Something Like Love

by Sara Richardson

  “Really?” He couldn’t stop another slow smile from creeping across his lips. “You think she likes me?”

  “Don’t you get any ideas, Benjamin.” Disgust curled Gracie’s painted lips. “She’s a waitress, for heaven’s sake!”

  “Oh, no, Mother.” He grinned. “She’s not just a waitress. She works with Bryce. At the Walker Mountain Ranch.” Paige was so much more than a waitress.

  J’s palm smacked her thigh. “Ohmygod! That’s the girl you met last summer?” She squirmed around in her chair like she was trying to see back into the kitchen. “She’s so pretty!”

  A couple of people looked toward their table.

  “Damn, Julia. Would you mind keepin’ it down?” Last thing he needed was for Paige to hear them all making a fuss. He hadn’t told her Paige’s name for a reason.

  “Why haven’t I heard about this Paige?” His mother folded her arms.

  “Because he knew you’d act exactly like this,” J countered.

  Reaching across the table, he shoved a menu into her hands. “Why don’t we all give the menu a good look? Before she comes out and hears us talkin’ about her.”

  J didn’t seem fazed by his request. She gasped and clapped her hands. “You should go back and talk to her boss. Make sure she doesn’t get in trouble for the plates.”

  “Oh yeah. I’m sure she’d appreciate—”

  J’s eyes went wide and he instantly shut his trap, turned around.

  Paige shot toward them, head down, eyes focused on their table. Damn, she was gorgeous. Even with that pissed-off look on her face.

  A tall lanky guy with red hair and a tray of waters followed her.

  She stopped at the end of their table and smiled at Julia. Not him. Only Julia.

  “I’m so sorry about that.” Her formal tone addressed them like they were strangers, and he had to lock his jaw so he didn’t give into the temptation to remind her they weren’t strangers. Hell, just last year they’d slow-danced to Barry White’s “Love Makin’ Music” at Avery’s gala.

  But if he reminded her about that, she’d also remember the moment when Tiffani from the bar had thrown her martini in his face, and that memory wouldn’t exactly help his cause, so he kept his trap shut.

  The redhead passed out waters. He leaned down to the table. “Don’t worry,” he said in a loud whisper. “We’ve had her checked out at the asylum. She might seem crazy, but she’s all good.” He winked at J and Ben had an itch to tell him to quit flirting with his baby sister.

  J, on the other hand, ate it up with a giggle.

  “Best to keep a napkin in your lap, just in case.” Red swiped one off the table and shook it out before smoothing it across J’s lap, who looked like she might faint with pleasure. “Never know what’ll happen when Paige is waiting on you.”

  Ben glared at him. Okay, buddy. Move it along.

  “Thank. You. Pete.” Paige’s jaw had clenched. “That’ll be all.”

  With a bow he made a quick exit. Must’ve been the look on Paige’s face. Fierce. She’d looked at him like that a time or two, and fierce was the only way to describe her.

  “Anyway.” She held up a pad of paper and a pen and seemed to carefully avoid his eyes. “Have you had a chance to look at the menu?”

  “Not yet, I’m afraid.” He waited for her to look at him, then pointed at the illustration across the top of her uniform. “I like your apron.”

  Her face flushed.

  “That’s funny. ‘We meat again.’”

  A low groan drifted over from J’s direction. He could hear her silent scolding. She was right. It was a pathetic attempt to start a conversation. Small talk with a pretty lady had never been his strong suit, especially when she looked at him like he was scum. What could he say? Paige left him dumbfounded. Emphasis on the dumb.

  “I’ll take the mushroom burger.” J folded the menu and whacked Ben with it before handing it to Paige with a bright smile. “Extra cheese, please.”

  “You got it.” Paige smiled so easily at his sister. Why wouldn’t she smile at him?

  Next, her gaze drifted to Gracie.

  Man. She wouldn’t even look at him.

  Gracie ran a manicured nail down the menu. “Does the beef stew have MSG in it?” She gazed up at Paige with a tight expression.

  Well, that was just peachy. Seemed he was on his own. His mother wasn’t about to score him any points with her.

