by Ciana Stone
A dozen or more voices called out greetings the moment he walked into the bar. Riley couldn't help but grin. Billy's was the real life equivalent of Cheers. Here everyone did know your name. He returned the greetings as he walked over and took a seat on a stool at the end of the bar.
"What'cha having, Riley?" Cody Sweet, the tiny brunette woman behind the bar grinned at him.
"Whatever's on draft."
"It's on the house since you're playing."
"Well, in that case…whatever's on draft."
Cody chuckled and drew him a beer. "Dad tell you I have my eyes on a new mare?"
"Don't believe he did."
"She's a beaut. I'd like to breed her to Twostep."
"I thought your daddy said you were gonna get rid of that hellfire."
"He wants me to, but you know I love that horse. And he's only mean to people he doesn’t like."
Riley chuckled. "Which is damn near everyone."
Cody grinned. "That new fella of yours has me teaching him to rope. Seems he has a hankering to try his hand at rodeoing."
"Yeah, he has a hankering to try his hand at everything."
"He is mighty enthusiastic."
"So how long's he been at it?"
"A couple of weeks. He's actually got potential. But I wanna pit him up against a feisty beast and I know you got that one cow that's ornery as a snake, so I was hoping I could ride over Sunday afternoon and round her up. If that's okay with you."
"Just fine. You wanna stay to dinner?"
"Are you cooking?"
This time it was a full-blown laugh that emerged. "Oh no. You, Cody Sweet did not cast aspersions on my skills in the kitchen. Why, if memory serves, the last time I was at your house for dinner-"
Cody tossed a bar cloth at him. "Don't say it."
Riley caught the cloth and grinned at her. "Yeah, I'm cooking. Steak and potatoes. Even I can't mess that up."
She laughed and snatched back the bar cloth. "Well fine then. I'd love to, Riley."
They and everyone else in Cotton Creek knew that there was a lot of things Cody Sweet could do, but cooking was not on the list. Unlike her mama and her sister, Hannah, Cody had no talent for cooking. In fact, Billy, her father, always joked that Cody could burn water.
"So." She leaned over the bar toward him. "What do you hear from Miss Stained Butt?"
"I should'a never told you that."
"Oh come on, it was funny. And it's not like I'm gonna tell anyone. But no matter what you say, Riley, I know there's something going on there. You been messaging with her for forever."
"Forever?"
"Well for a year at least. Come on, fess up."
"I told you, we're just friends."
"Yeah right. You ought to invite her to come down for the annual rodeo and barbecue bash. It's just around the corner. She might get a kick out of it seeing as how she writes those romance books about cowboys. And oh damn, I almost forgot. I read her last book and god as my witness, every time her hero, Colt, opened his mouth it was you."
"Excuse me?"
"He talked just like you."
"Along with half of Texas."
"No, it was you, Riley. I bet you a dollar to a donut she used you as her hero. I think she has a crush on you."
"She's never even met me."
"But you Facebook message with her more than KC Snapchats with her friends. Which reminds me, are you ever gonna put your picture on your profile?"
"Probably not."
"Well why not. Hell, Riley, you're hot – for an old guy, I mean."
"An old guy?" He pretended shock at the comment, knowing full well it was not intended as an insult.
"Well you are old enough to be my daddy."
"That I am."
"And if I didn't love you like family, I might even be tempted, so why not add a photo? I'll take one for you."
"You know why I don't."
Cody shrugged. "Sometimes you have to let go of the past, Riley."
"Hello pot. I'm Kettle, nice to meet you."
Cody's eyes narrowed for a moment but then she shrugged. "Yep, it takes one to know one, don't it? You want a refill on that beer?"
"You got any barbecue left? I didn't have time to eat."
"I made up some sandwiches for dinner. Wanna split with me?"
"How many you got?"
"Four."
"Well, if you're sure you can survive with just two."
"For you, I'll make the sacrifice. Let me run back and warm 'em up. Cole slaw and potato salad? Hannah made 'em both fresh today."
