by Sophie Oak
Ty could help out on that front. They’d become good friends with one of the EMTs who worked at the resort. Ty had assured Cade that once the Elk Creek Lodge was in full swing for the winter, the party would begin. Cade liked tourists. Well, he liked the nice ones. They came. They had fun. They left town.
Jesse stared at him. He tended to let Cade lead for the most part except with a couple of the women they’d shared, but there were times when he was as stubborn as the day was long. His mouth twisted into that grimace that let Cade know he’d pissed Jesse off. Still, Jesse took a long drink of his soda and sighed. “I’m sure that will be fun, brother.”
Cade put the burger aside, his appetite gone. Jesse was the only family he had left. Everyone else was dead, and Cade didn’t make friends the way Jesse did. “We’ll find someone, Jess. It’s just not going to be a ball-busting, big-city girl.”
“You forgot to mention that I’m a soul-sucking lawyer,” a throaty voice said from the front door.
Cade stopped, his attention focused on the woman at the front of the garage. Gemma Wells, he presumed. Gemma Wells was petite with honey-blonde hair, and she wore a Stella’s Diner T-shirt and jeans that clung to her every curve. Fuck. Jesse was right. Her tits were really nice. They weren’t incredibly large, but they would make a good handful, and he would bet her nipples were a decent size. He liked nipples. He liked to twist them and pinch them and suck them into his mouth. He could spend an hour just playing with a woman’s breasts.
“Oh, and coldhearted bitch, vampire bitch, cast-iron bitch, really everything goes with bitch.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “And I didn’t bust Max Harper’s balls. Those are still on his body. Now, Bare-Chested Ape Man, if you could be bothered to look past my boobs, maybe we could have a conversation.”
“Bare-Chested Ape Man?” Cade crossed his arms over his chest, mimicking her squared-off stance. Every damn word out of her mouth upped his blood pressure just a little. And it, unfortunately, had his dick jumping, too.
“Well, I don’t know your name and you seem to have zero problem with calling me names, so yes, you will be forever known as Bare-Chested Ape Man.” She turned to Jesse, her eyes narrowing.
“Gemma Wells.” Jesse grinned like the cat who’d swallowed the canary. “You’re Gemma Wells. And I like your face, too.”
A hint of smile crossed those ridiculously hot lips. “Fine. You get a name.”
Jesse stared at her.
Gemma looked back at Cade. “He has a name, right?”
“Why don’t you ask me politely, and I’ll give you the courtesy of an introduction.” Jesse’s words came out in that low rumble that meant he was damn serious.
Cade felt a deep sense of satisfaction. There was no way the city girl would let a mechanic talk to her like that. She would unleash some serious vitriol Jesse’s way, and Jesse couldn’t stand an impolite woman.
Except she didn’t hurl sarcasm his way. “Hello, my name is Gemma. What’s yours?”
“Jesse, ma’am. Jesse McCann.”
“You’ll have to forgive me. It sounds like you practically know my life story.” Her eyes were a little warmer as she looked at Jesse. What color were those damn eyes? At first he’d thought they were blue, but now there was a hint of green in there.
Jesse walked forward, holding his hand out. It was a good thing since Cade was pretty sure Jesse would need it to wipe away the drool. “It’s a small town, Miss Wells. You’re new. Pretty much everyone knows everything.”
“I wouldn’t say that.” Cade kept steady eyes on her. “We have a few secrets here in Bliss.”
She shook Jesse’s hand. “I’m sure you do. Now, can someone tell me where I can find someone called Long-Haired Roger?”
Jesse flushed as he took his hand away. He obviously hadn’t been thinking. He had motor oil on his hand and a little grease. Gemma looked down at her now-filthy hand.
Well, at least Jesse would figure out she wasn’t for him. She would show that bitchy mouth off and prove she was the type of woman who wouldn’t fool around with a couple of blue-collar guys.
“I’m sorry, Miss Wells. I wasn’t thinking. I’m sure I have something you can clean off on.”
