Looking for Trouble. Victoria Dahl
late for weeks, so they had a good excuse for a weekday night out.
The restaurant was only four blocks away, so she’d decided not to drive. If she walked, she’d have the perfect excuse to accept a ride later.
Even if—when, she ordered herself—even when she told him who she was, he still might offer a ride home. It’d be very late, after all. And a ride would be a pleasant consolation prize, pressed against his broad back with that black-and-chrome machine between her thighs. That was a hell of a lot more than nothing.
Her heels clicked against the wooden boardwalk when she reached the first touristy block of town. It was cool tonight, but she never minded that. She loved the breeze sneaking over her silk-clad legs. She loved the cool air in her lungs and the scent of turning aspen on the breeze. Fall was her favorite time of year. It felt like the world was holding its breath for something exciting.
She tried to tell herself she wasn’t doing the same thing as she reached the restaurant and glanced up the block to the loud touristy restaurant she’d visit later.
Lauren and Isabelle were already enjoying wine by the time she spotted them and hurried to the table. “Sorry I had to work so late.”
“We’re sorry we had to start without you,” Lauren said with a grin. “You look adorable as usual,” she added as she stood to give Sophie a big hug.
“You, too. And you!” Sophie said as she hugged Isabelle. “You’re alive!”
“Barely,” Isabelle said drily. “Just don’t look at my nails.” She held up her hands to show off her paint-stained cuticles. Sophie didn’t mention the streak of green oil paint on her collarbone. It clashed with the silky red shirt she wore.
She and Lauren had gotten to know Isabelle at the library where she often arranged to borrow expensive books from state universities. Her painting demanded very specific types of research, so she came in fairly often, distracted and color-streaked. She normally wore old jeans and sweaters, so Sophie was surprised to see the deep red flowy blouse she wore tonight. “You look so pretty. Are you wearing heels?” she gasped.
Isabelle stuck out her foot to show off cute black wedge boots. “Ugh. Yes. I’m considering getting laid sometime this decade. My neighbor talked me into ordering these online.”
Lauren rolled her eyes. “You wouldn’t have any trouble getting laid if you left the house more often than once a month.”
“I don’t want to leave the house. I don’t know why a man can’t be delivered along with my art supplies.”
Sophie grinned. “Maybe you could advertise for models.”
“That probably wouldn’t go over well once they realized my specialty. Anatomical paintings sound fun until you realize it’s not a euphemism.”
“It could be,” Lauren insisted, with a tip of her glass. “These snowboarding bums are always looking for a few dollars. And they’re in very, very nice shape.”
Isabelle’s normally serious face got even more serious for a moment. “Hmm.”
Sophie snorted. “Oh, my God, she’s actually thinking about it. Let’s just make clear that Lauren and I would be happy to pose as art students to make this happen.”
“Oh, yeah,” Lauren agreed. “We’d do it for you, Isabelle. Goodness of our hearts and all that.”
“Screw you,” Isabelle said. “You’ve got a naked man to look at any time you want.”
“Hey!” Sophie interrupted, bumping Lauren’s arm. “Didn’t you say your mom was here to visit? Why didn’t you bring her along?”
“She’s in bed already. She said she was tired, but I think she wanted a few hours of alone time to read. She just got an e-reader. She doesn’t want me to tell any of her old librarian associates.”
“Oh, I forgot your mom was a librarian, too. You’re a legacy family!”
Lauren laughed. “I spent half my childhood in the stacks. I couldn’t break free from my fate.”
“Does your mom like Jake?” Sophie asked.
“What’s not to like? He’s a wholesome fire captain!”
“Wholesome, huh?”
Lauren’s wide smile told them everything they needed to know about her new relationship with the fire captain. Sophie tried not to sigh. She didn’t need a serious relationship, but the steady sex would be really nice. She’d never had that. She didn’t know when she ever would. Yeah, she was much more comfortable with sordid, hidden affairs. Funny how those traits could be inherited.
She spent the rest of dinner trying not to think of having a sordid affair with Alex Bishop. The knowledge that she absolutely couldn’t do it made the thought harder to force out of her mind. She was so distracted that her friends didn’t even blink when she made an excuse about being tired and wrapped up their dinner a few minutes earlier than they’d normally have broken up. It was a weeknight, after all.
“Do you want a ride, Sophie?” Lauren asked. “Jake’s coming to pick me up.”
“No, it’s a beautiful night. I want to enjoy as much walking as I can before winter sets in.”
She said her goodbyes, her heart speeding a little at the small deception. Or maybe it was speeding with excitement, because it only beat faster as she stepped onto the boardwalk. If her friends were paying attention, they’d notice that she wasn’t heading toward her house, but she glanced through the window and saw that they were still chatting as they gathered purses and jackets. Sophie rushed up the block, not bothering to hide her smile.
Even during the slow season, a cacophony sounded from the Bucking Bronco when the door opened a few feet ahead of her. Country music played and people spoke loudly to be heard over it. The outdoor tables were abandoned for the evening, but past the windows, families with tired children ate ribs and steak and took the opportunity to get a little drunk.
When she stepped inside, she noticed the younger crowd at the bar, but she knew from experience that the music was even louder back there. Sophie ducked to the left and headed up the wide staircase.
The bar upstairs was smaller. They only served beer and wine and margaritas, but there were small tables around the bar here, and she and Alex would disappear from view behind the larger dining tables at the front.
Though Alex might have a hard time disappearing anywhere, she realized as she caught sight of his shaved head and walked toward him. He stood at the bar, looming over the few other people there. Sophie glanced around, but there was no one she knew here. There was better steak and cheaper beer to be had a few streets out of town.
Alex saw her and straightened. He didn’t smile, but the slight rise of his eyebrows as he looked her up and down conveyed approval. Sophie did smile. That man was a pleasure to look at. He’d shaved his face, and now his jaw and cheekbones were emphasized, giving him a lean and deadly look. He’d also shucked his leather jacket at some point, and there they were. Tattoos.
One arm was covered all the way down to his wrist with the vivid colors of a design she couldn’t make out from ten feet away. She did her best not to lunge at him like she was bringing down prey.
“Hi,” he said. “I didn’t know if you wanted to get a table.”
“That’d be great.”
He gestured toward the closest empty table, then reached past her to pull out the chair before she could sit. A gentleman. With tattoos.
He grabbed his jacket from a bar stool and slipped it over the back of the other chair. “What are you drinking?”
“White wine, please.”
He nodded as if he’d expected that and stepped back to the bar without another word. The order only took a moment to place, but she used that short time to study him from