“By the way, I’m Nina and this is Lucy.”
“What are we here for today?” Lucy had asked.
“Just a little spruce up. Our friend is going to a CB Rice concert tonight.”
“Oh, how fun! I wish I could go. Ben Rice is one fine-looking man.” Lucy had put her hand on her heart. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”
“Flynn.”
“Come with me, Flynn, and we’ll get those split ends cleaned up. How do you think you want to wear your hair tonight?” she’d asked, removing the ever-present hair tie.
Not only had she trimmed my hair, she curled it and showed me how to put on a little blusher.
“Your skin is so beautiful, you don’t need makeup, but this will add a tiny bit of color to your cheeks.”
When I told her I wasn’t sure about buying the blusher, she threw it in with my haircut.
“You come back and tell me all about the concert,” she’d said when she walked me to the door.
I wondered now if she really meant it or if she was just being nice too. I shrugged and rolled over, hugging my pillow tight and reliving every second of the night.
23
Irish
Why in the hell was my damn cell ringing so early in the morning? I was in the middle of the nicest dream about Flynn and resented the hell out of having to open my eyes.
“What?”
“Hey, Irish. It’s Decker.”
“I know that. What do you want?”
“I haven’t been able to reach Buck or Stella.”
“How is this my problem?”
“Paxon, come on. Go over there.”
“You’re fucking kidding me.”
“I’ll owe you one.”
“You already owe me plenty.” I hung up, pulled on a pair of pants and a shirt, stuck my feet in my boots, and traipsed next door.
“What can I do for you, Irish?” Buck asked after I pounded on the door long enough that I was about to break it down.
“Decker is trying to get in touch with you. Stella too. He finally called and asked me to walk over and see if you were both okay.”
“Hey, Stella,” Buck hollered.
She stuck her head out of the bedroom door. “Yeah?”
“As you can see, she’s okay and so am I. Anything else?” asked Buck.
“He wants you to call him.” I stormed back to my cabin.
A couple of hours later, I rubbed my eyes and closed my laptop. I wasn’t accomplishing anything besides giving myself a headache. What there was to find on Kerr and his cohorts, I’d already found.
When I stood, I saw Buck and Stella come out of the cabin and leave with Rock. Why the hell hadn’t Decker called him earlier and let me sleep? He was on Stella’s detail.
It would probably be a shitty thing to call Flynn and tell her I needed something at the cabin, but I sure did want to see her.
“Hey, Ink. You somewhere close by?”
“Sure am. What do you need?”
“Have you eaten at the dining hall? Buck mentioned we were welcome to anytime.”
“Hell yeah. There isn’t any better food around that I know of.”
“You hungry?”
He laughed. “I’m always hungry, Irish.”
“How does this work?” I asked when we pulled up to a large building.
“It’s basically cafeteria style, but the kitchen staff only plates stuff up as it’s needed, so everything is fresh and hot.”
Once inside, I looked around for Flynn but didn’t see her. I followed Ink through the line, picking up a salad and then something that looked like a cheeseburger covered in something green.
“What’s that?” I asked him.
“That’s a slopper,” I heard a woman’s voice say. I looked over my shoulder and smiled at Flynn.
“I was hoping I’d see you today.”
“You ever want to, I’m usually here.”
“Tell me about the slopper. What’s on top of it?”
“Green chili.”
“Best I’ve ever had, but don’t ever tell my mama,” said Ink.
Flynn thanked him, grabbed a salad, and put it on a tray. “Mind if I join you?”
“I’d love it.” I looked around when we got to the end of the food line. “Is there a cashier somewhere?”
Flynn laughed. “We don’t charge for food.”
“You don’t?”
“It’s part of the package for the staff, like the cowboys and hands. Obviously, it’s included for paying guests.” She shook her head. “Not that you’re a paying guest. But you know what I mean.”
I looked at her tray. “No slopper?”
“No, just a salad for me.”
All three of Flynn’s brothers looked up as we passed by their table. She kept going as if she didn’t notice them, which was fine with me. Instead of sitting down with Ink, she went to an empty table.
“Is this okay?” she asked.
“Perfect.” As she slowly nibbled on her salad, I dug into the mess on my plate. “Oh my God, what did you say this was?”
“First, tell me. Does that mean you think it’s good?”
“Good? No. The best thing I’ve ever eaten in my life? Yes.”
“All it is, is a cheeseburger covered in green chili. It’s a Colorado thing.”
I took a few more bites.
“There’s more if you want another.”
I raised my head and looked over to the food line. “I’d like ten more, but I better stop at one.”
“The way you look, you could get away with having another one.”
“The way I look?” I knew what she meant, but flirting felt so damned good, I kept it up.
Her cheeks flushed and she grinned, which was exactly what I was going for. “You know, you’re very fit.”
“And you are very pretty when you smile. You’re pretty all the time, but especially then.”
“Thank you,” she murmured, but the smile left her face.
“Last night was fun,” I said before finishing off the last of the slopper. “What else do you like to do when you’re not working?”
Flynn looked away. “I’m always working.”
“That can’t be true.”
She turned her head, and her eyes met mine. “It is.”
“Come on now, you can’t be here seven days a week.”
“To be honest, before now, I haven’t minded.”
“What’s different?”
Her cheeks were pink again, and she couldn’t
