Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Carson
Jude had good taste in restaurants. The brewery he’d picked was a larger place near downtown Durango with a wide, expansive patio and an interior with an upscale industrial vibe with lots of dark wood and exposed metal accents.
“Nice place,” I said to Jude after the server seated us inside in a nice padded booth with high-backed seats.
Out on the patio, a four-person band was playing, but in the main dining room, there was only a low murmur of noise from other diners and a faint hint of the music from outside. “Not too loud inside.”
I wasn’t a fan of loud bars to start with, but these days, blaring televisions, clanking glasses, and noisy patrons gave me an instant headache, so I liked this place’s chill vibe.
“Yeah, I like that aspect as well.” Jude smiled before gesturing at our thick menus. He flipped through the various sections as I did the same. “Everything I’ve tried here is amazing, but the garlic fries are truly special.”
“Noted.” I laughed as my stomach gurgled in answer.
“You want to share an order of wings as an appetizer?” Jude asked, turning back to the appetizer page to indicate the various hot wings options.
“No.” Wings sounded good, but the fries would be enough of a struggle. Messy wings were a coordination challenge I was likely to fail. “Hard to eat.”
“Gotcha.” Jude nodded as he scrolled a finger down the appetizer list. “We could—”
“I’m good.” Mad at myself that wings weren’t an option, I cut him off a bit too sharply. I hated needing accommodation for something as simple as a plate of wings. Jude was easy-going as always and went back to studying the menu, but I felt bad for snapping. “Sorry. Hangry.”
“No problem.” Jude waved off my apology as our server, a pretty, young redhead, strode toward us. “Luckily, here comes our server.”
“What’ll it be?” she asked.
“This burger.” I pointed at the picture of the entrée I wanted, a loaded burger called the Tyrannosaurus that had bacon, two kinds of cheese, grilled onions, and mushrooms. The name was too much of a mouthful for me to try to say, and the burger would be a challenge to eat neatly, but the picture was too appetizing to pass up. “And garlic fries.”
“I’ll have what he’s having.” Jude offered the warmest of smiles. I wasn’t sure whether it was for me or the server, but a weird heat filled my chest nonetheless.
“Band sounds good,” I said after the server left with our order.
“They do.” Jude cocked his head like he was trying to make out the song. “You’re a country fan.”
“You’re not?” I was surprised. Most of the ranching folks in the area seemed to have rather predictable tastes, ones I’d inherited from a father I had precious few memories of.
“Eh. It’s okay. Hard to grow up in Lovelorn without hearing a fair bit of country, but alt-rock is more my usual jam.” Jude chuckled. “Country is often too much crying about beers or women, but it can be fun for dancing.”
“You go ahead.” I chuckled as I waved him toward the patio, knowing full well he wouldn’t go. “I never cared for dancing.”
“Shame.” Jude gave me another of those velvety smiles, making heat snake up my spine. “It’s a good way to blow off steam.”
“Blow up things instead,” I countered. The lightness of the banter and joy over how easily the conversation was coming to me made my shoulders loosen, knots I’d held for weeks slowly untangling themselves. “Try video games.”
“Okay, now you’re talking.” Jude rubbed his hands together. “I’ve got a console, and I’m tired of playing against myself. I’ll have to have you over some time.”
“Sure.” I agreed before I could overthink my reply. I’d gamed with fellow soldiers plenty. Jude would be no different, no matter what he did to my insides.
The food arrived on big, heavy platters piled high with fries and giant burgers.
The fries came with a creamy dipping sauce, and the burger looked plenty juicy.
I grabbed a stack of napkins before tackling the food.
Working slowly, I took small, deliberate bites, grateful that Jude had let the conversation fall into a comfortable silence.
“You were right.” I smiled as I dabbed my mouth with a napkin. Every bite was more than worth the coordination hassle. The burger was meaty and rich on a buttery brioche roll, while the fries were crispy perfection topped with a garlic-rosemary finish. “Food is good.”
