Some Like It Hot (Sweetrock Cowboy Romance Book 1) (12 page)

N
ick woke
the next morning with Sam in his arms and a smile on his face. Only two nights together and it already felt right to be waking up holding her. They made the trip to visit Nacho together, and Nick’s heart tugged with the sweetness of watching Sam discover her love for horses.

They were already developing a routine. That felt right, too.

They got to the fairgrounds and went to their separate tents. He couldn’t believe the contest was going to be over in a couple of days, and then what? If he wanted Sam to stay, he had better make his intentions known, but was that really what he wanted?

He’d known her less than a week, but he’d never felt this deeply for any of the other girls he’d dated.

It had felt good to have Sam in The Chuckwagon kitchen cooking with him the night before. Her ideas for rearranging the kitchen had made things flow more smoothly at dinner time, something he really appreciated, especially considering how important it had been to get orders out on time. She’d made some great suggestions for the new menu, too, and he knew she’d be an asset to the restaurant.

But her capabilities in the restaurant were just a bonus. Nick wanted
her
. He wanted her to stay. But would she want to?

When Nick realized it was ten o’clock, and he hadn’t even looked at the scoreboard, he knew he was in deep. His interest in the chili contest had been over-shadowed by his interest in Sam. In the short week he’d known her, she’d managed to grab a solid hold of his heart and twist up his priorities. But in a good way.

A quick glance over at the scoreboard showed that they were tied again, but he didn’t care. Maybe it didn’t matter which one of them won. Maybe if Sam stayed they could…

“Nicky, look!” Rena’s excited squeal pulled him out of his thoughts. She was standing in front of his booth holding a newspaper. The article from Hargrove must have been published. Nick leaned across the table, apprehension gripping him as he took the paper from her.

“He loved everything and the best part is we have more reservations for tonight!” Rena bubbled.

“That’s awesome.” Nick’s apprehension turned to joy. This might be just what the restaurant needed.

Rena continued. “And a lot of the ladies who reserved wanted to be sure we’d have the new menu in place, so I’ve been busting ass to make that happen. Because you’ve been here.”

“Sorry…” Now Nick felt guilty. He would have been able to help out at the restaurant if he wasn’t here trying to win ten thousand dollars, but he still didn’t want to tell Rena that. Though he did notice she’d stepped up a lot at the restaurant and wanted to do more. Maybe he
should
tell her. She owned half of it, and he should probably stop trying to shelter her and trust her with the truth. No sense now, though, not when he was so close to staving off the foreclosure. Why worry her over nothing?

Rena waved her hand in the air. “That’s okay. I really like doing the work. I never got a chance to work much because Cyrus was such a control freak and it feels good to be productive.” Rena shivered at the mention of her ex and Nick felt a surge of protectiveness for his little sister. Cyrus had been a first class jerk, and Nick was glad he was out of the picture, but he felt bad that Rena had those memories. Maybe focusing on the restaurant would help make those fade away.

Rena continued. “But anyway, most of the thanks should go to Sam. She came up with the menu, and I think that’s what’s really getting us the interest.”

Nick wanted to run over to Sam’s booth and give her the good news. And thank her. And kiss her. And do a bunch of other things that he probably shouldn’t be thinking about doing right here in the middle of the fair. But customers came and wanted chili. Talking to Sam would have to wait.

In the throng of people, Nick noticed that blonde who he had seen Cash eyeing the day before. Cash must not have been able to catch up to her, though, because he hadn’t said anything to Nick about it. Two days in a row she’d been at the fair and then last night at The Chuckwagon. Nick wondered if she was new in town or just passing through.

A plan started to form in Nick’s mind. Maybe he could help things along. Make sure they ran into each other tonight. Nick knew Cash’s usual haunts so it would be easy to drop a hint to her. Was that meddling? Nick didn’t think so. He wanted his best friend to feel the same things that Nick felt with Sam. Nick didn’t know if the blonde was the one for Cash, but there was only one way to find out…and come to think of it, Cash had been having a bit of a dry spell so, either way, he was sure his friend would appreciate her company.