  “I don’t know.” Paige matched her severe tone, which was pretty impressive, seeing how Gracie tended to intimidate people.

  “MSG makes her constipated,” Julia said loud enough to inform the whole room.

  “Julia!”

  “Love you, Mom.” She winked, and just like that the tension faded. Had to hand it to her. J was a master at making people smile.

  “I’ll have the porterhouse,” Gracie said through a martyr’s sigh. “No seasonings. Medium-well. And no garlic potatoes. Just fresh steamed veggies.”

  Paige’s lips clamped in a fake smile as she jotted notes on her pad. Then, finally, she glanced at him with a raised brow.

  He pretended to peruse the menu. Now that he finally had her attention, he planned to make the most of it. He gazed up at her, let his eyes wander all over her face. “What’s your favorite burger?”

  “I don’t have one,” she answered frostily.

  J must have gotten it wrong. She didn’t like him. Not at all. Of course that’d never stopped him before. “Why not? Too many to choose from?”

  “No,” she said, looking right through him. “I haven’t tried them. I’m a vegetarian.”

  “Oh, good Lord.” Gracie hid her face behind her hand.

  “Sorry.” J smiled at Paige. “She has a hard time trusting people who don’t eat beef.”

  A vegetarian? Ben rubbed at the stubble on his chin. She was a vegetarian? How’d he miss that last year?

  She flicked a gaze at him. “Are you ready to order, or should I come back?”

  “I’ll take the hot and spicy burger,” he said before she could walk away. That was the only one that’d stuck in his mind. He liked a burger hot and spicy. Just like he liked a woman.

  “I’ll put that right in.” Her voice was drier than the Texas prairie. She stalked away like her heels were on fire.

  As soon as she was out of sight, J wrinkled her nose like she was impressed. “I like her. She’s got moxie.”

  Gracie practically leapt over the table. “Do not encourage him.”

  “Oh, Mother.” He reached over to pat her hand. “I already have all the encouragement I need.” All he had to do was look at Paige. She did something to him. Something that the average woman couldn’t. She made him wonder.

  “What about Cecily Banks? She’s a lovely girl.” Though she tried to veil it, panic widened his mother’s eyes. “Hubert and Beth Ann are such wonderful people. So benevolent and well-groomed.”

  Translation: she comes from a wealthy, well-respected family. But maybe he wouldn’t end up with someone like Cecily. Maybe he didn’t want to.

  “Cecily has to be, what? Twenty-three now? She was always such a beautiful girl.”

  “No.” J shook her head. “She’s as dumb as a box of rocks. He’d get bored after the first week.”

  “I’m with you on that.” Last time he’d seen Cecily at one of his mother’s charity events, she’d managed to yammer on and on about her party planning business like she was some benevolent humanitarian in the business of changing lives for nearly a half hour without taking one single breath. He couldn’t sit and listen to that day in and day out without multiple stints in rehab.

  “Okay.” Determination bolstered Gracie’s shoulders. She was like a steady old mare. “Mallory Emerson, then. She’s still single, from what I hear. And you two always got on so well.”

  That was because he was pretty sure Mallory was gay. Lately, there’d been rumors she was dating her law professor’s daughter. “Yeah. That’s not gonna happen.”

  J erupt
ed in laughter. “I’d love to see that. You and Mallory Emerson. That’d be something, Benny.”

  It’d be something all right. He took a swig of water. “Thanks for the ideas, ladies, but I don’t need any assistance.” There was no way in hell he’d let Gracie have any say in who he dated. Besides that…“I know what I want.” Might’ve taken him forever to figure it out, but now that he knew, no one was gonna talk him out of it. Not even Paige.

  “I’ll tell you what I want.” J’s eyes glimmered. “The redhead in a Speedo.”

  Ben choked on a sip of water.

  “Honestly, Julia.” Their mother sighed. “You’re ruining my appetite.”

  “Yeah.” For once Ben agreed with his mother.

  “Besides, darling,” Gracie went on. “There are plenty of eligible bachelors who would line up at your door, if you’d give them the time of day.”

