Four Horsemen: A Small Town Romance (A Good Run Of Bad Luck Book 5)

by Giulia Lagomarsino

  Shaking my head, I couldn’t deny it. “Fine, I like her, alright? But is it really that hard to believe? We’ve been friends for years.”

  “But the real question is, why didn’t you notice her like this before?”

  “Well, I met Natalie.”

  “Yeah, but this woman was friends with you long before that. You know what I think?”

  “No, please do tell me,” I said sarcastically.

  “I think you didn’t want to take her out of the friend-zone before. I think you liked her there because it was safe and then you would never lose her. But then Natalie came along and you lost her anyway. Now she’s back, and I think you know that if you don’t make a move, you’ll lose her again.”

  I stared at him, ready to throw another pencil at him. “And that was just rolling around in the back of your head.”

  He shrugged. “Well, occasionally, I do have good ideas.”

  He took his seat just as the front door opened. Chili Man walked in and Carter groaned.

  “So, I’m here to plan the chili cook-off.”

  “Really? Do we have to do this now?” Carter groaned.

  “Need I remind you that I could have you arrested at any time?”

  “Alright,” I stood, needing to diffuse the situation. “John, just relax. We’re going to have the chili cook-off. I have it right here on my calendar.” I randomly pointed to a day, hoping that would soothe his need for revenge.

  He frowned and walked over, shoving my finger aside. “That says pick up Brody at one-thirty.”

  “Right,” I cleared my throat. “So he can attend the chili cook-off.”

  John’s face lit up. “That’s awesome. So, next Saturday? I mean, you could have given me a little more notice. Who all is joining in?”

  “I…uh…well, the list is long.”

  “Really?” his eyes lit up. “How long?”

  “Well…there’s Carter and…Christy.”

  “That’s only two people.”

  Furrowing my brows, I tried to think of more people. “Right, but that’s just because there are so many people, I can’t remember everyone involved.”

  He rubbed his hands together excitedly. “Screw that bake-off. This is going to be so much better. They’ll be talking about the Great Chili Cook-off for years to come.”

  “And on that note, I have to make some phone calls and finalize the entry list.”

  “Right,” he winked. “I’ll let you get back to work.”

  He turned on his heel and walked out. Once the door slammed, I slumped down in my seat.

  “Next Saturday? We have to plan a chili cook-off for next weekend?”

  “What did you want me to say? I had to give him something so you didn’t get locked up again. If you would just learn to keep your mouth shut, we wouldn’t even be in this position.”

  “Fuck,” he plopped down in his chair. “I don’t even know how to make chili.”

  “Alright, first thing’s first. We need to call anyone we can get to make a pot of chili. Let’s start with the Cortells. We’ll blackmail them with jail time if we have to. Then I’ll call Mrs. Cranston and offer our services for her town page in exchange for her help.”

  “Whoa, I never agreed to be part of her weird Facebook group.”

  “Hey, you got us into this. You can get us out of this. It’s either have a few racy pictures on Facebook or go to jail. Which is it?”

  He rubbed his finger over his lip in thought.

  “Carter!”

  “I’m thinking,” he snapped.

  “You think jail is better than a few pictures?”

  He leaned forward on his desk, staring me down. “Would you rather be in jail or have a creepy old lady staring at you? I’m just saying…it’s a tough decision.”

  I picked up another pencil and tossed it at him. “Get on the phone and get to work.”

  Rushing to finish up, I realized I was going to be late again.

  “Are you seeing Christy tonight?”

  “Uh…I don’t know. I’ll probably stop by to check on her.”

  He snorted in amusement.

  “What?”

  “Nothing. It’s just funny to see you this way over a woman.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You know, going to check up on her, putting her ahead of everything else in your life.”

  “That’s not what I’m doing. She was threatened.”

  “With clothes.” At my glare, he rushed on. “I’m just saying, it’s not like someone held her at gunpoint. This could all turn into nothing.”

  “Or it could be something.”

  “Why can’t you just admit that you want to see her just to see her?”

  “Fine, I want to see her. Happy?”

  “But why do you want to see her?”

  I groaned at his fifty questions. “Why does it matter? Because I want things to be different with us.”

  He snorted. “Yeah, that’s not going to happen.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  He muttered under his breath. “Okay, let me lay this out for you. You two were best friends. You married Natalie. She left. See where I’m going with this?”

  I glanced at the clock, wondering how long this was going to take. “Yeah, she got another job. What’s your point?”

  He grunted his frustration, tearing off his hat as he ran his hand through his hair. After shoving his hat back on, he turned to me like he was ready to kick my ass. “She left because she was attracted to you.”

  “You think so?” I thought back to when she left. She didn’t really say a whole lot other than she got a great new job.

  “What other reason would she have to just up and leave? You really believe she just decided to leave her family and you behind for a job in a city with no friends around? Does that sound like the woman you know?”

  It could make sense. But if she liked me, why didn’t she say anything? We’d been friends for years. We told each other everything. “I guess not, but why wouldn’t she say anything?”

