ONCE IN A BLUE MOON (BLUEBONNET, TEXAS Book 2)

by Stuart, Amie

  "Why don’t you come up here and say hello to everyone, Betti?" She stood behind her mic stand, calmly rubbing her tiny belly.

  Fine. Two could play this game. I strolled across the dance floor and climbed on stage. No easy task when you’re pregnant and you’ve exhausted from being on your feet all day. I walked right past her toward my husband who sat hunched behind his drums. His hat was gone, and his blond hair shone under the stage lights. He’d rolled up his shirtsleeves and sat gripping his drumsticks in his callused hands.

  "Hi, baby," I whispered, embarrassed at my bashful smile.

  "Hey." He watched me intently, returning my smile when I slipped the bear out of my purse tucked it in his hands. I planted a soft kiss on Ty’s lips and turned to walk away.

  Mission accomplished.

  Back at Jessa’s microphone I paused, never taking my eyes off her narrowed ones. "Bitch."

  Without bothering to look back, I stepped off the stage, amidst catcalls, whistles, hollers and the general mayhem my little insult had caused. I could see Tim standing at the bar laughing his ass off and shot him the bird. Luck was on my side. Ty’s Aunt Susie was nowhere in sight.

  Then I heard, "No, Jessa you may not kick her ass. Jesus, you’re both pregnant!"

  "I don’t care," she shouted.

  "God save us all." Sounded like Rowdy, the bass player.

  I just kept on walking. At the door a hand grabbed my upper arm. I jerked and spun, nearly losing my balance. Ty saved me as I struggled to catch myself against the wall.

  "What’s your hurry?" He smiled down at me. The warm soft expression in his eyes left me feeling bashful all over again.

  Gawd...it had to be the pregnancy hormones.

  "No hurry."

  "Come outside with me?" The hand that tucked my arm in his shook the tiniest bit. But that gallant little gesture won him more brownie points than the roses had.

  I nodded, well aware of our audience.

  Outside, he led me through the chilly evening air, past bushes covered with twinkling white lights to a secluded bench tucked under a huge old oak. Legs crossed and hands in my lap, I waited to see what he’d say.

  "I’m sorry I acted like a jerk earlier."

  While I struggled to form an answer, I heard footsteps and a twig snap somewhere nearby. What the hell is going on that they think we need an audience?

  "No, I need to apologize. Jeff—"

  "He was flirting with you." He was jealous.

  "Jeff, he flirts and teases but he’s harmless. Really."

  "I...I should have called—"

  My hand on his leg stopped him mid-sentence. The muscles beneath my fingertips twitched. Smiling, I slid onto his lap, then wrapped my arms around his neck. He was warm and solid under me, against me, and I snuggled in as close as I could get.

  "Ty, look at me." I cupped his face, stroking his cheeks with my thumbs. "He’s like a brother...a cousin."

  "He is?" He glanced at me, and my heart cracked the tiniest bit. Jealous and insecure? Guess that was only to be expected after That Bitch left him for Billy.

  “Yes!” Enough talk already. I kissed him, teasing and stroking his lips with mine until he relaxed against me and responded. He tightened his grip and gave me a long probing kiss, his fingers tangled in my hair and lips almost painfully demanding.

  "That’s much better." I planted a soft kiss between his brows, running my fingers through his silky soft hair. "I’m sorry, Ty. I’m sorry you heard what Jeff said about me marrying a cowboy. You heard him, didn’t you?"

  Ty nodded, but refused to look me in the eye.

  "You know, you’re not just a cowboy...You’re mine."

  "I’m yours?" That earned me a smile. Then his eyes flickered to my lips and back up to my eyes.

  "Yeah, and you can come up there anytime you want, silly." I leaned over, nuzzling his ear. "The roses were sooo beautiful, honey. Thank you."

  "I’m glad you liked them." Ty rubbed my back, his fingers gently kneading deep into the tired muscle, while I nuzzled his neck.

  "That feels good," I crooned in his ear, taking advantage of the opportunity to play with his hair. "Oh Ty, I’ve missed you so much."

  "I missed you, too. That’s why I came to see you."

  "You look so handsome." And sexy. I kissed him again. One kiss turned into two and three and grew deeper and more intense as the seconds and minutes ticked by. Finally, Ty slowed his erotic assault and let me come up for air.

