Quickly, they gathered up their things. Lexie took her folders, and Maxie collected everything she and Zac had found. They left copies on the table for Roxie, but she just pushed everything together in a heap. If she stayed here one second longer, she was going to start climbing the walls.
Fresh air. Sunshine. Outside in the crisp air, maybe she could clear her head and organize her thoughts. She’d been surprised when Billy had walked in the door, morning sunlight glowing all around him. She’d been laying odds that he’d be gone by the time she made it back upstairs.
Not that she’d been looking forward to finding her apartment empty, the bed still mussed and the scent of his aftershave lingering in the air…
“I drove Maxie over,” Lexie said as she pulled out her key fob. “Maybe you two should take another vehicle so we don’t have to come back over here to drop you off.”
What? Roxie’s head came up. No, no. She didn’t want to be stuck in a car with him.
“I need to move my rental anyway,” Billy said. He put on his shades when they walked out into the bright sunlight. “It’s over a few blocks.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
Well, darn it all.
“You know where to go, Lexie?” Roxie called in resignation.
“Is it Fisherman’s Road?”
“That’s the one.”
“We’ll see you there.”
The day was bright, but it carried a chill in the air. Roxie stuffed her hands into the pockets of her jacket and followed Billy as they headed down the block. Her heels sounded loud against the concrete.
“So… Fisherman’s Road,” he ventured.
He would pick that up. “Shush.”
“Isn’t that where we used to go to make out?”
She jabbed him with an elbow. “I said ‘shush’.”
He sidestepped to avoid the blow, but came back with a chuckle. “Ah, I remember it well.”
So did she. It had been the place to go when they were teenagers.
Some of the tension drained from her body. The “mornings after” were always dodgy for them. Neither of them knew what to say or how to act. They’d been through this cycle over and over again throughout the years. He’d come back and they’d fall into bed, only to scramble out of it in the morning, usually to fight.
There’d been no fighting this morning.
She wondered how they would have reacted if her sisters hadn’t been around. Last night had been… different.
A breeze flitted through the air, lifting her hair and sending a chill down her neck. She moved a bit closer to Billy’s big body as they headed down the street. “You seem to know a lot about conducting a search for someone.”
“It’s nothing you don’t know already. It’s just street smarts.”
“Billy.” She knew him better than that. She’d seen the truth on his face. “You went looking for your mother.”
He pulled up short, and it was suddenly hard to breathe.
“Yeah,” he said roughly.
“Did you find her?” Roxie’s voice was wispy as smoke.
He stuck his hands in his pockets. “Yes, and that’s how I know it’s not all rainbows and bunny rabbits.”
He started down the sidewalk again, but she caught his arm. Her fingers snagged on the leather cuff he wore around his wrist. “How bad was it?”
He didn’t look at her, but he did focus more intently on the sidewalk in front of them. “Pretty bad,” he muttered under his breath.
Roxie’s eyes stung. They’d always known that his mother was out there somewhere. The circumstances surrounding his stay in foster care weren’t as cloudy as hers. Social Services had separated him from his mother when he was nine.
“She’s a meth head,” he said bluntly, with no attempt to soften the blow.
“Oh, Billy.” The wind left Roxie’s lungs. She took another step closer and wrapped her arm through his. She leaned a little his way, letting him feel her as they walked down the sidewalk, side by side.
There was no distance between them in this. She wasn’t expecting a happy ending for herself, but she’d wished one for him. “Where did you find her?”
“Under a bridge in Minneapolis. She was homeless at the time.”
Roxie leaned her head against his shoulder. “Did she know who you were?”
“Once I explained it, yeah. She was sorry.” He stopped to clear his throat. “Really sorry about everything.”
“But?”
“But she’s sick. That crap has a hold on her… She was too high to take care of me when I was a kid, and then losing me apparently played games with her head.”
Roxie tried to work up some sympathy for the woman, but it was difficult. His childhood had played games with his head, too.
“Was it worth it?” she asked. “Tracking her down and finding her?”
“I don’t know.” He raked a hand through his hair. “She was all weepy and begging for forgiveness, but by the time I left, she was asking me for money.”
Roxie closed her eyes against the fury of red that flooded her vision. To support her habit, no doubt. Talk about a knife in the stomach.
“Have you kept in touch?” She kept the words soft, but her jaw was set.
“She’s in a care facility now.”
“Are you paying for it?”
