A Turn in the Road (Blossom Street #8)(40)

The reverse journey, back into the city, seemed to take ten times longer. When they reached the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, he pulled into the parking area, where the valets assisted drivers. He waited for her to climb off first.

She removed the helmet and handed it to him. Her throat clogged with tears as she struggled to speak. She wouldn’t see him again, and while she knew that was the only responsible option, it saddened her. Finally, she decided on a simple “Thank you.”

He nodded without looking at her.

Turning away, she entered the casino and was startled by the surge of loud music.

Tired now and discouraged, Bethanne hurried toward the elevator. She was standing in the lobby when she saw Rooster making his way toward her.

“Where’s Max?” he asked, obviously surprised to find her alone. He held a beer bottle in one hand.

She shrugged. “I don’t know. He dropped me off and left.”

Rooster frowned and took a swallow of his beer. “He just dropped you off?”

She hoped Max’s friend would give her some insight into him. “We went up to a hill where we could look at the city and talked for a while.”

Rooster led her away from the crowd and into one of the bars. “Let me buy you a beer.”

“Thanks, but I’m not much of a beer drinker.”

“Order whatever you want,” he said. He found them a table and raised his hand to get the attention of the waitress.

“I prefer red wine.”

He grinned at that.

“There’s nothing wrong with red wine,” she said.

“Nothing whatsoever. You might ask Max about that the next time you see him.”

Bethanne doubted she’d have the opportunity.

The waitress came for their order and quickly returned with another beer for Rooster and a glass of merlot for Bethanne. Actually, she was glad she’d run into Max’s friend.

“He nearly tore this town apart looking for you,” Rooster commented. He leaned toward her, his elbows propped on the table.

By contrast Max had made it sound as if he’d tracked her down without much effort. “Did he tell you why it was so important to find me?”

“No.”

“Where are Willie and Skunk?” She shouldn’t ask questions. What she should do was drink her wine, thank Rooster and go up to bed.

“They took off on their own when they got tired of racing from one casino to the next. Can’t say I blame them.”

“I don’t think Max is all that pleased he found me.”

“Don’t be so sure.”

“Frankly, I’m not sure of anything, including how I feel.” She thought for a moment. “I guess I’m sad, mostly.” Still, she felt honored that their brief time together had such a strong impact on him. It’d been the same for her, but the timing was all wrong. The situation, too. She tasted her wine, then held the glass by its stem. For some reason, she felt an urge to explain. “I can’t get involved with Max,” she said. “I just can’t. Not right now. I have responsibilities, decisions to make, and I need a clear mind.”

“You sound like Max.”

“How?”

“At every casino he said he didn’t need a woman messing with his mind. He said he wasn’t going to let a woman make him stupid.”

“What does that mean?”

“Hell if I know. You’ll have to ask him. All day, casino after casino, he kept saying he needed his head examined and yet he kept searching. I asked him what was so special about you, and he wouldn’t answer. He didn’t stop until he found you and I don’t think he would have, either.”

Despite herself, she smiled. “When he hugged me, he said I…belonged in his arms.”

“You hugged? That’s all?” Rooster sounded incredulous.

“That’s all.”

“He hasn’t touched another woman since Kate died. You’ve obviously had a powerful effect on him.”

She sipped her wine while she tried to make sense of all this. “He’ll be fine.” Taking her business card from her purse, she handed it to Rooster. “Give this to him and tell him to call me when he’s ready.” By then she would have reached her own decision regarding Grant. She’d know what she wanted. With time and distance she’d be able to think, to put her history with Grant and this new attraction in perspective. If she went back to Grant, she’d inform Max—provided she even heard from him again. If not…

Rooster put the card in his pocket and frowned at her. “You sure you want to do this?”

She nodded. “I’m sure.”

And she was.

Thirteen

Bethanne was putting on eye makeup when Annie, dressed in her pj’s, stumbled into the bathroom bleary-eyed, her hair a tangled mess.

“Did you have fun last night?” Bethanne asked. She’d lain awake a long time and heard Annie tiptoe into the room around three that morning. In fact, Bethanne doubted she’d slept more than a couple of hours the entire night. She’d been thinking of Max and their conversation. She couldn’t help wondering what might have happened if she’d let him kiss her. Well, it was too late to question that now.

“I had a blast,” Annie said as she ran a brush through her hair. “Would it be all right if you and Grandma did your own thing today?”