My Kind of Trouble

Home > Romance > My Kind of Trouble > Page 34
My Kind of Trouble Page 34

by Becky McGraw


  Seeing her wearing what Cassie probably would have worn if she'd come with them, made him miss her, wish that she was here with him. Luke had only been away from her for a couple of hours and all he could think of was getting back home to her.

  When the woman lifted her head after showing her ID to the man at the door, Luke's eyes widened and he whispered, "Oh, shit." Sabrina walked toward the bar with a sashay in her stride, and he saw men all over the bar turn and look, some broke away from their group to trail behind her. Before Luke could warn Cole, her eyes locked with his in the mirror and she headed toward them. She wasn't smiling, and Luke swallowed hard knowing trouble was about to visit them in the form of a 5'3" pissed off woman with a gun.

  But she surprised Luke when she walked up to him after a cursory glance at Cole, who was still lip locked with the blonde. "Having fun?" she asked with an edge to her voice hidden beneath the wide smile she gave him.

  "Yeah, but missing Cassie..." he told her and drank down half of his fifth beer. "I thought ya'll would be having a girl's night at the house."

  "She made me come out...said I needed to come party for her, since she wasn't able to celebrate her last night being a single girl. Guess, I'm a one woman bachelorette party," she chuckled.

  Over her shoulder, Luke saw Cole come up for air, dragging his lips from the blonde when he heard Sabrina's voice. Cole's eyes widened when he saw her, right as a medium-built, but stocky cowboy tapped her on her shoulder, and she turned her head and smiled at him.

  "Hi, sugar...you wanna dance?" he asked leaning near her ear and sliding his hand to her lower back.

  She turned away from Luke and faced the cowboy, putting her hand on his shoulder. "I'd love to, sugar," she purred and he took her hand and led her off through the crowd.

  Cole's face turned so red, Luke thought his friend might bust a blood vessel. A vein popped out on his forehead and Luke saw his hands, which were no longer on the blonde, squeeze into tight fists at his side, and he was grinding his teeth into nubs.

  The blonde, who was still standing beside him looked up at him curiously. "You, okay, honey?" she asked putting her hand on his arm.

  He looked down at her as if he didn't even see her then said, "Fine...get me another goddamned beer Luke," he grated then he loosened his fists and put his arm back around the blonde.

  She pressed her body to him and put her hand on his chest, then stood on tiptoe to whisper in his ear. Cole shook his head and then moved away from her, "I'm sorry sugar, but I'm not in the mood. I need to take a break for a few minutes," he told her then sat down on the stool beside Luke again ignoring her to lift the beer to his mouth and almost drink it down in one swallow.

  "Well you sure seemed to be in the mood on the dance floor, darlin'," she spat sassily then went to walk away. Cole jumped up off the stool and grabbed her arm, "You know, on second thought, let's go dance again. Maybe I'll work up another head of steam."

  Luke saw indecision and desire at war with each other on her pretty face, then she sighed and grabbed Cole's hand to lead him to the floor. Luke watched Cole pull the blonde tightly against him and move her to the edge of the floor, before he spun her into a two-step, but his eyes were searching the floor for Sabrina.

  Cole hadn't spotted her yet, evidently, but Luke had. She was belly rubbing in the center of the floor with the cowboy who'd asked her to dance. Luke had a bad feeling this wasn't going to turn out well when his friend finally spotted her. Why Cassie had sent her here, and decked her out like she was, he didn't know. She had to know Cole would go crazy.

  Maybe she was stirring the pot trying to play matchmaker to get them back on speaking terms. He definitely planned to ask her when he got home, because it was obvious her little scheme was backfiring...big time. All he needed was his best man with a black eye in the wedding pictures. Cassie would kill him, even though this was all her doing.

  Luke drank the last of his beer and pushed up from the bar stool, waited a second to get his feet firmly under him, them walked toward the dance floor. It was time for him and Cole to leave. Luke found him waltzing the pretty blonde around the floor, holding her so tight you couldn't fit a piece of paper between them, then watched Cole stop with her at the corner of the floor where he put his hands on her ass to lift her higher against him then made a show of kissing her hungrily. Her body was suctioned to his as her arms went up around his neck and she rubbed her hips against him like a cat on a scratching post.

  Hurrying his steps across the dance floor, Luke pushed people aside until he reached them then tapped Cole on the shoulder. He probably should have brought a bucket of cold water with him, he thought as Cole ignored him and continued kissing the woman. He glanced to the center of the floor and saw that Sabrina had quit dancing too and was staring at Cole and the blonde with tears of anger in her eyes. The cowboy was pulling on her arm trying to get her moving again, but she shrugged him off then turned and stormed off the floor headed straight for the door. The cowboy followed right behind her.

  "C'mon let's go Cole. We need to go catch up with Sabrina, she might be able to give us a ride home."

