by Morgan Blaze
“Just checking on a situation,” Dean said. “Looks like everything’s in order.”
“Yeah. Thanks for checking, Dean.” The sarcasm in Mark’s tone was thick enough to cut. “Maybe you should go investigate that traffic cone over there. It looks pretty suspicious.”
A dark look shadowed the deputy’s features, but he turned and walked away without a word.
Gage shook his head and faced Mark with a grin. “Nice comeback.”
“Get in the car.”
“What’s your problem?”
“Just get in.”
Heaving a sigh, Gage wrenched the door open and slid into the seat. Sometimes he really wished Mark would lighten up. He was always so damned serious—like if he dared to have a little fun, the whole world would stop turning.
Mark put the groceries in the back and climbed in behind the wheel. Without looking at Gage, he said, “You’ve got to stop antagonizing him. He’s a cop.”
“Oh, thanks a lot,” Gage spat. “I didn’t do shit. He started on me.”
“Yeah, and you were ready to finish it.”
“So?”
“So, he’ll haul your ass in. And you know it.” Mark started the engine with an angry twist and backed out of the parking spot. “You need to learn when to back off.”
“Are you going to teach me, Dad?”
“Don’t start.”
“Mark, I swear to God—” He cut himself off forcefully and drew a deep breath. “I was just standing there,” he said. “Minding my own business. He came up and started in about how this wasn’t my car, and I was loitering.”
“And what were you going to do about it?”
“Nothing.” Gage folded his arms and sunk in the seat. “I didn’t have to. I’ve already got a way to get back at him.”
“Gage.”
“Jesus Christ, I’m not going to touch him.” He refrained from rolling his eyes. “I’ve got a date with Jenny Steele tonight.”
Mark glared at him. “So you’re going to screw his girlfriend.”
“Ex-girlfriend, as of this morning. And who says I’m going to screw her? It’s just a date.”
“Right,” his brother said tightly. “And it’s not like every date you have ends in someone’s bed.”
Okay, that one stung. “They don’t.”
Mark’s mouth flattened. “Name one.”
“I’m not doing this with you.”
“Well, you’d damn well better start doing it with yourself!” Mark hit the steering wheel hard. “You don’t think, Gage. You just act, and it always lands you in trouble. I’m not bailing you out if that asswipe hauls you in tonight.”
“I wasn’t going to ask you to,” he said through clenched teeth.
Mark tensed a minute, and then relaxed with a sigh. “Look, I’m sorry,” he said. “I know Dean’s got a hard-on for busting you, and you don’t deserve it. Most of the time. But…just try to be the better man, all right? You don’t have to let him get to you.”
“Yeah.” Gage clenched a fist and stared out the window. “That’s me. The better man.”
As if he could ever be anything better than the weakest Dawson.
Chapter 2
It didn’t take Kyla long to bring everything into the cottage and get it put away. For a while after she’d settled in, she just wandered from room to room, enjoying the peace and quiet of it all. The security of having her own place and not relying on anyone else. Then she’d made herself some dinner and taken a nice, long bath.
Now it was time for the hard part.
She knew she had to rejoin the world. Living as a recluse had its advantages, but if she kept going like this, she’d forget what it was like to be human. She’d fought too hard for her freedom to let Mike take that away, too. But all that didn’t make the idea of going out and interacting with people any less intimidating.
Two drinks. One for her, one for Ralph. She’d call the taxi service Miss Stella had given her the number for, in case the drinks hit her as hard as she thought they might, and go to the local bar. The Klinker, she was pretty sure it was called. And while she was there, she’d actually talk to people.
If anyone wanted to talk to her.
It took her an hour to decide what to wear. Finally, she settled on black jeans and an oversized blue shirt that matched her eyes. Not the sexiest outfit—but she wasn’t ready to feel sexy yet. Just feeling alive would be enough for tonight.
