by Soraya Lane
Chase held up his hands. “No problem.” Maybe she didn’t want the kid to know she was going out with a man, he got that. “I’ll see you in a minute.”
Hope threw him what looked like a grateful smile and shut the door, leaving him standing outside alone. He chuckled and walked back to his car. It was like being a teenager sneaking around with a girl all over again, only this time it wasn’t a dad he was nervous about running into, it was a child.
* * *
Hope’s nerves were frazzled. The last thing she’d wanted was Chase coming in and seeing Harrison, but she’d been running so late from work and she’d wanted to take time getting ready. Just because they’d been friends for years didn’t mean she had any intention of going out without making an effort, and she hadn’t had a night out in … months. Maybe longer.
She ran back, grabbed her purse from where she’d discarded it earlier on the bed, and looked at herself once last time in the floor-length mirror. Her jeans were tight, the stilettos a pair she’d bought on a whim and never worn before. She shrugged into her favorite leather jacket, pushed some big gold hoops through her ears, and leaned over to squirt some perfume into her hair. She’d read somewhere that a Victoria’s Secret model did that before every date, and if it worked for her then Hope was happy to follow her lead.
“Bye, sweetheart,” she called out as she hurried into the living room again, dropping a kiss into Harrison’s hair. Hope stopped, noticed how happy her son seemed to be with the sitter. She’d asked her to come over an hour early, just in case, but it seemed the agency she’d used had given her a good one—the young woman was snuggled up on the sofa with Harrison watching a DVD, happily chatting about the characters like The Lego Movie was her favorite, too. “I won’t be late. See you soon.”
She mouthed thank you to the sitter when she turned around and grinned at her, before opening the door, stepping out, and locking it behind her. Hope took a deep breath, stuck her purse under her arm, and turned toward the driveway. Chase’s throaty engine rumbled to life and the headlights flicked on. It was time to put on her game face. So she did exactly that, forcing a smile and squaring her shoulders like going out for dinner with her old college buddy was the most normal thing in the world.
Chase appeared and walked around the front of the vehicle, opening her door. “All set?” he asked.
“Yup. All set.”
She moved past him and jumped up into his SUV, her smile easy when he went to close her door. “Thank you.” Her husband hadn’t opened a door for her once, and it wasn’t something she’d even thought about before. “I’ll have to make sure I teach my son some good southern manners.”
Chase nodded. “Yes, ma’am, you will.”
She burst out laughing and scolded him once he settled into the driver’s seat. “Just don’t be calling me ma’am. I hate that.”
“Anywhere in particular you want to go?” Chase asked her.
She couldn’t help but glance around the inside of the vehicle, running her hand over the black leather as she relaxed back into her seat. There was luxury, and then there was Chase’s SUV. It even still had that delicious new-car smell.
“Is this new?”
“Yeah, I picked it up a couple months back.” He smiled over at her before putting it in reverse. “It’s the new Mercedes GL, AMG model. Best vehicle I’ve ever had.”
She sighed. This was the kind of car she’d been used to, and now she was driving a plain old Toyota. Hardly the epitome of luxury. Tears prickled her eyes, but she blinked them back—it was stupid to get emotional over a car, but it was just another reminder of what she’d lost, of the lifestyle she’d let slip away from her like it had never existed in the first place.
“You okay?”
She blinked and quickly looked up. “Of course,” she murmured. “My dad had one of the earlier models, so it just reminded me of him.” It wasn’t a lie, but it also wasn’t the reason she’d become upset.
“So, dinner?”
“I don’t believe that you haven’t booked anywhere already.”
“Maybe I have.” Chase threw her a wink that made her stomach fall through the floor. If it wasn’t for that damn dimple … ugh. Who was she kidding? It wasn’t just his dimple that made her knees knock, it was the glint in his eyes when he smiled, the self-assuredness that as good as oozed from him, his broad shoulders filling the seat and then some. Chase was God’s gift to women and he damn well knew it.
“So where are you thinking?”
“Just one of those places that always makes space for us.”
“Huh.” She’d forgotten what that was like, too. Although Chase’s family and her family were kind of different. Her parents had had money, but Chase’s family had the kind of wealth that made the Forbes list every year. “Do you take a different girl there every other night?”
Chase braked at the end of the driveway before he reversed out into the street. “No.”
“Bullshit.”
“I don’t want to sound like an asshole, but I don’t usually take them out for dinner.”
“Ugh!” She made a face and went to play punch him, just connecting with his arm before pulling back. It was the kind of thing she’d used to do to him, but suddenly it didn’t seem such a good idea any longer.
“Sorry, just trying to keep it real,” he said with a shrug.
“Yeah, I always had to put up with your sleazing. I don’t need to hear about it.” It was true, she’d heard from just about every girl on campus about how great Chase was in bed, or how badly they wanted to get into his bed, and all she’d been able to do was bristle and tell herself that she’d meant more to him than some one-night stand. Although she was the one who’d had a one-night stand and ended up pregnant, so maybe she shouldn’t have been so quick to judge.
“I never so much as looked at another girl when I was out with you.”
