Sweet Summer Sunset

by Delores Fossen

  People saw, and ate, all sorts of weird things at a small-town rodeo.

  Keeping a firm grip on her cotton candy and blooming onion, Eden walked around the fairgrounds, taking in the sights. The handful of rides and row of carnival games. The bulls and broncs waiting in the corrals. Nico would be riding one of the bulls so she knew he’d be there. Knew also that he and Callen would have had a lot to do with putting this together.

  She went closer to the corrals with the bulls and frowned when she spotted the gray Brahma. It was by far the biggest and the meanest looking of the bunch, and Eden wondered if this was BYB, the one that Nico had drawn to ride. If so, Nico was going to be in a whole world of hurt in the handful of seconds that he managed to stay on the bull.

  Hurt that he might not even share with her.

  That stung, but there was no way around it—Nico had been avoiding her again. Eden didn’t have to guess that the two kisses were part of the reason for that, but she also suspected Rayelle and Piper played into it, as well. It’d been a week since they’d arrived at the cabin, and they were no doubt keeping Nico busy.

  Eden had checked on them, too, but she hadn’t exactly gotten a warm and fuzzy feeling from Rayelle. Not that she’d expected one. She was tainted goods, and Rayelle was likely still hearing talk about the kiss. Talk that she would be trying to keep from Piper so that the girl wouldn’t think her brother was, well, easy.

  Rayelle’s attitude was somewhat understandable, but Piper’s mood wasn’t. Considering she had insisted on coming to Coldwater, had even lobbied hard for it, Piper didn’t seem to be having a good time. Just the opposite. She was sulky and down. On the day of their arrival at the cabin—the last time Eden had actually talked to Nico—Nico had mentioned that Piper was upset about a breakup with a boyfriend.

  Maybe.

  Eden wasn’t exactly a breakup expert since she’d only dated Damien in high school, but it seemed to her that if it was just a breakup, Piper would have wanted to stay in San Antonio to try and mend things. Of course, that was assuming there was something worth mending. Perhaps there hadn’t been. And perhaps the boy had mistreated Piper.

  “Who are you avoiding?” someone asked, interrupting Eden’s thoughts. It was Cleo. She didn’t have any food products to mask her identity, and she peered around the fried onion glob at Eden.

  “Many people,” Eden readily fessed up. “Not you, though.” She was reasonably sure that Cleo was the one woman in Coldwater who wouldn’t judge her if she found out about the blog. Or if she learned that Eden had this hot fetish thing for Nico’s hand in his jeans.

  “Is Nico one of those people you’re avoiding?” Cleo plucked off a bit of the cotton candy and popped it into her mouth.

  “No, but he’s made sure he hasn’t run into me. I would be hurt and insulted if I didn’t know he was going through a rough time.”

  Cleo made a sound of agreement, sniffed the onion concoction and made a face. “Of course, you’re going through a rough time, too.” She tipped her head to the other side of the corral, where Damien was standing with Mimi. “I didn’t know Damien that well before your divorce, but was he always a jackass?”

  “Probably, but when you’re in love and lust, faults aren’t always easy to see.” But she was seeing them now. And had heard him when he’d insulted her with No other man is interested in Eden. That put him in the rat-bastard category forever as far as she was concerned.

  “So, if you don’t mind me asking, what went wrong in your marriage?” Cleo said.

  Cleo probably wanted to know so she could make sure it didn’t happen in her own relationship, and Eden wished she could assure her that it never would. But Eden honestly didn’t know where Damien and she had gone wrong.

  “We just drifted apart, I guess,” she tried to explain. “We were together since middle school. Were each other’s first lovers. Joined at the hip.” Joined, too, with Nico since he’d always been there. Just not for the intimate parts. “Then, one day that wasn’t enough for Damien. He obviously wanted a woman with a perky butt and massive boobs.”

  Cleo made another sound of agreement and kept her attention on Damien and Eden’s replacement. “I think he might have done you a favor.”

  Oh yes. Eden was beginning to see that, too. Though that didn’t mean Damien hadn’t crushed her heart.