  "Nah, I'm staying here, but you go ahead if you want to ride with her," he said then looked down into the blonde's eyes and smiled. "I saw that cowboy follow her out, he'll probably be taking her home," there was pain beneath his nonchalant words, Luke heard it.

  "Fine," Luke said then added 'stubborn dumbass fool' under his breath as he headed for the front door to catch up with Sabrina.

  The breezy warm night air sobered him up a little when he burst out through the front door of the bar and stepped into the night. Luke stopped and looked up and down the street for his truck. He knew Sabrina had to have driven it to town, because there wasn't any other vehicles available to her at the ranch. He finally found it parked across the street down a block, and ran across the road to the sidewalk on the other side.

  When he got one foot on the sidewalk, Luke saw her struggling with the cowboy who she'd been dancing with earlier, while he tried to kiss her. The drunk bastard had his hands all over her, and Luke took off at a dead run for them.

  He stopped in his tracks through when he saw her knee came up between the guys legs then in quick succession she shoved the heel of her hand into his nose, then gave him a fist on either side of his head near his ears, before stepping on his foot pushing him back on his ass. The guy laid there rolling around holding his balls curled in the fetal position while he bled from the nose like a stuck pig. Luke wanted to laugh, but he wanted to make sure she was okay first.

  He walked up to her with a smile on his face, "Good job, darlin'. You okay?" Sabrina might be a small woman, but she evidently packed a wallop, he thought as he looked down at the guy on the ground who was very near tears and chuckled. "Stay here, I need a ride home. Let me go get Cole to clean up the trash...I'll be right back."

  "I don't want to see him," she said angrily her eyes sparkling a dangerous sapphire blue.

  "You don't have to, sugar...we'll leave as soon as I tell him," Luke told her with understanding then headed back to the bar.

  When he got inside, he found Cole sitting at the bar now drinking another beer. The blonde wasn't anywhere around, and his friend looked like hell. His face was strained his shoulders slumped, and his chin about touched his chest. Luke walked over and slapped him on the back, "You need to call a unit to come pick up the guy out on the sidewalk about a block down."

  Cole perked up a little and looked at him, but his voice lacked luster when he asked Luke, "You kick someone's ass again? Do I need to arrest you?"

  Luke threw up his hands and laughed. "Not me this time...Sabrina."

  Cole vaulted up from the stool and got in Luke's face, "What the fuck do you mean?"

  "The cowboy got grabby, and she put him in his place...and then some."

  "Holy, shit!" he shouted then pushed Luke to the side and ran for the door. He was across the street and down to the truck, before Luke could catch him. Luke saw him
reach down and jerk the cowboy up by the shirt front, before he pulled back his arm, about to plant his fist in the guys face. Luke got there just in time to grab his elbow. Sabrina leaned against the truck with her legs crossed and her arms folded over her chest.

  "Get a grip on yourself man, or you'll be the one in jail tonight," Luke hissed near his ear. Cole let go of the man's shirt then pushed his shoulder causing him to stumble, before the guy dropped to his knees and bent over. "Just call someone to come pick him up."

  "I wanna beat the fuck out of him," Cole said in a slurred voice, before he walked over and roughly turned the man on his stomach and pulled his arm up behind him then put his knee in the center of the guy's back.

  "Don't do it man, you've got to be in my wedding tomorrow. Cassie would shoot you," Luke reminded him. "Besides, I think Sabrina has pretty much already done that for you," Luke told him then gave in to the laughter he'd been holding back.

  He wound up leaning against the truck, snorting and gasping for breath, until he saw Sabrina push away from the truck and sashay around to the driver's side with a purposeful angry stride. She pushed the unlock button, then opened the door and launched herself up into the seat and cranked the truck.

  Luke grabbed the passenger door and flung it open, just managing to get himself seated before she hit the accelerator. "Whoa, sugar...you're gonna throw me out," he said unsteadily, as he reached to shut the door right before the big truck launched down the street.

  She had the seat shoved so far up to reach the pedals, his knees were almost right under the dashboard, he turned them sideways and sat against the door. Her breasts were pressed against the wheel, and her chin was tilted up so she could see over the steering wheel. Luke chuckled at the sight she made. "Cassie should have given you a phone book to sit on."

  She glanced at him then back to the road, her hands tight on the wheel at ten and two. "I could probably use two--this big truck compensating for something, honey?" she asked sassily with a grin.

  Luke sat up straighter, insulted. "You sure have a smart mouth on you, honey, for someone driving my truck."

  She snorted, then said, "I'm driving your drunk ass home in this truck, honey. Be thankful that Cassie won't have to kill you."

  He folded his arms over his chest, and shut up. He wasn't going to win a verbal war with this sharp witted woman while his wits were steeped in alcohol.

  "Nothing more to say?" she asked with a chuckle. When he didn't say anything, she threw her head back and laughed. "Didn't think so."