While Nick had been musing about the blonde, the crowd had died down, and Sam must have taken the opportunity to dash off to the ladies’ room. Nick covered up his crockpots and headed in that same direction, meeting up with her halfway. He pulled her into a secluded section in between two tents.

“Hey there, Mister. Are you trying to sabotage my efforts to dole out chili?” Sam teased, fitting into Nick’s embrace like she’d been made for it.

“I have some good news to tell you and I couldn’t wait.”

“The food review from that food critic Hargrove?” The excited look on Sam’s face had Nick’s heart practically bursting in his chest. Was she just as invested in Hargrove’s write-up about The Chuckwagon as he was?

“Yep, it was very favorable and not only that but Rena stopped by and said the restaurant has been getting more than the usual amount of reservations for tonight. That’s mostly due to your menu changes.” He snugged her close and brushed his lips against hers. “And I wanted to thank you for that.”

“Well, you’re very welcome. Is that the only reason you pulled me into the alley?” She waggled her eyebrows.

“No. I also missed you.”

“I missed you, too.” She kissed him, a long and lingering kiss.

He ran his hands down her back, then shoved them into her back pockets, pulling her close, hip to hip just to show her how much he missed her.

“Hey, you make it hard for me to concentrate on cooking.” Her voice was tight, breathless.

“Well, how do you think it is for me?” Nick pressed even closer.

Sam giggled. “Yes, I can feel how it is for you.”

Nick turned serious. Suddenly, he was desperate to ask Sam to stay, to know if she would even consider it. But his brain was a jumble of words that he couldn’t form into a coherent sentence and his heart, so fragile with vulnerability, was terrified of her answer. “You know, I could use a pastry chef at the restaurant and—“

“Ahem!” Beulah stood in the aisle looking in at them, her hands on her hips and a smirk on her face. “Aren’t you two supposed to be cooking chili?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Nick laughed, reluctantly letting go of Sam. Maybe Beulah’s interruption was for the best. He needed time to think about the proper way to ask Sam to stay. To find the right words. He might only get one chance, and he didn’t want to screw it up. His future happiness depended on it.

S
am would have much rather spent
the rest of the day between the tents in Nick's arms, but Beulah had a point. She wouldn't win the chili contest if she didn't hand out chili. She rubbed her hand over her lips, which still burned from the kiss and shrugged at Beulah who burst out laughing.

"I warned you about those cowboys, girl. Better be careful." And with that, Beulah strode off in the direction of her tent.

"Well, I guess we better get to it." Nick pulled Sam along, dropping a Kiss on her forehead when they parted to go into their respective tents.

"Were you going to ask me something?" Sam asked.

Nick hesitated. "Later."

A feeling of disappointment washed over her. What had Nick been about to ask and why was he putting it off now? She was genuinely happy about the good review from Hargrove and the surge in reservations. Proud that her menu suggestions might've contributed to that. For a second, she'd thought—hoped—that Nick was going ask her to stay and work in the restaurant.

And for a second, she thought she was going to say yes.

There was much more to keep her here in Sweetrock than there was waiting for her back in Boston.

But if Nick wanted her here, then why didn't he just come out and ask her? She replayed his words in her head. He'd said he was looking for a pastry chef. He never said he wanted it to be
her
.

Her brow creased into a frown as she glanced into Nick's booth. His back was to her as he happily cooked chili. Obviously, he still had his mind on winning the contest whereas Sam's mind had shoved thoughts of the contest to some dark corner and filled the rest of the space with thoughts of Nick.

A surge of insecurities rushed through her. Maybe Nick didn't feel the same way about her. Maybe her cooking wasn't good enough. Maybe she was just a summer fling that would soon be forgotten.

She wasn't usually that insecure. What was wrong with her? And even if Nick did only think of her as a summer fling then so what? She hadn't given him any indication she was staying, so why wouldn't he? It wasn't fair to assume his feelings were that shallow, especially since she
knew
they had a connection that went beyond a casual fling. Maybe she should be the one to say something first. After all, she was the one that kept insisting she was leaving at the end of the week.

