Lady Be Good (Wynette, Texas #2)(68)

“Both of them have done everything they could to hire me. Unfortunately, that’s turned me into the prize in another one of their range wars. The situation’s gotten a little ugly, so I’m stalling until I see whether Torie’s ever going to figure out what a great guy Dexter is.”

“If the merger happens, you don’t have a problem anymore, is that it?”

“Exactly. In the meantime, though, I’m just about flat broke. And neither of my parents, being self-made people, is sympathetic.” He slipped Kenny’s wallet from his back pocket. “Which is why this is a gift from the gods.”

Before she could stop him, he’d taken out one of Kenny’s credit cards and turned to the crowd of businesspeople, ranchers, and housewives who’d gathered for lunch. Although he barely raised his voice, the crowd quieted to hear him.

“I’ve got an announcement to make. You’ll all be happy to know that lunch is on Kenny. And he wants you to order whatever you like, so don’t hurt his feelings by being chintzy.”

As he passed the credit card over to the bartender, one of the ranchers called out, “Lions Club’s meeting in the back room.”

“Kenny’s always been a real big supporter of the Lions,” Ted said.

“You can’t do this!” she hissed under her breath.

He gave her that dim-witted look the gorgeous men of Wynette must have perfected in the cradle just to drive women crazy. “Why not?”

“Because it isn’t right.”

“Was it right for Kenny to leave you stranded?”

“No.”

“Then we don’t have a problem, do we?”

For a quiet young man, he was surprisingly assertive, and she found herself being led to a booth. As she slid into the padded seat, she decided he had a point, and a few minutes later when the waitress approached, she defiantly ordered extra cheese on her turkey sandwich.

The day wasn’t turning out anything like she’d hoped. She’d imagined herself and Kenny together, perhaps holding hands and smiling at each other. Her fantasies were silly. She decided to fight them off with food.

Just as she was trying to decide between chocolate fudge cake and a brownie sundae, she saw the burly man walk into the Roustabout. He glanced around the room, then stopped as he spotted her. When he realized she’d noticed, he looked away.

She was so confused. Was he Beddington’s spy or not? If he was the spy, why hadn’t he told Hugh about everything she’d bought at the drugstore? Just yesterday she’d concluded that she’d made a mistake and had the wrong person, but she was no longer so certain. This man definitely had more than a casual interest in her.

While Ted conducted a friendly flirtation with a cute redhead who’d come up to their table, Emma tried to puzzle it out. She noticed that the burly man was watching her in a mirror advertising beer, and her indecision fled. Beddington’s man. Definitely.

She picked up her purse, opened it in her lap, and reached for the salt and pepper shakers. With a curl of her arm, she swept them inside. She turned to make certain he’d noticed and saw by his appalled expression that he had. She suppressed the urge to jump from her seat, march over to him, and order him to write down exactly what he’d seen so he wouldn’t forget to report it.

Unfortunately, the burly man wasn’t the only one who’d witnessed her thievery.

“What in Sam Hill do you think you’re doing?”

She’d been so caught up that she hadn’t noticed Kenny approaching. He was by himself, so he must have dropped Peter off. As he drew closer, the Roustabout’s patrons began calling out to him.

“Hey, there, Kenny. Thanks for lunch.”

“Much appreciate it, Kenny. The sirloin was real good.”

She couldn’t believe it. Once again, he’d caught her at a disadvantage. And this was his day to be in the wrong. He’d terrorized his baby brother and deserted her without warning. He was the sinner. Why did all the black marks keep showing up on her side of the ledger?

“Kenny, the Lions Club said to tell you thanks,” a middle-aged waitress called out.

“Me and Deever, too,” added a florid-faced heart attack in the making. “You should try some of that pecan pie yourself.”

Kenny frowned. “What are they talking about?”

“You treated everybody to lunch,” Ted explained. “And we all appreciate it. Joe’s got your credit card.”

Kenny shrugged, slid into the booth next to her, and reached for her purse. She tried to hold on to it, but he took it away. “I swear you get stranger by the day,” he growled.

As Ted watched with interest, Kenny pulled out the salt and pepper shakers and set them back on the table. “Let me guess. You decided to put on another show for the duke.”

“His investigator’s here again.” She jerked her head toward the burly man. “I had to do something.”

He stared in the direction she’d indicated. One eyebrow shot up. Then he shook his head and handed the purse back to her. “I’ve never known a woman who could embarrass herself as much as you.”

She couldn’t tolerate his condescension after last night. “Let me out!”

“No.”

“I was going to give them back!” She caught herself. “What am I doing? Why am I explaining? I don’t have to tell you anything after what you’ve done today.”