Kelsey stopped breathing. The way he looked at her. The way he mentioned raising a family. Like he was asking a question with his eyes. Nervousness rose within her like a flock of panicked birds.
“The builder’s scheduled to break ground in August.” He took his arm from her shoulders and focused his attention on rolling the blueprints and shoving them into the tube.
She took a deep breath and tried to calm the tremors in her hands. No, he wasn’t asking her anything. He was just sharing his plans.
“What does Trent think of it?” she asked.
Kade shrugged. “I haven’t told him yet. He’ll miss living with his grandparents, but he’s old enough now, and they don’t need him underfoot all the time. Mom wants to continue watching him when I’m at work. They love that kid.”
Kelsey nodded. “He’s a wonderful little guy.”
“Yeah, he is.” Kade returned the tube to the truck. “You ready for dinner?”
“Absolutely. Where are we headed?” she asked as they climbed into the vehicle.
Kade started his truck and the powerful engine roared. “There’s a popular place in Douglas that serves excellent Mexican food.” Kelsey smiled. “My favorite. Anytime. Anyplace.”
He raised an eyebrow. “With anyone?”
She laughed and buckled her seat belt. “Especially blue-eyed cowboys.”
When they arrived at the restaurant, it was almost dark. Most of the parking was taken, but they managed to find a space not too far away. The restaurant was located in one of the older buildings in downtown Douglas. “Downtown” consisted of a single street lined with ancient two-story buildings and a historic hotel.
“Los Dos Hermanos means ‘the two brothers’ in Spanish,” Kade explained as they walked to the door, his large hand engulfing Kelsey’s. “The Garcia brothers opened the restaurant twenty years ago, and then sold it to Montano a few years back.”
“Montano?” That same sense of unease tickled at her belly. She held her purse a little tighter to her chest. “The mayor?”
Kade stopped at the door, his hand resting on the wooden handle. “You’ve met him?”
She nodded. “1 interviewed him a few days ago. I didn’t realize he owned this restaurant.”
Kade pulled open the door and guided her inside. As they entered the cool interior, smells of Mexican food and sounds of voices, clinking plates, and mariachi music swept over Kelsey.
The interior was dimly lit, but decorated in splashes of vivid colors. Serapes and sombreros graced the walls, and baskets of colorful gourds were arranged artistically around the room. Pinatas in red, green, and white hung from big metal hooks anchored into the ceiling’s exposed beams. Wood-bladed fans stirred the air, the pinatas dancing in the breeze they made.
To the right of the hostess station was a larger-than-life plaster statue of a matador, the color chipped and peeling. It stared ahead with sightless eyes where the paint had apparently flaked off.
“The man sure likes matadors.” She glanced from the statue to Kade. “Has tons of them in his office, too.”
Kade studied the old matador. “He does?”
She shrugged. “I saw his collection when I interviewed him.”
A trio approached them from inside the restaurant, and Kelsey saw that it was John Stevens, Dee Carter-Reynolds, and a good- looking man she didn’t recognize.
Seeing Stevens reminded Kelsey of the interview she hadn’t finished transcribing yesterday, and she wondered if she should mention to Kade the phone conversation she’d inadvertently recorded.
“Kelsey, Kade. It’s wonderful to see you both.” Dee smiled and gestured toward the handsome man beside her. “Kelsey, this is my husband, Jake.”
“Hope Kade’s treating you well.” Jake squeezed Kelsey’s hand in a firm grip.
“His whole family is great.” Kelsey smiled.
John Stevens tipped his hat at Kelsey. “Ma’am.”
“Thanks again for the interview for the feature,” Kelsey said to Stevens, and he gave a shrug of his massive shoulders.
He turned to Kade. “Haven’t seen you around much lately.” Kade nodded. “Busy as hell.”
“Saw your folks and your kid at the dance.” John chewed on his toothpick. “That kid of yours looks like he’ll be quite a hellion when he’s older.”
“Can’t imagine Trent ever being a hellion,” Kelsey rushed to say as Kade’s expression went flat. “He’s just full of energy.”
“How’s your feature?” Dee asked Kelsey, her green eyes sparkling.
“Terrific.” Kelsey smiled. She couldn’t help like Dee. “The information you provided has been invaluable.”
