Page 27 of Still A Cowboy
Her mother, Delia, stood below, sorting through a box of paper pumpkins and fake fall leaves.
“Are you still avoiding Cal?” Delia asked, her voice light but not letting it go.
Willa sighed and pressed the tape harder on the turkey that kept peeling off the wall. “Yeah. But it’s not easy,” she quickly added. “I’ve run into him at Abe’s, at Molly’s Mini Mart, on the beach, at the post office, outside the bait shop, and twice at the same coffee cart in the park.”
She paused, thinking about it. “It’s like the universe is mocking me. I can’t even buy a bag of pretzels without bumping into him.”
Delia smirked. “Or maybe the universe istrying to tell you something.”
Willa shot her a look. “Yes. It’s telling me to start using grocery delivery.”
“Sweetheart,” Delia said gently, “there’s really no good reason why you should be avoiding him at all.”
Willa didn’t argue. She climbed down from the stool and grabbed another roll of tape, keeping her hands busy.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to see Cal. She wanted to see him so much that it was starting to wear her out. She was guarding her heart, keeping it locked tight, reminding herself that she’d only known him for a few weeks. Not even a full month. It wasn’t long enough to know what any of this really meant.
But her body didn’t seem to care.
Her body remembered every brush of his arm, every look, every kiss like it was branded on her skin.
Heat. So much heat.
Heat that was apparently still burning on her side.
It was possible Cal had been burning it off somewhere else. Like maybe with Eden. Oh, yes, Willa had heard all about Eden inviting him to dinner when they’d been in the booth at Halloween. Four different people had overheard it and passed the info along to Willa. Maybe the dinner with Eden had gone well. Maybe it went really well.
Willa forced the tape to stick and moved to the next turkey, doing her best not to think about how easily he could have chosen the woman he came here for in the first place.
“Well, I think you should talk to him,” her mom went on, as if she hadn’t just dropped that into the air like a challenge. “Maybe ask him out on a date.”
Delia rummaged through one of the boxes of leftover decorations and pulled out something sparkly and completely ridiculous. It was a tiara, but not the kind anyone would want to be seen in. The cheap rhinestones were arranged in the shape of a turkey, the tail feathers fanning out like a lopsided crown, with a pair of googly eyes glued just off-center. One of the rhinestones was already missing, giving the turkey a slightly deranged, one-eyed look.
Before Willa could protest, Delia plopped it right on her head. “There. Perfect.”
Willa crossed her arms and shot her mom a flat look. “This is tragic.”
Delia grinned. “It’s festive.”
“You mean mortifying.”
Her mom just patted her cheek and said, “Well, now you’re seasonally mortified. But seriously, you should talk to him. You’re a fighter, Willa. You always have been. Just don’t fight the wrong thing this time. In fact, not only talk to Cal, give some thought to that date idea, and oh…invite him over for Thanksgiving dinner.”
Willa didn’t have a quick comeback for that. She only adjusted the crooked tiara and tried not to think about how much she wanted to go find Cal and issue that dinner invitation, along with kissing the daylights out of him.
A sharp tap sounded on the glass door. Willa looked up from the paper leaves she was pinning to the wall and groaned out loud.
It was Brent.
Of all the people to darken her door first thing in the morning.
“Want me to deal with him?” her mom asked, her voice light but her eyes sharp, like she was absolutely willing to throw down if Willa gave the nod.
Before Willa could answer, Delia rummaged through the box of leftover decorations and pulled out a giant plastic turkey leg.It was comically oversized, the color a little too shiny, the fake bone end exaggerated like it belonged in a cartoon. Delia gripped it by the bone and gave it a practice swing through the air, testing its weight like it was her weapon of choice.
“I could club him with this,” Delia offered, a wicked grin tugging at her mouth. “Really make it a Thanksgiving to remember.”
Willa let out a snort, despite herself. “You’re terrifying.”