  It was true. Julia was considered a serious catch by all of their wealthy family friends. And hell, with her trust fund, a man wouldn’t have to worry about providing for a family. Gracie’d been trying to find her a match for three years.

  “The guys you keep throwing at me are so boring.”

  “Boring?” Gracie demanded. “You’re calling Cal Worthington boring?”

  J made a disgusted face. “Isn’t Cal a butt doctor?”

  “Proctologist,” Gracie annunciated. “A world-renowned proctologist. And he is the most interesting man.” His mother launched into an impassioned speech on good ol’ Cal’s research work in colon cancer while J pulled out her phone and started texting and Ben searched the restaurant for Paige.

  Where’d she disappear to, anyway?

  He got up to go to the restroom so he could make a sweep around the joint, but he didn’t see her anywhere.

  By the time he got back to the table, their food was out.

  “Here we go.” Red interrupted Gracie’s monologue, balancing a tray of their food in his hands.

  He plopped a plate in front of Gracie. “Porterhouse.” He slid Ben’s across the table next. “Hot and spicy.” Taking his time, he presented Julia her burger like she was the queen of England. “Mushroom burger with extra cheese.” Then he winked at her again, the son of a bitch.

  “Can I get you anything else?” His gaze seemed locked on J’s.

  “No,” Ben answered before J could say anything. “We’re good.”

  “All right. Holler if you need anything.” He grinned and disappeared again.

  Ben reached for a knife and cut the burger in half. Juices oozed out onto the plate. Damn. That was some burger. Onions, green chilies, peppers, and a thick slice of pepper jack all smothered in hot sauce. Brought tears to his eyes. “I wonder why Paige didn’t come out.” He’d never stop wondering about that woman.

  “Hopefully they fired her.” Gracie focused on cutting her meat. “The young gentleman is much better at customer service.”

  What? Why wasn’t Julia getting lectured about who she should and shouldn’t be interested in? Whatever. Wasn’t worth the effort that conversation would require. He picked up the burger and took an enormous bite. The heat rushed all the way down his throat. His favorite kind of burn. For once, the three of them ate in silence, which only proved one thing. The place might look like a dive, but the food was top-notch. Hell, it even shut up Gracie.

  Just after he’d taken his fourth monstrous bite. Paige emerged from the kitchen. Ben swiped a napkin and wiped up the hot sauce that had to be dripping off his chin. Not that he could feel it. The burger packed so much heat, his mouth had started to go numb.

  “Did everything come out okay?” She kept her distance from the table.

  “Amazing,” J said around a mouthful of food. “Best burger ever.”

  A genuine look of happiness flickered, but when she looked at him her expression went dark again.

  Well wasn’t that just dandy?

  “And your steak, ma’am?”

  Ben glanced down at Gracie’s plate. The steak was perfectly cooked, pink on the edges, red in the middle, juices oozing out everywhere. But his mother was on a mission to thwart any possibility of him reconnecting with Paige. He cringed.

  “It’s dry.” She pushed it around with her fork.

  “Can I take it back to the kitchen? Bring you another?” She didn’t even pretend to smile this time.

  “No need. I’ll manage with it. I absolutely hate wasting food.”

  “Suit yourself,” she muttered and walked away.

  During the rest of the meal, Gracie and J chatted about a possible shopping trip later that afternoon. No sign of Paige. Of course they were really the only customers minus some old couple in a booth and a group of firefighters playing cards in the corner.

  Finally, Ben had to push away his plate. He’d never met a burger he couldn’t finish, but then again, he’d never had the hot and spicy burger at the High Altitude Café, either.

  “I’m so full.” Julia groaned. “But that was worth it.”

  Wouldn’t argue with that. Ben popped a mint into his mouth, just in case Paige came back to talk. Yeah, right. He could dream.

  “I need to freshen up in the restroom.” Gracie stood gracefully and headed in the direction of the bathroom.

  As if aware that their mother had left, Paige approached the table and started to stack their plates.

  Ben handed her his. “Sorry about Gracie. She’s not always such a pain.”

  She wouldn’t look at him. “It’s no problem.”

