“Don’t tell me you’re still at work,” Callie said when Brandy picked up the phone later that night.
“Okay, I won’t tell you.”
“Darn it, Brandy. You’ve got to lighten up just a little.”
“So sayeth the woman who’s held down two jobs since the age of sixteen and is still, the last time I looked, juggling both.”
“I’m just helping out Les at the real estate office until he finds a replacement. Then I’ll only have the column at the newspaper to worry about.” Callie had found not only the man of her dreams, but the job as well. She’d spent years wanting to be a journalist and just recently she’d landed her very own feature column with the local newspaper. What’s Happening in Rebel detailed the latest and greatest goings on in their small town and was both insightful and funny thanks to Callie’s wit.
Brandy’s sister really had hit the jackpot.
Brandy’s throat tightened. She swallowed and tried to focus on her older sister’s voice.
“… have to slow down and take a breath,” Callie was saying.
“I’ll do that when I’m turning a substantial profit and business is booming.”
If that moment ever came.
She tamped down the doubt and gave herself a mental shake. Sure, she had debt. But she had a plan to get out of that debt, which was why she was parked in front of Kenny Roy’s house yet again, waiting for the man to come home so that she could find out the name of his connection.
She stared at the lifeless house, the crickets buzzing around her as she sat in the front seat of Bertha, a bag of fries on the seat next to her and a chocolate shake in the drink holder. So much for an exciting Saturday night.
Not that she hadn’t thought about swinging by Tyler’s before heading out to Kenny Roy’s. She had. So much so that she’d nearly burned an entire batch of cupcakes, which was why she’d decided to ignore her screaming hormones and take care of business first.
“Did you even eat dinner—” Callie started.
“Did you find a photographer for the wedding?” Brandy blurted, effectively switching the subject from her workaholic life to the big event.
“There’s a guy here at the paper who’s really good. Mike Wheeler. He’s from a little town east of here, but he’s been at the paper for three years now. Weddings aren’t exactly his thing, but I think he’d be perfect. His pictures capture so much character. I think if I can come up with a good bribe, he might do it for me. Which brings me to the real reason for my call.”
“You mean you didn’t call just to harass me about working too much?”
“Not completely. I mean, that’s part of it. You need to take more time off. Have some downtime. Maybe go out to dinner at a nice restaurant. Maybe share that dinner with a certain photographer who went into your bakery the other day and is now convinced you’re the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen.”
“Wait a second. I’m your bribe for the photographer?”
“If you agree to dinner. If not, then I’m stuck looking for someone to capture the most important day of my life.”
“You’re not going to guilt me into this. I don’t do blind dates.”
“You don’t do any dates, and I’m not trying to guilt you into anything. I’m seriously worried about you and your lack of downtime.”
Brandy thought of the past night with Tyler and fought down a wave of guilt. “No, you’re not.”
“Okay, so I understand your dedication, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want you to have a little fun every now and then. Mike’s really cute,” she added. “And you’d be doing me a huge favor.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“Well, don’t think too long. I need to lock down the date on his schedule.”
“I’ll get back to you next week.”
“How about tomorrow?” When Brandy sighed, Callie added, “It’s just that the wedding happens to coincide with the annual Cotton Eyed Joe dance festival at the VFW Hall. Mike will have to find someone to cover for him at the festival if he commits to the wedding, but he won’t commit until I can promise him a date and—”
“Okay.”
“Okay you’ll get back to me tomorrow or okay you’ll do it?”
“I’ll get back to you tomorrow.”
“Oh. Okay. Well, I guess if you really need time to think about whether or not you want to help make the wedding as wonderful as it could possibly be and ease my stress level considerably, then I’m sure you have your reasons—”
“I’ll do it. I’ll go on the date. Just not right now because I’m really busy.”
“Yeah, sure. I would never dump a date on you just like that. You need notice. So how about next week?”
“Make it next month and you’ve got a deal.”
“Great. Thank you. You won’t regret it. I know it sounds like I’m just doing this for the wedding, but I really think you two will hit it off. I’ll set it up and text the details. Gotta run. Brett’s waiting for me. We’re having dinner with his pappy. Now make sure you don’t work too late.”
“Yes, Mom.”
“And eat something that isn’t loaded with sugar.”
“Bye, Mom.” She hit the OFF button and set the phone on the seat next to her.
A blind date.
What was Callie thinking?
That maybe there’s more to life than work. A first for her because her entire life had been about work. But not by choice. That was the difference between them. Callie had spent years working because she’d had to step up and take charge of the family when their parents had died. She’d had to step up and be the mom.
But in all honesty, she was as far from Mary Elizabeth Tucker as a woman could get. Their mother had been a stay-at-home mom, content to move in with her father-in-law so that her family could scrape by on the meager income that her husband managed to bring home. She’d never had aspirations beyond her three daughters, beyond putting food on the table and shoes on everyone’s feet.
Or so she’d claimed.
But on those rare occasions when she’d herded Brandy into the kitchen to make brownies or cookies to earn a little side cash, she’d been a different person.
Brandy could still remember her mother talking about her childhood as she rolled out a piecrust or whipped up a chocolate ganache. About how she’d wanted so desperately to be the next Betty Crocker. Childish dreams, she’d said, but Brandy hadn’t missed the light in the woman’s eyes. The longing.
As if Mary Elizabeth wasn’t quite as happy as she professed to be. As if she’d missed out.
Made the wrong decision.
While Brandy knew her mother would never have traded her husband and three daughters for a career, she’d known that the woman had still wondered what life might have been like if she’d followed through with her passion. If she hadn’t met and married so young and started having babies right out of the gate.
If she hadn’t traded her love of baking for that of a good man.
Brandy wouldn’t make the same mistake. She intended to find out just how far she could go before she settled down. If she settled down. She didn’t want to have unanswered questions years from now. Or regret.
She wanted to make herself happy now before she felt obliged to make someone else happy.
An image stirred and she saw Tyler McCall wearing nothing but hard, ripped muscles and a sizable erection. She remembered the heat in his eyes and the wicked slant to his mouth and the pleasure gleaming in his eyes.
She shifted on the seat and reached for the chocolate shake in the cup holder. She usually steered clear of sweets when she was off duty. She did enough tasting during the day to keep an extra five pounds on each hip. She wasn’t about to indulge after hours and make that ten.
But for some reason, she hadn’t been able to help herself tonight. Her stomach grumbled and a craving ate away inside of her.
Because of him.
Because last night hadn’t been nearly enough after two long years on the wagon. It wasn’t as if she could go around boffing every guy in town. And risk one of them getting hooked on her? Or worse, her getting hooked on him? Someone she would have to see day in, day out. That would just complicate things and distract her from what was really important.
No, that’s why she kept things going with Tyler. She didn’t have to worry about him hanging around, distracting her, tempting her. He was here today, gone tomorrow, and that made him the perfect sex buddy.
Sex, and nothing but sex.
She stuffed her straw into her thick drink. A few sips and she gave up the effort and pulled off the lid. Dipping the straw into the dense chocolate, she scooped a mouthful and closed her eyes as the cold, creamy concoction hit her tongue.
Rich. Sweet. Ahhh …
A groan slid past her lips and she went back for another scoop.
“Got a bite for me?” The deep, masculine voice sent a bolt of shock through her. Her head snapped up and just like that, she found herself staring into Mr. Sex Buddy’s familiar aqua-blue eyes.