Once she'd won the chili contest.

But she didn't care about winning anymore. It was clear it would either be her or Nick since they always seemed to be tied or running first and second place. She wanted the money to start her own place. Nick wanted it to bail his restaurant out. But what if they could both accomplish their goals no matter who won?

If she won, maybe she could use the money to buy a stake in The Chuckwagon and then she could be part owner while she worked at her passion for baking in the kitchen. Right alongside Nick.

Sam worked the rest of the afternoon on auto-pilot while mulling over how to handle the situation. What should she say to Nick? Should she just blurt out her feelings or try to feel him out? She wanted to make sure to go about it the right way. It was too important to screw up.

Towards the end of the day when the crowd finally thinned, she got a chance to rest and noticed that two messages had come in on her phone. One from her parents. With the pecan pie contest and all the excitement at The Chuckwagon, she'd forgotten to call them as she had planned. She'd have to do that today. She'd put them off long enough. The other message was from the tow truck company. She would have her car back tomorrow.

Her parents wouldn't like the idea of her staying in Sweetrock. She'd have to break it to them gently and make it seem like a good career move. An idea struck. She was taking a risk, but she was pretty sure that Nick was going to ask her to work in The Chuckwagon and if that were the case she'd only have to embellish the story she told her parents just a little bit. Make it sound like she was going to be running her own restaurant just like they had dreamed for her. A little white lie that would appease them and hopefully be somewhat close to the truth.

It sounded like a good plan until she looked up and saw Nick walking away with a tall blonde wearing turquoise cowboy boots. Was that the same one from The Chuckwagon? What was up with that?

Sam pushed down a pang of jealousy. She was being ridiculous. Nick had every right to walk around with another girl. It wasn't like they were making out behind the tent or anything.

Were they?

Sam craned her neck to see. It was late in the day, and most of the fairgoers had gone home for dinner. A new crowd of people would come later to see the rodeo and gorge themselves on fried dough, but now it was time for the chili contestants to close up their booths. Apparently, Nick had closed early.

She watched as Nick and the blonde parted ways.

See? Nothing to worry about. She was just being paranoid because the girl was blonde and it made her think of Lizette and how Eddie had dumped her. The girl was probably just an old friend or something.

Sam finished cleaning her area then grabbed her phone. Better get the call to her parents out of the way so she could focus on what she was going to say to Nick. She dialed her mother's number.

"Sam! It's about time. I've left you several messages, and if it wasn't for your infrequent texts, I might have had to send the MP's out after you." Her mother's good-natured chiding put Sam on the defensive. Now she didn't feel so bad about the lie she was about to tell. She tried to remain calm and pleasant.

"Sorry, Mom. It's been so busy out here, and I have a lot of catching up to do with Tessa." That would make her mom happy, her mom loved Tessa.

"It's just that we worry, dear. And you know you need to get going on your career."

Sam knew that was a way for her mother to fish about information and she might as well give it to her. "Well, Mom, I have been working on that. A new opportunity came up, and things might take a little different turn than when we last spoke."

"Really?" Her mother's tone dripped apprehension and disapproval, and Sam felt that old spark of rebellion flare. She was tired of her parents trying to control her. She was a grown woman and could run her own life. Suddenly being thousands of miles away from them had more appeal. Her anger washed away the guilt she felt at lying to her mother.

"Yes, it's something I really can't turn down."

"Tell me about it."

"I know you and Daddy will approve because I ran a spreadsheet with calculations going out several years. I have limited funds and this acquisition will get me to five-star restaurant status the quickest." Sam had thought about what to tell her mother all afternoon. The thing that pushed her parents’ hot buttons was planning and organization. The spreadsheet and her analysis would impress them.

"That's great, dear. What is the acquisition?" Her mother sounded more interested now.

"I have a unique opportunity to buy into a restaurant that has fallen on bad times. It's got an already established client base so I'll be way ahead of the curve."

"That does sound like a good opportunity." She could hear her mother pulling over a pad of paper, probably wanting to write down every detail so she could repeat it to her father.

