His mind was still racing when he said, “Let me take you to dinner. We’ll discuss the opportunity.”
“I don’t know.” She slid her fingertips into the pockets of her worn jeans. “Who will be here at ROOTS?”
“You have to eat. Closing the door for an hour won’t make a difference, will it?”
He wanted to take her out to dinner and business was probably the last reason on his list. This definitely went under the personal column. Sales were his thing and now he was selling himself.
“Maybe Austin would hang out here while you have a night off,” he suggested.
“I hate to ask. He works hard at the resort and—”
“And you don’t? Work hard, I mean.” He handed back her notebook. “Isn’t he the one who inspired this place? The one who saw the error of his ways because of community involvement? The one who’s a college graduate because of it?”
“Yes, but—”
“If you don’t ask him, I will. You’re getting a night off and I’m not taking no for an answer.”
She didn’t look happy, but there was surrender in her eyes. “I’ll work it out.”
“Good. Tomorrow night. Seven o’clock.”
“Okay.”
Marlon nodded and walked out without another word. Never jeopardize the deal by talking too much after you got what you wanted. But grinning was allowed, which was good since he wasn’t sure he could wipe the smile off his face.
Funny how things could change in a heartbeat. Just like that, he was looking forward to another night in Thunder Canyon.
Seemed like a good idea at the time. Caught up in the moment. What harm could it do?
All of the above described why Haley had agreed to dinner with Marlon. A simple No, thank you was what she wished she’d said last night when he’d asked. But she hadn’t.
Now she was locking up ROOTS while he waited behind her to walk to The Hitching Post just down the street. Really, she decided, what could happen?
Taking a deep breath, she turned and smiled. “All secure.”
“Good.” Looking uncertain, he met her gaze. “Are you okay with The Hitching Post? You already spend most of your time there.”
“It’s fine.” She knew everyone and would be among friends. It would help her relax, although she wasn’t sure that was possible no matter where they went. “I have inside knowledge of just how good the food is there.”
“When I get my driver’s license back, I’ll take you to a place where you don’t know the kitchen like the back of your hand.”
“It would probably be best if you didn’t make promises.”
She hadn’t meant to sound so curt, but his track record in keeping them wasn’t good. Granted it was just the one time, but that had been enough for her. She’d wasted a lot of time and energy waiting for a call that never came. It hurt a lot and she’d felt stupid for believing. That wasn’t a feeling she wanted to repeat.
“Despite what you think, I can keep my word,” he said quietly.
“I just meant,” she said, “that you don’t owe me anything. Let’s just be in the moment and let tomorrow take care of itself.”
He looked down at her for several moments, then finally said, “Okay.”
“Okay.” Their footsteps scraped on the wooden walkway and she kept trying to keep her distance as they walked. But somehow, with the uneven boards, she kept rubbing up against him. A brush of bare arms. Bumping her shoulder into his muscular biceps. The scent of his skin. The combination ganged up on her senses and made rational thought a challenge. Without coherent ideas conversation wasn’t easy. But she’d do her best to soldier through.
“So tell me more about how your company works. What happens to sketches like mine?”
“My creative team looks at concepts with potential. When they find something that really gets their juices going, we meet with marketing and pinpoint our target demographic. We evaluate the chances of success before pouring millions of dollars into a project.”
She stopped in her tracks and stared up at him. “Excuse me, I could have sworn you just said millions.”
“I did. First you have to come up with something people will want to have, then create that product. Labor, materials and marketing costs have to be paid before anything is even sold.”
“So the saying is true. It really does take money to make money.”
He nodded. “I got lucky in college with the MC/TC brand. There was a venue to display my product and someone with money was staying at Thunder Canyon Resort. He was looking for an investment and liked what he saw. The rest is history.”
“That must be a lot of pressure. Putting capital into something without any guarantee that it will be successful.”
“You learn to trust your instincts,” he said. “Listen to the voice in your head, the feeling in your gut. When you see something you know it.”
“And you saw something in my sketches?” She just couldn’t believe her doodles could be turned into something profitable.
“They’re original and imaginative, Haley.” He stopped suddenly and when she tripped on an uneven board in the walkway, he curved his fingers around her arm to steady her. “I knew there was something the first time I saw you—”
They stared at each other for what felt like a lifetime and Haley couldn’t breathe. Lights along Main Street illuminated the intensity in Marlon’s dark eyes. What was he thinking? What should she do?
Keep walking, that’s what. It was hard to hit a moving target.
But as her muscles tensed to take a step, his fingers closed a little tighter, keeping her right where she was. When he threaded the fingers of his other hand into her loose hair, her heart skipped. Then it started again, and beat so fast and hard she was afraid he could hear.
“Haley,” he whispered. “I’ve wanted to do this for a long time. Since that day you were painting the mural at ROOTS.”
What was he talking about? That day she looked like something the cat yakked up? So what—
And then his mouth took hers and she couldn’t think at all. The world stopped and inside her it was like the Fourth of July—bottle rockets going off. The flash, bang and colors of fireworks and sparklers sparkling.