  "Just drive," Luke told her sullenly. "And don't wreck my truck."

  A few minutes later, she pulled the truck to a stop in the yard, then cut the engine and tossed him his keys. "Here you go, stud. Now go answer to your wife."

  With that, she opened her door and slid down from the truck, leaving him behind her smiling. Yeah, she was more than a match for Cole. Smart, sassy and more than capable...not to mention beautiful. He hoped his friend could work it out with her. Luke opened his door and got out, stumbling a bit in his alcohol fog, then went inside to face the music.

  ***

  Saturday, the day of her wedding, dawned hot, humid and sticky with gray puffy clouds that threatened rain. They desperately needed the rain, but she desperately didn't want to see on her wedding day, even if the old wives tale said it meant their love would withstand all weather. That was fine, but Cassie just prayed it would hold off until after the ceremony, at least. They had tents set up for the reception, so if it rained then, it wouldn't really matter.

  Cassie and Sabrina were busy attaching bows to the innermost chairs skirting the aisle. They'd decorate the gazebo next with the flowers the florist had delivered earlier.

  "Okay, what's your something blue for today?" Sabrina asked her fluffing out the loops on the bow she'd just placed.

  "My engagement ring...it has sapphires."

  "Is it also your something new?" Sabrina suggested.

  Cassie shook her head and smiled. "That's my dress, hat and boots."

  "What about something old?"

  "I'm wearing my mama's brooch. It looks great with my dress," Cassie told her shoving baby's breath in her bow's center then hesitating before she said with sentimental tears choking her, "I wish my mama was here for today..."

  She heard Sabrina suck in a breath, then felt her kneel beside her, before she put her arms around Cassie's shoulders. "I know how you feel Cassie...but I bet your mama is looking down from heaven today with a smile. I didn't know her, but I believe she'd be proud of all you've accomplished and gone through to get here."

  "I'm leaving an empty chair beside my daddy for her today."

  "I bet she'd love that." Sabrina squeezed her shoulders.

  "Have I told you how much I appreciate you being here today?"

  "A thousand times...now stop. You're gonna make me tear up."

  Cassie forced a bright smile, and looked at her, "How did last night go?"

  Sabrina dropped her hands from Cassie's shoulders and then stood up. "Not good," she said then grabbed a bow out of the box and walked to the next chair.

  Remorse filled Cassie, because she'd forced Sabrina to go last night. She'd kept after her until she agreed to go to the bar to check up on Cole and Luke...make sure they weren't overdoing it. And she'd hoped that Cole would take the opportunity to apologize to her. Obviously that didn't happen. Anger rushed through her and she wanted to strangle Luke's best friend for being so stubborn.

  "Cole didn't apologize?" she asked to make sure.

  Sabrina snorted then said, "If sticking his tongue down a hot blonde's throat all night is an apology, then yes he did."

  Cassie's anger turned to molten lava in her veins and she threw the bow she'd just picked up back in the box and put her hands on her hips. "He did what?"

  Sabrina shrugged and said, "He hooked up with a blonde and danced her feet off when he wasn't trying to screw her on the dance floor."

  "Luke didn't say anything to him?" Cassie would be just as mad at Luke if he hadn't at least tried to talk some sense into the big lug.

  "It wasn't Luke's place to do that, Cassie. Cole did what he wanted to do, and so did I."

  Cassie grinned at the mischievous note in her friend's tone. "Oh, yeah? What did you do?"

  "Danced my feet off with a nice looking cowboy."

  "Good for you, Bri," she hooted then said, "I bet Cole was fit to be tied."

  "Nah, he just played tonsil hockey with the blonde, and I wound up having to break the cowboy's nose outside the bar."

  Cassie's eyebrows flew up to her hairline and she gasped, "Really?"

  "Really..." Sabrina laughed then said, "I think he gets the meaning of 'no' now."

  "Wow girl, you're my hero."

  "I'm no hero...that guy was drunk and all over me..." she waved her hand dismissively then finished."

  "Well, it makes me happy to see a woman take care of herself. You'll have to show me some of those moves after the wedding," Cassie told her with a chuckle.

  "You got it...now let's get these bows done."

  Cassie hurried to pick up another bow and tie it on the next chair. They needed to quit dawdling, but she was having fun working with Sabrina. By the time they finished with the gazebo, she could smell the pork and beef simmering on the spit. The catering crew had arrived at the break of dawn to start cooking. It smelled delicious and her stomach rumbled.

  "Let's go grab some lunch, then we can take turns in the shower and start getting dressed. I have Betty Lou from the Cut Up Corral in town coming out to do our hair and makeup. She's old school and will have us looking like Texas belles in no time.

  Sabrina groaned then said, "Oh god, Cassie...don't tell me I have to have big hair."

 

‹ Prev