Gemma looked at her hand and then very slowly drew it across the thigh of her jeans. Somehow the action of that small hand wiping filth off was deeply erotic. “It’s Gemma, Jesse. And don’t worry about it. I used to be a lawyer. I don’t mind getting my hands a little dirty.” She held out a set of keys. “Now, I’ve just been blackmailed into becoming the office manager for the sheriff. He’s a son-of-a-bitch, manipulative, rat-fink bastard. And his brakes squeak. So can you handle that for me, Jesse?”
“Yes, Gemma. I can handle your problem for you.”
Cade just watched the invisible tether catch Jesse. Damn it, but he didn’t like being left out. “And what would you have called him if he hadn’t been able to come up with your name? If I’m Bare-Chested Ape Man, what would he have been?”
There it was again, that little devil in her smile. “The Sweet One. Miss Stella tells me there’s always one. Call the station when the car’s ready, boys.”
She turned and started to walk out.
“Hey, do you need a ride?” Jesse asked. Jesse looked like he might just offer to carry her all the way back to Main Street.
She didn’t turn, but just let those hips sway as she walked to the door. “Nope. Both my legs work and the longer I stay away the less I have to hear about something called Reticulan Grays and their plans to take over the world. Apparently I should have skipped the law degree and gone straight to psychology.”
The door closed behind her.
There was a dippy grin on Jesse’s face. “I was right about her.”
“The jury’s out on that.” She hadn’t exactly been sweet as pie, but he could handle that. “We do know she’s a little crazy.”
Jesse’s smile went wide. “Damn straight. I love a psycho chick.”
Cade did, too, though this one seemed dangerous. He watched through the bay windows as she started walking back toward the sheriff’s department. She walked in a straight line. She didn’t look around. She simply tackled the walk as though it was a task to get through before she took on the next one.
Jesse stared at her, too. “Do you think we should go after her? Maybe walk her back?”
Somehow he didn’t think Gemma Wells would love having an Ape Man trailing after her. She might call the cops and have him arrested for stalking. “No. I don’t think she would take too kindly to that. Be careful with that one. She’s just as likely to bite you as she is to give you a kiss.”
Nope. Gemma Wells wasn’t for him. Still, he kept his eye on her until she turned the corner and disappeared from sight.
He went back to his burger. His appetite was back in full force.
Chapter Two
Gemma opened the door to her small cabin with a sigh. This was home for now. She was back to her childhood, moving from place to place. In the last six months, she’d lived in New York, Chicago, and now Bliss, Colorado. She’d come to Colorado with a suitcase full of completely impractical shoes and bags, her laptop, and her phone—neither of which were doing her a bit of good. Everything else she owned was in a storage container in Brooklyn and she wouldn’t see it again for another couple of days when the movers finally shipped it. She didn’t have anything to work on, and so far no one had called about her resume. Big surprise there.
And now she had another job. The sheriff had worked to get her, but how long would he keep her?
And why couldn’t she stop thinking about Bare-Chested Ape Man and the Sweet One? The very last thing she needed was for her hormones to go on all-out, full-on, call-in-the-troops alert.
She tossed her purse inside and turned back, looking at the slightly larger cabin next door to hers that her mother had rented. The front porch was empty, which could mean only one thing. She closed the door and walked around to the back. Twilight was encroaching, but that
meant something different in Colorado.
Blues and pinks and oranges painted the sky. In New York, evening had just meant the world got darker, but it was a nightly show here.
How long had it been since she just sat and watched the day fade? The last ten years of her life had been one long press against the borders of time. Time was the enemy. Time had to be used. Every second of it. Gemma Wells, hard-nosed lawyer, fought against the whole idea of sitting and watching the sunset.
But she wasn’t a lawyer anymore. She was a daughter, and she’d almost lost her mom.
“Hey, baby girl.” Her mom turned her head, a serene smile on her face. How she managed her constant peaceful mood, Gemma had no idea. Her mom had spent years battling cancer, but there was no bitterness in her body. Even when she’d lost both breasts, Lynn Wells had simply told Gemma she was grateful for the time she’d had with them. She’d held a damn party to say good-bye to her breasts and invited all her hippie friends to read eulogies to her mammaries. Nope. She didn’t understand her mom, but, god, she loved her.
