Chapter Four #2
“Hey, there,” he said, greeting them with a smile, then he reached out and jiggled Addie Kate’s little foot. “Did she sleep through the whole thing?”
Celia shook her head. “Not even close. It was a good thing Lainey didn’t mind holding her because it was a team effort to keep her entertained before and after her nap.
I’m going to pass her off to her daddy and see about making dinner.
You two have a great evening.” Celia smiled at Lainey.
“Please reach out to me if you move forward with your idea, or if you want to chat about rodeos, photography, or life.”
Lainey offered Celia a look that appeared full of gratitude. “Thank you, Celia. You’ve got my number. Call me any time.”
“You can count on it,” Celia hurried off toward the Kressleys’ personal trailer.
Lainey watched her go before she turned to face Jason. “Celia said you were hoping to speak with me. Is there something I can do for you?”
“There is, actually.” Jason felt like he was fourteen and asking a girl to the spring dance for the first time.
Before his voice cracked and he reverted to hemming and hawing like he had then, he took a deep breath and quickly voiced his thoughts.
“I had a great time with you earlier, Lainey. If you don’t have other plans, I was wondering if you’d consider having dinner with me this evening. ”
“I, uh …” She looked like he’d asked her to rob a bank or give him a kidney. Her expression morphed from surprised to concerned, and he gave up hope when it landed on hesitant.
Much to his surprise, she slowly nodded her head. “I’d like that.”
“You would?” he asked, shocked by her answer. “I mean, that’s great. Uh … what do you like to eat? I think there are several options that don’t involve bar food or something that comes from a food truck.”
She grinned. “I’m not hard to please. How about Mexican?”
“Perfect,” Jason tried to shift his brain into gear and drew in another deep breath, inhaling the odors of sweat and horses. “I need to clean up first. Could I meet you in about thirty minutes?”
“Make it an hour. I can meet you back here.” Lainey pointed to the horse trailer behind him.
“I’ll come pick you up. Where are you staying?”
She seemed reluctant to say, so Jason held up both hands, palms out, in a gesture everyone recognized as one of innocence. “I’ll be right here in an hour.”
Lainey nodded, then turned and walked off. Jason was of half a mind to follow her, but decided he’d better not waste a minute of the hour he had to get ready. He yanked his gloves on, finished the work he needed to see to, then hurried into the travel trailer he shared with Shaun.
His son wasn’t there, and Jason belatedly recalled Shaun saying he was going to help feed the livestock before he called it a night.
Jason peeled off his dirty, dusty clothes, hopped into a shower that was more cool than warm, and shaved for the second time that day.
He was toweling dry when he heard Shaun come in.
“Dad! You want to go to dinner with me and Coop?” his son questioned.
Jason cracked open the bathroom door as he rubbed his hair dry. “I’ve got plans, but you go ahead.”
Shaun’s spurs jingled as he moved closer to the bathroom. “Plans? As in taking-a-pretty-lady-to-dinner kind of plans?”
“So, what if I do?” Jason scowled at his image in the mirror, wondering if he was making a huge mistake by going on a date with Lainey. “You got a problem with that?”
Footsteps drew closer, and Shaun pushed the bathroom door open. His son met his gaze and grinned. “Not a problem in the world with it, Dad. It’s about time you let someone turn your head.”
Jason grinned and made a shooing motion. “Get out of here and let me get ready in peace.”
Shaun laughed and backed away. “Okay, Dad. Just remember to mind your manners and be home before midnight.”
Jason scowled. “I don’t need you to recite the line I always gave you before you went out when you were in high school.”
“Oh, but you do.” Shaun grinned, then turned and went out the door.
“Wiseacre,” Jason muttered under his breath, although he smiled and continued to smile while he brushed his teeth, combed his hair, and slapped on aftershave.
He dressed in a newer pair of jeans, a clean pair of boots, and a crisp blue cotton shirt with a gray paisley pattern that looked good with his grayish-blue eyes and graying hair, or so his granddaughter Dani had told him when she had talked him into buying the shirt the last time he’d taken her to town with him.
Jason threaded a belt through the loops of his jeans, shoved his wallet and cell phone into his pockets, and hustled out of the trailer. He didn’t want to be late. He arrived where he’d last seen Lainey by the end of the horse trailer to find her waiting there, talking to Shaun and Cooper.
“Well, you two have fun,” Shaun said, giving Cooper a nudge as Jason approached them. “Don’t do anything we wouldn’t.”
