The Naughty List (8 page)

Rachel’s laughter echoed behind me as I was passed through the scanner. I smiled, but then realized her cuteness wasn’t directed toward me. I turned my head to get a better look at the TSA agent she was charming. He had been the one who had looked over my license and ticket.

“So back to the cowboys,” Rachel said when I sat down just past the security checkout and began to buckle myself back into my heels. “Do you think it’s true what they say?”

“How’d you get through security?” I whispered.

“I got him his job,” she hushed back. “I do some screening now and then for TSA. Looks like it finally paid off.”

“You’re so illegal.”

“I’m hardly a threat.” Her eyes widened. “Now back to my question. Do you think it’s true?”

I looked up at her. “About what?”

“That good guys wear white? And bad boys were black?”

I rolled my eyes. “Scott’s hat was silver, not white.” I slipped my foot into my other shoe. “He may not have been as
eye-catching
as Ben in his black hat, but he was definitely the better man out of the two. So yeah,” I smiled when I stood tall beside Rachel once more. “Good guys wear silver.”

“Don’t be so hasty to decide,” Rachel said. “Sometimes what seems obvious isn’t.”

“What kind of cryptic talk is that? No more Sherlock for you. Besides, what is obvious is obvious. And it was obvious that Ben was a major dick.”

“Major player.” Rachel added emphasis to her voice.

I rolled my eyes.

“Don’t hate the player, hate the game,” she said.

“Oh, I do. You know I hate the game. I’m not good with the fast hookup or any of it. You know I like it freaky,” I said with a hint of playfulness to my voice. “And that’s not something you can just do with anyone.”

“So Scott then, huh?” Rachel tilted her head toward the conveyor belt on the far side of the check point area.

His hat was upside down in a bin. It slowly rocked back and forth and looked like it was floating. He ran his hands through his short, brown hair before he put his hat back on, then he tucked his rust-colored shirt back into his jeans and weaved his leather belt around his waist. A large brass buckle shone in the distance.

“Wonder what he won that for?” I asked with bated breath.
Maybe I could learn how to play this game.

“Uh-huh.” Rachel was fixated on Ben.

From our vantage point, I got a better look at his backside. His jeans cupped his ass and hugged his thighs. He was stockier than Scott, with broader shoulders and a solid build.

“Okay, I’ll give you ass points for Ben. But he’s still in the deficit for his personality. Now, Scott on the other hand, is taller, leaner, and did you check out his…” My voice trailed off and Rachel followed my stare.

She swatted my arm. “Lucy! When did you start bulge spotting?” Rachel lightly clapped her hands together. “My BFF’s going to join the mile-high club.”

I was about to shoo away her comment when the two cowboys walked toward us.

* * *

I took a quick glance at Ben’s package and held in a giggle.
Oh, hello, cowboy.
I snuck a look at Rachel to see if we were on the same page but she seemed to be caught up in Ben and I couldn’t fault her choice. He may be an ass, but he was a hot piece of ass.

“So about that burger…” Scott stood with his hands on his hip and his legs slightly outstretched. All that was missing to his western stance was a sidearm and someone to draw against.

“It’s not some nasty fast food place, is it?” Ben cut into the conversation.

I tersely smiled toward Ben.
Why does he ruin his good looks with his nastiness? I will not give that ass-wipe the satisfaction of getting to me.
“In-N-Out could be considered fast food.” Ben looked like he was about to interrupt again. I swiftly held up my finger. “Save for the fact that they use fresh ingredients, exceptional beef, and it’s just, well, delicious.”

“Lucy knows her meat,” Rachel said with a less-than-subtle glance at Ben.

“Fast food joints are the scoff of the beef industry,” Ben said.

“What is your problem?” I crossed my arms over my chest and took a defensive stance in front of beef boy. “You’re in an airport. Granted, it’s in Orange County, but it’s still an airport. You’ll be lucky to find anything warm and appetizing.”

“Oh, I think I found something warm and appetizing,” he said as his eyes overtly roamed my body.

“Seriously?” I turned to leave. “Come on, Rachel, let’s go.”

Scott’s honeyed voice intercepted my brisk getaway. “So after you tantalize me with that excellent review of this burger place, you leave?”

