by Laura Moore
“Yeah. We already had two ponies and I bought four new ones. Um, I have to head up to the barn now. I have some horses to exercise.” It wasn’t a lie. She was due to ride Valentine and Carmen. But she’d have been tempted to invent just about anything, if it meant getting rid of him. Those blue eyes were too intense. She swore she could feel the heat coming off his body, and she wasn’t even standing next to him.
“I’ll walk you back up.”
What was she to do? Tell him he couldn’t? But why in the world was he doing this? She wouldn’t have pegged him for an obtuse clod, but he didn’t seem to be getting the very clear will-you-please-buzz-off signals she was sending.
“They look like nice ponies.”
She didn’t bother to stifle her snort. “Well, that’s generally the goal when you go pony or horse shopping: to not come home with the equine from hell.”
“I’d like to sign Hayley up for riding lessons with you.”
His words sent her stumbling on a pebble. Righting herself, she glared at him. He was doing it on purpose, this whole let’s-say-totally-off-the-wall-things-to-Jade-and-see-whether-she-falls-on-her-face ploy. “This is a joke, right?” she snapped. “Because yesterday you seemed real keen to tar and feather me and run me out of Warburg on a rail.”
It wasn’t the only thing he’d been real keen to do, Jade thought, but she would rather be devoured by fire ants than go near that topic.
“It’s not a joke. Everyone says that your lesson program will be the best in town, and Hayley is desperate to have lessons. I promised them to her for her birthday.”
“Nice of you, but you’ve been misinformed. There are lots of really good riding instructors around Warburg. Go to Steadman’s—”
“First place I went,” he interrupted calmly. “Adam and Sara Steadman told me you’d be the best teacher, hands down.”
She rolled her eyes. “The Steadmans are biased. They sold me my first pair of jodhpurs. Try Steffi Connors at Winsome Farm. She gets lots of kids.”
“I’d rather have Hayley ride with you. Do you have an opening for a beginner? She’s had some lessons, but I’d like her to start right.”
The man must be seriously unhinged. Having her teach Hayley to ride was the worst idea ever, and yet he seemed to think it was just fine and dandy. Being Hayley’s teacher at Warburg Elementary would already bring Rob into Jade’s life too often. Giving her riding lessons at Rosewood would exacerbate the problem tenfold—the problem being that, whenever Jade saw Rob, she couldn’t stop thinking about how he looked naked and how he’d made her feel when he was moving inside her.
A situation like this should be avoided like the plague.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t think of a plausible lie when he was looking at her with his electric-blue gaze and determined expression. Why she found that concentrated focus unbearably sexy made her wonder if she was as certifiable as he.
Then Rob said, “So you do have an opening?” And she knew she’d blown her chance by hesitating too long.
She sighed heavily. “Look, it’s just not a good idea for me to teach Hayley. I’m her teacher. She should take lessons with someone else.”
“And yet you’ve agreed to let Jenny Ferris sign up and she’s in your class too,” he pointed out.
Crap. In her distraction, she’d forgotten that Hayley and Jenny were best buddies. Hayley would know where Jenny was riding this fall and would have shared the info with her dad.
“That’s different,” she muttered.
“The only difference I can see is that I’m Hayley’s dad. You’re not going to hold what happened between us against her, are you?”
She narrowed her eyes. “No, I’d say that’s more your style.”
“Ouch.” For a second he was silent. “Okay, I deserved that. I admit this thing between us is somewhat awkward. But I want to make Hayley happy, and she’s so excited at the prospect of taking lessons from you. I don’t like disappointing her if I can help it.” As he said this last, he reached up and tugged his earlobe.
It was that simple, unconscious gesture that made Jade relent. Hayley made the very same one—tugging absently on her earlobe—whenever she talked about the things she loved, like going to her grandparents’ home for Sunday dinner or playing catch with her dad.
No matter what else was going on between Rob and her, Jade couldn’t forget that he was a widower raising his daughter alone and doing whatever he could to make her happy. Refusing to give Hayley lessons would bring Jade on par with the Grinch. But just because she was caving didn’t mean she had to be gracious about it. No one had ever accused her of being a saint.
