Sharp Shootin' Cowboy (Hot Cowboy Nights, #3)(52)

“Reid?” She sat up and called out to no answer.

Her gaze darted over the room. Had he left her without a word? Her stomach tightened as her mind raced over the past few hours. Although he’d defended her earlier, he’d said he wasn’t on her side. Had she been wrong to trust him? Was this whole night an act of revenge for the license suspension? Had he purposely set her up in order to destroy her reputation? Her credibility?

She clutched the sheet to her breasts as fear and shame hit her in a nauseating wave. She’d have to face them all tomorrow. Would they all know? Was he even now giving the outfitters a blow-by-blow account of how he’d done Dr. Haley Cooper? And how she’d begged him for more?

Dear God. A shower. She desperately needed a shower.

After that, she’d pack her stuff and drive back to Cheyenne. It was cowardly to slink away, but she refused to let him humiliate her in front of all her colleagues. She cursed him with angry tears streaming down her face, ferociously scrubbing her body, only to get soap in her eyes. She then cursed herself. How could she have been so naive? So stupid?

She shut off the water, grabbed a towel, and proceeded to rub her skin raw. Although cleaner, she didn’t feel any better. She raked a comb through her tangles and stared at the hair dryer, remembering their first weekend at Coronado Island and his silly obsession with her hair. She’d never known anyone like him, but he was so different now. Not just older but jaded, hardened, and cynical—so different from the man she’d knowingly hurt five years ago.

Her throat went raw, and her eyes burned all over again. She plugged in the dryer, but then froze at the sound of voices coming from the bedroom. The television? But she hadn’t turned it on.

Wrapping herself in a towel, Haley cracked the bathroom door and peeked out. Her heart leaped into her throat at the sight of Reid, sprawled full length on the bed, a pizza box on his lap and a beer in his hand. He was back. All her fears were unfounded. Hit by a tsunami of relief, she shut her eyes and slumped against the wall.

*

Reid glanced up to find Haley standing in the doorway with arms folded. “You left without a word,” she accused.

“You were sleeping, and I was starving.” He flashed a grin. “Strenuous activity tends to do that to a man. I got pizza. Want some?”

Her stomach answered with an unmistakable growl.

Her gaze flickered to the box. “What kind did you get?”

“This one’s everything meat.”

She curled her lip.

He pointed to a second box sitting on the table. “I got you the veggie special. I thought you might be hungry too when you finally woke up.”

“Thank you.” She softened. “That was very thoughtful.”

“There’s mineral water too, unless you’d like a beer.”

“Sounds great. I love beer with pizza.” She grabbed a slice from the second box, a bottle of Coors, and joined him on the bed, settling back against the stack of pillows. She still wore only the towel. Not that he minded. “What are you watching?” she asked.

“X-Men Origins: Wolverine. It’s part of a marathon.” He reached for the remote to turn it off.

“Don’t.” She stayed his hand. “I love X-Men.”

Reid did a double take. “You’re kidding.”

“Why so surprised?” She took a bite of pizza. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me.”

“True enough. But I never would have figured you for a Marvel Comics fan.”

She grinned. “What’s not to love about mutants?”

He studied her for a long moment and shook his head. “Nope. I’m still not buying this, Haley.”

“Why? You think girls only watch Disney movies and read Harlequin romances?”

“That’s what my sisters did.”

“I’m not like your sisters.”

“That’s for sure. All right then,” he quizzed, “which is your favorite of the X-Men?”

“Mystique,” she blurted without a beat. “She has way better mutant powers than any of the rest. I always wanted to be her. She’s so cool.”

“She’s blue.”

“But she can turn into anyone. I always wanted to be able to do that.” She took another bite of pizza. “Shape-shifting kicks ass, Reid.”

“You think so? Who did you want to turn into?”

“When I was young? Anyone but me,” she replied softly.

He digested that tidbit.

She handed him her bottle. “Would you open this for me, please?”

He popped the top with a thumb and handed it back to her.

“I’ve never seen anyone do that before.”

He smirked. “My mutant power. It’s pretty lame.”

She covered her mouth on a laugh. “So who did you wanna be?”

“I wasn’t a big fan of X-Men.”

“No?” She sat back and squinted at him. “Wait! I know. You’re an Avenger, aren’t you? Captain America, right?” She giggled. “You are totally Captain America, Reid. I can so picture you in his costume too. You’d look incredibly hot in it.”

He gave a derisive snort. “Given a choice, I’d much rather be Cyclops so I could nail Emma Frost. For the record, you’d be smoking in her costume too. Gotta love all that white lingerie.”