by LuAnn McLane
A big bear of a bartender lumbered her way. “Welcome to Sully’s. What can I get you?” he asked in a booming voice, and a moment later she saw recognition register in his eyes.
Please don’t mention the damned swimsuit poster, she silently prayed.
“Oh, hey, you’re Garret’s mother, right?”
Becca swallowed her sigh of relief and gave him a big smile. “Why, yes, I am. How did you know?”
“Pictures on Garret’s Facebook page with your beautiful new grandbaby. Said I’d never do that Facebook stuff, but my wife, Maria, talked me into it.”
“Ah, the wonders of social media.”
“Yeah, both good and bad. I’m still learning how to use it all. I’m friends with Garret, so I saw the pictures. Garret showcases some of his artists here on open mic night, and we do outdoor concerts on the stage out back.” He jammed his thumb over his shoulder.
“Oh.” Becca nodded. “How lovely. I’ll have to attend.”
“Congratulations on the grandbaby.”
“Why, thank you.”
“And by the way, I’m Pete Sully.”
“Becca Gordon.” She reached across the bar and shook his hand. “Nice to meet you. Oh, come to think of it, Garret has spoken of you. Your wife is a songwriter.” Some of the pieces were coming together. “An amazing songwriter who has written quite a few big hits.”
“Thanks, yes, she is,” Pete said with pride in his voice. “Garret works with her and Shane McCray up at Sully’s South, a showcase for songwriters. After Rick brought My Way Records here, Cricket Creek is starting to become well-known in the music industry. Being so close to Nashville helps.”
Becca nodded. “I never would have thought that Rick would go back to his bluegrass roots, but I’m so glad he did.”
“And you must be so proud of Garret.”
Becca felt her eyes mist over. “You’d better believe it.” She leaned forward. “I’m supposed to meet my daughters here, but I’m a bit early”—she rolled her eyes—“and way overdressed. I must confess that when I was told that you make the best martinis on the planet, I assumed this was a more like a cocktail lounge. The mention of pool tables and country boys went right over my head. I suppose I zoned out after I heard excellent martini.”
Pete tossed his towel over his shoulder and laughed. “Well, you were right about one thing. I do make a killer martini. And sounds like you need one. What kind would you like?”
“Lemon drop, please.”
“Coming right up.”
“Thanks!” Oh boy, could she really use a cocktail right about now. Once the girls arrived, they’d have a good laugh about her attire and carry on. While Pete mixed her drink, she took a discreet look around and noticed a tall, wide-shouldered guy walk up and take a seat at the far end of the bar where it angled back toward the wall. There was something vaguely familiar about him, and when he glanced her way, she realized that it was the dust-kicking, wave-making fisherman who lived across the lake from her.
Becca wasn’t quite sure whether or not to smile at him, but she got her answer when he frowned ever so slightly, as if in disapproval of her, and then averted his gaze. Well...of all the nerve! Silly, but she wanted him to look her way just so she could toss a frown right back at him. But he didn’t and thankfully her drink arrived, demanding her undivided attention.
Pete placed her lemon drop martini down with a flourish. “Enjoy!”
Becca looked at the sugar-rimmed glass with the curl of lemon zest and sighed. “Oh, this looks lovely.” She took a taste, noting that it was deliciously cold without a smidge of ice floating around. The tang of the lemon was softened by the sugar. Licking her lips, she nodded. “Oh, Pete, this is perfectly blended. You are a talented mixologist!” She took another sip. “Oh yes, this is brilliant.”
“Thanks.” Pete beamed at her. “I take making drinks seriously.”
Becca raised her drink in salute. “It shows.”
“I’m glad you approve.” He handed her a menu. “Give me a holler when you want something else.”
