Trust me, Amelia, my parents won't think that. I'm pretty sure they know me well enough to realize that if I'm bringing a woman home for Thanksgiving, it's because I trust said woman. A woman who has no nefarious intentions where I'm concerned."

  "Ooh, nefarious. I like that word. It makes me sound like a femme fatale."

  He rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry, babe, but you're more of a sweet muffin than a femme fatale."

  She frowned at him. "I am not."

  "Being a sweet muffin is a bad thing?"

  "Well, no. But I'd like to think I'm at least a little mysterious."

  "Okay, you're totally mysterious. You probably have a stiletto dagger tucked into your garter."

  Now she laughed. "I don't think the airline would allow me to carry a stiletto through security. But the garter sounds fun."

  He slid his hand down her thigh. "Yeah, it does. And if it'll make you wear one, I'll totally buy you a sexy dagger."

  "Done deal. But let's wait until we get back home so airport security doesn't confiscate it."

  "You got it." He gave her thigh a gentle squeeze, and she suddenly wished they weren't in the car so she could touch him freely. But she needed his concentration on driving, not on her, so she stared out the window.

  As they pulled off the highway and drove into more rural territory, she was so intrigued with everything she saw. Having lived all of her life in urban areas, seeing such wide-open spaces intrigued her. Miles of fenced-in green grass, and the occasional acreages housing horses and cows were amazing.

  She turned to him. "You grew up here?"

  He nodded. "Mostly. After my dad retired from football they bought the ranch. Before that, we lived in Wisconsin."

  "What was that like?"

  He smiled. "Cold winters, but really nice. I had good friends. I learned to ice skate there."

  "And yet you didn't become a hockey player."

  He laughed. "No. We played a lot of football. And once we moved down here to Texas, football was king."

  "But one of your brothers plays baseball."

  "Yeah, what can I say? We couldn't beat that love of baseball out of Tucker."