9781631052323ForeverKindofCowboySullivan (7 page)

Anne
brought two plates heaping with scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast to
their table. “Eat up, girls.”

“Oh,
Lord. I don’t think I can eat this greasy food,” Mandy replied, holding her
hand over her mouth.

“Here
are
two ibuprofen
and some Alka-Seltzer for your
stomach.”

“What’s
with you old people and your remedies? That’s what my dad gave me this
morning.”

“It
works,
don’t
it?”

“Yes,
ma’am.”

“Then
hush.” She handed Mandy the glass. “Drink up.
Quickly.
You’ll feel better in about five minutes. You need to eat.”

“Okay.”
Mandy downed the entire glass, shuddering with the last gulp.
“Oh, my God.
That’s nasty shit.”

“Yeah,
but you’ll feel better.”

“I hope
so. I hate hangovers.”

“I’ve
never had one before, but I didn’t care for mine either,” Callie replied. “I
hit the toilet first thing this morning as soon as I opened my eyes.”

“Your
phone call woke me up from mine.”

Callie
took Mandy’s hand to squeeze her fingers in shared misery. “Sorry.”

A small
smile spread across Mandy’s lips. “It was totally worth it. I actually got a
few phone numbers myself.”

Callie
started eating the food in front of her, talking in between bites. “So tell me
what else Jeremiah did.”

“Not
much of anything. He glowered most of the night as he watched you spreading yourself
kind of thin around the men in the bar. You had them hanging all over you,
especially when you were doing body shots. He didn’t like seeing you doing that
at all was my guess.”

“Well,
tough shit.”

“My
thoughts exactly.”
Mandy sipped at her coffee, simply sighing after she swallowed. “I love coffee
and I actually think I might be able to eat some of this food now.” After a
couple of tentative bites, she started eating with gusto. “This is really
good.”

“I need
my jolt of java every morning before I go to the station, otherwise I’m a
bear.”

“So,
tell me
what’s the deal with you two
anyway?”

“Nothing
much.
We
were friends, or so I thought. You
know,
acquaintances
or whatever you want to call it. He asked me out Friday.”

“Like a
date?”

“I’m
not sure what the hell it was. We went out to dinner, then went back to my
house and watched movies. It wasn’t a big deal, but he did ask if I wanted to
go out Saturday too after I suggested another date, to hang out at the bar,
play pool.
That kind of thing.
He stood me up for some
guest at the ranch who wanted to ride a cowboy. I told him off before he
apparently showed up at the bar when I came alone. You know the rest better
than I do.”

“He
acted jealous last night.”

“Jealous?
Not in this lifetime. He doesn’t care about me other than being friends.”

“I
don’t know. The way things went down last night sure doesn’t make me think he
doesn’t care.”

“Well,
he doesn’t. If he did, he wouldn’t have stood me up in the first place.”

“Maybe
he’s scared? I know how those Young boys tend to run from feelings too deep.
Just asked Peyton, Paige, Mesa, and Terri.”

“Scared?
I doubt it. I don’t think anything frightens Jeremiah. He’s tough as nails.”

Mandy
finished her food and pushed her plate away. “Except when it comes to women,
especially one he cares about more than he wants to admit.”

“Enough
about me and Jeremiah.
Who are you trying to forget?”

“Jonathan.”
                 

“Why?”

“He
doesn’t know I exist. I’m right in his face most of the time being at the
ranch, but he seems to be so focused on the stuff going on with the ranch’s websites,
he doesn’t even notice I’m there. I think I’m becoming one of those creepy
stalker chicks because I watch him all the time. He’s not like the others. I
mean, yeah, he’s a cowboy and all, but he’s not in-your-face macho like Jackson
or Joey. He’s sweet, kind, and gorgeous.”

“Oh,
you’ve got it bad.”

Mandy
sighed. “You think so? What the hell am I going to do?”

“We’ll
figure out something. Maybe my dad’s right, he needs to be knocked upside the
head to realize what a catch you are.”

“Maybe.”

“A
smack would do the man good.”

“I like
how you think.” She tapped her fingers on her lips for a moment. “I could
seduce him.”

