Kissin' Tell (Rough Riders #13)(11)

Ten seconds later the entire table burst into laughter.


“Man. Does that happen to you a lot?” Ned asked.


Tell nodded yes and said, “No.”


More laughter.


“You ain’t worried about her spreading rumors you can’t get it up?” Thurman asked.


“Nope. There are plenty of women around who will dispute that statement.”


“You’re such a dog, McKay,” Warner said. “How many chicks do you have on a string right now?”


“What day is it?”


Laughter ended abruptly and everyone looked at the end of the table.


“Hey, Tell. I just wanted to come over and say hello.”


Tell felt that same whomp in the gut he had at age seventeen whenever their eyes met. “Georgia. Good to see you again.” He stopped being mesmerized by her beauty long enough to say, “I’m sure you know most these folks we went to school with. Thurman. Ned. Roxanne—”


“I’m Ned’s wife now,” Roxanne said sharply. “And I doubt you would’ve remembered my name if Tell hadn’t reminded you.”


Wow. That was bitchy.


Leah folded her arms over her cleavage. “Yeah, I’ll bet you don’t know who I am either.”


All eyes were on Georgia. But rather than lifting her chin and leveling them with a haughty stare, she took a step back. “Our class wasn’t that big, Leah. Of course I remember you.” She gave Tell a wan smile. “Sorry to interrupt. Have a good night.” She walked off.


“Jesus, Roxanne, way to be a bitch to her,” Ned said.


“Serves her right for all the times she was so stuck-up to me,” Roxanne shot back. “Did she expect we’d give her a group hug?”


“She has put on a few pounds,” Leah said with a cruel smile. “No way would she fit into that itty-bitty cheerleading skirt now.”


Tell frowned. He’d never seen this side of his friends’ wives and he really didn’t like it.


“Sally Hermanson, who’s running everything for the reunion? Said when she called Georgia last year to ask if she’d be interested in helping organize it? Georgia said no and she doubted she’d be attending the reunion anyway.” Roxanne shrugged. “I sure as hell wouldn’t show up if I was her.”


“No kidding. Divorced from the guy you married right out of high school. I heard she lives with her mom in some hippie commune in Boulder.”


“I’ve heard her dad doesn’t have anything to do with her.”


“Maybe that’s why Deck kicked her out,” Leah added.


“Or else she was too good to be married to a guy who became a pig farmer.”


Both women snorted.


Tell slammed his beer glass on the table. “Jesus. Really? You guys haven’t seen Georgia or talked to her in ten years and you automatically assume she’s exactly the same person she was back then? Why? None of us are the same. Thank God we’ve changed, but you can be damn sure I ain’t gonna stoop to your level and point them changes out, because they ain’t all good.” He stood, tossed a twenty on the table and went to find her.


Georgia had taken a booth in the center of the room. Some guy appeared to be harassing her. Tell tapped him on the shoulder and recognized him as Dalton’s former classmate. “Monte. Been a long time. You waiting for the band to start?” He maneuvered him aside so he could slide into the booth opposite Georgia.


“Nah. I’m just looking for someone to take to my buddy Brad’s party.”


“Do you know Mira? Skinny blonde? She mentioned wanting to get wild tonight. Track her down. She’d be game.”


Monte said, “Thanks for the tip, McKay,” and loped off.


“I’m assuming you don’t mind that I interrupted?” Tell asked, suppressing a grin. “Or were you interested in accompanying Monte to a kegger?”


She laughed. “No.”


Her low-pitched, sexy laugh hadn’t changed either. “So will you let me buy you a drink?”


Her face shuttered. “If it won’t ruin your reputation being seen in public with me.”


“I remember when you wouldn’t be seen with me. So, it’s a chance I’m willing to take.”


A waitress took their drink order.


“So, I overheard part of the conversation with your friends.”


“Which part?” Hopefully not Mira’s last comment.


“The part about you having a bunch of women on the hook.” Georgia cocked her head. “Embraced your McKay wild-man heritage after we graduated, did you?”


“With both hands. I had plenty of wild oats to sow and I’ve enjoyed the hell out of plowing up every single row.” He adjusted his hat. “Sorry Leah and Roxanne went off on you.”


Those pale-blue eyes searched his. “Not your fault. It’s not the first time I’ve faced that kind of hostility since I returned to Sundance.”


“Returned? You’re not just visiting?”