  I was so hot I could have melted snow.

  "I want you," he groaned, his lips on my jaw.

  We had company; there was no way. His hands struggled with the buttons on my blouse.

  "Not here, Ty." But Lord it was tempting, despite the chill.

  "Please, baby, I need you." Ty shoved my coat out of his way and had my blouse open, his lips on my skin. Lord.

  "Oh, Ty. No, we can’t."

  He yanked my bra out of the way and latched on. Pregnancy had made my nipples extra sensitive and a rush of pure electricity rushed straight though me. I have no willpower.

  "Oh, Ty." But this time it came out a long, low hiss.

  His head cradled in my arm, I watched him suck and tease, nip and nibble.

  "Ah, God. That feels so good." My fingers tightened in his hair.

  Somewhere in the distance, a voice called out. "Ty!"

  To hell with ‘em. I hope they got an eyeful. "Please, baby."

  "Ty! Let’s go!"

  I panted, shivering in the cool night air. "Ty, baby."

  "Do you want me?" he hissed in my ear, his fingers kneading my breast, my bare chest, my jaw, even my lips.

  "Yes, yes I want you," I whispered against his lips. "Now, baby, please. Oh God, Ty."

  "Ty!"

  "I want you, Ty. I want you. I want you so bad," I mewled like a kitten and ground against his leg. Why hadn’t I worn a skirt?

  "I want you too, Bee."

  "We don’t have time." It came out whiny but damn he’d tied me up in a knot.

  "Ty! Come! On!"

  "Go to hell," he hollered over his shoulder, tightening his grip on me.

  "Take me home, Ty. Please, baby. Now." I nuzzled his neck, sinking my teeth into a tender spot that had him growling and squeezing me to him in an almost painful grip.

  A much closer voice spoke up from somewhere behind me. A woman’s voice. "Tyrell Andrew Boudreaux, get your ass inside my bar right now!"

  Shit! Susie Boudreaux. I jumped at least six feet and so did he.

  "We have a full house waiting, young man."

  "I’ll be right there." He eased his grip on my waist, both of us panting.

  "See that you are."

  Once the footsteps had faded away, Ty pressed a kiss to my collarbone and helped me re-hooked my bra. Standing, I buttoned my blouse with shaky fingers, well aware of his fingers smoothing my hair back off my shoulders, then his hands holding mine after I finished. "I’ll see you in a few hours?"

  "I didn’t realize how cold it was out here." He kept his eyes on our hands and his voice low. "You could stay a while, if you’re not too tired."

  "I’d like that."

  Chapter Eighteen

  VOODOO LADY

  Thanks to Jessa and her big mouth, the word was out. Ty kept his hands on Bettina’s hips and kept her in front of him so no one would notice his very painful erection. They’d gotten stopped and congratulated a dozen times as they waded through the crowd to a table near the stage. "You gonna be alright?"

  "I’ll be fine." But her eyes drifted to a point behind him, and the smile in her eyes faded.

  With a frown, he turned to find Jessa standing behind him, a matching frown on her face and her arms crossed over her chest. "Anytime now!"

  "I’ll be right there." They had a stare-off until she threw up her arms and returned to the stage, then he turned back to Bettina. "Why did you call her a bitch?"

  She focused on a spot in the middle of his chest, her lips pursed, blinking repeatedly
. Then she sighed a couple times but no words came out of her mouth. He’d never seen Bettina at a loss for words. With another sigh, she finally gave up. "I was mad."

  She was lying, but he let it go, for now. Or try to get it out of Jessa. "Alright...I need to get."

  Up on stage he got the silent treatment from Jessa and a smirk from Rowdy.

  "Thanks for joining us," Zack quipped.

  Before he could respond, Rowdy came to his defense. "Lay off, Zack. It’s not like you and Jessa have never been late."

  Ty turned and gave Rowdy a two-finger salute of thanks and settled behind his drums. More than once over the next couple of hours Ty caught Zack’s frown, but he couldn’t seem to focus.

  Every time he looked down at the stuffed bear sitting inside his bass drum he felt like a jackass for acting so territorial at the salon.

  On their first break Ty hightailed it off the stage to check on Bettina. He couldn’t see her from behind his drums and had worried she’d leave in the middle of their set. Instead, she sat beside Tim, giggling at something.