"That'd be good."
"You got it." She refilled his beer and then headed for the kitchen, hollering for her sister. "Hannah, watch the bar!"
Riley grinned and turned to look around. The place was pretty packed, but then it was almost nine o'clock on a Saturday night. Lot of folks looked forward to throwing back a few brews at Billy's. It was a place to socialize, dance and unwind from the week.
He spotted Otis, Jimmy and Fred on the old stage, setting up. Billy walked up behind him. "So you playing or drinking?"
"Little of both. Cody's gonna share her dinner with me. Didn't have time to eat."
"Cody's giving you half her food? Now that's love. Dang if she can't out eat half the men in Cotton Creek. Her mama spent half her childhood fearing she had a tapeworm."
"She can put it away."
"That she can. Okay, when you'd done, let's get to it."
"Yes sir."
Just as Billy was walking away, Riley's phone pinged in his shirt pocket. He pulled it out and read the message.
Well, it took me a longer than I thought it would but I made it to New Orleans and guess what I just did? I bought a voodoo doll! It's really ugly but New Orleans is amazing. Have you ever been here? It's my first time. I'm on Bourbon Street and I'm stopping at every bar. Not drinking at every one just stopping for a look.
The message was followed by a shot of Bourbon Street. Riley smiled and typed in a response. Yeah, been there a time or two. Quite a place. Good thing you're not having a drink at every bar or you'd never make it to the end of the street. Have fun. Getting ready to play some at Billy's.
There was only a few seconds' delay before her response came in. Sure would like to hear you play one day, Riley.
You should come to the annual Cotton Creek barbecue cook-off in October. Third weekend, starts on Friday and goes through Sunday.
Riley responded and hit the send key, then looked at it in horror. Why the heck had he done that?
This time the response was not instant. In fact, it took so long Riley started to think that not only was Cody wrong, she was miles off base about Analise having a crush on him. Had he just scared her?
When his phone pinged, he was both relieved and anxious.
I just might. I'm going to a writer's conference the second weekend of September in San Antonio then visiting a friend in the area. Will let you know.
Riley stared at the phone for a moment, trying to decide if he was happy or wished he'd never asked. It wasn't that he didn't want to meet her. They were pretty good friends, and truth be told, he looked forward to their messaging conversations more than he'd admit.
But he wasn't sure he was ready for a face-to-face. First of all, what if she recognized him? Would that change things? And second, what if – God forgive him – but what if she was just downright butt ugly?
That thought shamed him on a couple of levels. It shouldn't matter what she looked like, and besides, who said she was gonna show up looking for anything other than what they had. A friendship.
Damn if he wasn't letting Cody mess up his head with her talk.
"Someone piss in your beer?" Cody slapped two plates on the bar.
"Nope." He cut his eyes at her.
She shrugged and picked up one of the thick barbecue sandwiches from her plate to take a giant bite.
Riley shook his head and grinned. Cody might be pint-sized but her appetite was bigger than most me
n he knew. He'd never known anyone who could put away as much food as she did and remain a petite little thing with enough energy for five people. Maybe that's why it took so much to fill her up. She was a full eight-cylinder machine, running wide open all the time.
He took his time and finished one sandwich, the potato salad and part of the coleslaw. She'd polished off her entire plate of food before he reached for his near-empty beer mug.
"Refill?"
"No, thanks. Think I better mosey on over to the boys. They look a bit itchy to get started. Thanks for the dinner. I'll make it up to you on Sunday."
"Steak. Big one." She held her hands out wide enough to encompass a beach ball. "Just shy of mooing."
"You got it half-pint."
He picked up his guitar and headed over to the stage. Billy and Otis were on old worn stools, softly picking on their instruments – Billy on the banjo and Otis on the bass guitar. Fred was putting a new string on his old guitar and Jimmy was sitting behind his drums, tapping his sticks together.
"You boys ready to play?"
They looked up and him and Billy grinned. "Born ready. Let's do it."