Patrick had told her the party was ridiculous. He’d been embarrassed when she’d mentioned it to her coworkers.
“Hey, Momma.” Gemma took the Adirondack chair next to her mom and let her head rest back, closing her eyes.
She bet Jesse McCann wouldn’t have laughed. He’d probably have escorted her to the party and said good-bye to her mom’s breasts, too. She could size up people pretty well. She’d had to learn to in her job. Jesse was the sweet one. Jesse was the one who could be easily led by his penis and would smile and thank the woman who led him.
Not the Neanderthal shirtless dude, though. No. He was trouble.
“How was work?”
“Assaulted a man. Got fired.” She was done prevaricating. Her mom would know the truth soon enough.
“Now, Gemma, that is not the way I heard it.”
Or she’d already heard the story. Gemma sighed and opened her eyes. Her mom’s brilliant blue eyes were staring right at her.
“Oh, thank the lord, the nightly entertainment is here!” Naomi Turner rounded the corner, a tray in her hand. It contained all the new nightly rituals that had been implemented since they’d gotten to Bliss. A bottle of rich red wine, a tray of cheese and crackers and prosciutto. There were three glasses, and Naomi passed Gemma one.
“Thanks.” Gemma took a long sip. Naomi Turner was a godsend. She’d been her mother’s nurse in Chicago during her surgery and the subsequent radiation treatments. She wasn’t sure how or why, but Naomi had agreed to come with them when they retreated to Colorado. She rather thought Naomi was running from something, but she’d been far too grateful to ask.
Her mom took her glass and shook her blonde hair. “I heard that the nosy sheriff had a hand in everything.”
Naomi winced, her dark eyes turning slightly toward the front of the house. “Keep your voice down, sweetie, we have company.”
A pretty woman with brown hair and sparkling eyes rounded the corner, another tray in her hand. “Oh, it’s all right. I know my husband is a manipulative bastard. He told me what he’d done earlier today. That’s why I made my spinach dip.”
An ethereal brunette in a long cotton skirt, tunic, and Birkenstocks followed Mrs. Wright. “And I brought cruelty-free pita bread to go with the spinach dip, although you might simply want to eat the bread. The dip has sour cream.”
“Hi, I’m your neighbor, Callie Hollister-Wright. This is Nell. She thinks sour cream is evil.”
The woman named Nell shook her head. “No, I simply think it’s ignorant of the harm it does. But Gemma here is very good. Did you know she’s a lawyer?”
Thank god. Someone in the world didn’t think she was the second coming of Satan. “Thanks.”
Nell had a serene smile on her face. “You’re welcome. I’m very involved in all the environmental cases going on in the area. I heard you worked on the Calvin Township case. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.”
Gemma reached for a piece of bread. “Yeah, though I’m surprised you’ve heard of it. We tried really hard to keep Tremon Industries out of the press. Guess my old firm is laying down on the job.”
Nell gasped and grabbed the bread from her hand. “You weren’t representing the town?”
“No.” Yeah, her reputation in this town was going to hell.
Nell sat down, crossing her legs, a stubborn expression on her face.
Callie Hollister-Wright grimaced. “Sorry. She’s protesting you now.”
“Oh, dear.” Her mom stared at the now-protesting woman with a worried look on her face. “Should we do something?”
Callie shook her head. “Not unless she starts singing. Now, I would like to apologize for Nate’s evil plan to get you to work for him. All I can say is, apparently he’s been plotting ever since Lynn called Stella and said she was coming home and you were coming with her. He’s really shorthanded right now with Logan in Dallas. Hope, his last office manager, just got married and she’s working out at her new husbands’ ranch. I’m way too busy with the twins. Laura and Rafe are trying to set up a new business. Holly says she has PTSD every time she walks into the station house since she almost got killed by Russian mobsters there. And Jen doesn’t need the money. Oh, and Zane, my other husband, told Nate he would cut his balls off if he poached Lucy, so you were really important to Nate.”
“Your other husband?” Gemma needed that wine.