  “Say, I know it’s too late for this with Damien,” Cleo went on, “but I found a blog that offers advice about heating things up. It’s called Naughty Cowgirl Talks Sex.” She chuckled.

  Eden tried not to choke on her own breath. As perverse a thrill as she got from doing the blog, she had an equal fear of being outed. And the reason for that fear came walking her way. Her parents.

  Willard and Louise Joslin.

  They looked like a cake topper for a senior citizens’ wedding. And they were indeed seniors now they were in their late sixties. They’d had Eden fairly late in life, probably about the time they’d given up on having a family.

  Her dad was wearing a silver bolo tie and gray suit coat. Yes, at a rodeo. He always wore them, along with his jeans that had such heavily starched creases, he could have probably used them to chop wood.

  Her mom wore her own version of her usual suit. Petal-pink pants and top. Her top and pants always matched and never strayed out of the pastel color palette. Ditto for never changing her hairstyle. It was pure white, like a pile of whipped cream squirted on her head. There was zero chance of the breeze budging even a strand because of the Aqua Net Extra Super Hold that she favored. In fact, her mom favored it so much that she carried a travel-sized container on her key chain.

  Her mother started the visit with a sigh, and for something that wasn’t even a word, it managed to convey a whole lot of disapproval. Maybe because her mom didn’t care much for Cleo or it could be the neon green toenail polish that Eden had slapped on when she’d realized she wanted to wear sandals. Any number of things could set off her mother’s disapproval button.

  Thankfully, her father wasn’t quite as judgmental as her mother. He tipped his cowboy hat to Cleo, and managed a friendly smile. Of course, he tipped his hat to everyone so it wasn’t necessarily a special greeting, but it was better than her mother’s sigh.

  “It’s good seeing you, Mr. and Mrs. Joslin,” Cleo greeted. She glanced around. “But I need to be rounding up my kids so we can get to the arena. Wouldn’t want to miss the bull riding.”

  Neither did Eden, and after Cleo left, she started strolling in that direction. Of course, her parents strolled right along with her.

  “Damien came with that woman, I see,” her mother said, and she was especially good at aiming some stink eye in Damien and Mimi’s direction.

  “What?” her dad practically yelled. In addition to being polite, he was practically deaf.

  “The battery in his hearing aid died,” her mom added. “We ordered a new one, but it hasn’t arrived yet.”

  Well, that was going to make this conversation even more challenging than Eden had imagined it would be.

  “Damien’s here with his new fiancée,” Eden relayed to her dad, and then lowered her voice to answer her mom. “Of course Damien came with Mimi. They’re engaged.” The words only stuck in her throat a little this time.

  Her dad did more hat-tipping and greetings as they continued their walk to the arena, but her mom’s attention was firmly fixed on Eden. “I heard about you kissing Nico.” Her mother’s voice was barely audible and was tight and clipped.

  “What?” That was from her father.

  “I kissed Nico,” Eden relayed, though this time she definitely didn’t shout. Not because she thought the kiss was a secret to anyone but because she didn’t want to garner unnecessary attention.

  “Oh,” her father concluded. There was no judgment in his tone, but that was possibly because he hadn’t actually heard what she’d said.

  “I
figure that kiss happened because you’re lonely,” her mother went on. She risked leaning in very close to the cotton candy so she could deliver the rest of her semiwhispered lecture. Eden wanted to warn her if her helmet hair brushed against the spun sugar, they might never get them apart. “I understand that, the loneliness. But that should only prove that you’re ready for a man in your life.”

  Eden was under no illusions, none, that her mother didn’t mean for that man to be Nico. Since she didn’t want her father to yell another “what,” Eden gave him an explanation he stood a chance of hearing.

  “Mom’s worried about me because of the divorce,” she said. There, plain and to the point. Eden finished the rest of that point with her mother. “I don’t want to date anyone from the Cowboys.org site you sent me. If I wanted a cowboy, there are plenty to choose from around here.”

  And at that exact moment, Eden caught sight of a cowboy.