  “Because you were with Natalie. What was she supposed to say?”

  “You know, now that you mention it, she was always really quiet around Natalie. Maybe she just didn’t like her.”

  His eyes bugged out. “Are you serious right now?”

  “It would make sense.” I rubbed my thumb over my lip. “She was my best friend and she knew I loved Natalie, but she couldn’t stand to watch me marry her because she didn’t think Natalie was good enough for me. So, she left. That’s what all of this is about,” I laughed. “The awkwardness, the uncertainty…she never wanted me to marry Natalie, and when I decided to ask her to marry me, Christy stepped aside. She didn’t want her feelings about Natalie to sway my decision.”

  Carter stared at me for a moment, then shook his head. “Wow…I just…wow.”

  “What?”

  He walked around the desk and leaned back against it. “Okay, let’s say that she left because she didn’t like Natalie.” His eyes widened comically for a moment. “What exactly are you hoping to accomplish now by just storming back into her life and practically forcing her to be your friend again?”

  “To be her friend,” I said slowly. “If something else happens…I wouldn’t be opposed to exploring it.”

  “Okay, and in being her friend, are you planning on spending time with her again?”

  “No, I was thinking it would be in name only,” I said sarcastically.

  “What about Brody? Where does he fit in all this?”

  “What are you talking about? He's my kid.”

  “Yeah, and you have to watch who you bring around him. Little Miss Red Dress over at the daycare center is vying for the position of girlfriend. She’s already whispering in Brody’s ear. Kids are impressionable.”

  “That’s never going to happen. Can you imagine me with a woman like her?”

  “No, and that’s my point. You don't want her spending time with Brody, but apparently
you have no problem with Christy spending time with him.”

  “That’s different. I’ve known Christy for years.”

  “She was a social worker,” Carter offered.

  “Exactly. There’s no one I would trust with Brody more than her.”

  “Okay, I'm going to pretend not to be offended by that.”

  “You know I trust him with you, but Christy always had a good head on her shoulders. Why would I ever think he wouldn't be safe with her?”

  “And I’m chopped liver,” Carter huffed. “Nice to know where I stand.”

  I rolled my eyes at him.

  “I’m just saying, you're expecting a whole lot from her.”

  “Look, I talked to her last night and laid it out there for her.”

  “In what way?”

  “You know, I told her I wanted us to be friends again, that I missed that.”

  “And what did she say?”

  “Well…she kind of didn’t say anything.”

  “So, you told her you wanted to be friends with her, that you wanted her back in your life, and she didn't say anything?”

  “Well, I guess.”

  He walked over to me and placed his hand on my shoulder. “Okay, do you want my advice? Get to know her again as the person she is now. You can't just pummel into her life and pick up where you were seven years ago. Smooth things over with her. You gotta make her realize that you're someone she wants to be around.”

  Fuck. I rubbed the back of my neck. This was going to be harder than I thought. “How do I even do that?”

  “Hang out with her. Talk to her like you used to. You have to be open and honest with her. Ask her how her parents are.”

  “Fuck, I have to do the whole parent thing with her?”

  “What’s the big deal? They love you, and they always have.”

  “Yeah, but…I thought I was done with the parent thing.”

  “You live in the same town as them. You see them all the time.”

  “Yeah,” I said, practically whining. “But this is different.”

  “Of course it is, but if you want to transition from the friend-zone to something more, you’re going to have to do it.”

  I scrubbed my hand over my face. “You know, this is a lot more complicated than I was expecting. I was just thinking we could see where things go. Maybe I should just forget it and try to be her friend.”

  “Right, subject yourself to years of loneliness so you don’t have to talk to her parents. That sounds smart.”

  Sighing heavily, I grabbed my jacket. “I don’t have time for this right now. I have to go pick up Brody.”

  “Right, you drive and I’ll talk.”

  “Great,” I muttered.

  “Look, I'm gonna give you some advice that you gave me,” he said as we got in my car.

  “Oh, great. I can't wait to hear this.”

  “Hey, you gave it, so you should be happy to hear it. You said I should find someone that could cook.”

  “I don't think I said that.”

  “You said something like that. So, go find out if she can cook.”

  “What, you want me to just invite myself over and be like hey can you cook me a meal?”

  “Not exactly like that. Maybe tell her that Brody hasn’t had a home-cooked meal in a while.”

  “And she would probably tell me I should cook for him then.”

  I drove down Main Street, irritated by how slowly people were driving, all because I was the sheriff, they suddenly drove at a turtle’s pace.

  “You have to make her realize what it’s like cooking for a family. Oh! You could invite her over to your house for dinner one night.”

  I glanced over at him, wanting to slap him upside the head.

  “That's what you want me to do? Invite her over to my house so she can cook?”

  “No, see, here's the beauty of it. You invite her over for dinner, stating that you’ll cook. But then you make the worst meal ever—“

  “Which shouldn't be too hard to do since I can't cook for shit.”

  “Exactly. And then she sees you can't cook, and you drop some comment about how you wanted to do something nice for her, but, you know, you suck at cooking.”