“That’s
not going to get you a long-term relationship with the guy. They get those
kinds of offers all the time. You need to be all he wants in a woman, but play
it hard to get too.”

“Will
you help me?”

“Of
course.
We’re sisters in this!” Callie had finished her own food some time before, so
she pushed her plate to the side as they shook hands. “Those Young boys don’t
stand a chance!”

“But I
thought you didn’t want to give into your feelings for Jeremiah?”

“I love
the man. What can I say? He’s had me tied up in knots since I was a freshman in
high school and I just can’t seem to get away from him even if I wanted to.”

“So you
want him?”

“Hell
yeah, I want him, hogtied to my bed would be a good start, but I have to
convince him I can be the woman he wants for the rest of his life. I’m not
quite sure how to go about doing that, but I think me not giving in to his
sorry ass last night went a long way to convincing him he might want to see
where things will lead with us.”

“How
about we kidnap him?”

“Who?
Jeremiah or
Jonathan?”

“Both?”

Callie
laughed, feeling better every second she talked with Mandy.
“Sounds
about right to me.”

“What
are you two conspiring about over here? Those smiles tell me you are up to no
good and if it has anything to do with my nephews, I want to hear it.”

“Will
you warn them?”

She
leaned on the table edge with her hands under her chin and a gleam in her eye.
“Hell no!
I’d love to see every one of those Young boys tied
to the woman they were meant to be with. It means doing a little on my part,
I’m all there.”

“I
can’t believe we’re doing this.”

The
twinkle in Mandy’s eyes told the whole story. She was into corralling herself a
Young brother, whatever it took. Callie had to admit, she wanted Jeremiah
something fierce, but was she ready to do the necessary thing to convince him
he might just want to spend the rest of his life with her? Was she ready for
that kind of commitment with him herself? Love did funny things to people’s
hearts and she was about to find out what it meant to truly love someone.

Chapter Six

Callie
sighed as she hung up the phone for the third time in less than an hour. Every
guy in Bandera seemed to have her number. She couldn’t even begin to understand
why all of a sudden she’d become one popular lady, but she had. Just to show
Jeremiah she wasn’t going to wait for his ass, she’d taken a couple of dates
over the last several weeks. Unfortunately, they all turned out to be jerks
wanting to get into her pants.
I wish I
could remember more about that night at The Dusty Boot.
She must have
really been wild. To think Jeremiah took her home so nothing bad would happen
to her. She really needed to thank him for protecting her because if the few
dates she’d had were any indicator, she dodged a bullet that night.

Her
cell phone jingled and she rolled her eyes, hoping it wasn’t another guy
calling to try get laid.

“Hello?”

“Callie?”

“Jeremiah?”

“Yeah.”

“How
are you?”

“Okay.
I’ve been working a lot at the ranch, but I wanted to see if you were still mad
at me.”

“Of
course I am, but you’re a guy. I shouldn’t have been surprised by your
actions.”

“I
really am sorry I didn’t at least call you.”

“So am
I.”

The
line echoed from the silence for several uncomfortable moments. The background
noise was hard to distinguish, but it almost sounded like he was at Anne’s
diner. She smiled thinking Anne might have put him up to this phone call.

“How’ve
you been? I haven’t even seen you at the garage in the last few weeks.”

“I’ve
been there, but I’ve been really busy. I’ve taken time off.”

“Busy
how?”

“My
phone has been ringing nonstop. I’ve been out on a few dates. You know.
Nothing special.”
She looked down at her nails for a moment.
“Except one.”
I
am so going to hell for lying.

“Dates
as in plural?”

“Yeah.
I had a pocket full of phone
numbers the next morning and apparently I gave my number to several guys at the
bar.”

“I
think you did too, but I made sure none of them took you home. You were pretty
wasted doing tequila shots.”

“I
know.” She shifted the phone from her left ear to her right. “Um, I should
thank you for the lift, I suppose.”

“It’s okay.
It wasn’t anything special. I wanted to make sure you made it home okay.”

“I
appreciate it anyway.”

“You’re
welcome.”

Another
long pause in the conversation where she wasn’t sure what else to say followed
until an idea sent off sparks in her brain. “Well, I should go. I have a date
tonight. I need to make myself beautiful.”

