Page 32 of Her Second Chance Cowboy

Nick shoved at him. “You’re an idiot,” he hissed at him and looked at Colin. “Nancy isn’t cheating on you. She’d never do that.” Colin knew that Nick was right; Nancy wasn’t a cheater. But therewassomething she wasn’t telling him. “Whatever it is,” Nick said, “she’s probably just waiting for the right time to bring it up. Nancy always puts other people before herself, so whatever it is, she probably thinks it can wait.”

That tracked for Nancy, but Colin left Nick’s feeling more off-kilter than before. When he got back to the ranch, Nancy and Bex were unloading what looked like sacks of junk food from the trunk of her car. They both had their hair tied back with scarves. When Bex saw Colin, she jumped at him, telling him all about their day in town. She was just a little too jazzed, and irritation crackled beneath his skin. “Has she had ice cream today?” he asked as she ran a bag of goodies inside.

Nancy shook her head. “No, we had burgers at the diner, but I thought some snacks for her and the babysitter would be more than plenty later.”

Her answer did nothing to make him feel better. “How much crap did you buy anyway? Surely, she doesn’t need sixteen different types of candy for one night.”

Nancy looked like she was getting upset, but she kept it in check. “Ashlee knows not to let her overindulge.”

Colin groaned and dug his hands into his pockets, looking for a way to ground himself. “She’s never stayed with anyone who wasn’t Jessie or Evie overnight,” he said.

Nancy nodded. “I know, but Ashlee is part of the high school big brothers/big sisters program at her school with Lila, right? Bex already knows her and likes her, and I’ll be home at midnight. She’s going to be just fine.”

He knew that she was right about everything she’d said, and yet… “I’m her only parent, Nance,” he said. “I need to be on top of things all the time, even if that sounds dumb to someone who doesn’t have kids.” He gestured to the open door to where Bex was happily putting away her snacks. “What if all that sugar gives her nightmares, and I’m not here to console her? That’s on me. She should know that she can count on me at all times. I wouldn’t expect you to realize that, but that’s my reality.”

Her face told him that he’d gone too far: her expression flattened out, and she was barely making eye contact. “Do you want to change the plan? I can swing by the bar on the way back from Evie’s party to pick you up so that you’re here.” The words seemed innocuous, but her tone was the one she used with clients. Nancy was in event planner mode.

Colin shook his head. “No,” he said. “It’ll be fine; I just let my worries get to me.”

A car came up the drive—it was Ashlee. “I’ve got to go change. Tell her that I’ll be here by midnight on the dot, okay?” Nancy turned on heel and made her way back to the guest house. He watched her cross the yard, back ramrod straight. She didn’t kiss him goodbye, and he doubted he would get one later when she left for the party.Damn it.

TWENTY

“Where did you find a Chippendale magician?” Ericka asked, hooting as the well-oiled man made one of the party guests disappear under a purple silk sheet.

Nancy smirked and sipped at her water—she wasn’t partaking in the margaritas because she had to drive later. “Event planner trade secret,” she said. She had cleared the magician with Nick, of course, and he had been much more relaxed about Evie seeing half-naked men than she was of him seeing strippers. Of course, the magician wasn’t going to drop his pants, and he would keep his hands to himself, so Nancy could understand it.

“Nanette!” Melinda, a girl both Evie and Nancy knew from high school, called, waving her hands. “This is amazing!” She had been calling Nancy the wrong name since she walked through the door, and Nancy wasn’t sure if it was on purpose or not. It didn’t seem like it, but it didn’t make it any less annoying.

Ericka scoffed from beside her. “Is she joking or just clueless? We all were in school together since we were six. And graduation wasn’tthatlong ago.” It made Nancy smile. At least she had a few allies here tonight. It wasn’t just her and the bridesmaids, of course; the friends that Evie had invited were virtual strangers to her. They were people she hadn’t seen in years, people who’d moved to town after she’d left, or people that Evie met at cosmetology school.

Ericka had volunteered to host the party since she had a pool, and they were lounging around, drinking and watching the show. There were some risqué games for later. It was exactly what Evie had asked for; Nancy just wished she was having a better time. She had come in a snippy mood because of the weirdness with Colin, and she couldn’t even have a drink to mellow out and forget about it. She was sober in a sea of tipsy women.

Melinda crashed into the lounge beside her and Ericka. “I cannot get over how far you’ve come doing this party planning thing,” she said, sipping at her drink. “This is genuinely one of the best parties I have ever been to. I can’t believe it was put together by the girl who couldn’t get high school kids to attend their own prom.”

Bitch, Nancy thought savagely. Of course she could remember that, but not her name. “Mel,” Evie came over, reading the situation, “I heard if you go tip the nice magician, he’ll do some private tricks just for you.” The woman hooted and toddled off on her heels that were far too high for a pool party.

“I cannot guarantee that he’ll actually do that,” Nancy pointed out. “Jude is usually pretty easy going, but he’s never been particularly accommodating to women who get grabby.” That was one of the reasons she kept hiring him: he was professional to a T, and he didn’t tolerate bad behavior. She got a kind of two-for-one with him, entertainer and security.

Ericka sighed. “I’ll get her,” she said. She squeezed Nancy’s shoulder as she walked away, and Nancy got the distinct impression that she had another real friend.

“You’re not having fun,” Evie said to her. “I can tell.”

Nancy tried to shrug it off. “I’m sober at a bachelorette party. I’m having as much fun as I legally can.”

Evie nudged her. “That’s not it, and you know it.”

Damn her best friend for being so intuitive, even when she was on the edge of drunk. “I’m fine, Evie.” She noticed Jude packing up his things. “Magic man is finished anyway; let’s go wrangle these ladies into a game of truth-or-dare.” She winked at the bride. “I heard the bride likes that game.”

Evie smiled. She was tipsy enough to be distracted with just that, thank God, and she got the girls together in the shallow end of the pool for their game while Nancy went and thanked Jude for the show. “It was great,” she said.

He gave her an amused smile. “You’ve seen it like fifteen times, and you always say that.”

She raised an eyebrow at him. “Would you rather hear that I stopped paying attention after the fifth time?”

Jude laughed. “Ouch,” he said, pouting playfully. “And here I’ve been counting on you not being able to tear your eyes off me.” Jude was a terrible flirt, and it usually thrilled her to be the target of his smile, even though she knew it was all just in good fun. Today, she found herself wholly unmoved by his smile and his muscles.You’ve got it bad, girl, her mind taunted her. “Next time lie, okay?”

Nancy nodded and handed him the rest of his fee. “Absolutely. Really, though, you were terrific. Thanks for coming all the way out here.”

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