her out in front of an audience. “I’d like to make you dinner. To thank you for the Thanksgiving meal. I’ve got all the ingredients in my car, but I need to use your kitchen. We don’t have much of a kitchen at the Ranger station.”
Christie tilted her head and grinned. “That’s so sweet of you. I’d love that.”
“Great, I’ll meet you at—”
“Logan should go too,” Sandy suddenly chirped.
We all looked at her.
“Logan’s been helping all day,” she insisted. “You two are friends, right? He can help.”
“What are you making?” Logan asked.
I gave him a pointed look. “Lasagna.”
“Oh hell yeah. I’m in.”
I sighed internally.
I helped them pack away all their equipment and then drove over to her house. After passing underneath the Happy Bones sign and up her driveway, I parked behind her truck. She was already out in the field behind the house, playing with the dogs and chatting with Bonny, the employee. Logan parked behind my car.
“You’re kind of crashing my date,” I said.
“Date?” Logan asked. “I just want some food. Real food, not the dehydrated Mountain Meal bags I ate while I was hiking.”
“Is that all you want?” I asked.
He shrugged in that casual way of his. “I’m down for whatever happens. Kind of like what happened with you guys and Christie the other day, right?”
“Is that what you’re interested in?” I asked. “Seeing where the night takes the three of us? I thought you’d be the jealous type.”
Logan shrugged again like it was no big deal. “I’m good with whatever. Besides, Christie’s cool as hell. I want to hang out with her even if it doesn’t lead to something else. That cool with you?”
I had to admit: it turned me on. What Riley and I had done the other night with Christie was amazing. Eating food, laughing and joking, and then being with her. Sharing her between us in the bedroom until we were sweaty and exhausted and satisfied. Something woke inside of me that night. A hungry beast that needed to be fed.
I wanted to do it again. The idea of sharing her again was more exciting than being with Christie by myself. There was less pressure this way. Logan was my best friend, as much as Riley was. And if he was down with that…
“Tell you what,” Logan said. “I’ll hang out for dinner. Be my charming self. And if things don’t feel right, if she’s giving me all the wrong signals, I’ll leave you two alone. Cool?”
“Yeah, okay,” I said.
“Right on.” Logan slapped me on the shoulder. “I’ll give you guys some space while you make dinner.”
Logan went over to the two women. Bonny and him exchanged a few words, and although I couldn’t hear what was said I could tell that Bonny was laughing. The dogs all ran up to Logan and pawed at him to play. He grabbed a rubber ball and hurled it across the field for the dogs to chase.
“Let me show you where everything is,” Christie said while helping me carry the food inside. “I’ve got a big pot for cooking the noodles, and a non-stick pan for the beef…”
I boiled water and then browned the beef in the pan, drained the fat, and then added sauce so it could simmer. Christie helped me slice the baguette into thick chunks, and then we softened the butter and added garlic and a few other spices to the spread. She also held the strainer while I poured the cooked lasagna noodles into the sink, and we both yelped as a cloud of steam filled the air.
“I’ve never made my own garlic bread,” she admitted while we coated the baguette slices with garlic and butter. “That’s one of the few things I always buy store-made.”
“There’s only a few steps. Cut, spread, bake!” I said with a laugh. “It was the one job my mom gave me whenever she made lasagna.”
“Is this her recipe?”
I nodded. “One of the few things I can cook.”
She smiled up at me. “I’m excited to try it. All these smells are making me hungry.”
I brushed away a strand of her golden-red hair from her face. “I’m hungry too.”
Her hand went to my arm. A light touch. With ten minutes before the food was ready I began to wonder if we had time for some pre-dinner fun…
The door to the backyard opened and Logan burst inside. He was panting. “Dogs are back in their crates. I wore them out good.”
“I should hope so. You were out there half