Page 50 of Mountains Divide Us

“‘Not quite’? What exactly does that mean?”

“Well, there were moistened body parts involved, heavy petting, and throbbing members. And tongues. Lots of tongues. But no Ps in Vs.”

Juni snorted. “That was a very clever way of saying you made out with the good deputy.”

“Made out? Nuh uh. He blew my mind, Juni. Twice. Once last night and once this morning.”

She meowed like a leopard.

“It was… fucking delicious.”

“Tell me.”

“I can’t. I have to open up and get ready for book club.”

“Okay, then you can tell all of us when we get there. After all, it’s a romance book club.”

If I could’ve seen her face, I was certain she would be winking like a villain in a black-and-white movie, twisting an imaginary mustache between her fingers.

* * *

“I cannot believe y’all forgot to invite the owner of the only bookstore in Wisper to your little book club. So rude,” Aubrey George said jokingly when the ladies were all there.

She was right. I hadn’t even thought about inviting her, but Carly laughed. “Oops. That was my job. Daisy asked me to call you, but I totally forgot. You know I’m scatterbrained, Aubrey, and it ain’t like pregnancy makes that better.” She shivered kind of violently. “Is it cold in here? Maybe it’s just the hormones.” She lifted a knitted wrap from her bag and pulled it around her shoulders.

“I’m so sorry, Aubrey,” Daisy said. “I missed the first meeting, so I assumed Carly told you. I should’ve double-checked.”

“S’pose I forgive you,” she said. “Anyway, I’m here now. What’d I miss?”

“Not much,” I said. “Does everybody know Aubrey?”

Everyone nodded, and Billie said, “Yep. I’ve gotten to know her ’cause Aislinn devours audiobooks, and Aubrey gets lots of free download codes.” Aubrey smiled, tipping her shoulder up in a “Yeah, I’m the best” kind of way. “Actually,” Billie went on, “I’m surprised it’s taken us this long to form a book club. I’m also surprised I’m a member of it. I usually don’t like people.”

“It’s true,” Daisy said, laughing, fondness clear in her eyes for her daughters-in-law. She was a great addition to the club. The woman had already read every single historical and vintage romance in the library. I’d placed an order for more from another library in Cheyenne. She had two different e-readers, but she said she preferred used books from the library. The soft, papery feel of their pages reminded her of being a teenager and holing up in the library to read during summer breaks.

I laughed too. “Well, I’m glad you’re here.”

I had arranged the weathered armchairs in a circle in the reading room and asked Vern to pick up and deliver a big round reclaimed barn-wood coffee table I’d found at a local resale shop. Aubrey had brought a portable box of fresh-brewed coffee and cranberry scones from Coffee Shot, and we arranged them on a side table against the wall. I added a bowl of plain M&Ms in the middle of the coffee table so we’d have something to snack on. “Oh, um, Abey isn’t feeling well today, so I don’t think she’s coming. And Juneau—”

“I’m here! I’m here!” Juni came skidding into the room with a fresh bouquet of flowers in one hand and a clear plastic bag filled with white chocolate-covered pretzels from a sweet shop in Jackson in the other. She set them on the table, handed me the yellow daisies already situated in a simple clear vase with water, then plopped her butt in the chair next to me. “Sorry. I swear, I’m not usually late to things. Hi.” She waved to the group. “I’m Juni.”

“Thanks, Juni. They’re gorgeous.”

“Welcome,” she said as I set them in the middle of the table next to the M&Ms. “I thought they’d brighten up this dark room.”

Carly gushed at Juni, “I freakin’ love your Billionaire Brats series. Stone’s my ultimate book boyfriend.”

“Thanks,” Juni said shyly. “That’s really cool of you to say.”

“Who’s Stone?” Billie asked.

“He’s the billionaire from Juneau’s first book,” Aislinn said. “It doesn’t come in audiobook format, though, so I had to have my computer read the e-book to me. It’s very inconvenient, and the computer doesn’t do the voices.”

Juni winced, getting her first dose of Aislinn’s directness. “Sorry. I’m working on the audiobook now.”

“Good,” Aislinn said, crossing her legs. “I liked the first book. I’d like to listen to the rest.”

“Okay. I’m sure we could talk about Juni’s books all day, but should we talk about Forever Your Man?”

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