Page 14 of A Small Town Risk

I want to ignore him, but he won’t leave until I talk to him.

“Do you need something?” Jack asks.

“I need to talk to Parker,” Ryan says.

We all can tell he’s mad. I don’t want to make a scene, so I stand, and Ryan takes my hand, steers me through the tables to the back door. I’ve said nothing yet, but I’m pissed, too.

We walk through the back door and face each other in the alley. “What the hell?” I say, shoving his shoulder. “You have no right.”

“Are you on a date?”

You’ve got to be kidding me; he’s jealous?

“What if I am? You have no right to be jealous. You got what you wanted and left. I’m sure you’ve moved on to some other willing bed partner. Asshole…”

His lips press against mine, stopping me from saying more. I’m still pissed, but I can’t prevent my body from melting into his. I give in for just a minute before shoving him away. I can’t do this. He makes me so mad.

I touch my swollen lips and then look at him. Despite my desire to surrender and let him devour me, I cannot. I need to fight him because if I don’t, it’s going to hurt when he leaves me again. He might be attracted to me at the moment because I’m new, but eventually, he’ll lose interest and that will be painful.

“I can’t do this with you.”

I turn and march back into the restaurant, duck into the women’s bathroom, and clean my face before rejoining Jack at our table.

“Sorry about that. He needed to ask me an interior design question.”

I take a drink and ignore the look Jack throws at me. Thankfully, he says nothing.

Our food arrives, and we eat. The air between is less friendly, and he can’t seem to get away from me fast enough after lunch. I don’t think I’ll have to worry about him flirting with me anymore. I’m just hoping I didn’t lose him as a client.

CHAPTER NINE

PARKER

My reflection looks back at me in the mirror as I get ready. It seems I’ve lost weight. There are dark circles under my eyes. I haven’t been sleeping well. Can’t get Ryan off my mind.

I’m unsurprised when Elle and Cathrine come over and team up on me. They’re tired of me shutting them out and saying I work too much. So now we’re going to the bar together.

They were right, however. I am running myself ragged. I swore I would slow down when I got here and take things easier. Instead, I’ve been pushing even harder than before. What am I doing?

I don’t look half bad by the time I finish getting ready. Foundation does wonders. My dress hangs a bit loose, particularly around the chest––it’s always the first place to shrink when I lose weight, which seems so unfair. Nevertheless, the dress still looks good on me. It’s a blue maxi that ends just above my knees, with short sleeves and a V-neck. I’ve accessorized it with several silver necklaces and paired it with my favorite black booties. I rush downstairs, turning off the lights as I descend. At the front door, I see Elle pulling up in front of the store.

“Perfect timing,” I say to her as I hop into the back seat of her Bronco.

Catherine is sitting up front. She turns around and checks me out.

“Your hair is getting so long,”

“I need to get it cut and colored.”

“I’ll give you the number of my girl,” Elle says, driving down the road. “She’s the best. I told her she could make a fortune in the city. Her husband works for Carson.”

We chat as we pull into the parking lot of the bar. It was only a ten-minute drive. I slip out of the back and wait for my friends. I’m glad they talked me into this.

We sit at a table at the back of the bar and order giant nachos and margaritas. I can’t wait to dig into the nachos. I’m practically drooling just thinking of them.

I eat and listen to Elle and Catherine talk about work. Elle is so busy at the bakery that she’s considering hiring extra help. Catherine is cutting back on yoga classes to concentrate on her paintings for a gallery show.

“That’s so cool,” I say to her. “I can’t wait to go.”

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