Callie smiled. “Oh, yes. They usually get along great, but it’s hard to find good help in this town. It’s why I wish Nate would have left well enough alone. Stella is going to give him hell, but he refuses to back down. He says he won you through sheer ruthless determination.”
The sound of a car rolling up the gravel road distracted her for a moment. The valley was usually very quiet, but it sounded like everyone was getting home from work at the same time today.
Her mom sat back. “Thank the lord. I thought something terrible had happened. It’s just Bliss antics.”
The woman in front of her seemed to be meditating, a low hum beginning in the back of her throat.
“Bliss antics? I was manipulated into assaulting a man, Mom.”
Nell’s eyes opened, a look of shock going across her face.
“It was just Max,” Callie explained.
Nell’s humming resumed.
Her mother shook her head. “Oh, this is delicious, Callie. Simply wonderful.”
Naomi dug in to the spinach dip as well. “It’s excellent.”
“Lynn! Lynn, hon, are you back here?” A feminine voice floated over the yard.
Callie winced. “Stella. Darn it. I don’t have the babies with me to distract her.”
Stella marched into the backyard, a frown on her face. Her eyes narrowed when she saw Callie. “You.”
“Married very poorly, obviously.”
Wow, Callie just lay right down and let the truck roll over her. Well, Nate Wright seemed like a man who could handle himself.
Stella growled a little. “Don’t you give me that. You love that man. So you should know that I intend to take him down.” She looked at Gemma. “You don’t have to work for him.”
“I do if I don’t want to go to jail.” It had been a good play on the sheriff’s part.
Stella huffed. “Oh, that man is all bark and no bite.”
Naomi shook her head. “I don’t know about that. He’s already written me two tickets.”
“That’s just his way of saying hello.” Stella sat down on the porch next to Lynn. “I’m going to fix this, hon. I won’t have your poor, sweet girl working for that horrible old Nate. And it’s dangerous there.”
Callie frowned. “Because nothing ever goes wrong at Stella’s.”
“We have the occasional baby birthing, but other than that we’ve been murder-free for twenty-one years. I’m putting that on a T-shirt and shoving it up Zane’s overly muscled butt cheeks. Callie, you know I love you and your family, but I am taking Nate down for this
. He’s corrupting poor, innocent city girls.”
“I did Tase the guy.” Gemma took a long sip of wine.
“She got him good.” Cameron Briggs walked up. She’d thought she’d seen him coming out of a cabin a couple of houses down from hers. “Nate and I were there…eating a completely innocent lunch. We weren’t waiting for Max to blow or anything. Nice. Spinach dip.” He turned to shout back at someone walking up the yard. “Hey, come on, Laura. Stella won’t hurt you. Just me and Nate, and Nate’s smart enough to stay away. By the way, you are looking gorgeous today, Ms. Stella. I mean beautiful. Why the hell is Sebastian letting you work anyway? If I was your new husband, I would just keep you in bed all day.”
Stella stared at him for a long moment. “Flattery will get you everywhere, Cam.” She sighed and patted her helmet of blonde hair. “As it so happens, I like to work. The dining industry is in my blood. And if I left it in Hal’s hands, he would turn the whole place into something called the Gastronomy Café. That’s his dream. I don’t think that sounds very nice.”
A gorgeous blonde walked up and took Briggs’ hand. “Hey everyone. Hey, Miss Lynn. How are you this evening? It looks like we’re having a little party.”
Callie sat down next to Stella who sighed and put her arm around her. “That sounds like fun. Why don’t we grill up some steaks?”
Nell cleared her throat.
“And some cruelty-free tofu burgers and have a nice little evening. It’s going to be too cold soon.”
Her mom clapped her hands together. “That sounds lovely. We used to have get-togethers all the time when I was growing up. Stella, do you remember that year the circus came to town and Mel was certain the trapeze artist was an alien?”
They were off, laughing and reminiscing. Gemma looked around. The gorgeous blonde with Cam was calling Holly on her phone, inviting her over. She also called someone named Rafe and told him to get beer. Naomi was talking to Cam. It was a little party with her mother in the center, laughing and talking and belonging.
She was surrounded by people, and she was aware of how alone she was.