His lips moved softly, nibbling hers as his arm encircled her waist and pulled her more securely against him. She froze. What do I do with my hands? she thought. She wanted to feel his chest, put her arms around his neck. The sensation of her breasts crushed against him was amazing and stole the breath from her lungs. All she could think about was getting closer, as near as possible to the hard lines of his muscular body.
He took control, tipped his head to the side, making the fit of their mouths more firm, more perfect. The sparks he was creating short-circuited her nerve endings and sent sharp thrills of excitement pulsing through every part of her. She could have stayed like this forever.
Then he traced her lips with his tongue and uncertainty fueled the panic waiting in the wings. She wasn’t sure what he wanted her to do. She had no experience with a man like him and he would know that if she didn’t put a stop to this. She couldn’t bear it if he made fun of her. Or worse, pitied her.
She put a palm on his chest and felt the tingle as part of her longed to explore the wide contours. But she couldn’t risk it. He’d know her secret and she’d be humiliated. Putting pressure into the touch, she pushed him away, then backed out of the circle of his arms and started walking.
“Haley?” He caught up with her outside The Hitching Post. “Is something wrong?”
“No.”
“Should I not have kissed you?” He dragged his fingers through his hair.
“Whatever.”
“You’re mad,” he guessed.
She couldn’t make herself meet his gaze. “Should I be?”
“You tell me.”
Tell him what? He was the first guy who’d kissed her in years? Should she explain that the last one was in college and he’d barely progressed to kissing her good-night
before she’d had to leave? Or maybe she could say that her world and her dreams shattered when she got the call that her mom was dead and any sort of personal life was put on hold indefinitely? Now too much time had passed and her social learning curve had been stunted?
Any man would have a reasonable expectation of experience from a twenty-four-year-old woman, but she was the exception to that rule. And it was too humiliating to explain, especially to Marlon Cates, that she was a social freak.
He’d been written up in People magazine. He’d dated actresses and models. Haley just knew she couldn’t compete.
“Haley? Talk to me.” He stopped at the door to the bar and grill and blocked it with his big body.
Without answering, she edged around him and inside the bar, where she knew what she was doing. Sort of. “Let’s find a table.”
It wasn’t crowded on a weeknight and she grabbed menus from the hostess stand before choosing a booth not far from the door. A private table in the back wasn’t on tonight’s menu.
“Tuesday’s special is pot roast,” she said, working hard at looking over the food choices when the words wouldn’t come into focus. It helped that she knew the menu by heart.
“Look,” he said, “About what happened—”
“Hi.” Erin Castro appeared beside them and smiled. “You two just can’t stay away from this place.”
Haley appreciated perkiness as much as anyone, but not at the moment. “I’d like an iced tea and tonight’s special. Can you put a rush on that? I need to get back to ROOTS.”
“Make it two.” Marlon handed over his menu without looking at the waitress. His gaze never left Haley’s face. When they were alone, he continued. “Obviously you didn’t want me to kiss you.”
He couldn’t be more wrong. She’d wanted it more than anything. This was one time she wished she hadn’t gotten what she’d wanted because now it was so messed up.
“Forget it,” she said.
“I think we should talk about what happened.”
“Okay.” But only because he wouldn’t let it drop until she did. “I’m involved with the teen program and you’re busy with your business.” She forced herself to look at him and shrug. “The timing isn’t right.”
“You’re hiding, Haley. You’re burying your head in the sand.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Lying again. But let’s leave that for now.” His expression turned wry. “You know, when you bury your head in the sand it leaves your backside exposed.”
“I’m not doing that. It’s called being realistic.” Before he could back her farther into the corner, Erin showed up with their meals.
“Let me know if you need anything else,” she said, before slipping discreetly away.
Haley managed to dodge further talk about what happened but that didn’t make the next thirty minutes any more comfortable. It was pretty awful. She brought up everything from weather to Thunder Canyon politics and Marlon asked her for some sketches of purses for a signature line at MC/TC. She couldn’t remember ever being more miserable in her life and just played with her food until mercifully the plates were removed.
When Erin moved toward them, she knew a pitch for dessert was coming. Haley was better prepared for that than she’d been for Marlon’s kiss.
“No dessert for me,” she said to the other girl. “Can we just have the check?”
“Sure thing,” the pretty blonde answered, pulling the receipt from her pocket.
“I’d like to split it,” Haley said.
“No. I’m buying,” Marlon protested.
“I pay for myself.” Her tone was adamant.
With a puzzled frown, Erin looked from one to the other. “I’ll just go get some experience doing separate checks while you two discuss this amongst yourselves.”
When she was gone, Marlon said, “I insist on paying for your dinner. Tonight was my idea.”
Not one of his better ones. Haley was sure he’d agree. This god-awful experience should take care of any possibility that he’d risk investing in her—either personally or professionally.
“Doesn’t matter who suggested it. I want to pay for myself.” She pulled out her wallet and put a twenty on the table. “Tell Erin to keep the change.”
