No Foolin' (Willowdale Romance Novel) (3 page)

The chief sighed. “Stupid young men deserve a second chance.”

“You want another go-round with an ex? Call Tonya. She’s still single.”

The chief swatted away a fly and let out a long sigh. “Now you know that didn’t work. Only made me realize how much I missed you.”

Kate shrugged and said, “How about Jeanne? The three of us gals all went out with LeRoy Jenkins. Although that was at the same time .
 . .”

Teague sucked in a breath and she turned to swat at him. “Not like that. The three of us went out on separate occasions.”

Teague nodded quickly like he understood, but he was mostly trying to shake the image from his brain.

The chief continued. “Now you know how Jeanne feels about my brother. Besides, I’m just teasing. I know where you stand.”

Don’t blame him for trying,
Teague thought.
I’d want a second shot with her.
The idea startled Teague, but he shook it away. He had bigger problems than curiosity about kissing Kate; he had to figure out what to do about the baby.

And didn’t that thought quiet the fire down below.

“Aren’t there any missing cows to find? What are you doing out here?”

The chief took off his sunglasses and polished them with a handkerchief. “Just making the rounds. Got a few reports of some suspicious vehicles in town.” He planted his hands on his thighs and peered in the window. “Now let’s get back to business, ’cause you didn’t answer my question. Who’s this here with you? He’s not giving you any trouble, is he?”

Teague leaned past her and waved. “I’m an old friend in town for a visit.”

The chief folded his arms. “An old friend from where? As I recall, most of Kate’s friends are from right here in town.”

She glared at Teague. “Why don’t you explain? You tell such a good story.”

He opened his mouth and let out his deep, rumbling laugh. “Well, you see—”

The chief stepped back. “Teague Reynolds?” The chief pointed at him. “T-Rex! What are you doing here?”

He’d been meaning to kill the
ET
reporter who came up with his nickname. He bumbled his words and fiddled with the empty soda can in the cup holder. “Well, like I said, I’m visiting Kate.”

The chief laughed. “I must say I’m surprised. I knew T-Rex got around, but our own sweet Katie?” He rocked back on his heels and shook his head. “Can’t compete with a movie star. Maybe it really is time to give up the chase.”

Teague was surprised to feel his hands fold up into fists.

“No, it’s not what you’re thinking. Heck, you should know I’m done with men.” She frowned. “Guys like you and T-Rex, anyway. Now keep quiet about this. I don’t need people talking.”

The chief pretended to zip his lip. “Don’t you worry. I don’t want to hurt you anymore than I already have. I might be jealous, but mum’s the word on your little afternoon delight.” He turned to leave.

She tried to protest, but Tommy spun around. “Hey, T-Rex, did you really get arrested for skinny-dipping in a fountain with that supermodel out in Vegas?”

Kate glared at Teague. “Hadn’t heard that one.”

“Don’t believe everything you read.”
She wasn’t a supermodel. Just a regular model, right? And a citation isn’t an arrest.
He held up both hands, protesting his innocence. “You can check my record, Sheriff. No arrests. Clean as a whistle.”

Chief Larsen clucked his tongue. “Too bad, I would’ve enjoyed that story. Well, looks like you’re getting lucky today.” He winked.

Kate’s cheeks turned an adorable shade of red, which definitely made those blue-green eyes stand out. “I told you, we’re just sitting here talking. We’re about to leave.”

“We are?” Teague asked. He’d been enjoying himself, forgetting all about the problem he was so desperate to hide.

“We are now,” she growled.

“In that case, I’ll escort you,” the Chief called back, climbing in the cruiser. He waited for Kate to pull out.

She backed out of her spot and eased down the dirt road, a swirl of dust clouding their wake.

Teague tried to fight back his smile. “So, you two were an item—”

Her grip tightened on the steering wheel. “We’re just friends now.”

“But you were?”

“Twenty questions is over,” Kate snapped.

“Where to now?”

“I don’t know, but I should think about leaving town with you. That man has a big mouth.”

Leaving town with
him
.

The idea didn’t seem so bad.

