Staying Home (Roped by the Cowboy Duet Book 2)

by J.C. Valentine

  Each time Nash saw her, his mind and his heart waged a tug-of-war. Hell, Gretta was sick of him being so grumpy and wishy-washy? Imagine being in his shoes. He was tired of the waffle routine too. All Nash wanted was peace of mind, but how could he obtain such a thing if he couldn’t decide how to resolve something that, for others, was so seemingly easy?

  “And I found the cutest doily—Oh.” Vivian’s words cut off, as did her forward momentum. She just stopped in the entrance to the kitchen, an armload of bags in both hands, and just sort of…stared. “Hey, Nash.”

  Honestly, Nash was a bit taken aback. He hadn’t expected such a warm welcome, if one could call it that. It was definitely progress though. He figured she’d gotten sick of his prickly behavior, and after the kiss he’d designed for her viewing pleasure, sick of him too.

  She might very well be—sick of him, that is—but she wasn’t screaming or yelling or sticking her nose up at him as if the very sight of him made her sick…yet.

  So, yeah…progress.

  Gretta jammed her elbow in his ribs again, but this time she wasn’t playing around. He looked down at her, and her eyes widened, her brows lifted, and she jerked her head while muttering something he didn’t catch. But the meaning was clear: say something, you fool!

  “Hey, Viv.” Vivian’s eyes flared a bit, as if she too was surprised he hadn’t reacted the way he’d been expecting her to. He continued, “Looks like you’ve been doin’ a bit of shoppin’.”

  “Yeah…uh…” She glanced down at her bags, then moved toward the table as she laid them down slowly, as if it took a considerable effort to get herself together. She swallowed. “Jenna had some nice stuff today.” She turned to engage with Gretta. “I guess she found one of those state-wide garage sales and did some picking. Came away with some interesting things. For both businesses.”

  The women’s eyebrows lifted, and Nash picked up the meaning loud and clear. Jenna wasn’t just an antique shop owner. She also ran a controversial online sex shop that everyone in town pretended didn’t exist but Nash would just bet they all perused. He’d even bet some of them were customers of hers.

  People liked to judge others, while doing things behind closed doors that they know full well others would judge them for.

  That’s a big reason Nash liked to keep his private life private. He didn’t need anyone passing judgment on any part of his life, especially around here because then they felt the need to offer their unsolicited advice. He just didn’t have the time nor the inclination to entertain it.

  Nash fully believed in people minding their own damn business. Which was why he got upset with Ms. Gretta from time to time over her meddling. But she wasn’t just anyone, so he forgave her that. She only meant well, and she wasn’t the judgy type anyway. Probably why everyone loved her so much. She was the safe place, the one people could trust the buck stopped at.

  Well, unless she was talking to him, and then she spilled the beans faster than two shakes of a jackrabbit’s ass. He’d bet she was doing the same with Vivian. The way the two beamed at one another while they talked suggested they’d grown thick as thieves…and wasn’t that a scary thought.

  “So when are y’all goin’ out for a second date?”

  Nash’s attention zoomed back in on their conversation. He’d missed something.

  “Tonight. In five minutes, actually,” she said, checking her cell phone for the time. “We’re going to some rodeo thing.”

  “Rodeo?” Nash inserted himself. “On a date?”

  Vivian and Gretta turned to look at him—Gretta with that cunning glimmer in her eyes and Vivian with a smug smile. She wanted to get him back for that kiss, he just knew it.

  “Yes, with Howard Price,” Vivian informed him. “We’re dating now.”

  Nash wanted to snap at her that he knew, and it was obvious that he knew because they’d been at the theater together and seen one another. But of course, she was trying to get under his skin, maybe to hurt him like he’d done her?

  It wouldn’t be anything less than he deserved, but Nash couldn’t seem to help himself. Like a feral animal, when backed into a corner, he tended to come out swinging.

  “That’s great. So am I. I mean,” he quickly amended, “I’m going, too, on a date. With Sylvia. We’re dating.”

  Vivian’s mouth pinched. “Yes, I know.”

