Dating the Cowboy Read online

  “Hello.”

  “Crease, sorry to bother you, but it’s Nash. I need your help.” He paused. “Can I please come and talk to you?”

  Crease pushed the button to unlock the door. “Sure, why not?” Might as well try and keep his mind off of Alice any way he could.

  Nash stumbled into the room. Gone was the bright-eyed man who’d managed to get a date early on. Black smudges ringed his eyes as though he hadn’t slept in days. “Man, I messed up bad.”

  Join the club, Nash. Bet it’s not as bad as I did. “Have a seat. Want a beer and pizza?”

  Nash shook his head. “No. I want to know how to get Sandra back. She dumped me, Crease.”

  “How is that possible?” They were the success story Crease talked about in his coaching when trying to convince the shy people that anyone could do this given the right skills. “Why? What happened?”

  “She wants to get engaged and married pretty much right away. I freaked out. I don’t know if this is what I want, you know? It’s all happening too fast for me to deal with.”

  It was fast, but he’d seen faster. “Did you tell her that? I thought you two were going great together.” Crease hooked his right foot over his left knee and encouraged Nash to explain.

  “We were. But things got serious real fast and I… I pushed her away. I got cold feet, Crease. I don’t know if I’m ready for marriage.”

  “And she is.” She’d told Alice right at the beginning she wasn’t going to muck around. If she and Nash got on well, she was going to fast-track the relationship because she wasn’t getting any younger. Her chance of ever having children was waning by the day.

  “But I don’t know if I’m doing the right thing, Crease. What if I don’t ever find anyone to be with?”

  “That’s not how you should be looking at this, pal. You need to decide if Sandra is the right woman for you. Does she make your heart flip when you see her?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Do you miss her when she’s not there?”

  “Damn fool question.” He scratched the back of his neck rather than look Crease in the eye. “Feel lost without her, to be honest. Like I’m wandering around in a fog.”

  Crease felt like he was talking to himself. “Will you regret it if you walk away and someone else gets your girl?”

  Nash looked at him with soulful eyes. “Reckon I would. Never been in love before so I didn’t know if I was being silly or if it was the real thing. I don’t want to grow old alone, and Pa is going into the nursing home soon. I’m going to be alone in that big old house. My mind is all kind of mixed up right now.”

  “Understandable.”

  “But I don’t want to use her, not if it’s just because I’m lonely. She deserves more than that.”

  Crease sat forward. “Here’s a suggestion then. Why don’t you talk to her, have a heart-to-heart and ask if you can have a little bit more time to decide? Put your cards on the table, tell her you’re scared. That you don’t want to take advantage of her when you’ve never been in love before.” Crease gave him a sympathetic smile. “Women love honesty, even if it means they don’t win in the end. Talk to her, Nash. Tell her how you feel.”

  “If she says no?”

  “Then you have to decide on the spot. Do you want her, or are you prepared to let her go? There are always other people to meet, Nash. You might find someone more suitable if you keep looking. You know the old saying, more fish in the ocean.”

  “And I might not.” His shoulders drooped, and Crease felt for him.

  “Or she might just be the perfect woman for you, but you haven’t realized it yet.” I’m ahead of you there. Time I started taking my own advice.

  Nash stood. “You’re right. I have to make a decision sooner or later. I can’t let her go if she’s the one for me.”

  “Don’t rush it. That’s the best advice I can give you. Make sure it’s what you want before you commit. Okay?”

  “Okay. Sorry to bother you, Crease. I appreciate it.” He glanced around the room. “Say hi to Alice for me.”

  “Will do.”

  Crease saw him out and went back to his solitary beer and cold pizza, wondering if he’d ever be in Nash’s position.

  But that meant having someone who loved him first.

  *

  “Surely, he didn’t say that, Sandra. That doesn’t sound like Crease.”

