Page 16 of Risky Game

Not at all something I should have been considering.

My heart had squeezed strangely tight when she brought up getting burgers instead. Burgers I could definitely do.

“What’s Cowbell?”

We were in the kitchen, and I’d placed my order for my own meal, knowing the exact place I wanted to order food from, before handing my phone over to Ruby.

“Some local place. Walked out of the dentist last month, saw the restaurant across the street, and went in for some lunch. I’ve been there so many times now they know me.”

She glanced up from my phone with a smirk on her face. “That can’t possibly be because you’re the Steel’s head coach and you’ve been all over the news?”

“I thought you said you didn’t pay much attention to football?”

Her blue eyes rolled in a circle before she went back to scrolling through the phone. “Yeah, I’m not like some super fan, but I watch the news. I have no idea what to order. It all looks so good. What’d you get?”

“The quesario.”

Fried onion rings. Queso. Monterey jack cheese and fried onion strings. My mouth watered at the thought of it.

“Hm. I’ll get that, too. Extra onion strings.”

She handed me back my phone and I put in her order.

“You sure?”

“Sure, I’m sure. Why? Should I not?” She reached for my phone. “Are you messing with me and that’s one you hate?”

“No.” I held my phone to my chest. Her expression was priceless. “I wouldn’t do that, and I was only asking. Chill.”

“Chill,” she huffed with a smile that was so sweet. “That’s almost at the level of telling a woman to calm down and we all know what happens then.”

I definitely did. Learned that early on in my marriage, most definitely. Still, she was smiling. Laughing, and for once things weren’t awkward, so I couldn’t resist. “Absolutely, they become completely reasonable, are able to think logically and within a conversational speaking volume.”

Her eyes widened to saucers and by the time I was done, her jaw was practically unhinged. “Are you kidding me?”

“Careful, that sounds like you might get a little shrieky in your voice…”

“You… you… are…”

She sputtered.

I finalized the order and set my phone on the counter. “I’m messing with you, Ruby. Calm down.”

Steam practically billowed from her ears as she pressed her lips together.

I grinned shamelessly. Damn, she was cute when she got angry. I’d have to remember that.

Or… no. I wouldn’t. Making her cuter was not what I needed to do.

Too bad she couldn’t look ugly while angry.

“You’re a menace.” She shoved her pointer finger in my direction. “That was mean.”

“I’m not always nice.” I shrugged. “Ask my ex-wife.”

Ouch. I cringed as soon as the words came out of my mouth and Ruby’s expression switched to sadness.

“Ignore that. Ignore me.” I waved it off. “That was, well… true. Vanessa would probably say I wasn’t all that nice, but I shouldn’t have said it.”

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