  Not one from the dating site, either. She spotted the real deal. Nico in the arena.

  Oh mercy. He was wearing a leather vest and chaps that framed the front part of his jeans. She’d never understand how an item of clothing could look so hot. Nor could she understand why a man about to risk a ball busting didn’t have something protective over that part of him.

  “You should give the dating sites a try,” her mother pressed. “And buy a different color of toenail polish. Was that on sale or something?”

  It was the “or something.” Eden had felt a rebellious streak when she’d gone into the town’s small drugstore to buy the polish. She’d had five choices. Four pinks and the green. She’d decided on the green when Silla’s tweenaged cousin—who was following in Silla’s mean footsteps—had giggled at her and mumbled something about that not being the right color for an “older” woman. Eden had bought the polish on the spot.

  “That toenail polish is a little ugly,” her dad piped in. Either he’d heard that part of the conversation with her mother, or maybe he had come to his own logical conclusion.

  Her mother gave another of those sighs when she glanced at Eden again. “Look, I know you’re tired of me making suggestions, but it hurts to see you so sad.”

  Yes, and that was the reason Eden hadn’t told her mom to mind her own business. The bottom line was that her parents often were sticks-in-the-mud, deaf as fence posts and harsh critics of fashion and cosmetics. But they loved her. They wanted what they thought was best for her. And in their wants and love, they had sometimes put her in a little box that they wanted to fit nicely into their world. Well, Eden had tried their world, and it hadn’t worked.

  Still maneuvering the cotton candy and onion thing, Eden leaned against the arena fence to wait for Nico’s ride. Her dad moved to one side of her. Her mother, the other.

  “Nico.” Her mother said his name on a sigh when she saw what had snagged Eden’s gaze. “Please tell me you won’t leap before you think this through. Nico’s all wrong for you.”

  Eden was already scowling, but her father spoke before she could say anything.

  “Nico’s a fine man,” her father stated. “He’s got that quick-draw zipper problem, but I think a good woman could cure him of that. Ever thought about going out with him?”

  Her mother threw him a look that could have frozen West Texas in August, but her father didn’t see it because of the food obstacles. Her mom didn’t get a chance to add words to her glare, either, because Eden saw Nico get into the bucking chute where he got on the bull.

  “To start the fun, here’s our first cowboy of the day,” the announcer said, his voice booming over the microphone. “He’s our own local boy, Nico Laramie, owner of Laramie’s Bucking Bulls. Let’s get behind him and make a lot of noise.”

  The crowd obliged by clapping and whooping. Of course, since this was Nico, there were plenty of female cheers in the mix. Eden saw more than a few of them in the bleachers. Even if she hadn’t recognized them by their faces, their tube tops, skinny jeans and high heels would have given them away. She hadn’t missed that Nico’s taste in women ran a little to the less conservative side. Which, sadly, might explain why he’d been resisting her when she’d practically thrown herself at him.

  “Our own local cowboy drew BYB for this ride,” the announcer went on. “Whew, that’s a rough one.” But despite saying that, he chuckled as if there was an inside joke. “Come on, folks. Cheer Nico on.”

  Again, they did just as the chute gate opened, and BYB torpedoed out. BYB lived up to his job title of a bucking bull. He instantly kicked up his back legs, the front of his body nosing down almost to the ground. Nico managed to stay on for that. But not for the second one. BYB seemingly bucked every one of his legs, muscles and head at the same time, and he sent Nico flying.

  The crowd made a collective groaning-ouch when Nico splatted on the ground.

  “Hope he hadn’t planned on having kids,” Eden heard someone in the stands say.

  “Or sex,” someone else piped in.

  It had indeed looked like a bad fall, and Eden wanted to rush out into the arena and help him to his feet. Nico managed that on his own, though. It took him a couple of tries, but he got up and waved to the crowd. Somehow, he smiled. Then, he hobbled toward the office that was just off the exit. Eden was about to head there, but when she turned, she saw Rayelle and Piper making their way to her. Like Eden, Piper had a whiskey-barrel-sized amount of the green cotton candy.

