Page 25 of Tempting Fate
It had only taken Gabe fifteen minutes to figure out what Raylene was up to. He’d been sitting at the corner of Ralston and Pine, waiting for the light to turn green, when she’d zoomed by in her F-150. On a lark, he’d decided to follow her. When she turned up Rock and River Road, it didn’t take much to deduce that she was headed for her property. He almost hadn’t come, figuring she was meeting her real estate agent or her buyers.
But after catching her in a lie the day before, curiosity won out. So he trailed her up the road from a distance, parked his SUV on the shoulder, and humped the rest of the way in. There she’d been, digging in those tight Western jeans and turquoise cowboy boots.
Gold. He suppressed an eye roll. Hell, he liked local lore as much as the next person, and these mountains were full of stories. From the Donner Party to the Western Pacific Railroad, there was no shortage. Cannibalism, hangings, people striking it rich. There was a reason the town was named “Nugget.”
But after all this time—after earthquakes, floods, and fires—that gold, if it had existed, would’ve turned up by now. Raylene was wasting her time.
“What are you thinking about?” She reached over Gabe’s console and poked him in the leg.
“Whether I want a burrito or a chimichanga. How ’bout you?”
“A torta, probably. They make really good ones, at least they used to.”
“How long have you been gone exactly?” He turned down the radio, a station out of Reno. He knew she’d moved back a couple of years ago for just long enough to wreak havoc on the town, then returned to Denver to reconcile with Butch. That sure hadn’t lasted long.
“Off and on, seventeen years.” She was quiet for a while, then said, “I left right after high school.”
“You didn’t miss it?”
She sighed. “Not really.” But there was something in her voice that said she had, maybe just a little bit. “A lot happened and it didn’t feel like my town anymore.”
“Like what?” He pulled off the highway and took the road into Clio, heading for the restaurant.
She turned to look at him. “Stuff with my dad, stuff I don’t talk about.”
“Okay, fair enough.” Gabe was surprised she’d even said that much. Ray was usually a forbidden topic, and Raylene usually answered every question with a sarcastic retort. He’d noticed that about her. The truth was he’d noticed too much about her, including the way those Western jeans of hers had molded to her ass when she was shoveling the dirt.
He parked his truck in the dusty parking lot and went around to get her door. She jumped down before he could help her out.
“I’m starved,” she said, and rushed off ahead of him.
The restaurant was more like a taco stand with a drive-through, an inside walk-up counter, concrete floors, and a few tables covered in oilcloths. Bright Mexican tiles and Day of the Dead skulls adorned the walls, and a big sombrero hung over the door. In the corner was a drink station, offeringaguas frescasandhorchatain big jars. It reminded him of his Navy days in San Diego.
The owner, who’d been in the kitchen, came up to the front and greeted him. “Hola, amigo. Where’s your friend?”
“He couldn’t come today. This is his sister.” Gabe slung his arm around Raylene, mostly because he knew it would annoy her.
“What does such a beautiful woman want with you,amigo?”
“Ah, Victor, I have many hidden charms.”
Victor leaned back and laughed, then pulled two Coronas from the cooler and handed them to Gabe and Raylene. “It’s on the house.Hasta la vista, amigos.”
He disappeared into the kitchen and the young woman at the counter took their orders. Gabe pulled out a chair for Raylene and they waited for their food.
“The place is empty,” Raylene said. “It didn’t used to be.”
“It’s a little late for lunch, and too early for supper.” When he and Logan came, the place was usually packed. “We’re having steak tonight at the rehearsal dinner. Flynn’s beef.”
Raylene pulled a face. “It’s not as good as Rosser beef used to be, but whatever. So his wife doesn’t have the talk show anymore, huh?”
“Gia now runs the Iris Foundation, a charity that helps women who are down on their luck get back on their feet.”
“I know,” she said. “I read about it.” A former celebrity like Gia got her name splashed all over the tabloids.
“Are she and Flynn buying your land?” It made sense that either they or Clay McCreedy would, since it sat between their two respective ranches.
“Nope.” Raylene got up and poured herself a glass of hibiscusagua frescaand came back to the table.
