Page 375 of On A Manhunt: Complete Series

ASPEN

I’d already had two glasses of wine. Or was it three? I had no idea since Mallory kept refilling it as we ate pizza at Otis’ place directly beneath the studio. We’d taken over the back corner of the seating area. It was me, Luke, Mallory, Theo, Mac, Bridget, and Mav.

Bridget and Mav had been waiting for us. Bridget was a runner and only occasionally came to one of my classes, and then begrudgingly and only when Mallory made her, like on really rainy days or in the coldest and snowiest winter weather.

We’d split off into boys and girls since Mallory wanted me to recount every single thing Luke and I did the other night.

I hadn’t even had a chance to talk to Luke more than thanking him for taking my class.

He’d given me a smile and I’d been tugged into the corner, and I had no doubt Mallory had sicced Theo on Luke.

I’d already given the two of them a rundown of the trivia game warmup–aka foreplay, to Mallory–and the highlights of the bendy, steamy sex in his hotel room after.

“Do you think he wants more?” Mallory asked, fanning her face.

It really had been that hot.

“Of course, he does,” Bridget replied, furtively glancing down the table in Luke’s direction. “He did yoga, right? A guy only does yoga to get sex.”

I sputtered, trying not to choke on the sip of wine I’d just taken. I’d had a few bites of pizza and tons of wine, so I was definitely buzzed. “That’s not true! Does Mav run with you only to get sex?” I countered, keeping my voice low.

“Yes,” she replied, pushing her glasses up. While she didn’t blush at that admission, the corner of her mouth turned up in a cat-got-the-cream smile. I had a feeling it was actually Mav who got the cream.

We looked down the joined tables to Mav who was at the far side of the group.

His seat was at the end. He was just too big to be squeezed in anywhere else.

The men had their heads close together and who the hell knew what they were talking about.

Over the music from the vintage jukebox in the corner and a birthday party–based on the numbered candles on the cake for a ten-year old–I couldn’t hear a thing.

But Mav must’ve had bat hearing, or he knew Bridget was eyeing him because his gaze went to hers and… holy hell.

The smolder that giant of a man gave her melted my panties.

“Does Theo do yoga with you to get sex?” I asked Mallory.

“The only reason.”

Mallory, Bridget, and I looked at each other again and burst out laughing.

So Luke wanted more sex with me? He had said as much.

Did that whole sexy, neck holding thing.

Put his hand in my panties. Even told me he wanted more.

I squirmed on the hard chair with hope. He’d left me hanging yesterday–with seriously blue lady balls–and I was eager for more.

But I was a realist and remembered my no expectations.

“What did he say?” Mallory asked.

“Who?” I wondered.

“Shep. I mean, Luke.”

“About what?”

“More. That he wants you to bend in other ways for him?” she asked.

I shrugged. “You pulled me over here so fast I haven’t even talked with him yet.”

“Like Bridge said, he wants sex. He’s here, isn’t he?” Mallory added.

“He seems to be getting along with the guys,” Bridget pointed out, as if there was a possibility he wouldn’t survive happy hour.

They had pints of beer and two baskets of demolished mozzarella sticks between them.

“He’s a nice guy.”

“Nice? Who wants nice?” Mallory pushed.

I set my hand on my chest. After class, I threw on a pale blue zip-up hoodie over my yoga top and now I fiddled with the zipper. “I do. I’m sick of assholes.”

“Whatever happened to her blind date?” Bridget asked Mallory, giving her a pointed stare.

“Yeah, what happened with him?” I repeated. She never gave me an update.

Mallory rolled her eyes. “I texted Ronald. He said he lost track of time. Forgot.”

“See?” I said, pointing at her.

“He’s a radiologist and works in a dark room all day,” she countered, as if that was a good legitimate reason.

I shook my head. “That’s not an excuse.”

“It’s not,” Mallory confirmed. “At least you didn’t get engaged to him like that guy Duncan. At least Ronald showed how much of a lazy ass he was right at the start. I mean, how long were you with Duncan?”

Yeah, that was embarrassing. Shame, not wine, heated my cheeks. They knew about Duncan, but I’d left out the ring burial. I’d been mortified enough that I hadn’t seen the signs that I did the whole ring burial, cleansing thing solo.

“Anyway, I told Ronald he’s a dick and told Theo that he’s a dick. I feel really confident that when Theo sees him next at the hospital, he’s also going to tell him to his face he’s a dick.”

“No dicks for you,” Bridget said, then giggled. “Well, one dick, but the good kind.”

We turned to eye Luke as a collective female unit. Yeah, he had a really good kind of dick, and I wanted it again.

Mac stood and I looked over my shoulder to see why. In came Georgia and his son, Andy.