He didn’t deny it. He looked out over the river as they walked down the street that ran next to it. “I suppose it was for the best that she gave me up.”
For the best.
Funny how that knife so quickly changed directions. Roxie felt the twinge and she stiffened. With a twist, the pain became anger all over again. Moving deliberately, she unwrapped her arm from his and stepped away to walk on her own.
For the best.
The clenched muscle in her jaw began to ache. Three little words.
Amazing how she could still hate them so much.
He finally looked at her. His eyes were hidden by his sunglasses, but she could feel the weight of his stare. “Are you prepared for something like that, babe? Do you really want to know all the deep, dark secrets?”
She was used to being let down.
“I wasn’t lying. I just want an explanation for the way things turned out. I don’t want to meet anyone or form any bonds.” She certainly didn’t want to listen to excuses and pleas for forgiveness. She just wanted that damn sword that constantly hung over her head removed.
And if she found someone she could direct her anger towards, all the better.
“I don’t have any illusions that a happily-ever-after is out there waiting for me.”
The tilt of his head indicated he didn’t quite believe her, but lucky for him, he didn’t say so.
He gestured towards a truck on the street. “The least we should be able to do is find out why your sisters were adopted and you weren’t.”
Boy, all with the jabby-jabby today. Roxie rolled her shoulders in discomfort. “Already know the answer to that one,” she said as she yanked the passenger door open. “There was a couple there for each of us, but mine backed out.”
He stopped with the keys hovering over the ignition. “Backed out?”
“Yup,” she said, staring out the window. It had been the start of a long series of her being the one who was left behind. The unlovable one.
But—oh wait—her parents had done that to her first.
“God, Rox.” Reaching out, he caught her hand.
For once, she didn’t pull away.
She leaned her head back against the headrest. The truck was plush with leather seats and a high-tech dash. Trust Billy to upgrade. If he was driving a rental, it wasn’t going to be a basic model.
“Wait until you see this billboard,” she said chirpily. She didn’t want to talk about this anymore. “It’s a wing-dinger, if I do say so myself.”
He stared at her for a long, long moment. She thought he was going to push the matter, but then he fired up the engine. The tires peeled against the pavement as he pulled away from the curb. “And just how many wings have gotten dinged looking at it?”
She let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. “Now you’re getting the idea.”
He shook his head. “Fisherman’s Road. My wing got dinged a few times there.”
She finally relaxed. “If I do say so myself.”
The drive across the bridge didn’t take long, although navigating to the dirt road that looped back took a bit longer. Fisherman’s Road was exactly like it sounded, a rough road that fishermen took down to the Cobalt River. It also happened to pass right beside the billboards that were directed towards the busier interstate.
Billy soon caught up with Lexie’s Acura. She was driving about ten miles per hour and trying to avoid all the ruts in the road.
“Wouldn’t want that car to get dusty,” Roxie muttered.
“It’s a nice car,” Billy said, siding with her sister. “And she’s not in a hurry to make kissy-face with her boyfriend.”
“True.” Roxie braced herself in the corner of the cab so she could watch him. Right ahead was the bend in the road that would take them parallel to the interstate—and offer him his first glance of her modeling debut.
He took the corner at the sedate pace that Lexie had established, but Roxie knew when he saw it, because the engine gunned. He stomped on the brake to keep from ramming into the back of the Acura, but his gaze was directed up towards the sky.
She leaned forward so she could see the billboard, too. It was amazing how much bigger it was up close. It was like looking at the King Kong version of herself. Her hair was bigger, her eyes were bigger, and her boobs were… curvy, to say the least.
God, were those really in proportion?
She tossed Billy a glance and knew exactly where he was staring.
She poked him in the shoulder. “I told you it was good.”
“Dayum, Rox.” Pulling over to the side of the road, he flipped up his shades and sat back in wonder.
She’d seen the billboard a thousand times, but it pleased her to see his reaction to it. The picture did catch her best side. The red bustier was daring. It was form-fitted, lifting and supporting her curves, while at the same time threatening to expose her.
She’d thought that might catch some drinking men’s attention.
She glanced at Billy. She’d been right.
His gaze was hot as it swung to meet hers. The spacious cab suddenly seemed tiny, and the temperature rose about ten degrees. “Do you still have that thing?”
It was in the top drawer of her dresser, untried and untested.
“Maybe.” Grinning, she undid her seatbelt and climbed out of the cab.
