Simon Says

by Lori Foster

  With Simon gone, she didn’t have much else to do to occupy her time except stew on Marvin and Barnaby, and neither of those topics appealed.

  She glanced at her watch. “I need to go talk to Roger. Then I was going to do a little shopping to get a few more clothes. I hadn’t planned to stay here this long and I’m running out of stuff.”

  Barber rolled his eyes. “Uh-huh. And lover-boy likes you spiffed up some, right?”

  She did want to clean up her act a little for Simon, maybe show him that her one display of feminine dress wasn’t a complete aberration. “He doesn’t like my boots.”

  “I think it’s more a case of him liking you without your boots, but sure, shopping sounds like an easy way to occupy yourself. Who’s going with you?”

  “I’m a big girl, Barber. I know my wardrobe lacks inspiration, but I’m not hopeless. I can pick out clothes all on my own, and make them match.”

  “Sure you can. I happen to like your boots, and you clean up with the best of them.” He tugged at one earring. “I just thought women liked to do that sort of thing in gaggles.”

  Dakota grinned. “I’m not like most women.”

  “Ain’t that the truth?” He put his arm around her. “Come on, babe. We don’t want to keep good old Rog waiting.”

  He walked her as far as the office, then turned her over to a smiling Roger. Dakota didn’t know what had happened, but Barber was as different as he could be.

  She briefly wondered if he’d actually been smitten with Bonnie, and was suffering disappointment. But she didn’t think so. Bonnie wasn’t his type. He tended to lean more toward earthy, easy women, not uptight ladies with ulterior motives.

  Tonight, over dinner, she’d grill him. She’d get to the bottom of his odd behavior. But for now, she wanted to work out terms with Roger. She wasn’t an idle type of person and she needed something to occupy her time in Harmony.

  She looked back just once to see Barber making a call on his cell, and once again, he didn’t look happy.

  BARBER waited impatiently for Simon to pick up. When he finally did, Barber didn’t bother to identify himself. “She wants to call Marvin.”

  Apparently, Simon didn’t need any further explanation. “Like hell.”

  “Yeah, that’s sort of what I told her.” Barber rubbed the back of his neck beneath his ponytail. Simon didn’t know it—or maybe he did—but he’d put Barber in something of an awkward predicament by asking him to stick close to Dakota. “But Dakota’s an independent sort. She’s used to doing everything on her own. Maybe I should give the chump a call before she does.”

  “I’d rather you let it go for now, at least until I’m back in town.”

  “And that’ll be…?”

  “I only landed a few hours ago, but the driver had an itinerary for me.”

  Barber heard the rustling of paper as Simon checked his schedule.

  “I do the show tomorrow morning. Meet with some folks for lunch after that. I don’t know. With any luck, I can be back on a plane by the late afternoon. But I’m not sure yet. Sometimes things come up. It depends on what Drew might have planned. I’m having dinner with him, so I’ll ask and get back with you tonight.”

  As Simon spoke, Barber kept walking. He needed to be onstage in ten minutes. “I’m hooking up with Dakota for dinner tonight.”

  Silence.

  Barber smiled. “No need to worry about her, then. I’m not about to let anything happen to her. But before that, she plans to do some shopping. It’s weird, because Dakota isn’t one who likes that sort of thing. I think she’s only going shopping now because some asshole made her feel bad about her boots, so—”

  “I’ll give Dean a call,” Simon interrupted; he sounded more irate by the second. “He and Eve can shanghai her so she won’t be alone.”

  Misery loves company, Barber thought, and added, “With us being at the same motel, we’ll hook up in the morning for breakfast, then hit the gym. I’ll work on some new moves with her.”

  A low growl sounded through the phone. “I thought you were going to wait a few days on that.”

  “No time like the present, right?”

  There was a long pause, and then very softly, Simon asked, “Are you going to make me regret asking for your help?”

  “Yeah.” Barber laughed. “But Dakota’s a one-man woman, so all you have to suffer is a few ribbings from me.”

  “Then if that’s all—”

  “Don’t rush off till you’ve heard the real punch line.” Barber had no doubts that Dakota was head over heels in love. Now he wanted to know for sure how Simon felt.