She slid out of the booth and left, listening for the sound of his footsteps behind her. When she didn’t hear anything, she was both disappointed and relieved. The definition of conflict. The story of her life. She’d found out firsthand what harm socializing with Marlon could do.
Tonight she’d also found out she cared deeply what he thought of her. If she didn’t, she’d have wise-cracked her way out of the awkwardness. Instead she froze. That was irrefutable evidence that the major crush she’d had on Marlon Cates years ago was not dead. That hadn’t changed. But she had. She was older, smarter, and knew better than to wait and hope for something more from him. If there was any silver lining in this fiasco, it was that her feelings were out in the open. She could protect herself. Maybe she was burying her head in the sand but that was the best way to circle the wagons and guard her heart.
As always she’d taken care of herself, had paid her own way. But she hoped that didn’t mean paying a personal price for seeing Marlon outside of work. It could be very costly.
She would not let him hurt her again.
Chapter Eight
Haley stood by the bar at The Hitching Post and blew out a long breath. Of all the days to have a busier than usual lunch crowd, why did it have to be the day after she’d hardly slept? Of course, she’d hardly slept because of the loop in her head that continuously flashed images of the disastrous dinner with Marlon.
From breathtaking kiss to dinner check, it was hard to count the ways she’d made a fool of herself. He was probably counting his lucky stars that his community service was almost half over. Or he was looking for another way to pay his debt to society so that he never had to see her again. Well, she was on board with that because then she wouldn’t have to see him, either. On top of that, she never wanted to hear his name again for as long as she lived.
Erin Castro plopped down on the bar stool beside her and heaved a tired sigh. “Is it always that busy?”
“No.” Haley levered herself onto the other high chair.
“Good.”
“I noticed a lot of moms with kids,” Haley said. “My guess is that they’re shopping for back-to-school stuff and topping off the outing with lunch. A last hurrah to the summer.”
“Again I say good.” Erin put an elbow on the bar and rested her cheek in her palm. “I’m getting too old for this.”
Haley laughed. “You’re what? Twenty-one?”
“Twenty-five.” The blonde grinned. “But thanks. And you didn’t have to be so charitable after the generous tip you left me last night.”
It was a testament to willpower that Haley managed to hold in a wince. Apparently it was too much to hope that the other woman hadn’t noticed the tension. Brush it off, she thought.
“Waitresses are the best tippers,” she said.
“You were already gone, so you couldn’t know, but Marlon’s tip was better.”
“He can afford it.” Haley had meant the words to be casual, teasing, light, but the delivery had a snap to it.
“Word on the street is that he’s a high-powered businessman. A millionaire. And my own experience is that he gives good gratuity. I wonder if he ever worked in the food service industry,” Erin mused.
“So you made pretty good money last night.” Change the subject, Haley thought. No Marlon talk. “You’re doing a great job for having been here such a short time, Erin. If you can handle a crowd like we just had, you’ll be fine.”
“Thanks. Coming from you that’s a real compliment. So how long have you worked here at The Hitching Post?”
It felt like forever. And when ungrateful thoughts like that crept in, she reminded herself that she was lucky to have the job. Lucky the manager of the bar and grill had t
aken a chance on a desperate eighteen-year-old without skills who badly needed a way to take care of her family. But there were times when she wished for more. And Marlon’s reaction to her sketches had resurrected the dream. For all the good dreaming did.
“I’ve worked here going on six years now,” Haley answered.
“Wow. That’s a long time.” Erin’s blue eyes sparked with interest. “You probably know a lot about the people in Thunder Canyon. Working in a place like this.”
“I’m not sure I follow.” Haley stared at the other woman.
“It’s just that everyone in town comes in here. Dinner. Drinks. They talk.” She shrugged. “You’re bound to hear things.”
Haley did hear things. She got information about the folks in Thunder Canyon, but gossiping seemed wrong. Taken out of context or repeated from person to person, details got fuzzy until nothing about the original story was the truth. Was Erin a gossip? Or simply wanting to bond with her over Thunder Canyon?
“I talk to a lot of people every day,” she hedged.
“I’m a newbie.” Erin laughed and there was a tinge of self-consciousness. “But you already know that. And I’m trying to get to know everyone.”
“It’s a small town. That’s not hard.” Haley could understand that she was trying to fit in.
“Not if you grew up here.” Erin looked eager. “I’m trying to put names and faces together. Let’s take Marlon. There’s another guy who comes in. Looks just like him—”
“Matthew Cates—Marlon’s twin.”
“Which would explain why they look alike. Don’t they have another brother?”
“Two, actually,” Haley answered. “Marshall and Mitchell are both older. The twins are the youngest of the Cates boys.”
“Don’t they have a lot of cousins?” Erin asked, a little too casually. It looked forced.
“You might be thinking about the Traubs. D.J. and Dax. But they’re brothers. No relation to the Cates family. Just longtime friends.”
Erin’s forehead puckered in concentration. “What about Bo Clifton? The guy who’s running for Mayor?”
“You heard about that?”
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