Page 49 of Mister Cowboy

“I think we should spend the night apart,” she said once they were in the car. The fact remained that she didn’t know where they stood, but she knew she was falling hard and needed to slow things down.

She heard the creak of leather as his hands tightened around the wheel. “Because I slept with someone before I’d even met you?”

It sounded petty. It was petty, but she remained resolute. “No.”Yes.“It’s been a long day. I just want to go home and crawl into my own bed alone.”

When he pulled up to the curb of her apartment, she stepped out and turned back. He was probably going to drive off and never call again. It was probably what she deserved.

“Get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning,” he said with a hint of a smile.

She shut the door, and as she watched his taillights disappear into the night, tears filled her eyes.

Without a thought, she walked toward the bar. Michael was working tonight. Maybe he could talk her down from the level of crazy she’d stepped into.

Michael wasn’t behind the bar like she’d expected. There wasn’t anyone behind the bar.Odd.

“Hey, guys, have any of you seen Michael?” she asked a couple of regulars.

One of them raised his bottle and tipped it toward the back.

“Thanks.”

She could hear voices as she rounded the bar and entered the back office and kitchen area. The hair on the back of her neck stood seconds before she got an eye full of Michael’s white ass through the open office door.

“Oh my God.” She covered her eyes with a hand and placed the other over her rapidly beating heart.

“Shit, January. What are you doing here?”

Eyes squeezed tight, she could only guess by the scurrying sounds that bodies were fumbling about and clothes were being righted. “I was stopping in to see you. What areyoudoing? Carrie?”

“Hi, Jan,” Carrie’s breathless voice yelped.

“Yeah, hi. I’ll just wait out front.”

The boys at the bar smiled as she returned to the front. “Thanks for the warning,” she grumbled and took a seat at the opposite side of the bar.

Michael appeared first, wiping his hands on a towel and throwing it over his shoulder.

He grabbed a bottle of wine and a glass from behind the bar and set them in front of her. Her anger and all the turmoil of the day bubbled up, and she laughed. It started small, just a chuckle and a shake of her head, but soon, she was laughing so hard there were tears streaming down her face.

“In the back of the bar?” she got out between hoots.

Carrie walked out, ducking her head, and it only added to the hilarity. The guilty parties shared a confused look while January filled her own wine glass.

“I should get going,” Carrie said. “Good to see you.”

January nodded while she took a big drink.

“I’ll call you later,” Michael called after Carrie as she pushed the front door open and stepped outside.

“What the fuck, Jan?”

“Me? You were banging in the back of the bar.”

“That doesn’t give you the right to be an ass.”

“Oh, come on.” She set the glass down. His face had disapproval written all over it. “Okay, you’re right. I’ll call and apologize later, but you two seriously stunned me. What was I supposed to do? Invite her to sit and have a drink after that?”

“She isyourfriend.”