KATE CHECKED THE rearview mirror to make sure the Chief wasn’t tailing them. “How were you planning on getting back to the airport?”

“Same way I got in—a cab.” He scratched his head. “But that’s out of the question now. The photographer will be looking for it.”

“We’ve got three hours to kill.” She sighed. “I guess we’ll take the scenic route down Antique Alley. Let me know if you’d like to stop in any of the stores.”
Sure Kate, he wants a tour of the local scenery.

He stared out the window for a few minutes. “Did you grow up here?” he asked.

Kate turned down the country road that led to the tiny airport in Whitesville. “Sure did. Lived here all my life.” Ramshackle shops and tiny diners dotted this road, along with the occasional farm. The mountains beyond made a beautiful backdrop. Most folks who lived along this stretch set out stuff for sale on their front lawns: fresh tomatoes and peaches, old bikes and kids’ wagons they’d fixed up, or yard sales that lasted all summer long. In between the homes were acres of farm fields. A far cry from Hollywood.

Tourists often spent the weekend poking along the road to Whitesville, searching for treasures. Her heart stung as she thought of her mother and their own Saturday antiquing expeditions. Kate figured it had been Mama’s way of coping; like Depression glass could fix a depressing marriage. She pretended to study the big scrub trees, dripping with moss and vines, set back from the road. She didn’t want Teague to see the tears pricking her eyes.

“Sure is a tiny place,” Teague said, as they stopped to let a line of cows pass.

She smiled and waved to Farmer Peterson. “If it’s so small, what are you doing here, Mr. Big Time?” Not that she expected an answer.

He ignored her. “Your family still live here?”

What’s left of it
. She nodded and drove on once the cows had passed.

Her mom had married George Riley when Kate was twelve. Kate and Mama took his last name, even though he wasn’t really her daddy. She never knew any other father than him, but she had never felt the love for him she imagined a girl would feel for a real dad. The kind of man who loved his wife and daughter enough to keep from chasing any pretty blonde who crossed his path. Redheads, too. One thing she could say about George, he didn’t discriminate.

“I really appreciate this.” Teague smiled at her with one side of his mouth. Now that she knew who he was, she recognized that grin from many a magazine cover. She’d been known to toss a few of those rags on top of her grocery order when her lousy love life left her eager to gobble up some celebrity break-ups.

A bug splattered on the windshield and she flicked on her wipers. “Like you said, you’re paying me well.” She wasn’t going to let someone like Teague work his charms on her. She could thank Chief Larsen for that lesson. A pretty guy with pretty words was bad news. And Teague was pretty in every way. She needed a nice, simple guy who laid out his cards and didn’t play games. Hadn’t found a man like that so far. They probably didn’t exist.

Teague pointed to a restaurant a little ways up the road. “Let’s stop and get a drink. I haven’t seen that SUV since we drove away from your make-out point.” One eyebrow arched.

“
Lookout
Point. Some people just go there to
look
.” She pulled up to the Kissin’ Cousins diner and antique shop. It was far enough outside town that she thought it was safe. It’s not like she could take him in to the Jelly Jar in town. Half of Willowdale would show up to pose for pictures with him. Dolly Jackson would probably sneak off with him and hold him captive in her closet. “Want me to get something so you don’t have to go in?” She didn’t want anyone else to spot them together.

Teague glanced out the window at the empty gravel parking lot. “Looks pretty quiet. I’ll take a chance. Can I borrow your ball cap?” He reached to the backseat for the baseball hat she’d tossed back there. “Or maybe the hubcap?” With a quizzical look, he held up the shiny silver disk.

“It’s been a bad day.”

“I know the feeling.” He tucked his hair behind his ears and put on the hat.

She tilted her head and studied him. “You still look like Teague Reynolds.”

“So call me by a different name.”

“How about Eugene?” Unfortunately, even the nerdiest name she could think of didn’t make him any less attractive.

He screwed up his face. “Eugene’s the kid in school who eats his boogers.”

“Fine. We’ll go with T-Rex, then. It suits you.”