“Yeah, true.” She settled back into the comfy-as-hell leather seat and angled her body so she was watching Chase. “Although it didn’t stop them looking at you.”
“What happened between us? Chase started, glancing across at her, then focusing his eyes back on the road again.
“Don’t,” she replied, cutting him off before he could say more. “Let’s just be old friends catching up, okay?”
He made a noncommittal kind of noise, but he didn’t say anything else on the matter.
“So this place we’re going to?” she asked, making sure the subject was closed and firmly off-limits.
“You’ll love it. Nothing too fancy, good food and even better wine.”
“Since when do you drink wine?”
He laughed and touched her hand, his big palm covering hers, warm against her cool skin. Her heart skipped a beat and she didn’t dare to look up, didn’t want to be trapped in the web of his eyes that caught her every single time.
But she didn’t have to worry. Chase removed his hand as fast as he’d touched her, just like she’d withdrawn from the play punch.
“A lot has changed these past few years,” he told her in a low voice.
Tell me about it. “I know. Believe me, I know.”
“But it doesn’t mean I don’t still like knocking back tequila shots every now and again.”
This time she wasn’t scared of looking at him, her instant reaction to grin straight back at him. Hope angled her body again, happy to reminisce so long as they didn’t talk about that final night they’d had.
“I don’t think I could stomach one,” she joked. “One whiff of lime and tequila and I’d probably be sick just thinking about it! I don’t even know how we used to do it so often.”
“I drag Nate and Ryder out every now and again and insist we knock a few back. But our poison of choice is usually whiskey these days.”
“Whiskey sounds far more sophisticated than tequila shots.”
Chase laughed, one hand on the wheel, the other resting on his thigh. “I think I’ve just developed the same taste in liquor as my g
randdad. Nothing beats a bottle of JD or Wild Turkey.”
She chuckled to herself and dragged her eyes away from his profile. All this time she’d never forgotten how handsome he was, how strong and commanding his presence was, and he didn’t disappoint in real life. It was like he hadn’t aged a bit, although his skin was a shade darker, golden from all the hours he probably spent out under the sun.
“It’s just around the corner here,” he said.
“Valet parking?” she asked wryly.
“I’m not Nate,” he muttered. “And I haven’t changed that much. Since when did you ever see me getting someone else to park my vehicle?”
She raised her eyebrows. “Don’t get all offended, I was just joking.”
“You know how it is, that’s all.”
“You mean I used to,” she corrected him, holding her smile even though she was crumbling inside.
She played with the clasp on her purse as Chase parked, watching as he jumped out of the truck and came around to her side, opening her door. It was almost comical to her that he was being so chivalrous, simply because she wasn’t used to it, but she wasn’t going to complain at being treated to some good old-fashioned manners.
Chase held out his elbow and she tilted back a little to look up at him, catching the humor in his gaze. She hesitated a moment before slipping her hand through, leaning in to him closer than she needed to.
“You remember doing this?” he asked, voice gruff as he pushed his hand into his jeans pocket and started walking, meaning her hand was dragged even closer to his body.
“Yeah.” How could she forget? “Everyone always thought we were dating, which meant that virtually every attractive girl in school hated me.”
“Hey, it worked to keep the guys from pestering you.”
“Hmmm, but not quite so well with you,” she said with a laugh. “You still managed to get passed phone numbers even with me sitting beside you at the bar.”
They both laughed. Going down memory lane was fun, to a point, so long as they didn’t delve too deep into the past. Shots at dive bars, lying out under the stars and talking shit, studying together and getting in trouble for laughing too loud. They were fun memories that she’d never forget.
“Hold up. Is this the place?”
Chase bent down closer to her, his breath warm against her face as he spoke into her ear. “You didn’t really think I’d gone all fancy rich boy on you, did you?”
Hope burst out laughing. They both stopped and she stared from the restaurant to the man standing beside her. “The Rodeo Bar & Grill? You’re screwing with me, right?”
“Hey, I wasn’t lying,” Chase said with a cheeky grin. “They always find a table for me, and I’m definitely a regular!”
Hope took her hand from Chase’s arm and pushed him ahead of her. “Go on then, cowboy, open the door for me.”
The noise assaulted her eardrums the second he swung the heavy timber door back, the place already busy even though it was still early. It had been a long time since she’d been out in a bar, but she hadn’t forgotten that good old feeling of being sucked in by the music, the high of being about to have a drink and let her hair down. It was perfect.
“Thank you,” she said, squeezing Chase’s hand as she walked past him, waiting a step ahead for him to catch up.
“For holding the door?”
She met his gaze head on, knowing she’d done the right thing in saying yes to dinner. The last few months, hell, the last couple of years, had been all work and no play. “For getting me out of the house,” she told him. “It’s been a while since I had some fun.”
“Well, it just so happens you’re out with someone who hasn’t forgotten how to have a good time.”
Hope followed him to the bar, trying to match his stride. She was tall, close to five-nine, but even with heels on she wasn’t a match for his six-foot-three frame. All three brothers were the same, tall and built with the faces and bodies of Greek gods. How the hell she’d managed to stay out of his bed until graduation was a mystery even she didn’t understand. She’d started out plain stubborn when it came to Chase, and then they’d just started having too much fun for her to want to ruin it with sex, even though she’d wanted him so damn bad. And there was also that factor of loving the flirting, but loving the fact that she was the only woman to turn him down even more.
