Page 32 of Return of the Bad Girl (Rock Canyon, Idaho 4)

Gabe looked down at the woman with the open invitation and was surprised that he didn’t find her nearly as appealing as he had earlier. Maybe it was that she was too available and suddenly, he wasn’t interested in the easy conquest.

What’s the matter with you? This is exactly what you came out looking for. Someone to have fun with, ease a little tension.

But that was before a vixen in a black dress had walked in and wrecked his night.

Okay, so she hadn’t really done anything on purpose. She hadn’t even seen him before he’d stepped up and grabbed that drunk woman’s arm, but he had noticed her the minute she walked in. While every other woman around wore hip-hugger jeans and flashy tops, she looked classy as hell.

And sexy. He couldn’t forget sexy.

It seemed like no matter how many times he told himself he wanted nothing to do with Caroline, he sought her out.

“I was actually going to stick around and grab another drink,” he said, realizing that Kirsten was standing there waiting for his answer.

She shrugged. “Maybe another time.” Pulling a pen out of her purse, she scrawled her number down on a bar napkin and handed to him. “Call me.”

Gabe put the number in his pocket as she got lost in the crowd. He was a little surprised she hadn’t tried harder to get him home. She’d seemed like the aggressive type.

His gaze strayed again to Caroline as she talked to her sister. At least she wasn’t there alone. Both women were drinking brightly colored cocktails, and he wondered if he should offer to drive them home. She’d probably tell him to fuck off, but at least then his conscience would be clear. If he checked in on her and she didn’t take his help, it was on her.

Gabe took a few steps toward them but paused when another man with sandy hair stopped to talk to Caroline.

You should still go by and just offer to walk her out. It would be the gentlemanly thing to do.

Then he caught the expression on Caroline’s face: pure joy and excitement as she reached up to hug the blond man. Obviously, the guy was someone she was happy to see.

That was good. Someone she knew well and would look out for her. It took the responsibility off Gabe’s shoulders, and his momentary concern could be chalked up to just wanting to be a good roommate.

And the fact that you’re attracted to her and don’t want anyone else to have her.

That was crazy. He knew the score. No decent woman wanted an ex-con, especially one with as much baggage as Gabe. Even with Caroline’s past reputation, he knew quality when he saw it. Besides, he had Honey and his dream shop. There just wasn’t room for anything else.

Pushing the opposite way through the crowd, he went in search of Kirsten, to see if her offer was still on the table.

Chapter Ten

“I’ve been told you reap what you sow . . . Ominous sounding, isn’t it?”

—Miss Know It All

“WILL YOU STOP checking your phone every five minutes?” Caroline snapped. Since she’d returned from talking to Eric, Ellie had looked at her phone at least a dozen times, even when she’d tried to introduce Ellie to Gregg Phillips and his wife, Ryan. Gregg and Caroline had been boyfriend and girlfriend in eighth grade, and he’d been her first kiss. They’d drifted apart during their freshman year of high school, but Gregg was a good guy. She was glad he was happy now.

“What? I told you I have plans tonight, and I don’t want to miss his call,” Ellie said.

Caroline itched to question her about this mystery man and why he couldn’t just come out and meet them, but it wasn’t her place. Ellie was a grown woman who could see whomever she wanted. Even if her sister’s secretive behavior was making Caroline’s dirt-bag radar go haywire. The only guys who liked secret relationships were already attached. Whether they were married or just dating another woman, it never boded well. Caroline had been the other woman before, mostly unknowingly, and the aftermath was always bad.

“Ellie, it’s past nine. I think if he was going to call, he’d have done it by now,” Caroline said as gently as she could over the music. “Besides, if he calls you after midnight, he’s just looking for a little play, and you deserve better than that.”

“Please don’t give me the spiel about how I need to ‘respect’ myself, and men will respect me for it. I get enough of that crap from Val and the biddies of the Morality Squad.”

Caroline finished her drink and set it on the bar behind her. Putting her hands up as if surrendering, she said, “Hey now, I have no right throwing stones or advice at anyone. And I’m the last one to lecture you on moral code. I just wanted to caution you, as your older sister who has made plenty of mistakes involving men, that the good guys—the ones you want to marry and have kids with—don’t usually make booty calls.”

“Who says I want to get married?” Ellie said flippantly. “I haven’t seen one instance where marriage did anyone any good in the long-term. I mean, every week it seems like Miss Know It All is writing about some other couple breaking up or having an affair. I’m just wondering, what is the damn point?”

“Okay, hey, I don’t want to fight,” Caroline said.

“I’m not fighting; I’m expressing a valid opinion,” Ellie said.

Caroline understood now why Val constantly wanted to strangle Ellie. She just couldn’t take advice with grace. Couldn’t accept the fact that someone older and with more life experience might know what she was talking about. Val had been griping for weeks that Ellie continued to make the same mistakes over and over and never seemed to learn her lesson. But someday she’d learn the hard way what rash decisions and bad choices could get you: a whole lot of heartache.

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