She heard a grumble behind her and something about not being in good shape to be seen by her sisters. Walking carefully, she crossed the uneven ground to meet up with Lexie and Maxie. Behind her, she finally heard Billy’s door.
Maxie stood with her head tilted back so far, her hair fell to nearly her waist. “That is magnificent.”
Roxie hooked her thumbs in the pockets of her jeans. It really was. The shot had been taken by a company known for doing boudoir photo shoots, the sexy kind that housewives did to spice up their love lives with their husbands. It was a simple picture, really. She was just looking out at the traffic, giving her best come-hither stare.
Okay, she’d upped the intensity a bit with some smoky eye makeup and red, red lips. And she’d been having a really good hair day. The dark strands dropped in artful curls around her shoulders. It had that just-tumbled sexy look that men loved.
Roxie felt Billy come up behind her before his hands settled on her hips. “Uh… Is anyone else seeing what I’m seeing?” he asked.
Lexie blushed and shook her head. “I’m surprised someone hasn’t climbed up there and painted over it.”
“What, like a Band-Aid?” Roxie laughed. She looked up at the larger than life exposé. So there was the hint of a nipple showing through the red lace of the bustier. Big deal. She’d seen lewder things in fashion magazines.
And that little hint?
She couldn’t count the number of men who had come to the bar to ask for the truth. Had she shown something she shouldn’t, or hadn’t she?
She laughed and started marching forward. “That’s the second brilliant idea you’ve had this morning, Lex.”
“What?” Lexie said shortly. “What did I say?”
“That we climb up there. That will be the perfect shot for our photograph.” Turning around, Roxie began to walk backwards. “You got your phone, Ace?”
Billy started digging in his back pocket.
“Oh, God,” Lexie said, pulling away.
Maxie, true to form, started to hurry over to the billboard’s ladder. “That’s up there higher than I thought.”
Roxie laughed. “Come on, Lexie.”
“I can’t,” her sister said, shaking her head vehemently. “You know I’m afraid of heights.”
Roxie caught her hand. “I won’t let you fall.”
Lexie dug in her heels. “I’m not climbing up there.”
Roxie pouted, but then looked at the sign again. It wasn’t really that high off the ground, but the magnitude of the picture presented an optical illusion. She really was the Godzilla femme fatale, staring down at them. Although…
“I’ve got it.” She wove her fingers through her sister’s. She could feel how Lexie was trembling. “You can stand at the bottom of the ladder. Maxie can be above you, and I’ll climb all the way up to the platform. That way Billy can get all three of us and the billboard.”
Billy was already holding up his phone. “I don’t know if I can fit the whole thing. Those knockers are huge.”
Lexie gave an unladylike snort.
“Pffft,” Roxie said, waving off the comment.
Her sister finally gave in and began following her across the grassy terrain. If the road was bad, the land leading up to the sign was worse. It had dirt clods making walking difficult, and the slope up to the highway got steeper the closer they got to the sign.
“I’ll go first,” Roxie said, hooking her foot onto the bottom rung. Unlike her sister, she loved heights. It was why she spent so much time on the roof. It was where she could breathe.
“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Maxie said as she got in place to follow her.
“We have to make it quick.” Lexie was already shooting worried looks at the interstate. “I don’t want to get caught. I’m not sure this is exactly legal.”
Maxie spun around. “What do you mean?”
“Well, it’s private property… I think.”
“I’m paying to rent it,” Roxie called. She felt better with every step she took. The higher she got, the more she could see of the river and the city. The wind was whipping harder up out of the bowl that was Fisherman’s Road, and up close the billboard was so ginormous it was making her laugh.
Billy was right. Her rack was hu-uuge.
“Yes, but… Darn it. Just don’t disrupt traffic or anything,” Lexie called.
Roxie let out a hoot. The whole ad had been designed to disrupt traffic and send it across the river to her bar. The initial shock had worn off long ago, but she wasn’t above creating a bit of a scene to generate a buzz again.
And hey, King Kong Roxie with three of the real thing? That should do it.
She wanted a shot for her photo album.
She stepped onto the platform. Turning around, she caught the protective bar. The wind smacked her cheekbones as she looked out over the cars.
“Be careful up there, babe,” Billy called.
She waved down at him. It was fun looking down at their vehicles, but even wilder to see the ones whizzing by on the interstate. She was nearly level with them. Traffic was light on Sundays, but she grinned when she saw an old grandma do a double take from the passenger seat of a puttering car.
“Hurry up,” she called.
People were starting to notice her up here.