  “Okay, I'm sort of following you.”

  “Right, so she sees that you can't cook and she says she can make dinner. Then you compliment her and blah, blah, blah. You know, make her feel good.”

  I pulled into the parking lot and shifted into park. “So, you want me to lie to her.”

  “No,” he said incredulously. “You finesse her so you’ll get future invitations. She’s going to see Brody gobbling up that food, and she’s not going to be able to resist cooking for the both of you.”

  “Okay. And in the meantime, how do I get back in her good graces?”

  “Well, you already said you were gonna have the security system installed after this. Okay…” He flung the door open and got out.

  He started pacing the parking lot. I followed, leaning against the car, waiting for him to finish his point. I could see Brody waiting for me, but Ellen was holding him back. She wanted me to go get him so she could flirt with me. I held up a finger, letting her know I would be a moment.

  “Alright, I’m in your shoes. My woman needs protection from a psychopath that wants to dress her in lingerie.”

  “Okay,” I rolled my eyes, going along with it.

  “Alight, so she needs my help, but she doesn’t want to accept my help.”

  “Right, I'm following you.”

  “So, she needs my help, but doesn't want my help.”

  I rolled my eyes, wondering why he was just repeating himself.

  “I need to find a way to make her want to allow me to be there for her.”

  “Christ, is there a point to this anytime soon? I get it, she needs help, but doesn’t want to accept it. I’ve already had this conversation with her.”

  “Right, so you need to find a way to be available to her. She's got to want to want you around.”

  “Carter, this doesn't make any sense.”

  “Yes, it does,” he shouted, tossing his hands in the air. He was just a little too excited about this. “You just need to insert yourself into her life in such a way that she feels the need to have you around.”

  Leaning against the car, I realized this was the stupidest conversation I’d ever had, with absolutely no point to it. “You can’t make a woman want you around.”

  “Does she drive really badly? Does she lose her keys all the time?”

  I let out an exasperated sigh.

  “You know she's not happy. Hey, I'm just saying. Those are the types of things you look for. You have to find the little things that could make you go over there more often, like checking for lingerie.”

  “And what if it’s her lingerie?”

  He frowned. “Well…have her try it on.”

  I slapped him upside the head and walked away, but he ran to catch up.

  “Alright, fine, you don’t like those ideas. You could invite her to the chili cook-off.”

  “And what would that accomplish?”

  He grinned wide. “You hang out together all day. Maybe you slip your hand into hers. Brody would be a great conductor.”

  “Of what?” I asked incredulously.

  “Cuteness. Women love kids, but they love the dads even more. And then at the end of the day, Uncle Carter comes along and takes Brody off your hands. You take her home and happen to slip inside for a little nookie. Everything plays out perfectly,” he said, his arms spread wide in victory.

  “Let me get this straight. You want me to befriend her, use my kid to get on her good side, then seduce her after eating chili all day?”

  “Well…” He thought about it for a moment.

  Slapping him on the shoulder, I said, “Somehow, I don’t think screwing her after eating chili all day will be a big hit. The odor of gas somehow just doesn’t set the mood.”

  I stalked off to get my kid.
<
br />   “Well, you let me know if you change your mind!” he shouted. “There’s still time to come up with a new plan!”

  16

  Christy

  I was just sitting down with a glass of wine when someone knocked on my door. I was already in my pajamas. Groaning, I walked over to the door, checking the peephole.

  “Great.”

  Swinging the door open, I smiled at my parents. “Mom, Dad. Please, just drop by whenever you want.”

  “Well, you said we would have dinner, but you never called,” my mom said as she walked in and took off her jacket, hanging it on the coat rack.

  “That’s because I wasn’t ready for company.”

  I shut the door, ignoring the way my dad looked around at the chaos still in the house.

  “Oh, honey. In your pajamas already? At your age? You’ll never find a husband like that.”

  “You know, husband hunting wasn’t on the agenda for tonight.”

  “Well, if I were you, I would be doing everything I could to get Jack’s attention. Ever since his wife died, he hasn’t dated a single woman.”

  “What makes you think he would want to date me?”

  “You’re pretty, you have strong legs, and your hair is thick,” my mom said, as if that was all that really needed to be said.

  “Wow, such a winning endorsement. Not, you’re smart or you’re funny…”

  “I think what your mom is trying to say is that Jack is a good match for you. You’re not going to find anyone better than him in this town.”

  I threw up my hands in irritation. “Did you ever think that maybe I don’t want to be with Jack?”

  My mother gasped in shock. “Why wouldn’t you want to be with Jack? He’s a fine man.”

  “He knows how to use a gun too,” my dad grunted.

  “Why do I have to want Jack?”

  Of course I wanted Jack. He was the only man for me, but why was I suddenly being pushed at him?

  “Christy, I’m just saying…Jack isn’t like other men. He’s respectable and he’s a model figure in this town.”

  “Oh yeah? Would you still think that if I told you that when I was fifteen, Jack showed me what porn was?”

  My mother’s face turned deathly white, but my dad just chuckled.