Flirting With Disaster Read online

  Madison blinked. “Excuse me?”

  “Sorry. I've been working with Broke for the past few weeks on that fundraising project. I love her, but she's blunt. Must have rubbed off on me.”

  Madison picked up the forgotten glass from the hood of her car. Half empty. She drained it, thinking she'd need a refill soon before the night was over.

  “It's okay,” Naomi said.

  Madison wanted to believe her. Maybe her stomach would stop trying to tie itself into knots. “It's okay?”

  The other woman ran a hand through her ebony locks, pushing stray strands from her face. Her brown eyes locked on Madison's. “I see my ex-husband all the time. So...” Naomi's smile had a mischievous glint. “I know a thing or two about hiding my real reaction. There's a big difference in anger, sadness and surprise. You had anger. Towards Reid. I'm intrigued.”

  “I don't hate him.” That much was true. “It's been a long time since we ended things.”

  That truth was more...wispy. Ended things sounded so neat and tidy. They had imploded.

  Naomi clasped her hands on her stomach and leaned against the car. “Hmm-hmm,” was all she intoned.

  “The emotion you saw wasn't anger either. More like annoyance, if anything.”

  “Hmm-hmm.”

  Madison snorted. “You're just going to keep saying that until I spill the entire story?”

  Naomi's smile widened. “Hmm-hmm.”

  Much to her surprise, Madison let out a big belly laugh. “Maybe another night.” She frowned at her empty glass. “Or more liquor. Whatever happens first.”

  The hairs on her skin prickled. It wasn't the cold but a sudden awareness. Her stomach flipped, feeling weightless and full of nervous energy. She scanned the parking lot again and there he was. He wore denims, boots and a light jacket—no uniform. He wasn't a detective who could get away with casual dress while on the job but in a town this small titles didn't matter.

  All those years between them dropped away. She remembered the giddy rush of love, old and no longer relevant, but there because some part of her would always be that nineteen-year-old girl who had loved Reid Tanner. The part of her who couldn't catch her breath at the first sight of him. The one who thought he'd be her husband. Those old feelings rose up so fast she chocked on them.

  On the next release of breath everything afterward came rushing back. Real life had wedged itself in, and they both got a good look of the couple they would be in thirty years. She hadn't liked what she saw and neither had he. She wasn't nineteen anymore. Her hand clenched around the glass, but she relaxed her posture.

  “Wow,” Naomi whispered.

  Madison looked at her and realized the woman had caught every facial inflection and probably every emotion that had flickered through her gaze. “Yeah.”

  Naomi took the cup. “I'll bring you more whiskey.”

  Before Madison could beg to not be left alone with Reid, Naomi was striding across the parking lot. They stopped, exchanged words and he nodded. He resumed his brisk pace, his sandy-head of hair lowered.

  Each of his planted steps puffed up dust from the ground until he stopped at the trunk of her car. “Hey, Madison.”

  Her breathing refused to steady. “Reid, I shouldn't be surprised to see you here.”

  His blue eyes frosted. “Let me make this short and painless. I'm off duty so I won't be the officer on record. If and when you need to follow up on this, you won't have to deal with me.”

  Relief and annoyance jockeyed for position. She shifted under that internal fight. “Okay.”

  He pulled a small flashlight out of his pocket. “What time did you arrive?”

  “A little after nine.”

  He flicked the light toward the ground and began to make his way around the car. He chose the path farthest from her first. “Were you parked here the entire time?”

  “Yes.”

  “Was anyone hanging around out front or back here who seemed suspicious?”

  Annoyance started to win. She forced her voice to match the frost in his gaze. “Not a cop, so no I didn't notice.”

  “A teacher. You're supposed to look out for anyone who doesn't look like they belong at the elementary school. You're supposed to notice when a student is misbehaving or acting out of the norm. You have enough skill to be aware.”

  His tone was clipped and straightfoward, but she still noticed his timbre had gotten deeper since college. His shoulders had definitely gotten broader. The wind shifted again. He smelled different though. His new deep, masculine scent brought the flutter back into her stomach.

  Her shoulder muscles bunched. “No. I didn't notice anyone suspicious.”

  He finally made it to her side, keeping a good distance between them. Unlike any of the other times they ran into each other while in town, he held her gaze. It was hard and cold. “What time did you come outside?”

  The flutter in her stomach slowly turned into lead. “Sometime after ten.”

  “Closer to eleven or ten-thirty?”

  “Ten-thirty.”

  His voice grew gruff. “Why?”

  Her heart lurched. “Why what?”

  “Why did you come outside?”

  She relaxed against the car's door. “I wanted to put my purse up. I brought it in and Peyton refused to take my money.”

  A corner of his mouth lifted. “Sounds about right.” He shrugged. “Have you pissed off anyone enough to have them do this to your car?”

  Not since him. “No.”

  “Well, it's probably just some teenagers wanting to screw with a teacher.” He stuffed his hands in his pants' pockets. “I'm not sure who is coming, but I'll tell them everything. The officer will give you a case number. You can follow up with that number. A report probably won't be ready for a few days if you're going to need it for insurance purposes.”

  Silence thudded down on them. “That's it?”

  He gave her a look that said he didn't have one goddamn care in the world. “That's it.”

  This was the longest conversation they had had in years. When they had first broken up she'd wondered what this moment would be like. Would they be able to keep cool heads? Would the old hurts be too much and one of them would break? Never had she imagined this emptiness—this cold brush off.

  “Thanks.” She crossed her arms and settled into her coat.

  “I don't think Naomi is coming back.” His sigh sounded harsh in the quiet.

  Madison looked toward the bar and sighed like he had. “You're probably right.”

  “And I can't leave you out here alone.” The words sounded pained, and for him it would hurt.