  With a deep sigh of relief, he got himself a drink, chatted with Bo Foster, who had brought his fiddle and wanted to play with them later, then went and sat next to his wife.

  She was listening to Tim but Ty knew she was aware of him beside her from the way she relaxed against him. Ty kept an arm at her waist, and finally, she ran a hand down his thigh, turning to smile up at him. She had shadows under her eyes. He should have let her go home. Should have told her to go home.

  Tomorrow he’d make her rest.

  Then she reached up and rubbed a thumb across his chin making his insides go all hot and tingly just like they did every time she touched him. He wanted to kiss her, but not in front of half the town.

  "I’m glad you stayed," he whispered, nipping her earlobe instead. Hidden by her hair, nobody could see him do that. She jerked back in surprise and looked up at him, her eyes traveling from his, to his mouth and back.

  "What’s in that cup?"

  "Coke." He smiled down at her. Oh, he wanted to do a lot more than kiss her. "Do you dance, Bettina?"

  "Not to this."

  "Co’mere." He stood up and gently tugged at her elbow. They were playing a slow song—Clint Black’s "Like the Rain"—and she wasn’t gettin’ off that easy. He wanted to dance with his wife.

  Out on the crowded dance floor he pulled her into his arms. His hands itched to slide lower, but he forced himself to keep them at her hips. Damn, she felt good!

  She draped her arms around his neck, shouting above the recorded sound of thunder, lightening and guitars. "I can’t dance to this, Ty!"

  He pushed her hair out of the way and leaned down to respond, his lips against her earlobe. "You already are."

  She relaxed the tiniest bit when all he did was sway slowly in one spot, and he took the opportunity to sing along with the chorus.

  She tucked her head in his neck and relaxed even more.

  God, she fit him like a glove. The sweet heat of her seeped into his bones. The floral scent of her hair filled his nose, her soft breasts were crushed against his chest. And his jeans were painfully tight. The next song was "Desperado" so he stayed put, not ready to give up the warm cozy bubble they’d made.

  Then Bettina had to go and put her lips next to his ear and sing to him about the wisdom of choosing the Queen of Hearts over the Queen of Diamonds.

  She might as well have sucker-punched him

  She was trying to tell him something. Or maybe it was just the song. He buried his face in her neck, suddenly not caring if the town watched and took notes. He’d found the rightest spot in the world to be.

  Two was apparently the legal limit of slow songs. Next up came Gary Allan. With a sigh, he reluctantly let her go. Back at the table he didn’t miss Jessa or Zack’s inquisitive stares.

  What the hell was Jessa’s problem?

  "Ready to go back to work?" Jessa shouted over the music, her expression serious.

  "I’ll be there in a minute." He ignored Zack’s frown, too, and sat beside Bettina. She’d been quiet ever since they came off the dance floor, but it seemed like a peaceful quiet.

  "I think I’m gonna go."

  She couldn’t leave yet. "Stay! Please, just another hour." He wrapped an arm around her waist and leaned in closer to her ear. "We’ll take an early break and I’ll walk you out."

  He shivered in surprise at the feel of her lips on his jaw, near his ear. She leaned back and gave him that sleepy-eyed look. The one that turned his insides to Jell-O.

  He didn’t care anymore if his brother was watching or his aunt was nearby. He kissed her. Sipped and teased at her lips, enjoying their fullness, the warm slide of her tongue against his, her hand on the back of his neck. The flirty smile she gave him when he finally came up for air and the purr in her voice that he felt more than heard. "I suppose I can."

  "Gotta go to work." He turned and looked back twice on his way to the stage, returning her little wave the second time. He forced himself not to look a third.

  Where were his sticks? Up on stage, Jessa was raising Cain, her bad mood obvious in her snippy comments to the crowd.

  Ty stopped in front of Zack. "What’s wrong with her?"

  Zack studied him a minute before replying. "Dunno. Just being pregnant, I guess."

  "Think I’m gonna let Zack sing a while," Jessa announced.

  "Oh, shit," Zack mouthed, wincing.

  "I’ll sing," Ty offered, shocking himself as much as his brother.

  "You haven’t sung in months." Zack frowned up at him, then Jessa appeared at his elbow.

  He hadn’t sung in forever. Hadn’t felt like it. And suddenly hoped like hell he’d remember how. "I wanna sing."