The taxi arrived right on time, and her heart raced for the entire brief ride into town. When she got out at the bar, she almost turned around and got right back in. But she made herself stand on the sidewalk until the taxi pulled away, and then took a deep breath and walked inside.
It was a small town on a Thursday night, so she’d expected to find a light crowd and not much going on. Instead there were a decent number of people at the bar, in the seating area beside it, and hanging around a bunch of pool tables and dartboards off to the side. Some of the faces were familiar, and she even knew a few names from her other part-time job of delivering the mail on Saturdays.
But aside from a brief and embarrassing conversation with a rancher a few weeks ago, when she’d delivered a certified letter to a place called The Leaning T, she hadn’t actually talked to anyone on her route.
She made her way to the bar and sat on a stool between two other empty ones. It wasn’t long before a male bartender approached her with a friendly smile. “Evening,” he said. “Can I get you something?”
“Um.” Kyla frowned slightly. She hadn’t really thought about much beyond having two drinks. “Yes,” she said slowly. “I’d like…a Sidecar. And another Sidecar.”
The bartender’s brow furrowed. “You’re new around here, aren’t you?”
“Well, yes. I mean no. That is—” She cut herself off with a sigh, before she could really start babbling. “I’ve never been to your bar,” she said.
“That’s kind of obvious,” he said with a laugh. “I’m Matt, by the way.”
She smiled. “Kyla.”
“Nice to meet you, Kyla. Now, I’ll let you in on a secret.” Matt leaned forward a little and whispered loudly, “I have no idea what a Sidecar is.”
“Oh.” She blinked once. “Well, it’s kind of fruity and sweet. And sour. And…honestly, I don’t know what’s in it.”
“Let’s find out.” With a wink, he pulled out a cell phone and started tapping and swiping. “Okay. Says here it’s got bourbon, triple sec orange, and lemon juice. That sound about right?”
“Yes. Probably.”
Matt tucked the phone in his pocket. “Tell you what,” he said. “I’ll make you one, and you can try it. Then if you like it I’ll make another one.”
“That works,” she said. “Thank you.”
“Be right back.”
As he walked away, Kyla made herself take a few deep breaths. That wasn’t so bad. Now if she could just get past sounding like a stammering idiot, she might actually make some progress. She turned sideways on the stool, thinking vaguely that she’d scout out the bathrooms in case she needed to bolt.
And found herself staring into the greenest eyes she’d ever seen.
Well, at least she didn’t have to worry about stammering this time. She couldn’t speak if she wanted to. The rest of the man who came with the green eyes had arrested her tongue—he was, in a word, beautiful. Thick black hair, a tan that could only come from working outdoors, and the devil’s own smile. He wore an open black shirt, rolled at the sleeves, and a snug white t-shirt beneath that hinted at a powerful build.
“Hello.” His smile turned quizzical, and he arched an eyebrow. “You’re…not who I thought you were. Sorry if I scared you.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.” Of course it was a case of mistaken identity. Why else would a man like this want to talk to her?
“Hey, don’t apologize. I’m the one who screwed up.”
“Okay. Sorry.”
“You’re doing it again.” He grinned and glanced over
his shoulder, like he was expecting company. “I might not know you, but I—”
“Hey.”
Kyra almost jumped at the clipped word, which came from the bartender. She hadn’t even noticed him approaching. He set a drink down on the bar in front of her, and gave the other man a look she couldn’t interpret. “Get you something?”
The green-eyed man’s jaw twitched, just for an instant. “Yeah, a Bud Light bottle,” he said. “Thanks.”
Without a word, the bartender walked away.
“Anyway.” The man sighed briefly, then his smile returned. “I feel like I should know you,” he said. “Are you new here?”
She managed to smile back. “Why does everyone keep asking me that?”
“New people stand out in a town this small.” He winked and held a hand out. “I’m Gage, by the way.”
“Kyla. And I’m not so new…I’ve just never been to this bar.” After a brief hesitation, she took his hand.
The warm shock that traveled through her body left her speechless again.