  Sobs came over the phone. “Nash saw him and that’s what he said. There are more women out there for him to find if he decided I wasn’t the right one. I think I’ve ruined everything, Alice. I so wanted this to work out. Nash is everything I want in a husband.”

  She was going to kill Crease when she saw him. How could he do that to Nash and Sandra? “Maybe Nash just needs more time. He’s been a bachelor for so long.”

  “I know that, but I’m thirty-eight, for goodness’ sake. I don’t have many years left to have children. If I’m going to be a momma, I have to move fast, and Nash was the one for me. At least I thought so.” She sniffled and cleared her throat. “I can’t go through this again. I just can’t.”

  Alice didn’t blame her. Falling in love hurt more than it should. She should know. “I’ll be back home tomorrow, and I’ll try to sort it out then. I know it’s hard, but try not to worry.”

  “Too late. I’m a blithering mess. I feel as though my life is over.” She sniffled again. “I can’t even face work. This is ridiculous being so lovesick.” Sandra blew her nose. “You know, when I came to Marietta I thought this was where I wanted to be, but now I’m not so sure.”

  After she hung up from Sandra, Alice called Crease, but his phone went to voice mail. She called the office and Nancy picked up. “Alice, how are things going?”

  “Great, thanks. Listen, is Crease around?”

  “No, he’s with a client, Alice, but he did say if you called to let you know that he’d be at the airport tomorrow to pick you. Save you calling back, he said, and ruining your go-get-em vibe. He said you’d understand what that means.”

  Really? He was giving her the brush off? What a jerk. Just when she was ready to give him a dressing down about their clients, he refused to talk to her. That was a first.

  “Right! Okay, then. But tell him if it’s a problem, I can get a cab back.”

  “I’m sure it’s not. He has you in his schedule already. See you when you get here.”

  Alice hung up with a shiver down her spine. He was pushing her away more each day. He really didn’t want her to stay in Marietta. He wanted her gone. How had she not seen this coming?

  Chapter Eighteen

  Troy Sheehan leaned over his desk, hands splayed, reminding Crease of the angry bar owner who dragged him out and dumped him in the street too many times to count.

  “I warned you not to mess up my wife’s maternity leave, didn’t I?”

  Crease sat back in his chair, hands out to try to calm the man. “You did, but hear me out, Troy.”

  “I’m not ready to listen, Crease. Taylor goes on leave next week and her replacement is hiding at home, sobbing over a relationship you had a hand in ruining. Would you be ready to calm down in my position, knowing your wife is stressing to the max and may have to work right up to delivery or close the town library? How do you think the good folk of Marietta will look at you then?”

  “Nash is scared. You can hardly blame him. Poor guy’s never been in love before.”

  “So you tell him there are plenty more fish in the sea and break a good women’s heart. Good move, Doctor Love.” His sarcasm made Crease cringe, but now wouldn’t be the time to tell Troy he had it wrong. “You fix this or I’m going to make your life hell. What happened when you were a kid is nothing compared to what I’ll do to you now. I have a reputation in this town, Crease, and it’s not going to get tarnished because some smart-assed kid comes back with a college degree and thinks he knows everything about love. My wife is the most important thing to me, and you will fix that romance if it’s the last thing you do. Understan
d?”

  “Yeah, I understand. Leave it with me.”

  “You have until Monday to fix it or I’ll make sure everyone knows what a farce you are.”

  “Gotcha!” How the heck was he going to pull this one off? He couldn’t fix his own love life—what chance did he have of sorting out Nash and Sandra after what had happened?

  Troy gave him a final glare and strode out of the office, slamming the door behind him. If word of this got out, he could kiss the business goodbye. Then Alice would really hate him. Life was too hard some days.

  Crease leaned back in his chair, eyes closed. What a mess. Not only was he in trouble with Alice over this, but now Troy was on his case. He had no doubt he’d keep his word too. Being a lover of books himself, Crease could imagine the impact closing the library would have on the town.