“What’re you having?” he asked.
“Surprise me.” She pulled out a stool and sat, dropping her purse onto the bar and dragging herself a bit closer to Chase as he ordered.
“I thought we’d prop up the bar for a bit before grabbing a table.”
She glanced around. “If we can find one.” The place was kind of packed. There were people standing around, the booths looked full, and there were a few vacant spots around the bar. She loved the way the beer was stashed in ice behind the counter, mustard and ketchup bottles sitting alongside jars of peanuts on the worn wooden bar. She couldn’t have chosen a more perfect spot to spend an evening if she’d tried.
“We’re getting that little one in the corner over there,” he said, sliding some bills toward the bartender as two beers headed their way. “And the best thing about this place? They have a tequila bar.”
Hope reached for her beer, holding it up to see what it was before clinking it against Chase’s. “I thought we were being all sophisticated and having wine tonight.”
He took a sip then grimaced. “I have a confession to make.”
She raised her eyebrows, waiting.
“I was taking you somewhere different, but then when I started driving from your place, I decided it was all wrong. Wrong for us, anyway.”
“Wrong how?” she asked, deciding the beer wasn’t half-bad when she sipped it again.
“Fancy, expensive, and…” He shrugged. “We were never about all that shit, were we? It was just two great friends hanging out and rolling with the punches. But we can still drink wine. If you want.”
“Beer’s fine,” she said, her shoulders relaxing, her body no longer tense just because she was sitting close to Chase. “In fact, this place is perfect.”
Chapter 3
You’re perfect. It was on the tip of his tongue to just say it, to man up and tell her what a jackass he’d been, that he should have called her, should have tried harder to stay in touch. But she’d had a phone, too, and she’d been the one to slip out of the motel room that morning and disappear. Damn. To hell with it. They were hanging out now and if she was going to be staying in Dallas then they had plenty of goddamn time to forgive and forget.
“They do mean grilled burgers here,” he told her, draining almost half of his beer in one long pull. “And their Tex-Mex is damn good, too.”
“A burger will do me fine,” she said, scooping her long hair up and dragging it to rest over one shoulder. Her neck was exposed on one side now, golden skin so soft he was aching to cover it with his mouth. She licked her lips, so unaware of the effect she was having on him.
“So how’re you liking your new job?” he asked.
“Hey, it pays the bills and I’m doing what I trained for. I’ve dedicated the last few years to honing my skills and becoming as specialized as I can.”
She was saying all the right words, but he could tell she wasn’t happy, that she wasn’t telling the whole truth. Hope had never been good at keeping things from him, and it seemed nothing had changed.
“But you’d rather be putting it all to practice on your own ranch, right?” He didn’t want to push her, but whatever the hell had happened with her ranch was like the elephant in the room
“I was hoping to start breeding quarter horses, actually. My dad was always interested in it, and after he passed away I wanted to do it even more. For me and for him. We’d always talked about crossing them with European Warmbloods to produce top quality, sensible sport horses.” She sighed. “It was one of those things on my bucket list for the future, after I’d made a name for myself.”
Chase put
down his beer and reached for Hope’s hand, the sight of her eyes tearing up enough to jolt something deep within him. The urge to protect her went into overdrive. He hated to see her in pain.
“Hope, you should have said.” He tucked her fingers beneath his. “I’d never have asked if…”
“My dad passing wasn’t the reason we lost the ranch,” she said matter-of-factly, her voice devoid of emotion even if her eyes gave away her pain for all to see. “He left everything to me. I was his only child and he knew that I was capable of running the place.” She made a noise that was half laugh, half cry. “Hell, he’d groomed me for it my entire life.”
“And your mom?”
Hope’s hand moved beneath his, as she turned her palm over and linked their fingers for a moment before wiggling them apart. She raised her eyes.
“My mom passed away eight months ago,” she said, her gaze so haunted it made him wish to hell he’d never asked. He watched her take a very slow, steady sip of her beer. “She saw everything start to crumble, she knew something was wrong, but I managed to keep it from her.” Hope sighed and leaned forward, elbows on the bar. “I’m just pleased she didn’t see me lose our home. It would have broken her heart and then some, and the last thing she needed on top of cancer was to know the truth.”
Chase knew he had to tread carefully here, didn’t want to push her too far. He took a sip of his beer, finishing it, and waved with two fingers in the air to the bartender, pulling out his wallet and putting the bills on the bar. “Unless something’s changed between now and when I knew you better than I knew myself, you weren’t exactly the kind of woman to take risks. Not risks that’d end up with you homeless and with no ranch to your name.”
Her smile was obviously forced, her lips forming a tight line that gave away her true feelings. When Hope smiled and meant it, her eyes lit up like they were dancing, her lips turning up into a beamer that changed her entire face. He knew that look well because he’d always worked his ass off to make sure he got to see it all the time, and the look on her face right now was nothing like that.