  Gretta’s hands clapped together loudly, snapping their attention to her. “Wonderful! You can go together. A double date! How fun!”

  “I don’t think—”

  “—it’s a good idea,” Nash and Vivian spoke in unison.

  Gretta’s hands were already on their shoulders, turning them toward the front door and pushing them along with more strength than Nash thought she possessed. “Nonsense! With gas prices so high and global warming, it makes economic and ecological sense. Besides, double dating is always so much fun. You get to meet new people, have interesting conversations…” They reached the door and she moved past them to open it. Her eyes were filled with fiery determination and a silent demand that neither of them speak out of turn or suffer the consequences.

  “Now you two go enjoy your evening,” she continued as she ushered them out the door. Howard, the turd, Nash noticed, had just pulled up and was stepping out of his flashy silver Mercedes. Shock and confusion registered on his pretentious, toad-like face when he noticed Nash and Vivian standing on the porch, side by side.

  “Perfect timing,” Gretta called out to him. “I hope you don’t mind, but my Nash will be taggin’ along with y’all tonight. He’ll give you directions to pick up his little lady on the way.” She gave Nash and Vivian a sharp push, forcing them down the stairs together. “Y’all have fun now, hear? And play nice!”

  As Nash reluctantly climbed into the back of the sporty beamer, he could have sworn he heard Ms. Gretta’s wicked cackle of delight as the front door closed behind her.

  TEN

  Sylvia had been shocked to see Nash standing on her doorstep. She’d been even more shocked when he’d told her that they had an impromptu date that she had to be ready for in five minutes or less. But when he’d quickly explained the situation, she’d graciously run off to get herself “presentable” and hopped into the back seat with him, holding his hand and chatting with everyone in attendance as if nothing was out of the ordinary, making Nash so damn grateful he could kiss her again.

  Sylvia may not be his perfect match, and he was far from hers, but she was a hell of a trooper and an even better wingwoman. He’d caught Vivian more than once side-eyeing or downright glaring at Syl as if she’d like nothing more than to rip a chunk of hair out of her head.

  That was jealousy, Nash thought happily as they located their seats at the rodeo.

  Since it’d all been so last minute, he’d had to make an excuse when they arrived, instructing Vivian and Howard to run along to their seats while he got his tickets at the booth where he claimed they were being held for him.

  It wasn’t a total lie. He knew a guy in the rodeo who would happily reserve tickets for him, but he hadn’t planned on attending tonight so he hadn’t asked ahead. He was lucky they had a couple of nosebleeds left. They were cheap seats, and for good reason: you couldn’t see a damn thing from that high up. But, as it turned out, that was okay too. Sylvia wasn’t much for sports and she was also a bit squeamish. Even though there wasn’t really any blood or gore, she panicked and screeched every time the giant television screen suspended from the ceiling for people seated up high wouldn’t miss out on what was happening down below.

  She was a girly girl, Nash thought with a smile. Hell, he made sure to tease her about it a bit too. Just because they weren’t dating for real didn’t mean they couldn’t connect as friends.

  At intermission, Sylvia excused herself to track down the bathroom and volunteered to pick them up something to drink at the concessions, refusing his money when he offered to pay. Nash would have done it himself, but she expressed her desire to have a minute alone to
decompress so she could come back fresh and ready to finish the “whole ordeal” as she’d put it with a teasing wink and smile.

  Nash almost felt bad for dragging her along to something that she couldn’t even enjoy, but he was glad he’d done it, too. There was no way in hell he would have made it this long without either losing his mind or bloodying his knuckles. If only he hadn’t stuck his foot in his mouth, he could have avoided this whole thing, but Nash, as it turned out, was pretty good at doing that sort of thing.

  He was, at least, having a decent time tonight. Despite the way it’d come about, Sylvia was turning out to be good company, and her help with Vivian was proving invaluable. He wasn’t sure if he was as successful with her love interest as she was with his, though.

  Howard seemed fairly well preoccupied with Vivian. Nash hadn’t detected a single note of jealousy on the ride over. Sure, there had been a bit of understandable confusion coupled with discomfort from the sheer awkwardness of it all, but Howard had focused almost solely on his date.