I loudly exhaled. “I don’t mind sharing a table with you, but your friend…”

“Listen, if we don’t get that burger, I’ll never hear the end of it,” Ben said.

“That’s your best attempt at an apology, isn’t it?” I said.

“Yeah, that
is
my apology,” he said.

“Follow us.” I curtly walked past him. Rachel was immediately at my side. I didn’t glance back to see if they were following. I didn’t have to. I knew from the admiring looks on the faces of the women walking in the opposite direction that our two cowboys were right behind us.

“This isn’t how I expected to spend my last hour in California with you,” I said to Rachel. We turned down corridor B and the red and yellow neon sign from In-N-Out alerted my stomach to its emptiness. “But I am hungry.”

Rachel purposefully bumped into me. “Lighten up. This’ll be fun. So Ben’s kind of prickly. The way he looks at you isn’t.”

I gave her a sideways stare. “Now
you’re
talking out of hunger.”

“Just remember what I said. Sometimes what seems obvious isn’t,” she said.

“And remember what I said. The guy’s an ass.”

“Well that ass just beat us to the order window and my money says he’s buying us dinner.”

* * *

I watched Scott meticulously fold back a portion of the paper liner wrapped around his hamburger. He sized up the juicy double patty dripping with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and grilled onions. He approached the burger with precision. His first bite made my mouth water.

Rachel gently tapped my foot under the table with her boot. I could practically read her mind.
Yeah, if he takes this much time eating a hamburger… good hell almighty.

Suddenly, a loud, slurping sound from a straw desperately in need of more soda redirected my attention onto Ben.

Ben jabbed the bottom of his cup with his straw. Colorful confetti and “Happy New Year” was printed on the plastic tumbler. Anytime he shook his drink, it looked like Times Square at midnight. Of course, Ben didn’t seem to notice. He tightened his lips around the straw and his face pulled together. Despite his chiseled good looks, he suddenly resembled a pucker fish.

Lovely.

He cocked his head toward me. “Are there free refills?”

I nodded and looked back at Scott. He was mid-way through his burger. A napkin was at the ready, but he rarely reached it for it.

Ben pushed back from the table and left a pile of crumpled napkins in his wake.

Amazing. It’s like watching Greg Brady and Zack Morris.

“Anyone need some more soda?” He stood and shook his cup. Ice rattled. “Or ice. Anyone need soda or ice?” A silly grin crossed his face and I smiled.
The guy’s an idiot, but…
Ben placed his boot on the edge of his chair and his jeans outlined his best features. He fished an ice cube out with his mouth and tongued the hollow center until it dangled from his lip.

Oh, my.

He wore the cube like a tongue ring and wiggled it back and forth in rapid succession. Suddenly, I found myself oddly attentive to his gyrating tongue.

Hmmm.
Rachel nearly side-swiped me with her foot. I pushed it away and surveyed the two cowboys in front of us.
Decisions, decisions.

Ben crunched down on the ice. It cracked like shattered glass and a spray of ice crystals misted me in the face. Startled and disgusted, I returned to reality.
What was I thinking?

“Great dinner. Amazing burger.” Rachel nodded toward Ben. “Thank you.”

He shrugged. “I couldn’t very well carry your bags because you don’t have any.” He eyed me. “And Red there checked all of hers. So burgers seemed to fit the bill.”

“Don’t call me Red, but thanks for the burger. I was hoping to have one last In-N-Out before I left,” I said.

“Oh, I think you may have at least one more in and out before you depart,” Rachel said under her breath.

I pressed my foot against the tip of her boot.

“Eh, the burger was nothing,” Ben said. “I had to pin karma.”

Pin karma? Does he know that’s not just a gal’s name?

Rachel reached into my purse. I thought she was getting my lip gloss or a breath mint, but when she pulled out my boarding pass I tried to snatch it out of her hand.

“What the heck? It’s your plane ticket, not your diary.” Rachel winked at me and then across the table at Scott. “Though that’s a much better read. Her diary makes
Fifty Shades of Grey
seem like a box of hair color.”

Both Ben and Scott smiled and I felt my cheeks ignite with color.

I turned to Rachel. She was pulling the ticket out of its sleeve.

Crap.
I waited while her eyes scanned the printed information.

“What? This can’t be right,” she said, shaking her head. “It says this is a one-way ticket.” Rachel’s blue eyes searched my face for answers.

