Page 126 of One Last Shot

Doyle picked up his coffee where he’d left it on the railing. “Uh-oh. You okay?”

“Yeah.” She sighed. Got up. Then she walked over to the stairs. Held on to the railing.

Eased her good leg down, bending her knee.

Pain, but it didn’t encompass her body.

Maybe, with movement and time . . .

Sort of like how she’d get over Oaken.

“Brontë!” Her mother came to the door. “Get. In. Here.”

Doyle looked at her, raised an eyebrow. Boo limped over to the door, came inside.

Her mother stood at the center island, holding the remote, popping up the volume on the flatscreen.

Boo froze.

Oaken Fox sat in the high-top chair across from Katie Riley and Mike Cortas, the hosts ofLive with Katie and Mike.

Oh, he looked good. All that sandy-brown hair tousled, the way he smiled, his blue eyes twinkling for the audience.

Such a charmer.

Oh, she was a fool.

He wore a pair of faded jeans, cowboy boots, and a denim blue snap-button shirt, the cuffs rolled up over his strong forearms. A guitar leaned against his chair.

Katie, her long blonde hair spilling around her petite shoulders, leaned back, one elbow hooked over her chair, clearly enjoying her guest. “So, you were really on a rescue team?”

Oh no.

“Yep.” He sat, his boots hooked into the lower rung of the chair, his hands folded. A little golden-brown scruff layered his perfect chin. “It was part of a new reality show by Grizz Productions. I joined Air One Rescue out of Alaska for three weeks, and learned how to rappel and rescue someone on a chopper cable, and even somesurvival skills.”

“In the teaser, it shows you rescuing a little girl from a blizzard,” said Mike, leaning forward.

“It was the entire team, really. I just happened to be the one on camera. Really, she owes her life to my partner, Boo Kingston. She’s the one who found her.”

Her mom looked at her, winked.

Boo swallowed.

And then, yep, just as she feared—“Wait. Boo Kingston, from Blake and Boo fame?” Mike said.

“Boo Hoo Kingston?” Katie added.

Perfect. If she could, she’d run from the room. Because here it came—the part where he laughed along, maybe even added to the nickname for the pleasure of the audience. Or, best case scenario, he just shrugged and said he knew her and...

“I actually take some offense to that nickname, Katie. Because Boo—and I call her Boomer—is an amazing rescuer. It’s a very good thing that Blake had her as a teammate, because he might not have survived without her. And any guy who betrays the woman who kept him alive doesn’t deserve any platform.” He leaned back. “I think Boo deserves an apology.”

Silence, and Katie looked at Mike, then back to Oaken with a tight smile. “Really.”

“Yep,” Oaken said. “In fact, she inspired a song that I wrote for an upcoming Winchester Marshall movie.” He reached for his guitar. “Would you like to hear it?”

The audience erupted.

He grinned, got down from the chair, and slung the guitar over his shoulder. Walked over to a mic, stage left.

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