  “Just be glad you don’t live with her,” Julia said.

  A smile changed Paige’s face. Her eyes came alive when she smiled. He had to make her smile again.

  She stood up straight, holding the stack of plates with both hands. “Can I get you anything else?”

  “No. I’ve never tasted a better burger.”

  Well…no smile, but her at least her expression softened. “Glad you liked it.”

  She’d actually replied to him. That was progress in his book. “So I guess we’ll be hittin’ the river together?”

  Was it just him or did her cheeks light with a blush?

  “Um…yeah. I guess s—”

  “That bathroom needs a good cleaning.”

  At the sound of his mother’s voice, Ben closed his eyes. But he still heard Gracie take her seat and effectively trample any possibility of continuing his conversation with Paige.

  “Excuse me?” Paige’s tone teetered on a brittle edge.

  He opened his eyes. Sure enough, she’d reclaimed the fiery expression that pursed her lips like she was trying to trap a few choice words. He could relate. He had some for Gracie, himself.

  “A good scrub would get rid of all that grime in there.” His mother went on. “You should see it. What a disgrace. The white tiles are practically black. It’s disgusting.”

  He slid his gaze to Paige, who seemed to be doing some sort of meditative breathing exercise.

  “I think we’ll take the check now,” J sang in a chipper soprano.

  “Great idea.” Paige slapped it down on the table, turned on her heel, and stalked away.

  Gracie’s jaw hung open. “Well, what on earth is her problem?”

  Ben ripped his wallet out of his back pocket. “Tough to tell,” he ground out, aiming an accusatory glare.

  “I was just trying to be helpful, Benjamin,” she said with a wounded look.

  “Mother,” he sighed. “Go sit in the car.” Before he really lost it with her and Paige got to witness his not-so-charming side.

  “Come on.” J herded their mother out the door. “Out you go, Gracie.”

  He pulled out enough cash to cover the meal plus an extra hundred for what they’d put her through. Not that it would get him anywhere. If those glares meant anything, she wanted nothing to do with him.

  Grinning, he stood and tossed the cash on the table.

  Good thing he had a whole week to change her mind.

  Chapter Six

  Well, who the hell did Benjamin H
unter Noble III think he was, anyway? Paige stormed across the Walker Mountain Ranch’s large front deck, her sandals clomping against the freshly stained wood.

  Woofing happily in a greeting, Moose trotted next to her. But she didn’t have time to stop and pet him today.

  The crumpled hundred-dollar bill burned like a lump of hot coal in her pocket, scorching her with the burn of humiliation. She didn’t need his money. When she’s seen it lying on the table like an announcement to the world that he was filthy rich, she’d almost chased his rented Jeep Wrangler down the block so she could give it back to him and tell him exactly what she thought of that gesture. There would’ve been one problem with that plan, though.

  She’d promised Bryce she’d be sweet. Her job depended on her being sweet this week. Sweet to Ben, sweet to his sister—which wouldn’t be a problem seeing as how the woman was the only likable one in the Noble clan. And sweet to his mother, which meant she’d have to battle every natural instinct she had to tell that lady where she could stuff her high-and-mighty attitude. The thought curled her toes.

  Yeah, she was in trouble. If she was going to get through this, she needed a serious intervention.

  She approached the door, but Moose plopped down in front of it, blocking her access. “Sorry, boy.” He wasn’t allowed in the lodge anymore. Not since they’d become a commercial establishment. He’d been confined to the office and great outdoors. “I’ll throw the ball for you later,” she promised, nudging the dog aside.

  Once inside, she jogged across the Walker Mountain Ranch sitting room and headed straight for the kitchen, dodging members of the waitstaff who milled around to set the rustic tables that were strewn throughout the room.

  Sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows that graced the far dining room wall and added to the overall cheerfulness the room always seemed to possess.

  On a normal day, she’d stop to admire the view—the evergreens that lined the ornate stone patio and fireplace outside, the mountain peaks thundering above them, but Ben could be lurking anywhere and she wasn’t ready to see him again. Not yet.

  She needed a pep talk, some coaching. That’s why she’d come to the pros.