He narrowed one eye. “Eugene works.”

They went into the diner, and she relaxed as she scanned the big, empty room. Clatter echoed from the kitchen and the ceiling fans hummed full blast, but other than that the place was quiet enough to hear crickets. Teague grabbed a booth in back and slid onto the red leather seat.

“I thought you only wanted a drink, Eugene?” How long were they going to be here? The longer they spent together, the more nervous she got. She didn’t like the way this man made her heart beat so fast. “You’re hungry, too?”

He rubbed his hands together. “We’ve got time to kill and the smell of hot grease gets a man’s stomach working overtime.”

An older woman walked over and set two menus in front of them. “How are y’all today? Can I get you a drink?”

She looked back and forth between them and Kate tensed, waiting to see if the woman recognized Teague. He seemed unfazed and smiled at her. This time, it was his wide-eyed, broad smile. She’d seen five or six of his smiles in the few hours they’d been together. Had any of them been sincere?

He craned his neck to see the waitress’s big, yellow nametag, made up to look like a road sign. “How are you today, Delores?”

“Oh, we’re doing okay. Business is slow. You’re my first customers in three hours. What can I get you kids?” Her pen hovered over her order pad.

“I’d love a nice tall diet soda, Delores. How about you, Kate?”

“Same thing, Eugene.”

Delores left to get the drinks, and Teague flashed Kate a thumbs-up. “I think we’re in the clear.”

“Wow.” She scanned the menu, not seeing anything she wanted. “We found the one woman in America not in love with you.”

“Don’t forget I met you today. So that would make two of you.” He waggled two fingers at her and his eyes danced.

Stupid twinkly blue eyes.
Kate raised her chin and said nothing.

The waitress came back with drinks and set her order pad on the table. “Don’t I know you?”

Kate’s heart sped up. Sure, they were a few towns over, but word might make its way back to Willowdale that she’d been shuttling around a superstar. Is there any way to keep a secret in this state? She blew out a breath to stay calm.

“No, I don’t think so,” Teague said, slowly unwrapping his silverware from the napkin.

Delores waved him off. “Not you, your girl. You’re Margaret Riley’s daughter, aren’t you?”

Kate winced at Mama’s name, her memory stinging like a thatch of nettles. “Yes, I’m Kate.”

Delores set a freckled hand on her shoulder. “It’s such a shame about your mama. She was a regular at our antique shop. Sure liked her Depression glass.”

Kate nodded, her heart slowing down a bit. She’d been to lots of shops with Mama, but not this one. She must have come on her own. “You should see all of it at home.” She’d been meaning to thin out the collection, but couldn’t bear to sort through it just yet.

“She had that lovely Victorian just outside of town, right?”

“Yes.” Kate forced a smile. “I moved back in when she got sick. And now I’m there helping out my stepfather and stepsister.”

Delores patted her hand. “She was real proud of you. I saw you at the funeral but we weren’t introduced. It’s been, what, eight months now, hasn’t it?”

Kate nodded. Delores certainly knew a lot about Kate and her mama. She must be plugged in to gossip central. If she found out who Teague was, they were in trouble. She was probably as bad as the gals at the Jelly Jar. Didn’t even need cell phone service the way news spread there.

Delores looked at him. “And who’s this here with you today?”

She swallowed hard. “Just a friend from out of town. Eugene.”

Teague gave her a wave. “Hello.”

“Hello, Eugene.” Delores smoothed her apron. “Enough of my chitchatting, what can I get y’all to eat?”

Kate relaxed once she realized his cover wasn’t blown. She ordered a salad and tried to push away her bad feelings. But the ache of her mother’s death was there again, like a low-level infection she couldn’t shake. And there’s no pill or potion to make that go away.

“I’ll have the burger, thanks,” he said.

Delores shuffled off and Kate let out her breath. “I don’t think she recognized you.”

Teague waved his hand in dismissal. “I’m sorry to hear about your mother. Were you close?”

Kate nodded. If she told him anything more about her mother and how her real father had died when she was just a baby, she’d probably start sobbing like a toddler on vaccination day. She certainly wasn’t going to let that happen. “What about you and your folks?”