“Glad you like it.” Looking up from his plate, Jude grinned back. If he’d noticed how messy of an eater I was, he didn’t let on. His gaze was as welcoming as ever. “Nice to have someone to enjoy it with.”
As we finished the food, the pretty server returned with our check. Jude and I slapped down credit cards at the same time.
“No, I’ve got it.” Jude handed mine back to me. “My invite, my treat.”
“I’ve got next.” I didn’t want to argue over the check, but I did like to keep things fair. Of course that promise meant a convenient excuse to see Jude again, and I wasn’t complaining.
“Deal.” Jude tipped generously, signing his name to the receipt with a flourish.
I nodded my approval as he pocketed his copy of the receipt. I’d dined with any number of entitled officers over the years, who acted like tipping was a personal affront. I appreciated that Jude’s kind nature extended to those in service positions.
We made our way back to the truck. The sun was flirting with the idea of setting, the long, hot summer day coming to a close, but the air remained warm and dry as we headed back toward Lovelorn.
We weren’t that far out of Durango, however, when Jude’s truck started sputtering.
He managed to coast to the shoulder of the lonely county highway.
“Shit on a shingle.” Jude thumped his head backward against his headrest.
“Told you. Chevy.” I reached for my door handle. “Pop the hood.”
“Aye aye, Sergeant Jennings.” Jude gave a harsh laugh as he complied before joining me at the front of the truck. Given the age and likely high mileage of his truck, any number of things could be the problem, so I made a thorough inspection of the engine area under the hood.
“Aha!” I made a triumphant noise. “Loose connector. Got a screwdriver?”
“Yep.” Jude rummaged in the backseat before returning with two different sizes of screwdrivers for me to choose from.
“Wire’s almost shot.” I did the best fix I could, but I continued to frown as I stepped back from the truck. “Should get us home.”
“Good.” Jude passed me a towel for my greasy hands.
“Guess Luna’s right, and I should think about replacing the truck.
I can’t keep breaking down, especially on the way to calls in the middle of nowhere.
” He groaned as he leaned against the driver’s side door.
“And if I wait, I’m just risking a bigger problem that will tank the trade-in value. ”
“Yep.” I shut the hood with a slam, as if that might keep the truck from misbehaving again.
Fixing it, even something as simple as a loose connector, felt good.
Like working with horses, muscle memory had taken over, and being able to rely on my prior skills made me stand that much taller. Nice being of assistance.
“Hell.” Jude made a frustrated noise as he slid behind the wheel. “Truck shopping means dealing with car salespeople, most of whom know far more about trucks than I do.”
“I know trucks.” I shrugged before buckling up.
“That you volunteering to come along when I go shopping?” Jude asked hopefully.
“Could.” High on the satisfaction of fixing the truck, I smiled, facial muscles as loose and easy as my tone. “I can tell…if you’re…getting fleeced.”
“Good. Definitely bringing you.” Jude gave a decisive nod as he resumed the drive back to Lovelorn. “And thanks for coming tonight. It was good to have company for the meeting and dinner.”
“Meeting wasn’t bad,” I allowed.
I didn’t want to go into great depth about the content of the sharing, but I could admit privately that knowing I wasn’t alone in my frustrations was nice.
I also hated needing accommodations and knowing that reality was likely permanent.
Plus, simply being there had felt important, a little like being back on duty, being there for my personnel, making sure they felt heard and seen.
“I’ll keep you posted on the next meeting time. Happy to give you a ride.”
“We’ll see,” I said, but this time I actually meant the hedge. I’d consider returning, especially since it meant more time with Jude, more time when I could feel that much more human again. “Text about truck too.”
“Will do. I’ll get your number when we’re back at the ranch.” Jude’s smile widened, all white teeth and full lips. I had to look away.
In the past, I’d always been able to ignore nice smiles from all genders when needed, giving all my focus to the job.
However, here, I wasn’t on duty, and Jude wasn’t a subordinate.
Risky. Very risky. Yet, I couldn’t help the way my lower back tensed, anticipation already gathering for the next time we met.