  “Punch line?”

  “Yeah.” Anticipating Simon’s reaction, Barber said, “See, I asked Dakota if she was in love with you.”

  More silence.

  Barber grinned to himself. “Hey, you still there, Sublime?”

  With dry impatience, Simon asked, “What did she say?”

  “It was more how she reacted than what she said.” Barber embellished things enough to try a saint. “I swear, man, she looked like someone goosed her with a cattle prod. Her eyes went huge and she gagged a little. Or maybe she was choking. Hard to tell.”

  “You don’t value your teeth much, do you?”

  Barber laughed. “It was an interesting reaction, if you want the truth. So now I’m wondering how you’d react if asked the same.”

  “It’s none of your damned business.”

  “Is that a yes or no? Because if it’s a no, then Dakota is fair game again and—”

  “Don’t even think it.”

  Well. That reaction spoke volumes. Barber worked up a convincing chuckle. “All right, dude. Calm down before you hurt yourself. I was just making sure.”

  “Go fuck yourself.”

  “Yeah, right now, no one else is appealing much to me.” Before Simon could out-and-out challenge him, Barber added, “Give her a call. Convince her that she shouldn’t talk to Marvin. The guy’s a nut-job. Any acknowledgment from her will just encourage him because he’ll know he’s getting to her.”

  “I’ll call her as soon as we hang up. But I have another question for you first.”

  Barber reached the floor where he’d perform. The band was set up and ready to go, waiting on him. Already the bar began to fill, so he hung near the perimeter, out of the chaos. Soon, the noise level would make conversation impossible. “I’m all ears.”

  “Since you know Dakota so well, have you ever met Barnaby Jailer?”

  Barber forgot about the band. “Why?” What could Dakota’s stepfather have to do with anything?

  “He’s my father.”

  Falling back against the wall, Barber said, “No fucking way.”

  “So you do know him?” When Barber didn’t immediately answer, Simon said, “He bailed on my mother when I was just a little kid. We haven’t heard anything from him since. But now he’s hired Dakota to find me and bring me to him for a meeting.”

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know and I don’t care. I want nothing to do with him. But somehow, he’s twisting Dakota to get her to cooperate and, more than any other reason, that makes me not trust him.”

  That rotten son of a bitch. Yeah, he knew Barnaby. Or knew of him. All of it straight from Dakota. All of it bad.

  Barber had no idea what Dakota might have told Simon about her stepfather, and until he knew, he wouldn’t say too much.

  But one question clamored in his brain. “If that’s true, then someone needs to visit him to find out what hold he has over her. And it’s not going to be Dakota.”

  “After what’s happened,” Simon said, taking the edge off Barber’s temper, “I agree. I don’t want Dakota anywhere near him. I thought about seeing him myself, but she told me to forget about it. She went from wanting me to see him, to insisting that I not.”

  “That might just be because she cares about you now.”

  “Maybe. But the more I’ve thought on it, the more I wonder if Barnaby could be
involved with her tumble down the stairs, or your incident in the parking lot.”

  “You’re ruling out Marvin now?”

  “No, but I don’t want to dismiss Barnaby, either. Out of nowhere, after nearly thirty years, he’s suddenly so insistent on seeing me that he pressured Dakota into helping him. I can’t help wondering why. If Marvin and Barnaby know each other, they could both be involved somehow.”

  “I suppose it’s possible.” Barber worked his jaw. Marvin would be the obvious choice, but knowing now that Barnaby wanted to meet Simon…yeah, he could guilt Dakota into helping him. “Let me talk to Dakota, see what she has to say.” He’d find out what she’d told Simon, and how Barnaby had finagled her into this mess.

  “So you do know Barnaby?”

  “I didn’t say that. Look, I gotta run. The band’s ready to start and you need to get hold of Dean if you don’t want Dakota in and out of mall parking lots on her own.”