He laughed. “Close is not how I would describe my relationship with my parents. We’ll just leave it at that.” He stared off at the old road signs hanging on the walls.

The two of them sat there, lost in private sorrows, but Delores soon bustled over with their plates of food. “You kids enjoy.”

“Looks absolutely delicious, thank you,” Teague said with one of his big, fake smiles.

Kate stabbed a tomato with her fork. This day couldn’t end soon enough. She should go right back to Scalia’s and apply for her own waitress job. One thousand dollars from Teague would certainly help pay the property taxes, but it wouldn’t dig her out of this hole. And she didn’t know what she’d do for work if she couldn’t get that job, as humiliating as it would be. If only Teague hadn’t sidetracked her, she’d probably be getting ready for the dinner crowd in that dumb Italian peasant dress the waitresses still wore. Her sadness was morphing into a hot little ball of anger: at Teague, at George, at Tommy. She glared at him.

“What?” he asked.

“You.”

He pointed a French fry at her. “Listen, just because the Sheriff of Mayberry broke your heart doesn’t mean you should take it out on all men.”

Kate dropped her fork. “He didn’t .
 . .” She was too flustered for words because he was right. She had loved Tommy. Oh, the lure of the varsity jacket. They had dated in high school, then through college. Tommy was a state basketball champion and they were the most popular couple in town. Everyone loved Tommy. Especially the girl he got pregnant when he and Kate decided to take a break after college graduation. Kate snapped out of her sad stroll down memory lane and was surprised to see Teague staring at her.

“I don’t know what he did to you, but I’m sorry.”

Well, that was like an unexpected nibble of sugar in your lemonade. Then she stabbed another tomato because Teague had two things going against him: he was an actor and he was a man. And she would never believe anything either of them said. Lies and heartbreak, that’s all men were good for, which was why Kate was done with them. “Tommy taught me some hard lessons.”

“Like what?”

She pushed her salad away. “That not everyone’s meant for love. And it’s a fact, not an opinion.” Oh, she always tried to play it off like she was over it all, doing her best to be friendly with Tommy. Heck, she’d even set him up with Tonya. But when she let herself sit and think about everything that had happened, it hurt like a dozen bee stings to the heart that never went away.

Teague stared at her for a moment and Delores dropped off their check in a little black tray with a couple of peppermint candies. “You two should take a peek in our antique shop. We’ve got a sale going on. There are some nice pieces of jewelry for your girl, Eugene. I can tell you got real special feelings for her,” she said, nodding at Kate.

Teague reached for Kate’s hand. “She’s special, alright. Thank you. We’ll take a look.”

Kate’s eyes widened and she snatched her hand away when Delores walked back to the kitchen.

He shrugged and unwrapped a peppermint. “What? She thinks I’m Eugene, your boyfriend.” He popped the candy in his mouth. “I’m just playing the part.”

“Trust me. That would never happen. Not with someone like you.”
The devil would get into the snow cone business before that ever went down.

TEAGUE LIFTED AN eyebrow. She talked a tough game, but there was a lot of hurt behind those pretty eyes. He wanted to tuck her hair behind her ears so he could kiss away that frown. He bounced his leg under the table, surprised by his reaction. He hadn’t been around anyone so real in a long time. It felt good. Scratch that—it felt scary as hell. Good thing he was leaving town soon. Kate Riley could be very bad news for someone like Teague.

He got coffee to go for the two of them, paid the bill—gave Delores a fifty percent tip so at least
someone
would be having a good day—and walked into the antique store. He went right to a display cabinet filled with old jewelry. He felt bad for Delores and this struggling shop. He had a soft spot for anyone or anything unwanted. When you’re an unwanted kid, you watched out for rejected people, discarded things. Didn’t take a trip to the psychologist to figure that one out. That’s why he’d always paired himself with confident, brash, women; the women
everyone desired. His heart was certainly safe with them. They’d never need him for anything other than a good time. And that’s all he ever expected in return. So far, it had been working quite nicely.