“I have Tuesdays and Thursdays available. Lessons are twenty dollars. Take your pick.”
“How about both?” Her slack-jawed stare had him grinning widely. “She really likes ponies.”
Jade shut her mouth with a snap. “Fine. Whatever,” she ground out. “Make sure she has a hard hat. And since you already haunt Steadman’s Saddle Shop, ask Adam next time you’re in if they have any secondhand jodhpurs.”
She was surprised to see him stiffen.
“I can afford to buy new gear.”
Ah, so he was proud, she thought. Well, she could relate to that. “It’s your money,” she said with a shrug. “But I can guarantee you Hayley will outgrow her riding clothes in three months. Riding’s not a cheap sport. If you intend to keep her in the saddle, you should economize where you can. Because once she talks you into buying a pony, you’re going to start feeling poor real quick.” Irritated by the spurt of pleasure that filled her when her words erased his tension, she said, “Well, this has been fun, but, as I said, I have horses waiting for me.” She jerked her thumb in the direction of the main barn.
Rob was surprised by how much he wanted their conversation to continue, but he said, “Oh, sure. I don’t want to keep you from your work.” He liked talking to her, liked her wit and the offbeat sense of humor she’d displayed. He really liked her decency in agreeing to give Hayley riding lessons. Not everyone would have done so.
He’d surprised himself as much as he’d surprised her when he’d abruptly asked about lessons for Hayley. But suddenly it had seemed ridiculous that he should look anywhere else. Jade was obviously a great teacher, both in the classroom and in the riding ring. And he wanted the best teacher he could find for Hayley.
So what if having her take lessons with Jade contradicted everything he’d told himself last night. Maybe being around Jade wasn’t such a bad thing. It certainly felt fine right now, more than fine.
“So, see you.” She turned to head into the barn.
“Wait,” he said abruptly, though even a blind man could have seen her impatience to be gone and rid of him.
“Yes?”
“I was wondering whether you were free this weekend. Perhaps we could go out tomorrow.”
“Like on a date?” Astonishment widened her green eyes. Truth be told, Rob was equally taken aback. Where the hell had those words come from?
He certainly hadn’t intended to ask her out. In the bar in Norfolk, he’d admitted to himself that it was time to consider dating again. But his brain had obviously gone haywire. Jade Radcliffe didn’t possess a single one of the criteria he was looking for in a woman. Okay, that wasn’t strictly true.…
While he was still struggling to unscramble his wits, Jade had already recovered from her surprise. She was smiling at him at last. Smiling with what Rob could only describe as unholy glee.
“Sorry, but I’m afraid I have to decline,” she said, and her smile grew even wider, brilliantly showing him just how very un-sorry she was. “I already have a date tomorrow. A very hot date. So long, Officer Cooper.”
With that she sauntered off, leaving him scowling in the sunny courtyard long after she’d disappeared into the barn and wondering who in hell she was dating, while at the same time recalling with torturous clarity just how hot a night with Jade Radcliffe could be.
WARBURG WAS far too snobb
y to support a bowling alley, but luckily Route 50 offered businesses and entertainment for real people. Jade recognized, however, that if the Reverend Stuart Wilde hadn’t come into her life, she might never have discovered this gem of a place. Thanks to Stuart’s bringing her here beginning in her miserable sophomore year, Roxie’s Bowlarama became a place of sanity and camaraderie. Sanity from the pressure cooker that was Warburg High, with its hostile social cliques, and camaraderie from a man who was forty-five years her senior and who possessed limitless patience and kindness.
She remembered Stuart handing her a bowling ball and telling her he’d found bowling strikes to be the best way to alleviate his frustration with the world and even with the Almighty. Stuart was no slouch on the lane. With him teaching Jade, it hadn’t taken her long to begin throwing strikes. He’d also taught her how to forgive her troubled teenage self, those lessons far harder to master than tossing a heavy ball down a narrow lane and knocking over some pins. It had been a slow process, hindered by some serious backsliding.