“You
do?”

“Yeah.
This is our third date over the
last couple of weeks.” She shrugged even though he couldn’t see it. “Who knows?
He might get lucky tonight.”

A strangled
cough echoed through the phone line, making her smile. She was getting to him.
Good.

“Wait,
Callie. You shouldn’t be
havin
’ sex with someone you
hardly know. It’s probably not a good idea.”

“Oh,
you’re one to talk, mister. Besides, who are you to judge?”

“Well,
I mean, you hardly know the guy, right? Not like us. We’ve known each other for
a long time.”

“And we
aren’t having sex.”

“No, we
aren’t, but at least you would have known me longer than three weeks.”

“It’ll
be fine, Jeremiah. It’s not like I’ll be comparing you two.” She sighed. “I
really should go. He’s going to pick me up in like thirty minutes. I haven’t
even showered yet. I’ll talk to you later. Thank you again for helping me.
You’re a great friend.”

After
she hung up the phone, she stared at the thing for a minute trying to figure
out what the hell she was going to do now. She didn’t really have a date for
tonight, but now she’d better find one and fast. She looked through the stack
of numbers sitting on her nightstand, picking out a name she knew. Brad
Smithson, football player from high school. He’d do. He was a big guy, not bad-looking,
nice body, and dumb as a bag of hammers.

With a
few touches of her fingers, she dialed his number and waited for him to pick
up.

“Hello?”

“Hey,
Brad. It’s
Callinda
Lewis.”

“Well,
hey,
Callinda
. How are you, darlin’?”

She
cringed as the endearment rolled over her. Everyone in Texas called everybody
else darlin’, but she wanted it to only be Jeremiah.
Only if
he cared.
“I’m
doin
’ fine.
Listen, I know we haven’t talked since the night at The Dusty Boot, but I was
looking for someone to do a few body shots with tonight. I wanted to know if
you were
game?
”

“Oh
hell yeah, baby. I’ll be game to suck on you any time of the day or night. What
time shall I pick you up?”

With a
shudder, she said, “Why don’t we meet at the bar? I need to have my own car
there.”

“I can
take care of you, honey.”

“I’m
sure you can, Brad, but I have a friend who might be there too and if she gets
into trouble, I need to be able to take her home. You remember Mandy from that
night, right?”

“Yeah.
Pretty blonde
with the pink stripe in her hair.”

Callie
laughed. “That’s her.”

“Okay.
No problem. I’ll meet you there at seven?”

“Perfect.
See you in a few.”

She
hung up the phone with a smile on her face. Jeremiah needed a little dose of
his own medicine. Brad would do nicely for what she had planned.

When
she pulled into the bar about an hour later, she noticed there weren’t too many
vehicles around. Of course, for a Tuesday night this seemed pretty busy.
Tonight she didn’t have any plans on getting shit-faced drunk, but she did plan
on giving Jeremiah something to think about. Not knowing whether he would be
there, she had to hope Jeremiah actually cared enough to come to the bar or at
least find out what she was up to.
Please
God, let him care enough.

She
climbed out of her car and headed toward the bar hoping she’d meet Brad by the
door. If Jeremiah was there, she wanted to be coming in with Brad, not meeting
him there.

Off to
her right, she grinned as she noticed a big silver dually pickup sitting near
the back of the parking lot.
Jeremiah.
He’d come.
Maybe he did care, even just a little.

Good.
She was going to give him a show he’d never forget. Hopefully jar him into
making a move toward something they might be able to work on together.

Brad
came across the street where he’d parked his truck.
“Hey,
Callie.
Right on time.”

“Hi,
Brad.”

He
leaned in to kiss her, but she turned her face so he grazed her cheek with his
lips. “You look great!”

“Thanks.
Nothing special.”

“You
still look hot. Did I tell you that before because you
do.
I mean, when you were here a few weeks ago, you were like totally hot. I didn’t
get my turn to do body shots off you, and man, did I want to.
Maybe tonight?”

“Maybe.”
She took a couple of steps away
from him. “Let’s go inside. I could use a drink.”

She
pulled open the door, letting the cool darkness wash over her before the
blinding stage lights hit her in the face.

“Sure
thing, babe.”