  “Right.” Simon paused, then said, “Listen up, Barber. I don’t think I need to tell you—”

  “Yeah, yeah. She’s off-limits. Touch her, and you’ll kick out my kneecaps. Got it.” He grinned again. No matter how hollow he felt about losing his opportunity with Dakota, he couldn’t pass up the chance to prick Simon’s jealousy. “Just remember, if she ever tells me otherwise, it’s every man for himself.”

  He hung up on Simon’s heated curse.

  Simon hadn’t said if he loved Dakota, but he hadn’t denied it either. It was going to be fun watching the two of them muddle through.

  Fun, and torturous.

  But what the hell. Sooner or later, another lady would appeal to him. Dakota was unique, but she couldn’t be the only woman around with her distinctive qualities. While he waited for the right woman to show up, he’d work on his character flaws a little.

  Or not.

  Right now, he only had to concentrate on putting on a good show. Given how he loved his music, it’d be easy to shake off his melancholy. And tonight, he’d have Dakota all to himself.

  He’d find out everything he needed to know—and then some.

  DAKOTA picked up another pair of jeans, and at the same time, she looked at Dean out of the corner of her eye. He wore a frown, the same frown he’d had when he picked her up. Hands shoved in his jeans pockets, his attention constantly moved between his sister Jacki, his wife, Eve, and Dakota.

  He looked watchful, miserable, and resigned.

  Knowing that Simon had put him up to babysitting, she lost her patience. “Look, this is ridiculous.”

  Startled, Dean narrowed his gaze on her. “What’s that?”

  “You don’t want to be here. Hell, I don’t even want to be here.” She pointed at the other side of the small boutique where Jacki and Eve gushed over a sequined top. “They’re enjoying it, but you and I look like we’re being tortured. I know why I’m here. But why the hell are you here?”

  If anything, his eyes narrowed more. “I’m accompanying my wife.”

  “Bull. You’re playing bodyguard. Simon called, nagging at me about what to do and what not to do, and I’m willing to bet he did the same to you.”

  “No one tells me what to do.” Dean rethought that and said, “No one other than my wife, that is.”

  “Fine. He suggested, then. Strongly.” She shook her head. “The thing is, I don’t like shopping anyway, but I especially don’t like it with you moping behind me!”

  Without changing expression or position, Dean managed to look more imposing. “I do not mope.”

  Unfazed, Dakota snorted. “No? Then what would you call it?”

  “Suffering silently.”

  “Ah.” She couldn’t help it, she snickered. “Well, let me tell you, your silent suffering is annoying as hell. Why don’t you go get something to eat and we’ll call you when we’re done?”

  Dean loomed closer so he could speak to her without his wife or sister overhearing. “You have a whack-job ex-husband stalking your stubborn ass. My wife and sister are with you. I’m not budging.”

  That was pretty straightforward and to the point. Dakota could tell Dean expected more arguments from her, but in reality, his attitude made her want to sigh.

  So much affection and devotion. She smiled. “You care for Eve a lot, huh?”

  Dean didn’t so much as flinch. “I love her.”

  “That’s nice, ya know?” When he looked suspicious of her attitude, she tried to explain. “I mean, it’s great that you two found each other.”

  A little confused, Dean glanced at his wife, then back to Dakota. “What are you up to?”

  “Nothing.” It annoyed her to be so mistrusted. “What am I, an ogre? I’m just saying, it’s not every day that two people meet, fall in love, and choose to spend their lives together.”

  Dean studied her, then nodded. “It’s better than nice.” Relaxing a little, he took the jeans she had and tossed them aside. “Those are butt-ugly. They look like men’s jeans. Try these.”

  Dakota stared at him, bemused. Then she looked at the jeans he’d just sort of snatched up off another table.

  Huh. Not bad. “Those are nice.”

  “Yeah, I know. Get two pair, one in washed denim and one in black. Between the two pairs, you ought to be able to find enough tops to mix it up and get you by, and then we can all get the hell out of here.”

  Dakota grinned. “What about tops?”

  He went stiff for only a second before indulging a quick cursory glance at her upper body. Dakota had the feeling he’d just taken her measurements in a heartbeat.

  Stepping around her, Dean went from rack to rack and when he came back, he had five shirts in various materials, colors, and styles. They all looked warm and soft, and not at all revealing. Perfect for her.