Yet even when she screwed up, Stuart never gave up on her. His friendship had endured, even after Jade technically no longer needed it, when she began to get her act together. That this funny and wise man should care so much when, unlike her family at Rosewood, he had no obvious reason to, filled her with gratitude to this day.
Not for anything would Jade stand Stuart up on one of their bowling nights. Not even for a date with Rob Cooper. She still couldn’t believe that Rob had asked her out. Or maybe she could.
She had a fair idea of what he’d like to do on a date with her. And if he’d been anybody but Officer Rob Cooper, father of Hayley Cooper, she might have been tempted to ask for a rain check. Such was the man’s sex appeal. But while she’d succumbed to his attractions once—twice, if she counted their kiss in her classroom, which was pretty difficult to discount—she didn’t intend to succumb to temptation again. So no dates with the terrifyingly sexy Rob Cooper on the calendar for her.
Luckily for her, Stuart was great company. He was in rare form tonight, having just thrown a hambone, his fourth strike in a row. After the pins had tumbled with a satisfying clatter, he turned around and beamed, his round face lit with happiness.
“Not bad for an old man,” he said, pulling out a pocket handkerchief and mopping his brow with it.
“Not bad at all. Have you been sneaking down here on your own and practicing, Stuart?”
“I’ve merely been working on the timing of my release, my dear. I can do that anywhere. It’s all in the visualization.” He tapped the side of his forehead as he took his seat.
Jade knew all about visualization. Her problem was that she kept visualizing Rob Cooper looking as delicious as sin when he’d asked her out yesterday, rather than visualizing the proper hook for her bowling ball’s trajectory. The guy wore his blue jeans well. “This might end up being your night, Stuart, but I’ve got to warn you, I’m not going down without a fight. You know how much I hate to lose.”
He nodded with the serenity of a man who had a comfortable point lead. “That I do. So let’s see if you’ve got some magic up that sleeve.”
Jade grinned. She loved bowling and especially loved winning at it, but seeing Stuart’s plump face glowing with satisfaction was equally fine. “All righty, then. Why don’t you take a good look at this release and tell me if the angels aren’t weeping with envy?”
His parents had invited Hayley to sleep over, leaving Rob with little to do except perhaps sit and brood about Jade Radcliffe. So when Eric Drogan called to ask whether he felt like tagging along while he did some research for an article, he accepted. Given his mood, Rob would have preferred to go to the gym and lift weights and then toss back some cold beers with Eric, but he supposed checking out a bowling alley wasn’t too lousy an alternative.
“We’re doing a series of articles on family-oriented businesses and activities in and around Warburg, to encourage people to get outside and explore the county’s offerings. I’ve never been here, but I’ve heard it’s a great place,” Eric said as he and Rob crossed the parking lot, which flickered red and gold from the neon lights spelling out ROXIE’S BOWLARAMA.
Rob opened one of the double glass doors and held it for Eric. “Who told you about it?”
“Reverend Wilde.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah,” Eric answered with a grin. “I ran into him on the street the other day and began telling him about the series. I asked him whether he had any place to recommend. Apparently he’s a regular here.”
“Go figure.” Perhaps the reverend was on to something, though. From the looks of it, Roxie’s Bowlarama was the happening place on a Saturday night, Rob thought, stepping into the brightly lit interior and hearing the sound of balls rolling along the polished wood alleys and clattering into pins and, over that, the rocking strains of the Steve Miller Band’s “Jungle Love,” which was pumping from the speakers.
Although practically all of the bowling lanes were occupied, a line of customers was waiting to rent bowling shoes and balls. The woman behind the cash register, who was also dispensing advice about what size ball to rent, was in her mid-fifties, had platinum hair piled in a beehive, and rhinestone-encrusted glasses perched on her nose. To complete the retro look, she wore a flaming-pink bowling shirt with Roxie stitched on the left breast. Rob decided it was a safe bet that she was the proprietress.
Eric had reached the same conclusion. “I want to ask Roxie a few questions for the article before we scope out the place. Once we’ve soaked up the atmosphere, we can bowl a few frames if we’re feeling inspired. It’d be interesting to find out whether you’re as lousy at bowling as you are at b’ball,” Eric said.