  Which made Nash want to put his fist through his teeth.

  Once again, the object of Nash’s preoccupation was located down below from him, with prime seating right up against the arena. Figured. The guy was loaded. Of course, he would show off his wealth by purchasing the most expensive seats.

  Nash hadn’t planned on doing anything more than sitting there watching the couple chat, content to be alone for the time being, and then finally going home once the event was over. Truth was, despite having a good time with Syl, he was more than ready to be home and away from all of the excitement of the night. He didn’t need to see Vivian out dating other men. It wasn’t his idea of fun and put a decidedly bitter taste in his mouth.

  Then Howard rose up out of his seat and climbed over a couple of other patrons and headed out of the stands, probably off to retrieve drinks and snacks or wait in one of the insanely long lines for the bathroom, which was actually a double row of port-a-potties because this wasn’t a big arena nor was it a regular affair in these parts.

  Seeing an opportunity, Nash got up and climbed down the wooden stair platform, pushing his way rather rudely, if the comments and snide looks said anything, to the first row.

  “Enjoyin’ the show?” Nash asked by way of announcing himself as he claimed the seat beside her, which just so happened to belong to Howard.

  Vivian looked surprised to see him…and maybe a little glad too? Or had Nash imagined the faint smile and glimmer of relief in her eyes?

  “Define enjoy.” Vivian laughed lightly. “As a member of PETA, I find the whole thing barbaric. Animals are not here to be mistreated for our amusement.” Drawing in a deep breath, she appeared to be reigning herself in before she got any more carried away. “Why, are you having fun?”

  After witnessing her reaction and listening to her response, Nash felt that was a loaded question with only one right answer. Nash cast his gaze out toward the dusty arena and the throngs of people. It was loud, with all of their combined chatter and the music and the clown parading about, putting on a show for the families in attendance while they waited for the break to conclude. He thought about the horses’ reactions to their riders, to the stimuli, and then he thought about his own mare back home… Truth was, he sort of agreed with her.

  “I’m havin’ an all right night. Not really my scene, though, if that’s what ya mean.”

  Vivian didn’t appear convinced. “You’re telling me you don’t enjoy all of this macho gallivanting around?”

  “Gallivanting?” Nash smirked. “No, I can’t say that I do. I don’t much get into sports.”

  “You like riding horses,” she pointed out.

  “Ridin’,” Nash agreed, “but gettin’ bucked off for actin’ a fool and trottin’ around while enjoyin’ the weather are entirely different animals.”

  Vivian turned her body halfway toward him and stared him down with a critical eye. Nash knew he’d gone and stuck his foot in his mouth again a moment later. “You didn’t have tickets tonight, did you?” she accused. “You just said that because you were jealous I had a date.” Her eyes widened as if something monumental had just occurred to her. “Did you and Gretta set this up so you could keep an eye on me?”

  Nash opened his mouth to tell her how—partially—wrong she was. Her date tonight had been the first he and Gretta had heard of it, and while Gretta had her own plans for them, Vivian was close in that Nash had wanted to keep an eye on them. He hated the idea that Howard Price was anywhere near her, and he hated even more that she was allowing it. Did she actually…like him? Was he the type of guy she preferred? Before Nash could speak a word of denial, Vivian dismissed the idea.

  “No, how could you have known? But still, I know you didn’t have a date tonight. I know you didn’t have any plans at all to come to this show.”

  “Now how could you know any such thing?” Nash wanted to know.

  “Come on, Nash. If I hadn’t seen that Sylvia girl in her pajamas when she answered the door tonight, then the look of panic on your face when the doorman asked for our tickets would have been evidence enough.”

  Nash had to give the woman credit where credit was due. “I see you’re a regular Nancy Drew,” he remarked.

  Vivian bristled. “I’ll take that as a compliment to my amazing sleuthing skills.”

  Tipping his head, Nash chose not to carry what could quickly spiral into an argument any further. “So, where’s your boyfriend?”

  “He’s not my boyfriend,” she was quick to reply. “And he had to make a phone call. Where’s your girlfriend?”