“I will.” After a few sips she reached inside her clutch for her cell phone, thinking she needed to text Sophia and check on when they would be arriving. Oh, she had missed one from her. She read the message. “What?” she said, drawing a look from the man on her left. They weren’t coming! Grace wrote that she was up to her eyeballs researching something, and Garret suddenly had to stay late at the studio, so he’d asked Sophia to bring dinner to Mattie. Becca sighed. Well, she couldn’t fault Sophia for that. She briefly wondered what Gracie was researching, hoping whatever it was wouldn’t take her away from Cricket Creek anytime soon.
Oh well, the martini was hitting the spot, and she decided to go ahead and look at the menu. She tapped her toes to the music and decided to make the best of the evening. It did feel good to be out, even though she wished her fairy godmother would appear and wave her wand, changing her cocktail dress to jeans and...? Becca looked around at what the other women were wearing. Cute T-shirts and blouses and cowboy boots! Wouldn’t boots be fun? She started to dream up what could be a Cricket Creek line of clothing. Maybe she could open a little shop up on Main Street, something with the Becca Gordon spin on it.
Becca decided she’d have to head into town tomorrow and do some shopping. Without meaning to—at least that what she told herself—her gaze landed back on Jimmy Topmiller. He was talking to Pete, giving Becca the opportunity to check out his profile. Okay, he was even better looking in person, she thought grudgingly. And when he propped his elbow up on the bar she noticed his tanned, muscled arm stretching the limits of his short-sleeved Western-cut shirt. His voice floated her way, deep and rich, with a slight Southern twang. The discussion was about fish, and Jimmy held his hands apart, indicating the size of one he’d caught, most likely the one from her dock. She remembered watching him fight to catch the fish. She just bet he would be pissed if he knew that she’d been rooting for the fish to get away.
Becca was about to look away and give her attention to the menu, but Jimmy suddenly tipped his head back and laughed at something Pete said. For some reason, the sound of his laughter made her smile. Odd...
And then, as if feeling her gaze upon him, Jimmy looked her way. Becca’s instinct was to quickly bury her nose in the menu, but when he frowned slightly again, as if she somehow offended him, she lifted her chin a notch just to show him. But she’d forgotten that she was still smiling, and to her horror she realized that the look she gave him must appear...inviting!
Dear God.
And then Jimmy Topmiller did something that hadn’t happened to Becca since secondary school.
He snubbed her.
The nerve!
Even though she’d been a model, Becca never considered herself to be a vain woman. Perhaps her confusion was because, like Gracie, she’d grown tall seemingly overnight and always felt gangly and uncertain through secondary school, towering over the other girls and most of the guys, as well. She was not one of the cool kids, and it was quite a shocker when she was suddenly thought to be beautiful.
Although she had to admit that her success later in her twenties was almost a how-do-you-like-me-now feeling. But even though she had a knack for fashion, she’d never really understood why she felt comfortable on the runway or on the covers of magazines.
Becca didn’t know the reason, but Jimmy Topmiller’s blatant brush-off made her furious. Who cares? she thought, but for some unknown reason she did. And because she did, his dismissal made her even angrier. If her martini weren’t so delicious she’d like the satisfaction of tossing it in his face! For someone who prided herself on keeping her cool, her unexpected flash of fury left her feeling unsettled.
Becca whipped her menu open, nearly knocking over her martini. She bumped the man next to her just as he was taking a drink of his beer. He spille
d some of it down his chin. “So sorry,” she said, hoping that Jimmy didn’t see her getting flustered.
Over the top of the menu, Becca flicked a discreet glance his way just as a female bartender approached him. Because his beer was nearly full, Becca realized that the cute bartender wasn’t waiting on Jimmy but flirting with him. Leaning forward, she touched his hand lightly and did a hair flip. And while Jimmy didn’t exactly flirt back, he certainly didn’t brush her off. Becca frowned, wondering why on earth she cared, and then it hit her all at once that she missed having a man in her life.
Not someone rude like him, she thought, and turned her attention back to the menu, hoping that she could find something healthy. To her horror, she realized that she’d been holding the menu upside down.
Now the trick was how to turn it right side up without anyone noticing.