“You just missed Sal,” Dee said to Kade. “John was bullshitting with him at the bar when we got here.”
“I’ll catch up with him at the station,” Kade said.
After Stevens and the Reynoldses said their good-byes, the hostess arrived. She was beautiful, with high cheekbones, dark hair, and skin like flawless beige silk. Her name tag read ISABEL.
As they followed the hostess through an archway to a nearby booth, Kelsey wondered if Kade noticed the woman’s beauty and how slender she was. The insecurity that had developed during the five years of Davis’s emotional abuse crawled up her throat, threatening to surface. Threatening to suffocate her. Why couldn’t she let those old feelings go?
When they reached the booth, Kade slid next to Kelsey on the padded bench. Isabel left them with two menus. “Buenas noches,” she said in a lilting Hispanic accent.
Kelsey watched the hostess leave. She was so elegant, the gentle sway of her hips probably as natural to her as breathing. She’s gorgeous, Kelsey thought, and then realized she’d spoken the words aloud.
“Who?” Kade glanced up from his menu.
“The hostess.” She picked up her own menu and chanced a look at him.
He gave her that slow, sexy smile that made her knees tremble. “You’re the most beautiful woman here, and I bet you don’t even realize it.”
Warmth eased through her, but she shook her head. “You’re a good liar, cowboy. But I think I’ll keep you around.”
He took the menu from her and captured her hands in a movement so fast she caught her breath in surprise. “Kelsey, I’ve never lied to you and I never will. That’s one thing you can count on.” The intensity of his gaze trapped her, and she didn’t know how to reply. He brushed his lips over hers, and then released her hands. “Don’t ever forget that.”
“Okay,” she whispered.
They decided what they wanted, and then Kade ordered in Spanish from Dora, their waitress, who wore a flowing red skirt and a white peasant blouse with colored ribbons woven around the neckline and sleeves.
Dora left, then returned minutes later with their iced teas and a basket of tortilla chips that were so hot they burned Kelsey’s fingers when she put a few on her plate. This time she didn’t make the mistake of dipping one into salsa before asking for the mild version.
When the platters of food arrived, they were heaped with beef tacos, cheese enchiladas, Mexican rice, refried beans, guacamole, and sour cream. Kade’s food vanished, while Kelsey managed to eat less than half the contents of her plate.
“No, I’m stuffed,” she said when Kade said she needed to eat more. “If you’re still hungry, you finish it.”
She grabbed her purse and excused herself to go to the ladies’ room. Her sandals clicked on the tile as she walked through the archway, past the matador at the front entrance, and through a door marked BANOS.
The hallway was dark, and she blinked to adjust to the dimness. There were three more doors, and she went into the one labeled SENORITAS. After using the facilities, she washed her hands and touched up her pink lipstick.
When she finished she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her brown eyes were warm and expressive, her honey-blond hair flowing in soft waves to her shoulders. Maybe Kade was right, she was pretty. She’d let Davis’s verbal assaults eat at her for far too long, and it was time she let them go.
When she returned to the table, Kade had paid the bill and was ready to head out into the night.’
With his arm around Kelsey, Kade opened the front door and led her out of the restaurant. As soon as they stepped into the warm night, she stopped and wound her arms around his waist. Her fingers brushed the gun at his side and she froze.
“Why do you have your gun?” she asked, her voice muffled against his shirt.
“Just my line of work, honey.” He nuzzled her hair. “I always carry it and usually a spare.”
“Oh.” She tilted her head and gave him a worried look. “I keep forgetting what a dangerous job you have.”
“Don’t worry so much.” He rubbed her shoulders and all he could think about was getting her alone. “What do you think about heading up to Bisbee? There’s a nice bed-and-breakfast we can stay at. A good friend of mine, Nicole, owns it.”
“Yes.” She looked up and smiled. “I’d love to.”
On the way to Bisbee, Kade used his cell phone to call Nicole to see if she had an available room. Fortunately she did have one left, and said it was all theirs.
He also called Sadie and let her know that he and Kelsey wouldn’t be back until the following night. He could hear the smile in his mom’s voice when she told him to have a good time.
Sadie was more than delighted with Kade’s interest in Kelsey, and if he knew his mom she was probably working hard to finish that wedding ring quilt. More and more, Kade was finding he hoped she would need to.