They
stopped inside the door to let their eyes adjust. The bar sat off to the right
with barstools lining the mahogany expanse for the patrons. Several tables took
up the left side with the pool tables and dart boards near the back. There was
a large dance floor where a few couples two-stepped their way around the
divided area.

No sign
of Jeremiah.

“Let’s
find a table.”

“Sure,
babe.”

She
blew out a breath on a heavy sigh. This was going to be a long night at this
rate.

When
they found an empty table, she waited for Brad to pull out her chair, but he
took the other one, flipped it around and straddled it. She shook her head as
she grabbed the chair for herself.

“What’ll
ya
have?” the waitress asked, giving Brad an eyeful
as she bent over allowing her tank top to gap open around her breasts.

“I’ll
have a beer. Bud Light in the bottle,
please
.”

“I’ll
take a shot of Jack.”

“
Comin
’ right up.”
The waitress sauntered back toward the bar where Peyton was
working one end while Dan worked the other.

Peyton
waved at Callie before she glanced at her date, frowned and tipped her head to
the right. Callie wondered how much Mandy had told Peyton of their plans to
corral a couple of Young boys. She hoped Mandy hadn’t told her much. After all,
she was married to one of them and might be a little more apt to be on their
side, right?
Except Peyton might want to see her brothers-in-law
with wives of their own.
What better than to have two of her friends
hook up with them?

Callie
glanced to the right. Ah, there he was sitting back in one of the dark corners,
brooding with a beer. Well, too bad. She had plans for tonight and they included
going home with one hot cowboy, preferably Jeremiah Young.

* * *
*

Jeremiah
sat with his hat pulled down hoping Callie wouldn’t see him as he nursed his beer,
bringing it to his lips for a small sip. He needed to see who she was going out
with so seriously they had three dates in the last couple of weeks. Not knowing
why, he had a morbid curiosity to see the man she had the
hots
for, or so he thought.

“Fucking
Brad Smithson, really?” The guy had barely enough brains to fill a thimble.
“The man couldn’t even pass basic math.”

Jeremiah
squinted as he watched the couple take a seat at a table near the middle of the
room. He scoffed when Brad didn’t pull out Callie’s chair for her.
Figures.
He’s got no manners at all. My mom would
box my ears for not pulling out a lady’s chair.
After they ordered drinks,
Callie tried to start a conversation with Brad while he watched every other
female coming through the door.
Dickhead.

Thoughts
of walking over there, jerking her to her feet, tossing her over his shoulder
and spiriting her away to his room crossed his mind. But he couldn’t do any
such thing. Could he?

More
people walked into the bar with waves and hearty hellos to the bartenders as
they passed. Most found a table as the waitresses worked the room. Some danced.
Some played pool and some worked the dart boards like they wanted to stab
someone in the eye.

The
entire time Jeremiah’s gaze rarely left Callie. She’d dressed to kill in a
tight s
kirt
and silky-looking
loose tank top with a gauzy looking sweater over the top. She’d put her hair up
in a little
updo
that made him want to take it down
to run his fingers through the silky strands. Her blonde hair normally hung to
the middle of her back the few times he’d seen it loose. He liked to watch the
curls flowing behind her.

Her
lips parted softly in a smile as she appeared to be shyly taking in whatever
Brad had to say. Brad grabbed the back of her chair, scooting it closer so he
could wrap an arm around Callie’s shoulders.

Jeremiah
wanted to hit someone or break something when she leaned into Brad’s embrace.
With fists clenched, he punched his thigh to relieve some of the pressure.

Joshua and
Joey slid into the booth next to him.

“What’s
up, Jeremiah?” Joshua said.

“
Nothin
’.”

“You
look pissed enough to bite someone’s head off.”

“I am.”

“Why?”
Joey asked, taking a sip of the beer he’d set on the table until he followed
Jeremiah’s gaze. “Ah. Callie hooked up with someone else?”

“I
don’t care.”

“Sure
you do, that’s why you are about to chew the end of your beer bottle off every
time you take a sip,” Joshua added.
“Easy, cowboy.
She’s
workin
’ you.”

“She’s
here with that bozo.”

“And
playin
’ you like a fiddle, brother.”