Lainey laughed. “From the looks of you two and what Celia shared, that would pretty much open the field to everything.”
Cooper slapped a hand to his chest and feigned affront. “I’m going to have to talk to Celia. It’s not nice to make up stories about innocent little boys like us.” He grinned and tipped his head to Lainey. “Have a great evening, ma’am.”
“Thank you,” Lainey said, then turned her focus to Jason. Her blue eyes glimmered with mirth as a smile lingered on her very kissable lips.
“Ready to go?” Jason asked, holding out an arm to her. Was that still a thing men did? Would she give him a lecture about the roles of men and women in a modern world?
He breathed a sigh of relief when she wrapped her hand around his arm and started walking away from the parking area for the trailers and vehicles that belonged to the rodeo contestants and staff, the stock company, and volunteers.
“I drove around a little and noticed an Italian restaurant just a few blocks away. Would you mind eating there instead of having Mexican?” Lainey asked, looking up at him.
“That sounds great to me. Lead the way,” he said, wanting to place his arm around her and pull her close. Instead, he settled for breathing in her alluring fragrance while the warmth of her hand threatened to sear right through his shirt sleeve and brand the skin of his arm.
“So, how did you like the rodeo?” he asked, as they walked past the gate onto the sidewalk outside the rodeo venue.
“It was wonderful,” Lainey said, pointing to their left.
Jason turned that direction and adjusted his stride to hers. “What did you like about it?”
“Everything. Well, almost everything. I think I closed my eyes every time a bull came out of the chute.”
Jason chuckled. “They can take some getting used to. Did you enjoy sitting with Celia?” He almost commented on seeing her holding Addie Kate, but didn’t want to give off stalker vibes by admitting he’d been watching her.
“I loved meeting Celia. She’s quite a firecracker. I’m guessing Addie Kate might take after her. Kash is going to have his hands full.”
“He certainly is, but I’m glad you and Celia enjoyed your time together.”
Lainey smiled at him. “Thank you for thinking of having us sit together. We talked about photography and life, and she answered all of my many questions about the rodeo with patience. It was interesting to learn about rodeo from her perspective as part-owner in the rodeo stock company, and also as a rodeo photographer.”
“Did she mention her brother used to be a bulldogger?”
Lainey’s brow wrinkled. “Bulldogger?”
“Cort was a steer wrestler before an injury forced him to retire. He ended up marrying a widow up in Washington, and they have a great family. Their daughter, Grace, is a lot like Celia. Poor Kaley has all she can handle with Grace and Cort. I hope the boys take after Kaley.”
“I bet they keep life from ever being boring,” Lainey said as they crossed a street and made their way to the door of an Italian restaurant, where delicious aromas wafted out to make Jason’s stomach growl. Thankfully, a truck driving by hid the sound.
He pulled open the door and held it for Lainey as she walked inside.
They only had to wait a few minutes to be seated at a booth in the back of the restaurant.
Jason couldn’t have asked for a better table because it offered a bit of privacy, tucked as it was behind a few potted plants.
The view outside the window was of the back parking lot, but he didn’t care.
Not when he couldn’t take his eyes off Lainey.
She’d changed out of the blouse and jeans she’d worn earlier into a flowing dress that she paired with her cowboy boots and a denim jacket with the sleeves rolled up. She looked stylish and far too pretty for his own good.
When she opened her menu, Jason forced himself to open his instead of studying her.
He was starving, and everything sounded good, but he decided on a sampler that offered a serving of lasagna, beef-filled ravioli, and chicken Parmigiana. He closed his menu and set it aside, then took a long drink from the glass of water a server had set on the table when they’d been seated.
“Decide what you want?” Lainey asked as she glanced up from her menu and smiled at him. That smile was like an arrow shot straight into his heart.
If he had a lick of sense, he’d run out the door and never look back. Only his feet refused to move, and his heart kept whispering for him to get to know Lainey before he did anything rash.
“Yep. The sampler looks good to me. How about you?”
Lainey looked back at the menu. “There are several things that sound delicious, but I think I’m going to have the chicken tortellini.”
The server reappeared, took their orders, and promised to return with breadsticks and salad, along with their drinks. Jason ordered iced tea, but Lainey chose a berry lemonade.
He had an idea that their beverage selections summed them both up. He was a simple glass of plain tea, and Lainey was something full of sunshine, sweetness, and unexpected flavors.