Page 3 of The Curvy Girl's Christmas Cowboy
“That would be lovely. I need something to take the chill off tonight.” She scans the room, taking in our decorations. “You’ve sure been busy. It looks like a winter wonderland in here. It’s so pretty.”
“Thanks. We just finished today.” I hurry to the counter and meet her at the four top table in the corner with two steaming mugs.
“Thank you dear,” she says, checking her watch as the gold gleams on her wrist. “He should be here any moment.”
“He?” I ask, intrigued. For whatever reason I assumed I’d be working with a woman.
“Yes. Your help.” Her blue eyes shift to the window. “And speak of the devil. There he is.”
I turn in time to see the bane of my existence entering the bakery. I’m in shock. The back of my neck gets sticky and I can feel my face flushing.The devil indeed.What is he doing here? I’m in some sort of suspended reality, wishing I could get out of Dodge immediately, but not wanting to make Loretta uncomfortable. Him? Storm Rogers is her idea of help?
Tall and built like a dream with those big brown eyes and sandy blonde hair, he’s still as gorgeous as ever, with that one stupid dimple on his left cheek that I used to swoon over. But his genetics don’t change the fact that Storm is a well-aged thorn in my side. My most hellacious date in high school, where he fidgeted at dinner and pretty much ignored me the whole time, followed by another date in college just to be sure it was as hellacious as I remembered.
The second date certainly worked for him though, because he met my roommate Marjorie and ended up screwing her. He meets my eyes for an instant and then drops his gaze to the floor, before looking out the window. He’s apparently as uncomfortable as I am. He should be mortified after the way he treated me.
“Hello Storm,” I level in a flat, even tone without a trace of a smile.
He gets his nerve up enough to look me in the eye. “Peach.” To my surprise he strides across the room and invades my personal space.
What on earth does he think he’s doing? He wraps his strong arms around me for a hug before I can respond. Suffering through the torture, I stand in his embrace with my arms at my side, straight as an emery board, holding my breath, trying not to think about how much I liked him at first, or how panty melting he smells—like smokey wood, fresh rain, and a man who knows how to satisfy a woman.
Finally, he releases me from his hold, but his cool cheek brushes against mine before he has the audacity to deposit a warm kiss on my prickled skin.
“Too much.” I accidently blurt out loud and take a giant step back.
Loretta sets her cup down with a frown. I can’t tell if she’s intrigued or concerned.
“Much too long,” I say lightly, flat out lying, with as pleasant of a smile I can muster before turning back to Storm.Damn. Those eyes.“Hasn’t it been a long time since we’ve seen each other?” I quickly do the math. I’m twenty-eight now so it’s been five, almost six years since I’ve been avoiding him like the plague.Not counting all the times I drove by his house looking for his truck in the driveway…
“It sure has been too long.” He gives me one of his lethal cocky grins. Does he really believe I’ve missed him?
“I was living in Texas for a while, working on my uncle’s ranch.”
“Texas?” Mrs. Parker brightens. “I wish I would’ve known. We could’ve had you over at Casa de Estrellas. The Parkers are originally from Texas and the stories of their magnificent estate have grown to mythical proportions. So typical. Storm Rogers would score an invitation in thirty seconds flat.
“Coffee? Cider?” I ask, making a beeline away from him to the counter on the other side of the room.
“I’d love some cider,” he says casually, sauntering to join Loretta. When I come back to the table, he doesn’t even hide the fact he’s checking me out. I take the seat closest to Loretta and try to ignore him, still not believing he’s the person I’m supposed to work with for the next few weeks.
Loretta shifts to Storm. “Thanks again for offering to help on such short notice.”
“Of course,” he says, letting his eyes drift to mine. “Just tell me what day you need me, and I’ll be there.”
“Oh, it’s not a day. You and Peach will be helping to find a location for our event. We had the perfect set up, but the venue canceled at the last minute. And we unfortunately, also need to find a band.”
I watch the color drain from Storm’s face and bite down a giggle. He obviously had no idea what he was getting himself into.
***
Storm
Loretta Parker finally left and now I have Peach Jackson all to myself. Her skin still looks as soft as velvet, and that outrageously curvy body of hers is as devastating as ever, maybe even more so. She was so fucking beautiful in high school; I couldn’t handle being around her. But now… I’ve already checked her ring finger and thank my lucky stars, somehow, Peach is still single. This is not the time for an erection, but there’s no denying what’s been throbbing in my jeans from the moment I held her in my arms.Damn. She still drives me crazy.
“I came up with a few ideas to get started,” she says in a business tone, briefly meeting my eyes before clicking an app on her phone. “The Graves Mansion is out of the question because they closed for remodeling after the Halloween Boo Bash.” She thumbs to another page of notes. “The Veteran’s Hall is booked for their spaghetti feed, but I’m not sure the place is big enough and it lacks charm, so maybe we’re better off without it.”
“We’ll find something,” I say, picking up on her worry. “We’ve got this. What are you doing Saturday? We’d have the whole day to scout locations. Or, I could swing by the school after work.”
“How did you know I have a job at the Elementary School?” Her pretty brown eyes lock on mine.