“Care to lay down some money on that hope?”
Eric grinned. “A sucker I am not.”
Roxie Donoghue was delighted that the Warburg Courier intended to run an article on her bowling alley. Calling an assistant over to help the other customers, she happily answered Eric’s questions about her establishment. “Oh, this is a wonderful destination for a family outing, especially when the weather starts to turn lousy, though as you can see, we get lots of people in on nice evenings too. We have good fun here, from league bowling to friends just coming in for a game.”
“How long have you owned Roxie’s?”
“Close to ten years now. When I bought the place, it was kind of sad and dreary. I renovated it completely and refurbished the lanes. Now they’re the best around. My husband, Earl, he runs the snack bar. That man makes some mean nachos. Tell him to give you an order on the house.”
“Thanks, we’ll definitely sample them. Roxie, can you give us an idea what age you think is suitable for kids to start bowling?”
“Gosh, we’ve had kids in here as young as three years old bumper-bowling with a six-pound ball. They need both hands to roll the ball, of course, but they just love the game. Whether they hit any pins or not hardly matters. We offer lessons starting at age eight, but even before then kids can pick up the essentials of the game and have a grand time here. Scoring’s a lot easier, too, now that it’s computerized.”
She waited while Eric jotted down notes, then asked, “So who told you about us?”
“Reverend Wilde. He says he comes here often.”
Eric’s answer lit Roxie’s face. “That Stuart is such a love!” she exclaimed. “I swear, he is just the kindest, most thoughtful human being I know. Almost makes me want to go to church.” Her saucy wink had both Eric and Rob grinning in return. “I’m going to have Earl put an extra scoop of ice cream on Stuart’s brownie tonight—Stu’s got a serious sweet tooth. He’s here, you know.”
“Stuart Wilde’s here tonight?” Eric asked.
“Uh-huh. With his bowling partner, Jade Radcliffe.”
Rob—momentarily diverted by a woman who was seventy if she was a day, who’d decided to rent a glittery purple bowling ball—snapped to attention. “Did you say Jade Radcliffe?”
Roxie nodded. “She an
d Stuart have been coming here for years. I’m so glad she’s back home from college. She keeps Stuart in tip-top bowling shape. They’re quite a pair, those two.”
“Hey, Eric, maybe we should go pay our respects to Reverend Wilde,” Rob said.
“Sounds good.” Turning back to Roxie, Eric said, “Thanks for all the information. If I have any more questions, can I call you?”
“Sure thing. Here’s our card.” She took a business card with red-and-gold lettering from the stack next to the register and handed it to him. “Earl and I are here just about every day. And don’t forget to try those nachos. Stuart and Jade are bowling in lane thirteen—Jade’s lucky number.”
Aware that his mood had improved 100 percent the moment he’d heard that Jade was here and that her companion was an AARP-card-carrying minister, Rob trained his gaze on the distant lanes as he and Eric walked past bowlers taking aim at wooden pins.
“Question for you, buddy. How much does your sudden eagerness to see Reverend Wilde have to do with his partner?”
Eric didn’t miss much. It was why he was a good journalist. It was also why Rob didn’t bother to deny the obvious. “She’s Hayley’s teacher. And Hayley adores her. Naturally I want to say hi.”
“Naturally. Does she by any chance look like her half sisters?”
Rob would probably have come back with some sort of parry, but his eyes had zeroed in on Jade, metallic-blue bowling ball in hand. She was making her approach, taking four steps and then swinging her right blue-jeaned leg back in a graceful slide as her arm swung and then released the ball. Rob took his eyes off the sweet swell of her butt long enough to watch the ball roll down the alley and hook slightly to the left as it neared the pins. The ball hit them dead center, toppling all ten with a loud clatter.
Her exultant “Yes!” was louder than the noise of the pins being swept back. Hips wiggling, she performed a little dance, and the memory of her body moving in time with his made his heart thump heavily in his chest. But when she spun around with a smile bright enough to light up the entire place, his heart doubled its beat with the urgency of desire.