Georgia, who was so pretty in her pale pink dress, matching shoes, and accessories, went right to Mac and kissed him. Mac’s hand went right to her ass.

“Hi, Aspen!” Andy, probably used to them smooching a little in front of him, ignored them and came right over to me, his smile big.

His two front teeth were starting to grow in, and they were all cockeyed and jack-o'-lantern like.

I had a feeling he was going to need some serious orthodontics in a few years.

I couldn’t help but smile back because he was a sweet, happy boy. “Hi, sweetheart. How’s it going?”

“Good. Is Sierra here?” He looked around for her, as if she was hiding somewhere.

I pouted, suddenly missing my little girl all over again. “No, she’s at hockey sleepaway camp until next week.”

“Oh.” He pouted, too. While he was only six, he and Sierra hung out often enough to be buddies.

“When I get big, I’m going to go to camp at the Kids Corp.

But not hockey because I’m not doing no sleepaways.

I’m gonna be a big brother and I have to stay and take care of my baby sister.

” He puffed out his chest and patted it, so dang proud.

I looked to Georgia, who’d only shared she was expecting a few weeks earlier. When I was pregnant with Sierra, I’d had my head in the toilet bowl for the first trimester, but Georgia practically glowed. Or it could be the amazing foundation and moisturizer she used.

“It could be a boy,” Georgia said to Andy in a way that made me think they’d had this discussion before.

Andy shook his head. “Nah. It’s a girl. Boys look out for girls. Either way, GG’s going to feed the baby with her nipples.”

My eyes widened at his pronouncement and I bit my lip so I didn’t laugh.

“Andy,” Mac warned. “No nipple talk in public, remember?”

“You just said it!” he pointed out.

I glanced at Georgia who only shook her head. This wasn’t the first time, I assumed, she’d heard that from his precocious mouth.

“Hey, Andy!” Otis’s call had Andy whipping around. “Come help me make the pizzas Georgia wants to take home for dinner.”

He didn’t even say goodbye before he dashed around the counter and Otis pointed him toward the sink to wash his hands.

“Did you hear from the producer?” Mav asked Georgia.

She nodded. Mav was her new boss.

“Yes. The live show is next week,” she told him. “The Hansen ranch is the perfect backdrop for the stage. The crew will start tomorrow setting it up.”

“If I find out you’re standing and not delegating, I’ll sic your cousin on you,” Mav warned.

Georgia came to Hunter Valley in the spring to organize the fire department calendar fundraiser.

Because of the success, she’d been hired on full-time with James Corp–Mav’s billion-dollar company–to be the local public relations director.

Since then, she and Mac–not Mav–the fire chief, fell in love and they were having a baby.

Mac, who was a very protective guy, only nodded in agreement. “Right. Sit. Now.”

He pushed Georgia–gently–into his empty seat and snagged an unused one from a different table for himself. Then he pushed a full glass of ice water in front of her.

“What’s this you’re working on?” I wondered.

She took a sip of the water and smiled. “Cowboy Goes a Courtin’. It’s a new TV show where–”

“I’ve seen it!” Mallory interrupted, hands waving as if she was trying to flag down a taxi. “The first season was so much fun.”

“I don’t have a TV,” I reminded, “so you’re going to tell me what it’s about.”

“It’s like the 70s version of that dating game show. There’s a bachelorette and three bachelors, but she can’t see them. The guys in this show are cowboys who want to–”

“Go a ‘courtin,” Mallory finished for her.

Georgia nodded. “Exactly. She asks the guys questions and picks one.”

“That’s it?” I wondered. It didn’t sound that exciting to me.

Georgia looked at me with a twinkle in her eye. She glanced around. “The questions are pretty naughty, or as naughty as they can go for TV.” Ah, she was making sure Andy wasn’t around.

“Like sex naughty,” Mallory clarified. “But cowboy-style.”

I laughed. “I figured.”

“I’ve seen it. It’s usually filmed on the same lot as my show,” Luke called from the far end of the table.

Georgia looked his way and her eyes widened. “You’re Derek Dashwood.”

He nodded, then leaned forward to extend his hand to her. “Yeah, but I’m Luke, actually.”

“Nice to meet you,” Georgia said, clearly not as starstruck as Mallory had been.

“You’re organizing the whole thing?” Luke asked, clearly curious.

Georgia shook her head, but Mav spoke up from beside Luke, arms crossed over his chest. “It’s James Corp’s mission to help grow Hunter Valley’s visibility and economy.

Having an episode of the show happen here brings both eyes and money to the town, so we coordinated with the PR team to host a live, one-time special. ”

“All I’ve done is to help find a venue for it and maintain community relations,” Georgia said.