Breaking the Bad Boy (3 page)

“I know,” he said turning to her with a toothy grin. His teeth were too perfect; she hoped he had braces and headgear for years.

“Fine,” she said and opened her purse. She pulled out a collapsible hairbrush and an elastic tie and began to take her hair out of its chignon, throwing the pins in her open bag. Her hair had begun to pull at her scalp, and she knew it was a sweaty mess, and she didn’t want her dad to see her looking like she held on in the back of the truck on the way there with his weak heart, so she was going to take control of the one thing she could.

Brent had a habit of assuming the worst about her and any of the males of the species, and this cowboy was as male as you got. She wanted to look completely presentable. She couldn’t help herself; she looked at the cowboy and considered having sex with him. She could do worse, she thought, and he caught her looking and she flushed and went back to her hair. Much worse.

Her hair was far too long for the confines of the pickup, she had to pull it to the side and start brushing at the bottom half, and work her way up. She could smell the scent of her shampoo swirling around the cab, and hoped the taciturn cowboy didn’t start sneezing. Her hair smelled minty and pleasant, she thought, he couldn’t complain too much. Once she was done with the brushing she separated it into three hanks and plaited it on the side to come over her shoulder. Pulling the visor down she looked at herself in the mirror to make sure her hair was completely contained. Satisfied, she collapsed the brush and placed it back in her purse and put her purse back on the floor of the cab, sitting back into the seat.

He was glad she wasn’t watching the road; he nearly drove off it twice watching her tame that wheaten mane of hair. The whole cab of the truck filled with the scent of some designer shampoo and something indefinable that went right to his loins,
her
. The Duchess smelled really good. She had been sweaty from the heat, and it must have settled in her hair. He wouldn’t mind settling in her hair. His heart was speeding up again.
Fuck
.

“Buck,” he said, his voice was sounding thick, not the usual playful teasing she was used to.

“I’m sorry?” She asked and he cleared his throat.

“They call me Buck,” he said a little stronger this time.

“Oh. I had forgotten you were here,” she said sounding just like a duchess. “It’s very nice to meet you, Mr. Buck.” He laughed.

“Just Buck,” he said. “So, Duchess, did you run over something in the road?” He asked. It was mild curiosity, he wasn’t making any assumptions, she thought. Well, aside from the assumption that she was a duchess of all things.

“It would appear so,” she said.

“Was it a person? Maybe some nuns off to do good works or a couple of boy scouts?” She looked at him and this time there was only teasing, no curiosity.

“Just another long legged cowboy who got in my way,” she batted her eyelashes playfully. He laughed, not at her, but with her, and she tried not to, but she smiled at him. This time she did notice that he almost drove off the road.

***

Buck knew exactly where to go in the hospital, and he led her straight to the ward despite the curious layout of the building. She wondered if hospital planners made a point of making them as confusing as possible.

“I’d like to speak with the doctor about my dad,” she said to one of the nurses.

“That would be Dr. Hastings; she’ll be in early tomorrow. Right now I can tell you that he is stable and looks good. He’s a strong man, Miss Erickson, and responding well,” the nurse said with a smile. Joss nodded.

“I’ll be here tomorrow morning, then, to speak with Dr. Hastings. Thank you,” she said and walked to his door, taking a deep breath.

In the greenish light of the monitors Brent looked like a crude wax figure of himself. He was hooked up to a breathing apparatus which had a rhythmic whoosh and various monitors that beeped softly. Joss stood next to the bed, shocked. Brent had always been so powerful, like his Viking ancestors, now he just looked small and weak, and old. When his eyes opened she forced herself to smile at him.

“You look like shit, Brent,” she said taking his hand.

He couldn’t respond with the tube down his throat, but she saw the humor in his eyes right before he went back to sleep. Joss sat next to the bed and tried not to cry. An hour later the nurse came in and told her Brent needed rest more than anything. Joss kissed his forehead and walked out of the room and straight to the nurse’s desk. She drew herself to her entire 5’11” and stared them down.

“My father needs his woman, so she’s going in to be with him. Don’t quote policy to me, he’ll recover faster with her, and you won’t have a moment’s peace from me if you don’t let her in.” Joss said to the assembled nurses; making one of them laugh out loud, the other four just stared at her slack jawed.

“You’re Joss Erickson?” She said.

“Yes.” She looked directly at the brave nurse.

“Shit, you better do as she says, she’s like a pit bull,” Joss looked more closely at the nurse.

“Leanne? Leanne Stewart?” Leanne laughed and smiled and came around the station to give her a hug.

“It’s me, you leggy bitch, we’ll let her in, just to shut you up,” she said still smiling. “Although, if she had just said something earlier…”

“Thank you. I would have said terrier, not pit bull,” she looked down a little guiltily. “So um, Leanne, just out of curiosity, did you ever, you know, get back together with him?”

“Not after he slept with you, bad is one thing, asshole is completely unacceptable,” Leanne said and they both laughed.

“So basically, I did you a favor…” she smiled at Leanne’s shocked face and again they laughed.

“Yes, you did, but I don’t think I’m going to thank you for it, that boy was beautiful, and great in the sack, or so I heard. Did I hear right?”