  Dean Conor was a rather amazing man.

  “Here,” he said. “Do you need to try them on?”

  Dakota checked the sizes and smiled in relief. “No way. If you think they’ll work, we’re done here. All I need is a different pair of shoes and those are in another store.”

  “Come on.” He took her arm and led her toward the other women. “You two about done? Dakota is ready to pay but she needs shoes still and wants to hit a few other stores.”

  The way Dean had worded his question made it sound like Dakota was the one anxious to go.

  And she was.

  Both women had an armload of items, and they each wanted to inspect Dakota’s purchases before they’d go to the checkout with her. After enthusiastic approval, they finally paid and got their items bagged.

  Once out of the boutique, Eve and Jacki just naturally drifted ahead again. They got along so well that Dakota envied their easy friendship. Nodding toward them, she said, “Eve is really, really nice.”

  Loaded down with shopping bags, Dean hung back by Dakota. “She’s incredible.”

  Dakota hid her smile. “The thing is, I don’t interact real well with ladies.”

  “You don’t try.”

  “No, I do. That is, I think I do.” How to explain it? Eve and Jacki had both been so nice, trying to draw her in, to include her. But she never knew quite what to say to them. “See how they’re laughing and chatting? They’ve been doing that since I got in your car.”

  He shrugged. “Yeah, so?”

  “Do you ever wonder what they’re talking about?”

  “Woman stuff.”

  “Well, sure. But whatever that entails, I already know I’d be out of my element. I guess I’d rather talk about guy things, like fighting and training, than fashion or makeup or that sort of junk.”

  Dean rolled a shoulder. “Me, too. So pick a subject.”

  “If you’re serious…”

  He let out an exasperated breath and looked down at her. “Something on your mind, Dakota?”

  She had so much on her mind, all of it centered around Simon, that it felt like her head would explode. “Do you think I’m interfering too much in Simon’s training?”

  “No.”

&nb
sp; That quick answer didn’t convince her. “Because I don’t want to.”

  “He wouldn’t let you.”

  How could everything be so cut-and-dry for men? “He told me once to get lost.”

  Dean smiled. “I know.”

  “But I didn’t.”

  “I know that, too.”

  Dakota was so set on finding out what she needed to know, that she barely registered Dean’s words. “At the time, I didn’t mind bugging him. But now…he’s got a lot to do to finish getting ready for the fight, and I don’t want to get in his way.”

  “Most of the guys have significant others. If they can’t juggle a relationship, they won’t be able to make it in this sport.”

  “I suppose.” Gregor was in training, too, but Dakota doubted that Jacki ever felt like a nuisance. Of course, they were in love, like Dean and Eve. “But you know, Simon and I don’t have a…normal relationship.”

  An arrested look came over Dean. “Now you’re treading into territory that I don’t want to hear about.”

  “But…”

  “Sex talk is out.”

  She gasped. “I wasn’t talking about sex!” Without thinking, Dakota punched his shoulder hard enough to make him nearly drop the packages.

  Cursing low, Dean juggled things until he had them balanced again.

  Eve looked back at them, and though her hand tingled in pain, Dakota pasted on a smile. Dean just kept plodding forward down the mall toward the shoe store.

  Feeling like a blockhead for overreacting, she muttered, “Sorry.”

  “For?”

  “Hitting you.”

  Dean glanced at her. “You hit me?”

  Did all SBC fighters have a warped sense of humor? “Very funny.” But she did want to set the record straight. “I was talking about how Simon and I met, not…anything else. And seriously, I am sorry for slugging you. I sometimes do that without thinking.”

  “It’s a guy thing, being physical.” Dean shrugged. “Simon told me you’ve had some training.”

  “Yeah, but I need more.” What an understatement. “A lot more. Barber and I are coming by in the morning. I’ve worked with him before.”

  He nodded. “I’ll be there anyway, so I’ll watch and see if I can give you any pointers.” He looked at her again, this time lingering on her many bruises. A touch of worry darkened his light brown eyes. “That is, if you’re sure you’re up for it.”