Page 51 of Burning Skies
Cyn: This is too good to miss. Get your ass in gear!
That’s the thing about Cynthia. She loves being spontaneous. Me? I prefer scheduling things in my planner.
I jump in the shower, and by the time I’m dressed, she’s ringing the doorbell. I hobble down the stairs. When I open the door, she holds up two coffees and some bagels. “Let’s go. We’ll eat on the road.”
When I get in her car, I wait for her to join me. Instead, she tosses dirt on the hood of her Lexus and smears it in. I give her alittle side eye when she joins me. “Is there a reason you threw mud all over your recently detailed car?” Because the interior is spotless.
She dusts off her hands and slides into the driver’s seat. “You’ll see, but first, I need an update. You went out with the guy your dad wants you to fucking marry like this is the 1950s. I want to know what he was like.” She slaps the dash. “Andyou hooked up with the same guy from the Devil’s Den after you and I had drinks? How did that happen? Tell me everything.”
I unwrap my bagel. “All I need to do to get you to come to town is have a dirty hookup, huh?” It’s hard to believe Beau and I had sex two weeks ago. My head’s been a mess ever since.
“Your life is more interesting than mine, so yes, I drove all the way over here to get the details. Plus, I have to meet my stepbrother later.”
“How is Hayes doing?” I’ve never met her family, but the stories she tells me about them are crazy.
“Still an asshole.” She starts the car. “Enough about me. Tell me about the guy who wrecked you.”
Sighing, I look out the window. “The Laughing Pony was, hands down, the hottest night of my life. Beau made me come apart at the seams.”
“Beau? His name is Beau? That’s so cowboy. Does he ride a horse too?”
“He rides lots of things.” We look at each other and laugh.
As we head downtown, I fill her in on how it happened. Us arguing in the hallway by the bathrooms, which turned into more. “He’s a firefighter and rancher. He’s a little grumpy, but really handsome. And holy hell, is he good at sex. Except we agreed it was just a one-time thing.”
“That’s so wrong. I’m crying for your vagina right now.”
I snort. “Thank you.”
“Why just the one time? Why not run off and marry him? Orat least take advantage of your single status now and sex him up?”
“Because that would complicate everything. He’s not just any man. He’s a Walker.”
It takes her a minute to remember. “You mean the same Walkers your family shoots in those Wild West reenactments downtown?”
I took her to one of those a few years ago. She thought it was hysterical. “The very same.”
“Your family really hates them, huh?”
“You have no idea. And Trig has it out for Beau for some reason. So no, Beau and I won’t be banging again.” Unfortunately.
She glances at me as she takes a bite of her bagel. “What about the douchebag your father set you up with? Was he fugly?”
I consider Ian. “No. He’s handsome, but we’re so different. He’s really put together. Wears designer suits and is all business. Seems really closed off. He’ll fit right in with my father.”
“This is bullshit. I won’t let you marry him. This is the fucking United States. We don’t do arranged marriages here.”
It feels good to have Cynthia in my corner.
We pull into a line of cars, and she grins. “My vote is for the firefighter with the big dick.”
“I never said he had a big dick.” I would never share private details like that with anyone.
Cyn gives me a look. “You didn’t have to. I know big dick energy when I see it. Speaking of…”
That’s when I realize we’re at the fire station. “Why are we here?”
“To get my car washed. Duh.”