She leaned over the bar so she could see down. “Are you doing okay, Maximum?”
Maxie was grinning from ear to ear. Apparently, she had no fear of heights either—or maybe she was just getting addicted to the adrenaline rush that came with accepting a dare. “I’m great.”
Wrapping her arm securely around the ladder, her triplet turned to face Billy and the camera. “Good to go, Lexie?”
Roxie could see her worried sister all the way down on the ground. She paled a bit more every time she looked up at the two of them. “Just pose at the bottom, Lexie. It will be cute.”
“Then you’ll both come right down?”
“After Billy gets a good shot,” Maxie assured her.
A horn bleeped from the interstate. Looking over, Roxie caught glimpse of a delivery truck. Lifting her arm, she gave a hearty wave.
“Roxie?” Lexie called worriedly.
“Yeah, yeah.”
“Come on, line up,” Billy called.
Roxie grinned. For once, she was looking down on him. He was so much taller than her, she’d rarely gotten a chance to do that. “Cheese!”
He looked at the picture he’d snapped. “Just a couple more.”
With the wind gusting and the sun shining, Roxie was in heaven. She preened and pouted. She cozied up to the billboard and spread her arms wide to show it off.
The sound of more horns just encouraged her.
“I think that’s enough,” Maxie called up to her.
Enough?
Puh-lease. Giving up on the picture taking, Roxie moseyed down the platform until she was at the end closest to the freeway. A lawn care company truck went by with a guy hanging out the passenger window, followed soon thereafter by a sedan full of dressed-up churchgoers. She gave them all waves and blew kisses.
“Hey there! Come to The Ruckus, sweetie pie.”
Wouldn’t it be nice for the bar to see a bump in sales the day she took ownership?
“Roxie, what are you doing?” a worried voice called up to her. “You promised.”
She’d promised nothing.
A semi came down the road, air brakes shuddering.
She lifted her arm and gave two tugs. “Toot toot.”
The driver obliged her and the honks made her laugh.
A car in the nearby lane hit the brakes so hard, tires screeched. Lifting her fingers to her mouth, Roxie let out a wolf whistle. It hit a sour note when she saw the driver. The woman looked like a librarian with her hair in a bun so tight she couldn’t blink.
She was already talking on a cell phone.
Roxie narrowed her eyes. Miss Prissy had pulled over to the narrow shoulder and traffic was slowing around her. When the woman wagged a disapproving finger at her, Roxie couldn’t help herself.
It had to be done.
Grabbing the bottom of her top she flipped it up, giving the snooty prig a well-deserved flash.
Way down below her, Billy started to laugh. That beautiful from-the-gut kind of laughter.
“Roxie!” Maxie called out in horror.
Roxie rolled her eyes. She was already covered up again. She’d been hanging out there for two seconds, tops, and she was wearing a bra.
Although…
Okay, so traffic wasn’t really moving anymore.
Off in the distance, a siren started whooping.
“Roxie!” her sisters yelled in unison.
Okay, yeah. Maybe it was time to go.
Turning up the collar of her jacket, she gave the nearest drivers a wink. With a flounce, she turned and headed back along the platform. She took her time, knowing she couldn’t spoil the effect by running off now. If people were going to be talking about this, she didn’t want the story ruined by a bad exit.
When she made it to the ladder, she turned and gave her audience one last big air kiss. Horns tooted in response, but so did that siren. When she spotted flashing red and blue lights off in the distance, she knew it was time to stop dawdling.
She started down the ladder.
“Hurry,” Maxie called.
“I’m going to kill you, Roxie Cannon,” Lexie yelled.
“Hey,” she snapped down at them. “It’s good exposure for my business.”
“You call that good exposure?”
Roxie threw Lexie a glare.
Maxie was hopping up and down in nervousness. “Stop arguing and get down from there. I can’t get arrested. I’m dating a sheriff!”
“I’m coming,” Roxie insisted as she made her way down. The metal bars felt cold against her palms and her fingers actually hurt. It was chillier up there than she’d realized. “I’m com— Wahhh!”
A crack split the air and, suddenly, she lost her footing.
“Roxie!” Billy yelled.
Maxie let out a scream.
Latching on, Roxie caught herself. Her heart was racing and her hair was flying everywhere, blinding her. She felt around carefully with her feet. She was solidly on the ladder, so it hadn’t given way.
But something else had.
“Damn it,” she moaned. “My heel.”