“Kyla.” She thought his voice shook a little, but decided she must’ve imagined it. He couldn’t have felt what she did. It must’ve happened to her just because she hadn’t touched another person in so long. “That’s a great name,” he said. “Er. I mean, it’s nice to meet you.”
For some reason, his stammering made her feel flattered. At least she wasn’t the only one tripping over her tongue tonight. “Nice to meet you, too,” she said. “I’ve never met anyone named Gage before.”
“I’m an original.” He smiled and looked at the glass in front of her. “What are you drinking?” he said. “It looks…different.”
“It’s a Sidecar. I think.”
“You think?”
“The bartender, Matt—he’d never heard of it. So he looked it up for me.” She picked up the drink tentatively. “It’s mostly the right color, anyway.”
Gage laughed. “Well, that’s encouraging.”
She glanced across the bar and saw Matt approaching with an opened bottle. The brief pang of disappointment surprised her. For a few minutes she hadn’t felt awkward talking with Gage—unusual for her, even before the nightmare of her marriage and especially with a complete stranger. But now he’d take his beer and go back to whatever he was doing before.
Which may have included the brunette she’d just spotted striding angrily toward the bar, her gaze fixed on Gage.
Gage exchanged a five for the bottle. Then he smiled and lifted the beer slightly. “Let’s drink to something.”
“Um.” Kyla leaned aside and looked deliberately past him, trying to bring his attention to the woman closing in fast. “I think someone might object to that.”
He frowned. “Who?”
“Gage, what are you doing?”
He stiffened almost imperceptibly at the sound of the woman’s voice right behind him. “Pretty sure I told you I was getting a beer,” he said without turning. “Hey, Jenny. This is Kyla. She’s—”
“I don’t care who she is.” The woman, Jenny, stepped around and stared coldly at her. Kyla had to admit she was gorgeous, and definitely dressed to show it off. “No offense, but he’s with me,” Jenny said.
Somehow that didn’t surprise her. What did was Gage’s response.
“You know something, Jenny?” His tone was carefully controlled, like he was working hard not to get mad. “Whenever someone starts out saying ‘no offense, but,’ what comes after it’s bound to be offensive. And rude, and uncalled for.”
The brunette’s expression eased into a pout. “Everybody’s always flirting with you,” she said. “I just thought she should know—”
“She wasn’t flirting with me.” He glared at her for a long moment. “I started talking to her. She’s new here, she’s alone, and I thought she could use a friend.” His gaze moved to Kyla, and his features softened. “Was I wrong?”
“No,” she said. “Thank you.”
He smiled. “Hey, we’re playing pool over here,” he said. “Do you want to join us?”
“Oh, I couldn’t.”
“Sure you can. It’s better than sitting at the bar, and we’d enjoy the company. Right, Jenny?”
“Right.”
The other woman’s tone said she definitely wouldn’t enjoy it. “Thank you, but it’s fine,” Kyla said. “Really. I was just going to finish my drink and go home, anyway.”
“All right.” Gage shook his head and smirked. “Well, I’m glad to meet you. Maybe I’ll see you around town sometime.”
“Sure. See you around.” She smiled and turned to the brunette. “It’s nice to meet you too, Jenny.”
The woman looked surprised, but then she smiled without bitterness. Probably out of relief that Kyla had declined the invitation—not that she could ever compete with a woman that stunning. The two of them made a beautiful couple. “I’m sorry about before,” Jenny said. “We got off on the wrong foot. Anyway, welcome to Covendale.”
“Thank you.” She decided not to correct the idea that she’d just arrived in town anymore. It was too much explaining—and besides, it might lead to questions she wasn’t prepared to answer. “Well, have a good night.”
“You, too.”
Gage met her eyes for a moment, and it seemed like he’d say something more. But he only turned and walked away, and Jenny followed him.
Suppressing a sigh, Kyla swiveled toward the bar and picked up her drink. She really wasn’t any good at making new friends, anyway.