8
The Games People Play
EXCEPT WHEN FISHING COMPETITIVELY, JIMMY TOPMILLER considered himself a pretty laid-back kind of guy. He let very little get under his skin, but if there was one thing that got to him, it was uppity rich women. While he knew he was being completely unfair to judge someone simply because of his or her station in life, he had a huge chip on his shoulder when it came to people like Becca Gordon, and for good reason. A reason he didn’t care to think about right now, and so he pushed it to the back of his brain, where he kept it locked away most of the time.
Becca Gordon had already riled him up by glaring at him every time she spotted him out on the water fishing. He didn’t usually roar up and down the lake and adhered to the no-wake zone, but when she stood out on her back deck with her hands on her hips and the sunshine glinting off her blond hair, he felt the need to piss her off. And although flipping his bait in and around docks was a smart way to catch bass, he chose to cast near Becca’s cabin simply because she didn’t want him around. Well, too bad. She didn’t own the lake. When she’d been walking along the road a few days ago, he deliberately kicked up some dust just to mar her long-legged perfection.
Jimmy knew his behavior was nothing short of juvenile, but he couldn’t seem to help himself when it came to annoying his uppity new neighbor. What pissed him off more than anything was that he was undeniably attracted to her. And he didn’t want to be drawn to her, because she represented everything he detested. After she’d moved in across the lake, he’d asked Danny Mayfield about her and found out that she was Becca Gordon, Mattie’s mother-in-law. Danny went on to explain that Rick Ruleman was her ex-husband but that they were cool with each other. Becca was also the mother of Sophia, the cute little cook standing in for Mattie at the bistro. But something about Becca nagged at him, and after doing some research, he knew why. While not in the limelight lately, Becca was at one time a supermodel with a swimsuit poster that had rivaled Farrah Fawcett’s famous red swimsuit pose. And she’d married Marcus Gordon, some sort of business tycoon, whom she’d also divorced. Or maybe he’d divorced her. She had high maintenance written all over her. Jimmy shook his head when he glanced her way. What a typical rich-princess lifestyle, trading in one rich husband for another one. His own parents had adored each other, and Jimmy was certain they’d still be happily married had his father not died tragically at the age of thirty-five. And the reason his father had perished still chapped his ass.
Jimmy found out that Becca had, among other business ventures, gone on to start her own successful clothing line. Impressive, he supposed, but hey, it’s pretty damned easy to make money when you start out with piles of it. Because his father had worked for the wealthy, Jimmy had witnessed enough of that kind of over-the-top lifestyle during his childhood, and he steered clear of it. And he was going to steer clear of her...
But hot damn, when he’d walked into Sully’s and saw Becca sitting there in that fancy black dress with those endless legs crossed, he’d all but swallowed his tongue. She had her hair pulled back in some fancy twist that reminded him of a classy movie star. He knew she had to be near his age, somewhere in her fifties, but that didn’t stop every guy in the place, both young and old, from checking her out, making him want to go over there and...and what?
Protect her slammed into his brain and refused to budge, no matter how hard he tried. Not even having Angie, the cute-as-hell bartender, flirt her ass off with him could chase away the fact that Becca Gordon sat just a few feet away from him. And when she spoke in that accent of hers, he thought that he could listen to her talk all night long.
Of course, that particular image took his brain on a journey that had him thinking he just might need to order a shot of bourbon. But then Jimmy looked down at his Kentucky Ale, wondering how a few sips of beer could make him not think straight. Maybe a shot of bourbon wouldn’t be a smart move after all. And when she’d smiled his way, it took every ounce of resistance not to go over there, shouldering everyone else out of the way, and offer to buy her a drink.
But then again, no one else in the joint seemed to have the courage to approach her. Oh, Jimmy had the courage, but he just didn’t want to give her the satisfaction, and he took delight in snubbing her when she’d smiled his way. But after he’d given her the brush-off, she seemed to get both furious and flustered at the same time. Well, maybe his disinterest would take her down a notch or two, even though he was sure she had a lot more notches to go before feeling humble. And when she’d pretended to read the menu while holding it upside down, it was all he could do not to burst out laughing.
