last time Dare pulled a Coyote Ugly, an out-of-towner stuck a twenty-dollar bill in his pants.” Cowboy laughed and said, “It was a dude!”
“And what’d this guy do?” Cutter hiked a thumb at Dare and said, “Gave him an encore.”
They all cracked up. Zev couldn’t stop laughing as he tried to picture the badass biker dancing, much less dancing on a bar.
“What’re you laughing at, Braden?” Dare asked.
“I can’t get over the fact that you actually danced on the bar.”
“I can’t get over the fact that you don’t,” Dare said, and high-fived Cowboy.
Zev smirked. “Who says I don’t?”
“You tell ’em, man.” Cutter fist-bumped Zev.
“Forget telling us. Show us!” Birdie dug into her purse and whipped out a twenty-dollar bill, waving it in the air.
“Yes!” Quinn cheered, jumping to her feet. “Cowboy and Cutter, too! Me, Birdie, and Carly will be the judges to see who’s got the hottest moves!”
“Not happening, girlie.” Cutter put a hand on her shoulder, pulling her back down to her seat beside him.
“Fine,” Quinn said sharply. “Then you can sit this one out and just the real men will dance.”
“That’s right, darlin’.” Cowboy winked at Quinn; then he looked at Dare and Zev and said, “What do you think? Dance off on the bar?”
Birdie started chanting, “Dance off! Dance off!”
“No way, Birdie,” Carly said. “You’ve ogled my man enough. And, Cowboy, didn’t you learn your lesson with the mechanical bull? Zev’s moves will light that bar on fire.” She pushed to her feet and pulled Zev up to his. “The only dancing Zev is doing is with me. Right now, on the dance floor.”
“Now, there’s an offer I can’t refuse.” Zev put his arm around Carly and they headed for the dance floor.
“Are you sick of being here yet?” Carly asked.
“Not at all. I’ve had a great time, and I’m glad we came. I’ve learned so much about you, your life here, and your friends.”
“They can be a lot to take in.”
“I like them, Carls, and I’m glad they’re watching out for you.” He gathered her in his arms and began swaying to a slow country song. He brushed his cheek along hers and said, “It’s been so long since we’ve danced together, I forgot how good it feels.”
“Senior prom,” she said softly. “That was our last slow dance.”
“I’ve missed this, babe. I’ve missed out on doing so many things with you,” he said, thinking of her friends’ stories. “I wish I had been there for the sled-riding fiascos and the horseback trail rides your friends told me about.” They’d told him so many stories, he couldn’t list them all, though he remembered every word about pie-eating contests at fall festivals and breakfasts with the Whiskeys.
“You can be there for sled riding if you want to, since you can’t dive in New England in the winter,” she said.
“Trust me, I will be.” But for how long? And would it be enough? Could he really calm the restless nomad inside him and be happy staying in one place for a while if that was what Carly needed? He didn’t know if he could, but he sure as hell wanted to try. “When Cutter told that story about the time you were sick and the Whiskeys took turns helping Birdie run the shop and nursing you back to health, all I could think about was that I wish I had been there then, too.”
“That was an awful virus. It was before I hired Quinn, or else I wouldn’t have had to bother them. They saved me.”
“From what they said, you’ve been there for them just as often. It’s obvious that you’re as important to your friends as they are to you.”
“I had no idea they were such blabbermouths,” she said with an endearing lilt to her voice.
“They love you.” He kissed her softly and said, “I like knowing that you don’t take catering gigs that would disrupt your Wednesday-night get-togethers and that you go to Redemption Ranch Friendsgivings with other people the ranch has helped. They filled in a lot of gaps for me. I didn’t know that you went home to Pleasant Hill for all the big holidays, or that you celebrate with the Whiskeys before leaving town. I’m glad I learned those things about you. I’d love to check out the ranch sometime and meet the other people who helped you.”
“You would? You can’t imagine how much that means to me.”
“Yes, I can. It’s probably about half as much as you mean to me.” The song