Riley grinned and walked up to the mic, tapped on it and upon hearing the loud tap through the speakers, leaned in to talk.
"Hey, folks. Mind if we play you a tune or two?"
Cheers and yells had him chuckling. "Any requests?"
The cacophony that ensued prompted a chuckle and Billy sidled up beside him at the microphone. "How's about an oldie but a goodie? Ring of Fire?"
"The Man in Black it is." Riley struck the first chord and the others picked up. He was glad Cody had goaded him to come in tonight. Playing with the band always lifted his spirits and the energy from the crowd never failed to fill him with gratitude. He sometimes forgot to appreciate what it meant to be able to just be Riley and not have anyone expecting larger than life actions from him.
Here it was okay if he missed a chord, or hit a sour note. These people were family and they wanted nothing more than to have some music, tap their toes, dance or sing along.
An hour later Riley held up his hand to the clapping crowd. "We're a bit parched so we're gonna take a break and be back in a few."
He made his way through the crowd to the bar. Cody grinned as she pulled a draft and then slid it down the bar to him. Riley caught it and gave her a grin and a nod before lifting it to his lips.
"Riley Morgan, there you are!"
Riley turned at the sound of the voice to find Stella Sweet standing behind him. With her was the skinniest woman he'd ever seen in his entire life. It was like the phrase "sack of bones” coming to life. Riley's first thought was that the woman was terminally ill, because there was no way a person would choose to be that skinny. His second was that he hoped Stella wasn't trying to fix him up. Again. Please got let it be anything but that.
"Stella, hey. How are you?"
"Any finer and I'd need a manager. Riley, I don't know if you remember Agnes June Jones? Oh, Howard now. Clara Jean Tilton's sister? They were a couple of years behind us in school. Anyway, she's visiting Clara Jean for a few weeks and is thinking of moving back to Cotton Creek."
"Well that's real nice. Nice to see you Ms. Howard."
"Nice to see you, Riley." Agnes June gave him a big toothy smile and actually batted her eyes at him. "I just couldn't believe it when I first saw you on the big screen. To think that little Riley Morgan had grown up and become so handsome. And a star. I was just flabbergasted."
"I was a bit as well, Ms. Agnes." No way he was using the woman's first name. He would not be accused of flirting with her. But he did have to make himself not stare. Whoever did her eyebrows must've been hitting the bottle. One was nicely curved but the other was full on Vulcan. He turned his attention to Stella..
Stella beamed at him. "I was telling Billy that we should all have dinner. Let you and Agnes June get reacquainted. I was thinking Sunday would be good. If you're free."
"Oh I'm sorry, Stella. Cody's coming over Sunday to work with that new fella I hired, Bobby. She's teaching him to rope and I promised to cook her a steak."
"Well, I'm sure Cody wouldn't mind if you—"
"Oh hell yeah Cody would."
Riley had never loved Cody more than at that moment. He cut a look to his savior who was leaning on the bar behind him. "I'm not gonna cancel on you half-pint."
"Better not or there'll be hell to pay, Riley Morgan."
Riley had to fight back the smile that wanted to claim his face. "I'm sorry, Stella. You know I can't disappoint your girl."
Stella cut her eyes at Cody in a manner that told Riley that later, Stella would give her hell. Riley would gladly make recompense for whatever hell Cody caught. As nice as she might be, Agnes June was downright scary. Big over-white teeth were framed with fire-engine red lips that looked like they'd been cosmetically plumped one too many times, and set in a face that had been pulled so tight, it was a like skin stretched over bone.
"Well, there will be plenty of time once Agnes June gets settled back home."
"Oh I see Billy waving at me. Got one more set to play." Riley took a quick drink of his beer. "You ladies have a fine night."
As he hurried away, he suppressed the urge to shudder. Sadly, he'd reached the age in life where the choice of companions was slim. At least in these parts. Most women over thirty were married and those who weren't were single for a reason. Either way, it didn't leave him a lot of dateable choices.