Jimmy knew the moment she realized that the menu was upside down, because her eyes widened and she gave a little glance right and left to see if anyone else had noticed. Then she’d silently put the menu down, picked up that ridiculous purse, and headed toward the ladies’ room. Of course, Jimmy noticed that every guy watched her progress across the floor in her fancy-ass high heels. She passed behind him on her way to the hallway, giving him an enticing sniff of her perfume. How in the world did she walk on heels that high? He saw a couple of women give her the stink eye and for a brief moment thought they were being unfair. And then he told himself that she deserved it, coming into the bar dressed to kill and sucking up all of the male attention from the local gals out on the town.
While Becca was gone, another martini suddenly appeared at her spot. Jimmy ground his teeth together, wondering just who’d bought it for her. While Sully’s Tavern was a pretty tame local watering hole, Becca was clearly out of her element. Even though Pete kept everyone in line, there were occasions when a scuffle would break out. And having someone like Becca in the place could shake things up. Jimmy wondered what she had been thinking, sashaying into a honky-tonk all by herself, dolled up like she was going to a formal event.
When Jimmy heard Becca’s heels clicking down the hallway from the bathroom, he braced himself for her appearance. Deciding he wouldn’t give her a glance, he reached for a handful of snack mix from the bowl in front of him. He munched for a minute, but when she failed to appear, Jimmy leaned back and looked into the hallway, wondering just what the hell had happened to her. Had someone approached her?
She stood off to the side with her back to the wall, just visible to him through the doorway. She stared down at her feet as if she’d lost the power to walk, and it took Jimmy a minute to figure out that she’d somehow managed to get one of her silly spiked heels stuck in between the floorboards. She started wiggling her trapped foot harder, but without any luck. Her close proximity to the wall must be making it difficult for her to bend forward and loosen her heel or remove the shoe.
Jimmy turned and took a gulp of his beer, telling himself it wasn’t his problem and that someone would gladly come to her rescue. Who wouldn’t want to put their hands around Becca Gordon’s ankle? Well...not him.
But when she failed to appear, Jimmy’s legs took on a life of their own, and he suddenly found himself standing beside her. “Need some help there?”
“No...I’m fine,” she answered tigh
tly.
Her attitude should have been enough to send him walking away, but what the hell was she going to do? “Clearly, you’re not. Do you want me to loosen your heel for you or undo your shoe or something? How did you manage to get stuck like that?”
“I stepped aside for someone to pass and my heel sank into a crevice next to the wall.”
“Well, let me help you.”
“No, I’ve got this.”
“I don’t think—”
Becca gave her foot a huge tug. Her heel popped free and she tumbled forward, right smack into his arms.
“Whoa, there.” After she pitched forward and sideways, Jimmy’s hands found her waist, trying to hold her steady. She grabbed for his shoulders and her cheek landed against Jimmy’s cheek, almost as if they were slow dancing. Her skin was silky soft and she smelled like...damn, like heaven.
“Would you kindly let go of me?”
“So much for being an angel.”
“What?”
“Um, sugar, you’re clinging to my shoulders, by the way.”
She pushed at him, making her back smack up against the wall. She glared at him as if the whole thing was somehow his fault.
Typical.
Jimmy let go of her waist and held his hands up in surrender. “Seriously, I was only trying to help.”
Her expression softened. “I know. I’m sorry. I’m just so embarrassed.”
Jimmy was caught off guard by her easy admission. “About getting your shoe caught? Sugar, just wait a while. This is a bar. Pretty soon some way more embarrassing things are going to happen.”
“Worse than coming into a honky-tonk bar wearing a cocktail dress?”
He wanted to touch her cheek but didn’t. “Yeah, trust me.”
Becca gave him a little smile that trembled ever so slightly. She tried to hide it with a chuckle. “Well, I’d walk back over there with what’s left of my dignity, but in my stubbornness I broke the heel.”