Wrangling the Redhead - By Sherryl Woods Page 0,56

anything changes in the future, I’ll get in touch with you. In the meantime, scratch me off your client list.”

“If I do that, I can’t promise I’ll be able to do a thing for you,” he said. “It’s a fast-paced business, Lauren. People forget.”

“Not if I’m half as good as you’re always telling me I am,” she retorted.

“Then your decision is final?”

“Isn’t that what I’ve been telling you for weeks now?”

Jason sighed. “Okay, then, I’ll take you at your word. If you change your mind, call me.”

“I won’t change my mind,” she said with conviction. Whatever happened with Wade, she was more certain than ever that her home was right here in Wyoming. Hollywood seemed a million miles away and a lifetime ago.

Slowly she hung up and went back inside, a smile plastered on her face. Wade didn’t return it as she sat back down beside him.

“Lauren, you were just about to tell us—Ouch,” Grady said, scowling at his wife. “Well, she was.”

“I think the moment’s lost for right now,” Karen said. “But I definitely want that toast you promised, Lauren.”

Lauren dutifully lifted her glass of tea and tried to recapture at least a little of the celebratory mood from earlier. “To the new little Blackhawk. He or she is coming into a terrific home. Congratulations, you two.”

“Congratulations,” Wade echoed, though his tone was flat. He sipped his tea, then stood up. Without so much as looking at Lauren, he said, “I’ve got to be getting back down to my place.”

“I’ll go with you,” Lauren said.

He seemed about to protest, but the words died on his lips. Relieved by that, she followed him to the door.

“Good night, you two. I really am happy for you,” she said to Grady and Karen, who were watching her and Wade uneasily.

“Thanks,” Karen said, then added pointedly, “See you in the morning.”

There was no mistaking that it was anything other than a command.

“First thing,” Lauren agreed.

Wade was silent as they walked toward his place. More important, he was also very careful to avoid so much as brushing up against her. She could feel the anger or tension or whatever it was practically radiating off him.

“Okay, just go ahead and say it,” she said finally.

“Say what?”

“Whatever’s on your mind.”

He whirled on her. “Okay, fine. I want to know why that man is still calling you.”

“I can’t control what Jason does,” she replied reasonably. “I’m not calling him. And you’ve heard me tell him that I’m not interested in anything he has to tell me.”

“You insist there’s nothing between you, but how am I supposed to buy that when he hasn’t given up?”

“Because I’m telling you the truth,” she said flatly. “Are you saying you don’t trust me?”

He frowned at the challenge. “No,” he said eventually. “But if he continues to harass you, I think you should tell the sheriff. There are laws about that kind of thing.”

She almost chuckled, but then she realized he was dead serious. “Wade, I can’t do that.”

“Why not? Unless he means more to you than you’re admitting.”

“I don’t know how else to say this, not when you’re being as pigheaded as he is. Jason doesn’t mean anything to me, not personally anyway. He’s a former business associate for whom I still have a great deal of respect. That’s it.”

“What kind of business associate keeps on calling after he’s been told to give up?”

“The kind who’s persistent,” she said, aware that Wade couldn’t understand any man pestering a woman unless it was because he wanted her. He had no frame of reference for a man in a business where persistence was not only a virtue but a necessity.

He scowled down at her. “You claim he’s not after you. Then what the hell does he want?”

Lauren weighed her reply carefully. This was a chance to tell Wade everything, but if she did it now when he was already irritated, he was likely to blow it all out of proportion. No, she decided, it would be better to wait until he was in the right frame of mind—whatever that was. At least, she could tell him a part of the truth.

“Jason wants me to come back to work. That’s it.”

Wade seemed to chew over that explanation for a bit, then finally nodded. “And you’re sure that’s all it is? He’s not harassing you or stalking you or something?”

“Absolutely not.”

“And you can handle it?”

She grinned at him. “I can handle the likes of Jason any day of the week. You’re the one who’s giving