Dancing Shoes and Honky-Tonk Blues

Table of Contents

 

“This kudzu-covered love story is as hot as Texas Pete, and more fun than a county fair.”

—Karin Gillespie, author of
Dollar Daze

 

“An endearing, sexy, romantic romp that sparkles with Southern charm!”

—Julia London, author of
Extreme Bachelor

 

“Charmingly entertaining . . . a truly pleasurable read.”

 

“A hoot! The pages fly in this sexy, hilarious romp.”

—Romance Reviews Today

 

 

“A collection of sensual, touching stories . . .
Wild Ride
is exactly that—a thrilling, exhilarating sensual ride. I implore you to jump right in and hold on tight!”

—A Romance Review

 

“Amusing, lighthearted contemporary romances starring likable protagonists.”—The Best Reviews

“Scintillating romance set against the backdrop of a tropical island paradise takes readers to new heights in this captivating collection of erotic novellas. The three tales are steamy and fast-paced, combining descriptive romance with creative love stories.”

—
Romantic Times
(4 stars)

 

“A solid collection. . . . For readers, it is a ride worth taking with these three couples.”

—Romance Reviews Today

 

 

“Bright, sexy, and very entertaining.”

—
New York Times
bestselling author Lori Foster

 

“Spicy.”—A Romance Review

 

“Superhot summer romance . . . a fun read, especially for fans of baseball and erotica. This one earns four of Cupid’s five arrows.”—BellaOnline

 

“Funny, sexy, steamy . . . will keep you glued to the pages.”

—Fallen Angel Reviews

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First published by Signet Eclipse, an imprint of New American Library, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

 

First Printing, May 2007

Copyright © LuAnn Kelley, 2007

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eISBN : 978-1-101-00815-7

I would like to thank the dedicated readers on the Scamps VampsandSpicyRomance Yahoo loop. Your cheerful posts mean so very much to me.

Thanks to the Ohio Valley and Kentucky Romance Writers of America chapters for your support and promotion of the romance genre.

I would like to extend a very special thanks to my editor, Anne Bohner, for making this book happen. I’m so lucky to have an editor who understands my quirky sense of humor.

As always, thank you to my agent, Jenny Bent. Your encouragement and knowledge is highly valued and appreciated.

Reality Check

“Oh, come on, Jesse, you’re joking, right?” I pause in my task of filling saltshakers and glance across the counter at my brother, who’s wiping down the speckled green Formica. Mama’s already gone home and we’re buttoning up the diner for the night. “Who in their right mind would bring a ballroom dance competition to Misty Creek, Kentucky?”

Jesse gives me a sheepish look. “Um . . . well . . . Comedy Corner, maybe?”

“You mean the cable channel that you watch all the time?” I sputter and he opens his mouth to answer but I just keep right on talking. “The one that has that disgusting cartoon that Mama said you couldn’t watch?”

“Give me a break, Abby. I’m eighteen. I watch whatever I want to.”

I ignore this and continue. “The station that makes fun of
midgets
?”

“Little people,” he corrects, “and they don’t exactly make fun—”

“The same station that defames
the president of the United States of America
?” I slam down the salt container and narrow my eyes at my little brother . . . Well, at six feet two he’s hardly little, but I’m six years older, so that still trumps his height advantage.

“Yes, Abby, and it’s called political satire. Comedy Corner does parodies . . . spoofs on pop culture. Most of their stuff is pure genius.”

Okay, so he’s taller
and
smarter. Jesse belongs in a big, fancy college but although the diner we own pays the bills we don’t have that kind of money. “Whatever.” I wave my hand like I know all about political satire and whatnot. “So, explain to me how and why Comedy Corner is coming to Misty Creek of all places to do a ballroom dance competition.”

“Well . . .” His sheepish look gets more pronounced and all of a sudden I get it.

“To poke fun of us!” I sputter. “Gee, what are they gonna call it? ‘Dancing with the Rednecks’?” I’m joking but red heat creeps up his neck and I have to gasp. “My Gawd, I’m
right
?”

“It’s more of a spoof on reality TV, Abby, not rednecks. Where’s your sense of humor? You laugh at Jeff Foxworthy and
he
makes fun of rednecks.”

“He’s one of us. That’s different.” I point at him. “Jesse William Harper, did
you
somehow have something to do with this?”

He runs his fingers through his dark blond hair that would be the same color as mine if I didn’t get mine highlighted.

“Well?” I demand, nearly shouting. Jesse is such a hardworking, good kid that Mama and I rarely raise our voices to him, but I’m getting a prickly feeling running down my spine about this whole thing, so I want to know what’s going on. “What’s this ballroom dancing competition all about and just how are you involved?”

He takes a deep breath and jams his hands in his jeans pockets. “Well, a few weeks ago I was surfing the Comedy Corner Web site and I read about the ballroom dance competition spoof that they were going to do. There was a place where you could type in an essay on why your hometown would be the best location for the show and, well . . .” He pauses and then finishes in a rush. “I suggested Misty Creek.”

I put my hands to my chest. “How could you
do
such a thing? Why would you want them to come here and make fun of us?”

“Come on, Abby, think about it.” Jesse slices his hand through the air in the direction of the big picture window overlooking Main Street. “Misty Creek has been like a ghost town lately. Business is suffering in all of the antique and craft shops. The inns are practically empty. Our traffic here has been off too, and you damned well know it.”

“Watch your language!”

He rolls his eyes.

“This is the slow time of the year. Business will pick up when the weather gets warmer,” I protest even though the lack of customers
has
been a real cause of concern lately.

Jesse shakes his head. “With the insane price of gas people aren’t gonna take day trips like they used to. We need a reason for people to come here other than shoppin’ and stayin’ at bed-and-breakfast inns. Havin’ this show filmed here could be the shot in the arm that Misty Creek needs.”

I know he’s right but I stubbornly remain silent and cross my arms over my chest.

“Abby, this show could put Misty Creek on the map. People will flock here if it’s a hit and I think it will be.”

“Yeah, but at our expense. I’m proud of this little town and I don’t relish being laughed at,” I tell Jesse in an uppity tone that’s not like me at all. Being laughed at is something I’m no stranger to, so this is hitting close to home. As I start to screw the silver caps back onto the saltshakers I mutter, “Dancing with the rednecks . . . just who would even try out for such a thing?”

I glance up from my task and see guilt written all over his handsome face. Yes, Jesse is quite a hottie with his shaggy blond hair and deep blue eyes even though he has yet to realize it since he’s such a nerd. Just this past year he’s filled out from the tall and gangly proportions that had plagued him all of his life and let me tell ya, the girls have noticed. His tousled hair and chin stubble are from lack of caring rather than a concerted effort to sport the Keith Urban scruffy look. He just doesn’t
get it
that the giggling girls who stop in the diner after school for Cherry Cokes and chili cheese fries are mostly here to see
him
.