* * * *
Normally Gage would’ve felt bad about getting mad at Jenny. But something about this date hadn’t seemed right from the beginning, and the longer it went, the more he’d realized she just wasn’t interested in him. She had ulterior motives—and he suspected they had something to do with Dean Wesley.
If that was the case, he figured he was justified in being pissed. He didn’t appreciate being used as a pawn in the get-back-at-the-ex game. Especially when the ex in question was already out for his blood.
Back at the pool table, he fed in quarters to release the balls and started racking. He’d just socked the last ball into place when a hand slipped around his arm, and Jenny leaned against him. “You’re not still mad at me, are you?”
“No.” He disengaged from her and walked around the table to the sticks they’d left leaning against it. “You can break this time.”
“You are still mad. I can tell.” Jenny twisted a lock of hair around her finger and pouted. “It’s because of that girl, isn’t it?”
Gage sighed. “Not really.”
“Yes it is.”
“No. It’s because you’d rather be here with Dean.” He stared at her until she dropped her gaze, and knew he was right. “Why’d you even ask me out?”
She let out a slow breath. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I just…I guess I wanted to have some fun, you know? And I really do like you.” She gave him a seductive smile. “I always have. Ever since high school.”
He smiled back and relented a little. He had to admit, she was partly right. Some of it was because of the girl. Kyla. He could’ve sworn he’d seen her somewhere before—but more than that, he’d felt drawn to her. She seemed so alone and unhappy, so…fragile. When he saw her sitting there, he’d immediately wanted to protect her from whatever it was that made her look like she’d been through a personal apocalypse.
He’d never felt this strongly about any woman before, and he didn’t even know her. It fascinated him and scared him at the same time.
“Okay,” he said, trying to focus on Jenny. “Are we gonna play, or what?”
“You bet.” She walked toward him and took one of the sticks, meeting his eyes with a suggestive gaze. “Maybe you could show me some of your moves.”
“Yeah. Maybe.” He hoped he sounded convincing, or at least half-interested. But he already knew this night would end with him dropping her off and saying a chaste goodnight, with no second date in the future. He was glad he’d borrowed Jonah’s car
instead of taking The Beast out here.
Jenny bent over the table for the break shot, deliberately giving him a generous view of her cleavage. And for the first time he could remember, nothing in him reacted to the sight. At least now he could tell Mark honestly that not every date he went on ended in a bed, because there was no way he’d sleep with Dean Wesley’s ex-girlfriend. Even before she’d make it clear how she felt. She could strip naked right now and he’d barely notice.
It was going to be a long damned night.
Chapter 3
It wasn’t quite the same as the Sidecars she’d had back in her other life, but it was close. Maybe even better, since Matt had taken the trouble to figure it out for her. Kyla was almost finished with her second drink when the bartender came over and said, “I think I’m getting the hang of it. How was that?”
“Wonderful,” she said with a smile. She’d made the right choice taking a taxi here, because she was feeling the effects of the alcohol now. A little dizzy and lightheaded, a bit thick in the tongue. But glad she’d come out tonight and kept her promise to Ralph. “You said they have…bourbon in them, right?”
“That’s right. Only we generally call it whiskey.”
“Huh. Whiskey.” She took another sip, and a dim recollection surfaced in her mind. “You know, I think they’re supposed to be made with brandy.”
Matt laughed. “You’re not wrong,” he said. “From what I read, brandy’s traditional but bourbon’s common. And we’re pretty common around here.” He winked and hooked a thumb at the liquor shelves behind the bar. “Gentleman Jack is about as fancy as we get.”
“Gentleman Jack?”
“Yeah, it’s Jack Daniels with a monocle.”
That drew a giggle from her. “Well, I like it.”
She looked down at her drink. Only about half an inch of liquid remained, and she decided to finish it off with a silent toast. To freedom, she thought as she lifted the glass, and a light shudder drilled down her spine. The reality of the situation still hadn’t penetrated completely. Was she really rid of him forever?