  She had no doubt Peyton had widened her eyes, put on the little-sister-in-danger act and he had come to the rescue. All to help Madison. Probably getting kicked in the balls for an hour sounded more pleasant to him, and less painful.

  A swell of anger rose in her throat. “You don't have to protect me. I'm fine.”

  “Yeah?” His shoulders went back, and he reached his full height.

  He was all man. Always had been. It's what attracted her to him in high school. If he suffered from acne it was before they'd dated. His jaw line had been rough-hewn, bare then, but now a shadow of a beard lined his sharp chin. Every muscle he had, and he had a lot of them, coiled as he loomed over her.

  He placed a hand on her car and leaned into her space. Anger had begun to melt the ice in his eyes. “I'm only going to say this politely once. Get your ass in the bar before I drag you in.”

  Her mouth dropped down for a second at the gall. “You wouldn't. Peyton—”

  “Is the one who begged me to come out here in the first place. She can deal with the consequences. I'm not in the mood to deal with posturing on principle. I'm not leaving you out here alone. End of discussion.”

  Her back teeth ached from clenching her teeth so hard. “When did you turn into a bully?”

  The anger in his eyes sharpened. “When you didn't want to be pregnant with my baby.”

/>   The implication in his words hit her. Red flashed in her vision. A sharp crack sliced through the air. It took a moment for the sting on her hand to register. Her eyes widened with shock. His jaw twitched and his head tilted at a angle. She'd just slapped Reid.

  A stuttered apology rose to her lips until he looked at her. The words dried up. The last time she'd seen him this angry he'd beaten the crap out of Declan.

  His nostrils flared and he bent his head down. Oh. Yeah. He was pissed. Since she had every right to be just as angry, Madison steeled her words. “I had a miscarriage.”

  “You claimed to love me, but you didn't want to be pregnant. You tell me you needed some time to yourself to think about what you wanted, and the next time I hear from you there's no more baby. You didn't call me when the miscarriage started. You made sure I couldn't be there for you.”

  Because he was right about that last part, her anger refused to ebb. If she let it, guilt could sink in. “You proposed to me so it was more than just having a baby. I needed time. There was nothing you could have done.”

  “We were going to get married anyway.”

  The first accusation had pissed her off. This one hurt. “You accused me of having an abortion. Sooner or later we would have realized love wasn't enough.” And because she was still pissed off about that, she added, “Half this town thinks your the golden boy. The perfect and brave Reid Tanner, protecting a town that bears his name. You could run for mayor tomorrow and everyone would forget it's supposed to be Peyton. And, yet, you blamed me for something I couldn't control. You saw malice when there was none.”

  She had started to yell at him, rising to her toes so she'd be right there in his face. “I wasn't ready, but I wouldn't have made that decision without telling you first.” Her chest heaved from the unspent anger pumping in her heart.

  “Madison,” his voice had gone dangerously low, “it seems you have made your choice.”

  “What?” She blinked and then she was over his shoulder.

  His hand curved under her ass as he steadied her. The warmth of his palm on her so close to her sex shaved off some of the anger. Had to be the shock. Before she could start up a good and righteous condemnation, he started back toward the bar. She could only sputter.

  Her hair curtained everything but his back. Madison fought the immature urge to bite him since that good and righteous condemnation refused to come out in words. He slapped the saloon doors hard enough they slammed against the wall.

  Unceremoniously he dropped her off at the bar. She pushed back her hair to glare up at him, but he wasn't looking at her. Reid pointed at Peyton who stood behind the counter.

  His flushed face held an expression that warned off anyone who decided to argue with what he said next, “You owe me.” When he met Madison's gaze again, his jaw twitched once and then again before he bit out, “I'll tell the officer you're in here.”

  His silent order barked—for her to stay put—Reid marched out of The Grog. Heat suffused her face as she took in the room. Everyone had stopped doing whatever it was they were doing. Only music filled The Grog. How could they not watch? The golden boy had dragged her into a bar, dropped off her near the bar and made silent threats with a steely glance. Everyone would assume the worse and would likely be right.

  With all the dignity Madison could muster, she lifted her chin and turned back to the counter. “A drink, please.”

  Peyton stared blankly at the saloon doors that continued to swing back and forth until they stopped. Finally, her attention swept to Madison. “Jesus Christ.”

  “Nope. Just a pissed off Reid Tanner. Drink?” She didn't dare glance around again. “And where is Naomi?”

  “Her babysitter called.” Peyton notched her thumb toward the back. “She's on the phone in my office. Her cellphone's dead.”

  “Oh.”

  At least leaving her alone with Reid hadn't been some misguided set-up. She continued to ignore the stares even though she had a great view of the room facing the mirror behind the bar.

  Many people she recognized sat in the glossy wooden tables that were littered around the room. Whenever her gaze caught on one of them, they'd pretend to read something on the chalk boards that hung on the brick walls. Given the boards had list of beverages and funny sayings the reaction was plausible.

  Almost out of her line of sight, a long booth, decorated with leather and accentuated with silver buttons, were the town's gossip-hounds—Tessa and Amy. They had a direct view of Reid marching in with her over his shoulder like a sac of potatoes. Once her mother heard their version, Madison would never hear the end of it.

  She glanced up at the exposed beams in the ceiling and sighed. Thankfully the dim light kept the emotions playing across her face to herself. She balled her hands to hide their shaking.

  “Here ya go, hon,” Peyton said.

  Madison didn't give the condensation on the glass time to moisten the wooden counter. She finished the drink in one long gulp.

  “Another?” Peyton asked.

  She let out a self-deprecating laugh. “Until you have to carry me out.”

  “Sure thing.”

  And she did. If not for Peyton's brother—guilty by association—the woman would have made the perfect best friend.

  End of Excerpt

  Coming Soon