  “What are you going to do to fix things?” Nancy toyed with her ballpoint pen.

  Crease had no idea. He’d never failed before like this. All through college, his touch was gold. He could do nothing wrong. This was a foreign territory for him, and he hated the thought of letting anyone down.

  But he’d never been so scared of losing the woman he loved before either. The moment Alice went to her interview was when the glow of his success started to fade. Without her around, he didn’t have as much zest for his job. Not seeing her across from his desk everyday made it drag on. Being at work was a chore.

  Was it possible the advice he gave Nash was his own conscience speaking up to make him feel that life would be okay without her around? The more he thought about it, the more it made sense.

  “I can see your mind going crazy. Talk it out, Crease. That always helps.”

  “Nancy, I have to fix this.” But how, he had no idea.

  “Can I give you a word of advice?”

  Nothing to lose. “Sure. I’ll take anything right now.”

  “First you need to decide what you’re going to do about your relationship, and then you can deal with Nash and Sandra. The last thing you want to do is let your own personal life impact your business, and I have a sneaky suspicion that’s what’s happening.”

  “I do too.”

  “So fix it. Decide how you’re going to convince Alice that you adore her and don’t want to lose her. When two people love each other, there has to be a way to fix things. Sometimes pride gets in the way, and we need to find a way around that.”

  “How on earth did you get to be so wise?”

  “Three boys who went through the same thing. Moms always have the answer—didn’t anyone ever tell you that?”

  A lump rose in his throat. “No. No, I wasn’t so lucky to have mine for long.”

  Nance rose and put a consoling hand on his shoulder. “I know, Crease. I’m sorry. I should’ve thought before I said that.”

  “You’re right though. Thank you for being so wise.”

  *

  “Mom, I don’t know what to do.” Alice stared out the window of her hotel room. “I think they’re going to offer me the job.”

  “That’s great. Your dad and I are so proud of you.”

  She sighed. “Thanks.”

  “But something tells me you’re not as happy about that as you thought you would be. What is it, honey?”

  Her mom always knew when she needed a shoulder to cry on. “I don’t know if it’s what I want anymore. I thought I did, but now that I’m here it’s not giving me the feels I wanted.”

  “Talk to me, honey. Get it all out.”

  Alice wandered over to a chair and sat down. “I was thrilled to get the interview, but when I got here all I could do was find fault with everything. Like the testing I had to do. I couldn’t see the point of a lot of it.” Some of it was so childish she faltered giving her answers. “By the time I’d done the second day, I didn’t want to return. It all felt wrong somehow.”

  “How’s Crease?”

  “What’s that got to do with it?”

  “Sweetheart, your father and I have been waiting for you to announce your engagement. You’ve been like peas in a pod for five years.”

  “Mom, we’re friends, that’s it.” Unfortunately.

  Her mom laughed, not unkindly. “Are you sure, Alice?”

  “I thought I was.” Her heart ached. “Mom, what am I going to do?”

  “What your heart tells you. For a couple in the dating business, you two are both so blind to what’s in front of your own nose.”

  “He doesn’t want me. It’s Crease who encouraged me to try for this job. He wrote the latest query letter for me and that’s why I got the interview. That has to tell you something. He wants me gone.” That was pretty obvious. She’d been replaced at the office already.

  “Have you ever stopped and thought about why he’d do that? All through college, it’s all you’ve talked about. Even when you started this business, you made it clear that you were going to be leaving sooner or later. What was the poor guy supposed to say, Alice?”

  “Don’t go?”

  “That’s not Crease’s style. He’s too sweet to put himself first. If you want him, you have to tell him that. You need to convince him that what you thought you wanted has changed.”

  “I don’t know if I can do that. He’s the dating guru, not me.” This wasn’t going to work.

  “But, honey, even he can be wrong.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Alice headed to the boarding gate for her flight, a bundle of nerves and apprehension. Her phone rang and she scrambled around in her handbag to grab it, stepping out of line to take the call.