Not that he was looking for a date. He'd had his share of those. His phone chimed and he pulled it out of his pocket. "Well I'll be damned." He stopped to type in a response, put the phone back into his pocket and grinned.
Life was just chock full of surprises.
Chapter Four
Analise stood on the sidewalk, watching the people. New Orleans was amazing. She couldn't wait to explore it more tomorrow. She'd arrived late in the afternoon and by the time she had the RV set up at the campground and gotten directions to the city, she had just enough time to arrive before dusk. New Orleans might be a city that didn't sleep, but she was tired. She'd driven all day and had not slept well last night.
She was glad she'd decided to purchase the scooter she'd bought in Tennessee. It was a cute little thing, red and shiny and as long as she didn't have to ride it far, it was great. She wouldn't want to put it on a highway, but for driving short jaunts to and from whatever campground she was in, it was perfect.
A crowd of people, obviously with a few drinks under their belts, approached and she backed up to the side of the building to let them pass. One of the women in the group stopped. "Oh, it that a voodoo doll?"
"Yes." Analise handed the woman the doll. "I got it at that shop—" she pointed down the street in the direction the group was headed.
"Cool." The woman returned it to her. "Hey, want me to take your picture with it?"
Analise smiled. "Yes, thanks."
She'd taken a ton of pictures, but taking selfies wasn't exactly her thing. She handed the woman her phone and then held the doll up beside her face, like a game show hostess displaying a prize.
"Got it!" The woman grinned and returned Analise's phone. "Have fun."
"You too." Analise accessed the photos and looked at the image. It wasn't horrible. The woman had taken a shot from the waist up and you could see the window of the bar behind Analise.
On impulse she accessed her messenger app and keyed in a message. Voodoo Annie and her doll. She attached the photo and hit send.
A second later she felt a minor stab of panic. She and Riley had never exchanged photos. He'd never seemed interested in what she looked like. He'd once asked why she didn't have a photo of herself on her author page on Facebook and she had explained that her husband was not a big fan of her writing. He didn't want any of his business associates running across an image of her on the Ana Lise Author Page.
He had never asked anything more about it and had displayed no interest at all in her appearance. What i
f he thought she was being…being what? He'd just invited her to a festival, hadn't he? That meant that at the very least they were friends. And if she went to the festival she'd meet him so it wasn't a big deal to send the photo.
Was it?
Then again, she had just sent a picture to a man she'd met over the internet. She thought she knew him but what if she didn't? What if he wasn't at all what he seemed? Her excitement over being in New Orleans paled as she gnawed that mental bone. Now she didn't feel much like exploring. And the idea of finding a place to eat had lost all appeal.
She felt a little sick to her stomach. She'd just sent a picture of herself to Riley. Why did that make her so nervous? Was it that she didn't trust him to be who she thought he was, or was she vain enough to be concerned that he wouldn't think her pretty?
Her phone chimed and she pulled it out to look at it. Voodoo Annie. You must be the one with the straw hair. Who's that pretty lady with you?
Pretty lady? Pretty? Why did that infuse her with a blast of energy and excitement, quicken not just her step but her pulse? Did it really matter what Riley thought of her looks? And maybe he was just being nice. He was a polite man.
God, it'd been way too long since she'd dealt with men. At least as a single woman. The last time she was with a man other than her husband she'd been … that thought stopped her dead in her tracks. Dear god, that was more than twenty-five years ago. It'd been so long since she'd gotten attention from the opposite sex that she had completely forgotten how to deal with it.
And there she went again. Was he giving her attention or simply responding in a nice manner to something she'd sent? Maybe he thought she was fishing for a compliment. After all, she did send him a photo of herself. Damn it all. Maybe she was just over-thinking the whole thing
With a groan, she shoved the phone into her pocket and walked the rest of the way to her scooter, trying to figure out if she should respond and if she did, what she should say. She had not figured it out by the time she got back to the campground, rolled the scooter onto the carrier attached to the rear of the RV and locked it up for the night.