  "What’s going on? Everything okay?" She looked from Zack to him.

  "Ty’s gonna sing."

  "Fine with me." With a shrug, she walked over to her mic and started up again. "Hey, hey, ya’ll want a treat?"

  As if they’d say no? Zack chuckled and patted him on the shoulder. Ty got situated behind his drums, checked to make sure his mic was on and wished he’d kept his big mouth shut.

  "Ty wants to sing. What’cha gonna sing, Ty?"

  If anything, they got louder...right about the time the bottom fell out of his stomach.

  "Hey, hey, hey ya’ll settle down now! You’ll scare the baby." Jessa rubbed her belly and Rowdy, who stood on her far side, shook his head with laughter.

  "Where’s Bo Foster?" Ty asked.

  Bo stepped up on Rowdy’s side of the stage and spent a few minutes fine-tuning his fiddle. Despite his baby-faced appearance he knew his way around a fiddle, and he didn’t let the rowdy crowd get to him.

  He mouthed, "I’m Gonna Be Somebody" by Travis Tritt to Zack, who let the others know, and counted off the beat. He played and sang with his eyes closed, or looked at the ceiling, never his drums and damn sure not his brother or the crowd.

  But the more he sang, the lighter he felt, as if he might float off of his stool. He smiled to himself at the thought of Bettina out there listening to him. And he didn’t mind the crowd’s cheering either.

  Next Ty and Zack did a duet of "Ten Feet Tall and Bulletproof." Which they did screw up and easily laughed off. It had been a long time. Too long.

  Afterward, Jessa reappeared on stage. And just when he’d gotten warmed up. He and Zack shrugged at each other.

  What the hell.

  He stood up, tucking his sticks in his back pocket. At Jessa’s stool, he paused. "Go sit, woman." He chuckled at the shocked look on her face. Then with a frown, she waddled over to Zack’s piano bench and sat.

  Ty studied her a minute, then quickly conferred with the guys. Rowdy and Zack traded their electrics for acoustics and the four of them had an old fashioned acoustic jam session.

  He’d wanted to sing something for Bee, but he couldn’t think of anything. And he was afraid that if he did sing to her in public he’d do something stupid. Like get all choked up.
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  In between songs he traded insults with Rowdy then turned to find Bettina standing at the edge of the dance floor. She smiled and blew him a little kiss.

  * * *

  "How come you didn’t tell me you could sing like that?" she gently scolded as they crossed the parking lot to her Mustang.

  "I don’t sing much. I used to—" He shrugged. Before life with Rhea got so bad. He shivered under his heavy Carhartt.

  "I had no idea."

  "Momma put us all in the church choir." They both chuckled at that.

  "You didn’t have to walk me out here. It’s so cold!"

  He wrapped an arm around her, wanting to protect her from more than the elements. "I’m not gonna let you wander in a dark parking lot all by yourself." And he was pretty sure he’d seen Rhea skulking around the bar while he was singing. Aunt Susie would come unglued if she caught her there.

  One run-in a day with her was plenty.

  "So, does this mean you’ll be the one singing lullabies to the baby?" She dug in her purse for her keys, doing a poor job of smothering her giggles.

  He hadn’t even thought of that. "No, you have to help."

  "What if I said I was tone deaf?"

  "I’d call you a liar," he replied, pinning her against the car. She moaned low in her throat and smiled, pressing her hips tight against his. God she made him so hot, so needy. He didn’t understand what it was about her that turned him into a walking hard-on. "Get some rest," he whispered against her lips. She’d need it.

  "Wake me up when you get home?" She slowly flicked her tongue against his lips.

  He caught it with his teeth and suckled before kissing her again. This one a long, provocative play of lips, teeth and tongue that had him grinding his hips against hers, harder this time so there no way she’d miss his erection. His chest heaving, he dragged his lips from hers. "Count on it."

  It was going to be a long night.

  He waited until she’d climbed in and started the car before heading back toward the building. From a spot under the eaves he watched as she pulled out of the parking lot and headed toward the ranch. Then went to hunt down Jessa.

  Back inside, Ty cornered Jessa in the empty waitresses break room where he practically choked on the smell of cigarettes and perfume. She sat on the old green couch, her feet propped up on a wobbly coffee table that had once been his mother’s.