“Yes, yes you did,” she said. They laughed again. “He lied to me about you, you know? Said he was single.”

“When you found out he wasn’t, you stayed with him, though.”

“Oh yes, yes I did,” Joss said and they laughed again. “But by then he really was single, and still really great in bed.”

“He’s still around, you know, if you’re interested,” Leanne said. Joss laughed out loud.

“I think that ship has sailed,” she said and laughed again. “He’s all yours.”

“Nope, I’m happily married now, with two boys. And it looks like you have enough on your plate,” she motioned her head and looked over Joss’s shoulder. “We’ll take care of your dad, don’t worry,” she said and Joss nodded and turned around to see Buck leaning up against the wall looking very entertained.

“He’s not on my plate,” Joss said and Leanne laughed.

“The way he’s looking at you, you are definitely on his,” Leanne rolled her eyes at Joss.

Joss looked at the grinning Buck and hesitated for a moment, and then turned to Belle.

“You can go to him; I’ll bring you a change of clothes tomorrow. Is there anything else you need?” Joss asked her. Belle shook her head, stood up and walked to the door. Belle turned and nodded solemnly at Joss and walked into Brent’s hospital room, swallowed up by shadow.

“So, you slept with her boyfriend?” Buck said softly from right behind her.

“You must be new in town, that story is never going away. Not that it is any of your business,” she said not turning around.

“You’re right, it’s not my business; I’m just intrigued. Do you want me to take you home? Or are you hungry?” Buck asked her. He stood right behind her, not touching and she wondered if he’d catch her if she fell back into his arms. She turned around and was surprised anew at the size of him. It was an unexpected pleasure. Suddenly she was starving.

“I would kill for a burger at Andrew’s if you have the time. My treat,” she said smiling. He stepped back and put his hand out for her to lead the way with a semi bow. She started walking and then stopped. “I have no idea where I’m going, you had better lead.” He smiled at her, considered taking her hand, and dismissed it, leading her to his truck.

He pulled in front of Andrew’s just as the neon “Open” light went off. Buck looked at her across the cab for instructions. Joss looked at her watch. “Oh,” she said and looked around for some inspiration.

“Come on, I know a place,” he said and got out of the cab. “It’s not far, how are your feet holding up?”

“You found me before my feet even started hurting, I can walk,” she said.

“Good, but I’ll carry you, Duchess, if your feet start bleeding,” he said with a grin.

“Ha, ha.” She towered over almost everyone, and despite her small waist she was amply endowed elsewhere, and she knew she wasn’t an inconsiderable weight. He was teasing her again.

The walk was not far at all. He led her to a very small, inconspicuous and completely empty restaurant with small wobbly tables covered with gingham cloths and cheap plastic folding chairs that gave you static shocks if you moved at all. The walls were wood paneling to four feet, and the rest was painted a lurid red. He brought her to a brothel, she thought, a very small brothel, for there was not much room to swing a cat unless you had very short arms. If it weren’t for the enticing smells she would have thought he had lost his mind.

Buck lightly took her elbow and guided her to a folding chair at a table in the far corner, and held it out for her. Joss sat and thought mothers of cowboys taught them manners at least. Buck sat with his back to the wall instead of to the door, and a wary eye on the exit, which made her curious about him.

A very small Asian woman in what appeared to be black silk pajamas stepped out of the back room, alerted by the tinkling of tiny bells on the door and welcomed them. Joss wanted a pair of those pajamas, she had a thing for sleepwear, but she didn’t have black silk pajamas.

The woman greeted Buck like an old friend in another language. She could tell that the woman was making a point of saying how funny it was that they were both such giants and she such a tiny thing. Even though Joss didn’t understand a word she said, her body language and embarrassed laughter said it all very clearly. Buck ordered for both of them and the little woman disappeared into the back once again.

“I took the liberty…”

“I noticed,” she said cutting him off.

“You’ll be fine, Duchess.” They stared at each other across the small table in complete silence until a child roughly the age of ten came out with their drinks.

“Of course, I will,” she said.

The cold drink came in a tall glass and was dark brown on the bottom with an inch or so of white on the top, the contrasting colors swirling around each other slightly, and she was momentarily mesmerized. Buck handed her one of the straws and then stirred his drink blending the light with the dark.

It was strong and sweet and cold and she drank deeply, feeling the much needed rush of the caffeine. She looked at him, over her drink and he smiled at her reaction to it. Her glass was almost empty, it was refreshing and delicious.

“Oh God, that was good,” she said in a throaty voice when she finished it. Buck sat back in his folding chair still watching her, and then he turned and caught the eye of the ten year old boy and pointed at the drinks and put up two fingers. The ten year old went into the back briefly and came out again with two more Thai iced teas and set them down in front of them.

Seeing Buck lean forward in his chair made Joss look up from her drink and lock eyes with him. His intensity disturbed her.

“The first time you have a taste of this tea; it can sometimes be a little rushed in the excitement, the taste, the thrill and the novelty. And poof, it’s finished before you really want it to be, and there’s a certain sadness to it. But it’s the second one that you want to take your time with and savor,” he said looking at her closely.