My emotions jumped to my throat and lodged themselves there. I couldn’t speak.

“It’s one-way?” she said.

I nodded.

“You’re not coming back?”

“Not right away. I…” Tears pulled at the corner of my eyes.
Damnit.
I cleared my throat. “You know I signed a one-year contract at this hotel.”

“It’s actually a resort.” Rachel’s finger glided over the boarding pass.

I sat beside her and respected her sudden silence.
I should have told her.

“Well,” she finally said, “it looks like you have an hour layover in Denver.” Her tone subtly shifted and my best friend had switched into work mode. It’s where she felt most in control. This I understood. When I was in the kitchen creating a signature dessert, my sense of power was immeasurable.

“Your flight leaves pretty soon,” she said, checking her watch. “Now you gain an hour when you hit Denver, but that’s actually a good thing because it means you’ll be in the air somewhere between Denver and Jackson Hole at midnight and when you land in Jackson, it’ll be a new year.” She handed me my ticket.

“We’ll take good care of her,” Ben said.

I almost got whiplash when I turned my head in his direction.

“I don’t have to like you to make sure you’re okay,” he said. “I’d do the same thing for a stray animal.”

“Geez.” I smiled tensely. “Thanks.”

Scott’s laughter was throaty, deep, and sexy as hell. “Ben and I grew up in Jackson. We work there, we know the locals. We’ll make sure Lucy finds her footing.”

Rachel leaned toward the table and got practically nose-to-nose with the two cowboys. “We just met you. But I’m usually a good judge of character. It’s a skill I’ve honed in my line of work. I’m a head hunter. I sell people for a living.” She paused and I sensed she was waiting for them to snicker, but neither made a sound.

I smiled inwardly.

“It’s rare, but on occasion I have misjudged someone,” she said, tempering her tone. “I certainly hope I haven’t done that with you two. But I’ll guarantee you this, if anything happens to my best friend, I will hold you both accountable. I don’t care how good you think you are at your job, I’ll make sure your reputation is ruined. And by ruined, I mean that by the time I’m finished, you’ll be lucky to be hired as rodeo clowns.” She looked directly at Ben. “And God help you if you hurt her heart.”

Neither of them responded.

“Okay, then,” she said cheerfully and stood. “We should probably get to the gate because your flight is about to board.”

* * *

“Well, now that you verbally castrated them I don’t think we have to worry who I’ll be kissing at midnight,” I said, catching up to Rachel. “I doubt I’ll ever see either of them again.”

“Too much?” Rachel glanced at me. Her blue eyes softened and erased the hard lines that had formed on her forehead.

“Rach, I love you and your heart. But those guys aren’t who you’re angry with.” I gently grabbed her forearm and stopped her rapid pace down the concord. “I should have told you I bought a one-way ticket.”

She lowered her head and her blonde hair swung in front of her face. “No,” she said, sweeping her hair out of her face with a wave of her hand. “I should have seen this coming. It happens with my clients when I land them a once-in-a-lifetime job. They sign the offer and never look back.”

“Hey.” I lifted her chin toward me. “That’s not going to happen.”

“That’s what they all say.”

“I’m different. My goal is to kick some serious Wyoming ass with my desserts. So much so that I’ll then get hired out to cater private events. And…” I bumped into her with my hip. “We all know that private events lead to larger soirees with more connections. Before we know it, I’ll have offers to come back to Cali and set up shop.”

Rachel laughed. “Wow. Soirees. You’ve really thought this out.”

“I have.” The conviction in my voice made her stop laughing. “I’m in it to win it. I’m not giving up an entire year of my life for nothing. I have a plan, a timeline, and thanks to you, I won’t have two cute cowboys distracting me.”

“I knew it!” Rachel practically screamed. “You like Ben, too.”

“I barely tolerate him. He may have a wicked body and…”
Lips I would love to nibble.
“…great hair, but he’s still somewhat of an ass.”

“Eh, nothing a little midnight bubbly can’t overcome.”

“There’s not enough booze on that plane to make kissing Ben right,” I said.

“Famous last words,” she said.

“We will now start boarding Flight 3232 to Denver.” The overhead announcement made my stomach fall.

“You’re going to come visit, right?”

“As soon as the snow melts,” she said with a smile.