  Even though her folks had known Brenda, they hadn’t yet met Piper or Rayelle so Eden made introductions. Eden didn’t miss the fact that Rayelle, too, was wearing a petal-pink outfit, but hers had a skirt rather than pants. The two women nodded at each other as if giving silent approval.

  “I was going to come out to the cabin this week to welcome you,” Louise said to Rayelle. “I was just waiting to make sure you were all settled in.”

  “That’s so kind of you,” Rayelle answered, and it seemed as if they were about to gear up into a polite conversation that would go on longer than Eden wanted. Of course, right now a minute was too long.

  “Uh, I’ll be right back. I just need to make sure Nico’s okay,” Eden interrupted, and before anyone could object to that, she practically ran in the direction of the arena exit.

  Unfortunately, the blooming onion became a casualty when she collided with two teenage girls who were glued to their phones. The greasy, crusty breading flew much as Nico had done in the arena, and chunks of the slimy onion strips landed on the girls and everyone else who was in the general vicinity. Eden rushed out an apology to anyone who wanted to hear it, dumped the rest of the blooming bits in the garbage and made it to the door.

  And immediately spotted Nico.

  He was inside the arena corridor and standing in front of the office. This time she hardly noticed the crotch-framing chaps, hardly, but instead she saw his bunched-up forehead and grimace.

  “You’re in pain,” she said. “On your scale of one to infinity, just how bad is it?”

  “I might need something more than infinity to answer that,” he grumbled. “BYB stands for Bust Y’all’s Balls, and that’s exactly what the bull did. I’ll never accuse him of not earning his name.” He looked at her, his gaze sliding over her, and he plucked a batter blob from her hair before tossing it aside. “You don’t even like onions.”

  “I know. My food choices were dictated by size, not taste.”

  “You didn’t want people to see you.” His comment hung in the air. It definitely wasn’t silent around them. Not with the sounds of the crowd and the announcer prattling out the info about the next rider. “I’m sorry I’ve been avoiding you. Are you okay?”

  She nodded, and because she hoped it would make him smile, Eden added. “I didn’t have an encounter with BYB and even if I had, I don’t have any Bs to bust.”

  He did smile. Not one of those panty-melting ones but slow and sweet. Intimate somehow. One that friends would
share. The friendly moment lasted only a few seconds though before the concern slid back into his eyes.

  “I can’t lose us,” he said. “I can’t lose what we have. And before you start telling me that won’t happen, it always happens.”

  Ah, logic. Well, Eden had a cure for that, and it was more logic. “Have you ever had sex with a friend?”

  He cursed. “Hell, I’m just getting used to the idea that I’ve had my tongue in your mouth. It could be a while before I can work my way up to actual sex.” Nico stopped, paused, and the smoldering look he gave her made her notice the chaps again. “A short while maybe,” he amended.

  Eden couldn’t help it. She laughed, and God, it felt so good to do that. She’d always been able to laugh with Nico, and she’d missed that down to the bone over the past week. And now there was the added bonus to her feeling good—that he might actually consider taking things to the next level.

  Their eyes stayed connected, with so many things passing between them, and then Nico cursed again and shook his head. “I’ve got some business to take care of.” He glanced back at the office. “But I’ll call you later.”

  Nico lifted his hand as if he might touch her. Then his gaze dropped to her mouth as if he might kiss her. But he didn’t do either of those things. He grumbled some profanity, repeated, “I’ll call you later,” and disappeared into the office.

  Considering he hadn’t touched or kissed her, Eden was surprised at the swarm of heat that sizzled right through her. Oh, mercy. She hadn’t wanted this attraction for Nico to vanish, but she didn’t need it bowling her over like this, either. She didn’t need to be thinking with the specific parts of her body that suddenly wanted Nico more than her next breath.

  Eden had taken only a few steps out of the arena when someone carrying one of the huge wads of cotton candy moved in front of her. When the candy carrier peered around the gob, Eden saw that it was Piper. The girl was chewing on her bottom lip, and her gaze was darting around as if a puppet master had put her eyes on strings.