True-Blue Cowboy - Vicki Lewis Thompson Page 0,16
off, Ellie Mae.” Ed walked toward her. “These folks aren’t into the jitterbug. They’d rather line dance or two-step or—”
“The question is, are you still into it?”
“Doesn’t matter.”
“I say it does. You’ve generously hosted this event and you loved to jitterbug back in the day.”
“That doesn’t mean I have to—”
“Why not? I trolled through your music collection and found the perfect tune—Sold by John Michael Montgomery. It’s about falling in love during—”
“An auction.” Ed sighed and gazed at Ellie Mae in obvious frustration. “I know.”
“I cued it up. Come on, Edna Jane. Let’s show the folks how a jitterbug is done.”
“Nope. I’m not—”
She was drowned out by everyone chanting Ed, Ed, Ed, Ed!
“We’re not leaving yet,” CJ said.
Isabel laughed. “No way.”
Ellie Mae signaled to Henri, who was positioned over by the sound system’s control panel, and the music blasted out. Ellie Mae started to move with the beat and held her hand out to Ed.
“Oh, what the hell.” Ed grinned and grabbed Ellie Mae’s hand. She took the lead, twirling Ellie Mae in a dazzling display of jitterbug expertise. But Ellie Mae was no slouch. Everyone gasped when Ed slid Ellie Mae between her legs, but Ellie Mae popped right up and kept dancing.
A circle formed and everyone clapped in rhythm with the blistering pace of the tune and the dizzying motions of the two eighty-something dancers. Nick whistled through his teeth and got several answering whistles from the Brotherhood sprinkled throughout the crowd. The women ended the number with a dramatic double twirl and threw up their hands in triumph.
Nick cheered until he was hoarse. As the wave of applause slowed, he glanced down at Eva. “Was that amazing or what?”
“Incredible.” She cleared her throat.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve yelled like that.”
“Me, too.” She pulled a tissue from her pocket and dabbed at her eyes. “I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.” Her voice had a telltale quiver.
He moved closer. “Are you okay?”
“Yes. I just… they were so great.” Her smile wobbled.
“I know.” For some reason the performance by those two had grabbed her emotionally. He started to reach for her, then pulled back. Didn’t want to overstep.
“The party has been wonderful.” She took a deep breath. “But it’s been a long week and I’m—”
“Ready to go home?”
“Yes, but you probably want to stay. CJ and Isabel haven’t left yet. They can drop me off.”
Like hell. He’d carry her home piggyback before he’d send her home in CJ’s truck. “Leaving would be a good idea for me, too. I have barn duty at five.”
Her eyes widened. “On top of giving me twelve hours of your time tomorrow?”
He shrugged. “Rafe and I volunteered so Matt, Jake and CJ can sleep in. Those three are handling everything else tomorrow so we can satisfy our auction obligations.”
“Now that you mention it, I saw Rafe and Kate take off a little while ago, probably so he can get some sleep. If I’d wanted to stay late, would you have said anything?”
“Probably not.”
“Because I bid so much money on you?”
“Not just that. I—” He caught himself before he said something incriminating. So far she hadn’t figured out he was attracted to her. He’d like to keep it that way. “Well, mostly that, I guess.”
“But—”
“Let’s find Ed and thank her for the party. Then we’ll vamoose.”
She looked like she had more to say, but instead she nodded. “Okay.” She gestured toward the crowd gathered around Ed and Ellie Mae. “Might not be all that easy to get to her.”
“You could stay here and wait for me. I’ll just work my way through—”
“I’ll go with you. I want to rave about their dancing.”
“Then grab hold of me.” He held out his hand. “We’re going in.”
Her skin was soft but her grip was strong. Not surprising. When she massaged his scalp while shampooing his hair, her touch was firm. One more thing to like about her. He’d never gone for fragile women.
Being the guy who never asked for special favors paid off when you needed one. With a combination of smiles, apologies and gentle nudges, he maneuvered through the folks and cleared a path.
When they made it to the inner circle, Ellie Mae whooped with delight. “It’s Eva of the blue hair! Edna Jane tells me you’re a stylist. Do you have openings for a cut and color next week?”
Eva blinked. “I think I have Tuesday at three-thirty open, but I need to check. My phone’s in my—”
“No worries. I’ll call the salon and