She let go of the ladder to tame her whipping hair and she heard another fearful cry get stolen away by the wind. Lifting her foot behind her, she surveyed the damage.
“These were my favorite pair of boots.”
“Oh, my God. Who cares about the boots?” Lexie was reaching up as if to catch her. “Get down from there, but be careful.”
She wasn’t a total idiot. Keeping her weight on the balls of her feet, Roxie moved down rung by rung.
The sound of the siren was getting closer. Too close for comfort.
Maxie ran over and picked something off the ground. “I’ve got the heel.”
“And I’ve got you,” Billy said.
Roxie gave a yelp when he plucked her off the third rung. Exasperation was in his voice, but his hold was protective as he snatched her to safety. “Can’t do anything halfway, can you?” he whispered in her ear.
Another siren split the air, and their heads snapped around as one. Another cop was coming from a different direction, closer to Fisherman’s Road.
Lexie let out a squeal and began sprinting to her car. “Run!”
Roxie took one step, but her good heel was four inches taller. She was hobbling like peg-legged Peggy. “I can’t.”
Billy mumbled under his breath, but turned and gave her his back. “Hop on.”
She didn’t need to be told twice. Catching his broad shoulders, she jumped and wrapped her legs around his waist. Strong hands wrapped around her thighs and hitched her higher.
“Never a dull moment with you, is there?” he muttered as he began trotting back to the rental truck.
He was like a warm furnace after the blast freezer she’d been in up on that platform. Roxie tucked her face against his neck. Mmmm, now that’s what she was talking about.
He flinched away. “Stop it. Your nose is cold.”
She tried to hold on as he jogged faster. The cop on the interstate wasn’t much of a problem, but the one coming up Fisherman’s Road could be. Looping her arms and legs around Billy, she tried not to cough too loudly when the jarring knocked the wind out of her.
Soon they were at the truck and he was dumping her in the passenger seat. Roxie started to close the door as he rounded the front, but stopped when she saw Maxie.
Her sister was breathless as she leaned in.
“Here,” she said, thrusting the broken heel into her lap. She surprised Roxie by planting a kiss on her cheek and whispering in her ear. “I like him so much.”
Lexie’s Acura kicked up dirt as she peeled up close. “Get in, Maxie!”
Maxie waved as she hurried to catch her ride. “Bye.”
Billy pointed down the road. “Lexie, around the bend is a gravel road. Take it. It will lead you to Cerulean Lane.”
“Thank you,” her sister hissed. Her eyes were wide as saucers, but they narrowed into a glare when they focused on the passenger side of the truck. “I’ll see you later.”
Roxie wiggled her fingers. “I’ll see you later, too,” she mimicked.
Billy let out a laugh when Lexie peeled out and finally showed what the engine of that Acura could do. Throwing the truck into gear, he followed.
Roxie clicked her seatbelt into place. “Did you get the shot?”
“Did I get the—Yes, I got the shot. I got a bunch of them. So did probably every driver up there on the I-67.”
“Good.”
“Good?” he said in surprise.
Dust was flying as they barreled down Fisherman’s Road. Roxie glanced into the side mirror. She didn’t see any bubblegum machines following them yet.
She rolled her head on the seat back. “The bar should be busy tonight.”
“That was for the bar?”
“Well, some of it.”
“And the boob shot?”
Roxie let out a harrumph. “That woman was being prissy.”
“You flashed a woman?” A sound somewhat like a snort escaped him, but he ended up shaking his head. “Unbelievable.”
Looking into the rearview mirror, he slowed down to a safer speed.
Roxie picked the broken heel out of her lap. Seeing the state of it really did make her sad. She held it out to him. “Think you can fix it?”
He looked at her incredulously, but seeing the mournful look on her face, his disapproving look faltered. That didn’t stop the laugh that finally burst out. “All that, and you’re worried about your boots?”
Roxie frowned. “They are pretty kick-ass.”
Soon giggles were bubbling up. Laughter filled the cab until both of them were struggling to breathe. Billy barely managed to spot the turn for the gravel road that would take them back to safety.
With a chuckle, he slowed down to an inconspicuous speed. When he leaned over towards her, it was for a hot, fast kiss.
“Baby, you are one in a million.”
The kiss felt warm and easy… something she truly didn’t want to analyze. Still, she rubbed her lips together to keep the feeling as she watched her less-outgoing sisters peel away, barely visible in front of them.
“No,” she said, “I’m one in three.”