Sam took a deep breath and embellished her lie. It was founded in truth since she hoped she really would be working at The Chuckwagon. Okay, so the "buying in" part was a lie, but her parents were more likely to approve if they thought she was the owner. Maybe someday she would be. Sam knew she was getting ahead of herself, but it was worth the risk if it helped get her parents off her back. Maybe if they ever came out to visit she'd be in a more prominent position at the restaurant. Or maybe by then she and Nick would be…

Well, now she was really getting ahead of herself.

Her mother peppered her with questions and Sam answered each one without hesitation. In this case, her planning had certainly served her well. She was so focused on spinning the tale to her mother that she didn't notice someone approaching her from behind.

* * *

N
ick clutched
the bouquet of white flowers nervously as he approached Sam. He’d raced off to one of the florist tents on the other side of the fair to get the flowers to add a level of seriousness to his question. He wanted to show Sam he didn’t take this lightly.

She was sitting on an overturned white plastic bucket with her back to him. He noticed how her back curved in at her slim waist and the way her hair fell over her shoulder as she leaned forward with her elbows on her knees, intent on her phone conversation.

He was overtaken with the beauty of her and was paralyzed with self-doubt. Why would Sam want to stay here with him? But then he thought about the time they’d spent together. He knew they had something, and he had to ask and find out. He wanted her to work in the restaurant with him. Wanted to take more trail rides with her. Wanted everything.

He stepped forward quietly, not wanting to interrupt the phone conversation. Whatever it was must be important judging by the way she was focusing so intently on it. Snatches of the conversation drifted over to him.

“…That’s right, Mom. The restaurant is in foreclosure, and I can get it real cheap.”

Nick froze in his tracks.
Restaurant
? What was she talking about?

“Yep…insider tip…foreclosure…I ran all the numbers, and it’ll be much more lucrative than in Boston, especially with the menu changes….”

Foreclosure
? Was she talking about The Chuckwagon? But how could she know about that? Nobody knew about the foreclosure except Nick and the bank. Nobody. He’d kept the notice locked in his grandfather’s roll top desk.

The roll top desk that Sam had been trying to open the other morning.

Nick’s heart crashed. He must’ve forgotten to lock the desk and what he saw—when he’d thought she’d been about to open it—was really her
closing
it.

Had that been her plan all along? To get the insider scoop on the troubles he was having at The Chuckwagon so she could take it away from him?

Nick staggered back with the weight of the realization. The flowers fell from his hand, scattering on the ground, the pristine white of their petals now marred with dirt. The heel of Nick’s boot mashed a white rose into the soil as he turned and walked away without a word, all of his hopes and dreams for the future dissolving into a puddle of despair.

* * *

S
am disconnected from her mother
. The conversation had been draining. She hated lying and wasn’t any good at it, either, but she needed to make it sound right. She didn’t want her parents to worry.

She stood, flipping the white plastic bucket back upright and then noticed something strange on the ground.

Flowers.

Where had those come from?

Her eyes scanned the area, but the only person she saw was Tessa making her way down the aisle toward her. Since Sam wouldn’t be getting her car until the next day and she and Tessa were hanging out together that night, Tessa had offered to pick her up.

“Are you ready?” Tessa asked.

“Sure.” Sam frowned down at the flowers then shrugged. They were all dirty and mashed into the ground. Someone had probably dropped them earlier, and she hadn’t noticed in all the chaos. She grabbed her purse and double checked that everything was secured for the night.

Heading toward the parking lot, she linked her arm through Tessa’s. “I’m more than ready, and I have some exciting news that I think you’re going to like.”

Sam made Tessa wait until they’d showered, changed and were seated at one of Tessa’s favorite haunts—O’Toole’s—a small pub style bar before she would tell her the news.

“Come on. I’m dying here. What is the exciting news?” Tessa begged.

Sam swung her chair to face her friend so she could see the look on her face. “I’m considering staying in Sweetrock.”

Tessa blinked. Then her eyes widened, and her face split into a smile.

“Do you mean it?” Tessa squealed then hugged Sam.