  “Hi, Alice. It’s Janine. I wanted to let you know before you go home that the board has approved your application. I’ve emailed you a contract and an official offer of employment. Look over what we’re offering and get back to me within the week. I have to fill this job, and I’m sure you know how many applicants we get.”

  “Wow, thank you, Janine. I’ll be sure to call you as soon as I can. Thank you.” She dropped her phone back into her handbag and stood stunned, staring at the people around her but seeing nothing as her mind raced.

  Here it was. The job that would catapult her into… what exactly? She hadn’t given the end result that much thought. All she’d cared about was getting the position and proving herself. Where to after that was never more than a passing thought.

  After the conversation with her mother last night, Alice was almost ready to ditch the idea of working for Zapper and stay in Marietta. But maybe her mom had it wrong and he wasn’t that into her. It was more than possible. Being friends didn’t mean they would ever be more than that.

  Crease always talked about being confident, taking what you wanted or at least asking for it. The whole “if you don’t ask, you don’t get” theory she’d completely forgotten about. He’d coached plenty of people to gain confidence, to go for what they wanted, and if Nash could do it, so could Alice.

  Alice rejoined the line and boarded her flight.

  She was going to tell him exactly what she wanted when she saw him. No way was Crease going to change her mind. It was time to get her point across and stick to her guns. First about Nash and Sandra and then about trying to push her away when she should be the one deciding her future, not him.

  She was determined to make him understand how much she loved him.

  The plane made a smooth landing, and pulled up to the gate. Alice waited impatiently for everyone in front of her to offload, and then she was walking down the steps and into the small airport. She searched the concourse for Crease.

  He wasn’t here. Perhaps he’d taken her at her word and she was going to have to cab it back to the office. Fine! But he was going to get a more pissed-off version of Alice if that was the case.

  She gathered her small bag from the luggage carousel and headed to the door, ready to scope out a taxi, a sheen of tears clouding her vision. Then a blur of red balloons crossed her eyes and she was enveloped in arms she knew.

  *

  He was so late he’d almos
t missed her.

  “Alice. I’m so sorry. I got held up at the office at the last minute.”

  Anger glinted in her eyes and he cringed. This wasn’t going well.

  “Listen, I wanted to talk to you about something…”

  “Crease, we need to talk.”

  They both spoke at the same time. He took her bag and walked beside her. “Let’s get out of here and we can chat. I have so much to tell you.” He guided her outside, but she shook his hand off and stopped on the pavement.

  “I need to tell you something.”

  Her face was pale and uncertainty clouded her eyes. She’d been offered the job; he knew it.

  “Me too. But ladies first.”

  Alice looked at her hands and then his face. Her mouth worked as she tried to find the words and Crease’s heartbeat shot up. This was it. She would tell him she’d succeeded and was leaving him for good.

  “Crease, I… look, they offered me the job.” Her voice hitched on the last word.

  “Of course they did. We both knew it. Congratulations, Alice. I’m thrilled for you.”

  She tucked a curl behind her ear and chewed on her lip. “It’s…” She heaved a sigh before dropping her bag on the pavement, grabbing his cheeks in her hands, and planting her lips on his.

  Gently at first, Alice tasted him, pressing against his body until his hands circled her back. Her tongue prodded the seam of his lips, and Crease opened to her, his emotions getting the better of him as she kissed him senseless. He took everything she had to offer, tasting her sweetness, his regret at not making his move earlier. This was a goodbye kiss, he could sense it. Before he could break his resolve and beg her to stay, he broke the kiss. She was going to tell him she was going away, but there was no way he was going to let that happen.

  Crease didn’t want to be that guy who could never let go, become the stalker kind of boyfriend. But he wasn’t that guy; he knew that now. After his discussion with Nancy, Crease had given himself the biggest talking to of his life and made his decision. Now all he had to do was convince Alice they were meant to be together, and coming clean was part of it.