  Nash’s gaze met hers. “She’s not my girlfriend. And she’s getting us some refreshments.”

  Moments passed as they stared at one another, neither saying a thing. Nash was a heartbeat away from asking her what they were doing here, dancing around the obvious, when the man of the hour decided to return.

  Clearing his throat, Howard popped two red eyebrows up at Nash. “Excuse me. That’s my seat.”

  Nash looked up at him and tilted his head. “Hmm…so it is.”

  With his eyes locked on Nash, Howard addressed Vivian. “Vivvy, is there something going on here I should know?”

  “Well, I—”

  “I got lost on my way to the bathroom. Vivvy was kind enough to point me in the right direction.”

  Vivvy? Nash snorted to himself as he rose to his full height, bringing him eye to eye with the twerp who clearly thought he was superior.

  Back straight and shoulders squared, Howard held his ground as Nash closed in and invaded his personal space, something that was severely limited already. Nash could almost respect the man for not faltering. When he wanted to be, Nash was an intimidating man in stature alone. In countenance, many thought he was downright scary. Guess he had resting jerk face or something.

  “Now that you know where it is, I guess you won’t be bothering me or my date any more this evening.”

  “You guessed right,” Nash confirmed. “At least, until you drop us off at home.” He couldn’t resist taunting the man. The narrowed eyes and heated glare as Nash stepped past him and into the main aisle let Nash know he’d hit his mark too. Nothing like reminding the man that while he might be the one taking her on dates, Nash was the one living next door, within walking distance of her home and bed.

  Even if he didn’t have any plans on taking advantage of it, Howard didn’t need to know that. The suggestion itself was guaranteed to claw its way through his mind and inflict its own brand of lasting torture that Nash could only hope would be painful and lasting and drive a wedge right between them.

  Before walking away entirely, Nash glanced at Vivian. “Enjoy the rest of the show.”

  She didn’t meet his eyes, but she lifted her hand and gave a half-hearted salute, and Nash definitely didn’t miss the little slip of a smile playing on her lips either.

  So what if he’d upset Howard. Nash was reveling in the knowledge that his nemesis didn’t know squat about Vivian a
nd what she viewed as a good time, and when a man couldn’t read his date, he was destined to lose.

  ***

  Thanks to Nash’s mere presence—at least, that’s what he was telling himself—Howard didn’t get a good-night kiss. Didn’t even try for one. It either spoke of their lack of true relationship or that he was too scared or uncomfortable to make an attempt while Nash was around.

  Either way, Nash was happy.

  As the Mercedes’ taillights disappeared down the long and bendy road, Nash walked Vivian to the door. He couldn’t help but consider how backward it was to be walking a woman who wasn’t his date to the door when he’d just done the same with a woman who actually had been his date not ten minutes prior.

  Some might call him a ladies’ man. He wouldn’t say they were wrong. Except in this case.

  “Well, tonight was interesting.” Vivian rocked back on her heels, her purse that lacked straps but made up for it in sequins clutched against her abdomen beneath her overlapping hands.

  “That’s puttin’ it mildly.”

  “Would have been less interesting if a certain couple wouldn’t have tagged along.”

  Nash scoffed. “You would have been bored to tears without us there, and you know it.”

  She grinned. “Isn’t that what I said?”

  Nash thought about it. “I guess maybe you did.”

  Looking down at her toes, Nash thought he might have witnessed a bit of pink touch her cheeks. Could be she was blushing or…could just be the cold air.

  “It’s late,” she hedged.

  “It is. Far past bedtime for geezers like us.”

  Covering a laugh, Vivian whispered, “You’d better not let Gretta hear you say that.”

  “Why? You think she’s sensitive about her age?” Nash knew different. “Ms. Gretta is more likely to agree and tell us how she can run circles around us all.”

  “And she probably could too.”

  Nash and Vivian suddenly grew quiet, as if the same thought had crossed their mind. Ms. Gretta hadn’t been so spry lately. She was showing the obvious signs of wear and tear, slowing down in her age…or health. They were both concerned for their old friend, wary of what might lie ahead. For all of them.