Heaven, Texas (Chicago Stars #2)(89)

“Sorry, sweetheart, but the little woman’s waiting for me at home.”

“What the little woman doesn’t know won’t hurt her.” She gave each cap an angry twist and held one bottle out to him.

He set it on the counter while he tucked his shirt in his jeans. Her short, stretchy skirt rode up on her thighs as she sat down on the built-in couch. Her legs were tan, but they didn’t seem quite as shapely as Gracie’s.

“Where’s she been the past few days, anyway?” Connie flicked open an extra button on her blouse, as if she’d gotten overheated.

“Either on the phone or setting everybody straight over at the nursing home. She’s organizing the golf tournament travel arrangements for me. It’s a big job.”

“I’m sure she can handle it.” She took a sip of beer, then brought up one foot, bending her knee so she could tuck it beneath the opposite thigh. The position left him with a clear view of her purple panties.

Since she was putting it on display, he looked, but he found himself feeling more irritated than aroused. “Connie, what are you doing? If you’re engaged to Jimbo, why are you sniffin’ ‘round me?”

“I like you. I always have.”

“I like you, too. At least I used to.”

“What’s that mean?”

“It means that I’m a one-woman man right now. And as long as you’re wearing Jimbo’s ring, I think you should seriously consider being a one-man woman.”

“I intend to be a good and faithful wife, but that doesn’t mean I’d object to a last fling before I walk down the aisle.”

“Not with me.”

“Since when did you turn into such a goddamn prude?”

“Since I met Gracie, that’s when.”

“What’s she got, Bobby Tom? Nobody can figure it out. I mean, everybody likes her and everything. She’s friendly and people appreciate the way she’s taken an interest in those old folks at Arbor Hills. She’ll help out anybody who needs it. Hell, she even helped me out last week when Louann didn’t show up, and I’ve pretty much let her know I hate her guts. But she can’t dance worth a damn. And even though she’s cute, you’ve always liked full-figured women.”

She pushed her own full-figures out to make certain he got the point she was trying to make, which he did. It occurred to him that Gracie had something that Connie was missing. She had scruples.

She also had a stubborn streak that was just about driving him crazy. The money she put in his desk drawer was significant for her, but it wasn’t even pocket change to him, and it galled him that she was being so intractable about it. He knew she wasn’t like all the bloodsuckers who made a career out of feeding off him, so why wouldn’t she let him buy things for her? For all her supposed insights into his character, she didn’t seem to realize that he was always the one who did the giving and that anything else made him uncomfortable. A flicker of uneasiness passed through him as he reminded himself that she didn’t know he was the one paying her salary, but he told himself not to worry about it. He’d just make damned certain she never found out, that was all.

Connie regarded him suspiciously. “Another thing that has people wondering…Gracie sure doesn’t seem to know much about football for somebody who’s supposed to have passed the quiz.”

“I made a few allowances.”

She jumped up from the couch in outrage. “That’s not fair! Ladies have always counted on you to be fair when you give the quiz.”

He realized too late that he’d made a major tactical blunder. “I am fair. That’s why I sometimes have to grade on the curve.”

That seemed to mollify her. He watched warily as she set down her beer bottle and sauntered toward him, a take-no-prisoners look in her dark eyes. She might be the finest-looking woman in Telarosa, but right now he didn’t find her half as appealing as Gracie.

A particularly tantalizing memory of the sounds Gracie’d made in his ear last night went through his mind. He was absolutely certain he must have had as good a time in bed with somebody else, but for the life of him, he couldn’t recall exactly when or with whom. Gracie was full of surprises. She exhibited an irresistible combination of passion and innocence, reticence and boldness. When they made love, she got him so worked up that he had to keep reminding himself she was a newcomer to the erotic arts, and that he’d only gotten involved in the first place to do her a favor. He suspected he wouldn’t be having this strong a reaction to her if he hadn’t temporarily lost his sex drive after his retirement, and more than once he’d been forced to remind himself it would probably have been the same with any woman he’d taken up with again.

When Connie wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her mouth to his, he had a chance to test the theory, but it didn’t take him more than ten seconds to realize she wasn’t going to set him on fire. He took her by the shoulders and firmly set her away from him. “You be sure and let me know what you want for a wedding present, y’hear.”

Her whole face tightened up, and he knew he’d insulted her, but he hadn’t invited her here and he didn’t much care. He picked up his car keys and Stetson, then walked over to the door and held it open for her. She passed through without a word. He slipped on his hat as he followed her outside.