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Hayley snorted. “So not touching that,” she replied. Everyone laughed.
An hour later, Tex accused Hawk of using his Indian mojo to win at cards and Hayley laughed so hard beer nearly came out her nose.
“Slick,” Tex said admonishingly. “You’ve only had two beers.”
“I don’t drink,” she slurred.
“Clearly,” Tex replied, shaking his head. “Now focus. We’re down three hands.”
“You can’t win them all,” she chided. “Wouldn’t be fair.”
“Is Shooter bluffing?” Tex asked.
Hayley rolled her head on Tex’s shoulder and looked at Chris. “Shooter’s always bluffing,” she announced.
“Oooooh,” said the guys.
“Ouch,” said Hawk.
“It’s true!” she insisted. “He has a tell. When he’s full of shit he-”
Chris reached out and covered her mouth with his hand. “I do not have a tell,” he said sternly.
“Mmm hmm,” Hayley said into his hand.
Chris stood up and gathered her in his arms. “Come on, Slick. You’re drunk and obviously not thinking clearly. There is no way I have a tell.” He hauled her up and walked down the hall with her. He entered the spare bedroom and laid her on the small bed.
“Um,” she said. “I should go home.”
“Negative. You’re out of it and I don’t feel like carrying you all the way over there.”
She started to sit up. “I can walk.”
Chris pushed her shoulder back down on the mattress. “Go to sleep.” He pulled off her canvas shoes and tossed them on the floor. “Besides, if I keep you here, maybe you’ll make me pancakes in the morning.”
“Chris,” she said quietly, and he turned to look at her. She crooked her finger and he half smiled, moving closer and leaning down over her. She reached up, slid her hands behind his neck and pulled him down lower. When they were inches from each other, she whispered, “The left corner of your mouth twitches.”
It took him a minute to process what she’d said. “What?”
“That’s your tell.”
He grinned at her. “Now, see I thought you were staring at my mouth all night because you wanted to kiss me.”
She gasped. “I definitely don’t want to kiss you.”
He nodded sagely. “Because my hair’s too short. You’re holding out for a Highlander. I hate to disappoint you, Slick. But I don’t think there are that many around these parts. Or pirates, either.”
She sighed and let her arms drop. “Plenty of army rangers, though,” she mumbled into the pillow.
Chris smiled. “None of them is going to kiss you, Slick.”
“Why not?”
“Because I ordered them not to.”
Hayley sighed and pulled the covers up over herself. “I miss kissing,” she mumbled and then fell asleep. Chris leaned down and press his lips to her forehead then strode the door and locked it behind him.
Chapter 13
Hayley woke up with a dull headache and blinked at the ceiling. It took her a minute to realize she wasn’t in her own bedroom. She looked around at the sparse furnishings and lack of clutter and realized she must be in Chris’ spare bedroom. She listened intently at a rumbling sound coming from the other side of the door and realized it was the sound of the shower in Chris’ master bedroom.
Quietly, she slipped on her canvas shoes, eased open the bedroom door and made a beeline for the back door through the kitchen. She’d slept well, and that was a welcome change, but she didn’t want to deal with any awkwardness this morning. She silently shut the door behind her and jogged to her own house. Sighing in relief when she was safely inside, not having had to face Chris. She smiled, though, as she leaned against the door as she remembered the good time she’d had last night with his friends. Poker Night would turn out to be fun.
The next week she’d had an idea forming in the back of her mind and decided to do something about it. She laid out bread and a paper bag on her kitchen counter and set to work. When she was finished, she slipped on a jacket and grabbed the bag and set off toward Chris’ garage several blocks away. When she arrived, she crossed the lot, ducked into the large bay area and found Chris and Hawk underneath a large pickup truck. Chris noticed her, and the bag she was carrying, and slid out.
“Slick,” he intoned, wiping his hands on the rag in his back pocket.
She held up the bag. “I made lunch,” she announced. “For everyone,” she added.
“Well good, because you ducked out on me last Friday morning and I didn’t get pancakes,” he chastised. Chris gestured to the door at the back and she followed him through it. In the small break room, she laid out the bag’s contents. Chris washed his hands and sat down at the table. Hayley watched intently as he picked up his ham and cheese sandwich. He paused before taking a bite. “This isn’t a No Fun sandwich, is it?”
