“I’m hung over. My head is beginning to pound again so please keep your voice down.”
“Hung over from what? Did you party too hard?”
“You could say that.”
Mandy came through the door and Callie waved her over to the booth she’d secured.
“The two of you must have really got into trouble last night,” Anne said as she poured the second cup of coffee for Mandy.
“You are a saint, Anne.”
“Just being me.”
Mandy sipped the strong brew while she cradled the cup between her hands. “Thank you, God. You have no idea how much I needed this.”
“I’ve been there a few times myself, girls. I know how it feels. What you need is some breakfast.”
“But you don’t serve breakfast this late in the day,” Mandy said.
“I’ll whip something up for you two. Be right back.”
“She’s such a great lady.” Mandy sipped the coffee again before she braced her elbows on the table. “So, what do you remember?”
“Not a damned thing.”
“From what point on?”
She slowly lowered her sunglasses, then laid them on the table. “Not much after my argument with Jeremiah outside.”
“He watched you all night, you know.”
“He did?”
Mandy nodded, sipping the coffee. “He sat in the corner, but kept an eagle eye on you even though you had every single man watching you. You were dancing on top of the bar.”
“Oh, hell.”
“Yes, ma’am. You took off that clingy little blouse you had on and tucked your tank top into your bra. When the guys started lining up to do belly shots off you, he growled.”
“Growled?”
“Yep, but it didn’t stop the guys from licking the salt from your neck before they took the shots. You even let one guy do one from between your boobs.”
“Oh, God. I’m so screwed.”
“Honey, you are one of the most popular women in this town right now. You shouldn’t have any problems getting a date for a long time to come.”
She pushed her hair off her forehead. “But Mandy, that’s not me. It was the alcohol.”
“Live it up while you’ve got it, babe. Jeremiah can wait.”
“You said something about me telling him off when he tried to stop my party?”
“Oh, yeah.” Mandy laughed before she groaned as she rubbed her temples for a second. “God, my head is killing me.”
Callie laid a hand on Mandy’s arm. “Alka-Seltzer and ibuprofen. Does wonders.”
The look Mandy gave her said she wished she could curl into a ball and just die. “Your dad’s recipe?”
“Worked for me. I feel okay now. Not perfect, but okay.” Callie tapped her fingernail on the table. “So spill. Tell me what I said to Jeremiah.”
“What’s going on with you two anyway?”
“Nothing.”
With her head tilted to the side like she didn’t believe her, Mandy said, “Nothing my ass. The man doesn’t growl, for God’s sake, when some guy wants to do body shots from between your boobs without a reason.”
Callie smiled. Jeremiah growled? “So tell me. What did I say?”
“You said, ‘This is my party and I’ll do body shots if I want to. You didn’t want what I offered, well maybe one of these other guys does.’”
“What did he say?”
“He didn’t say anything, just moved back to his corner and watched you for the rest of the night, although he did make sure you got home. I’m pretty sure he drove you there himself. The last I saw you, he was putting you in the front of his truck. Since you made it home okay, I assume he took you there.”
“He took me home?”
“Yeah. You were waving to all the other men who saw you outside, but he was the one who poured you into his vehicle to make sure you got home all right and didn’t get taken advantage of in your drunken state.”
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.�
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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.”
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