Debbi Rawlins - Hot Winter Nights

“Do you have brothers and sisters? Nieces and nephews?” she asked, and seemed genuinely interested. She wasn’t being nosy or making small talk.

“Two brothers. Nathan is older than me. Seth is younger and a real pain in the butt.”

Lila laughed. “I have one of those, too,” she said with a wistful sigh. “Oh, I guess Britney isn’t that bad. She started college this fall and is feeling overwhelmed by life in general. But we talk a lot.”

“You miss her.”

“Yes. I miss everybody—my parents and brother, his wife. They all live in California where I grew up. These last three months are the longest I’ve ever been away from them.”

Clint could just stare at her all night. She had an expressive face and skin as fine as his mother’s bone china. Right now, that face was telling him he’d missed a cue.

Shit.

He cleared his throat. “I would think you travel a lot.”

“Not really. And certainly not for this long. We’re behind schedule. I’m not sure what will happen at Christmas.”

“You mean you won’t have the day off?”

“Oh, we will. Thanks to the unions. But I don’t know that any of us are going to have enough time to make it home.” She shrugged, as if it wasn’t a big deal, and smiled at Elaine as she set down two foamy mugs.

“I’ll start a tab for you folks, yes?” Elaine said.

Clint was about to agree when Lila shook her head.

She dug into her pocket. “What do I owe you?”

“Elaine, I’ve got this.” He pulled out a twenty at the same time Lila produced a handful of crumpled bills.

“I asked you to come, so my treat,” she said, busy trying to straighten her money. “In fact I’m going to make Baxter reimburse me.”

Clint slipped Elaine the twenty, and she quietly left to make change.

Lila looked up and twisted in her seat. “Where’d she go?”

A group who had to be movie people had just entered the bar. The short stocky guy leading the pack spotted Lila right away.

She acknowledged the hand he lifted, sighing as she turned back to face Clint. “I thought we’d have more time before the troops descended.”

“You want to leave?”

“No. Maybe they’ll play pool. But if they come over, then...”

“I won’t have any trouble getting rid of them,” Clint said, and she gave him a peculiar smile. “If that’s what you want.”

“Wait. Did Elaine take your money?”

“Look, I’ll be honest with you.” He leaned forward. “I had to pay the check. Because I’m going to brag like hell that I had a date with a bona fide movie star, and it wouldn’t be a date if I didn’t pay, now would it?”

Arching her brows, she laughed softly.

“I won’t use your name if you don’t want me to.”

“I can’t tell if you’re serious.”

“I am.” Clint looked into her pretty blue eyes and had an almost uncontrollable urge to lean closer and kiss her. He was likely to clear the whole damn table trying, but he might be willing...

“One problem.” She picked up her mug and took a tiny sip. “I’m not a movie star.”

“What do you mean? You’re an actress, right?”

“Yes and no.” Lila shrugged. “I’ve done shampoo commercials, and I’ve had tiny parts in a few TV movies. But I do have a good shot at a decent role coming up.”

Clint frowned. Something didn’t add up.

“Sorry to disappoint you.”

“I’m not...disappointed. Just confused.”

“I’m part of the crew, working as a hairstylist. And I do some makeup, too. It’s a small independent movie and we’re operating on a shoestring, so our jobs tend to overlap.”

“But acting isn’t one of yours?”

“Not for this project. But I’ve wanted to be an actress since I was a kid. I even went to UCLA drama school.” She smiled with that same wistfulness he’d heard in her voice earlier. “Along with fifty million other wannabes. It’s a tough business to break into.”

Clint opened his mouth, then realized he was about to say something totally stupid.

“What?”

He shook his head.

“Come on, you’ve got me curious.”

“I’ll just say that you look like a movie star. So you’ve already got that part down pat.”

Lila laughed. “Well, thank you,” she said with a slight nod. “I’ll let my parents know you approve.”

Clint ducked his head. He knew he should’ve kept his mouth shut.

“No, don’t.” Lila reached across the table and touched his hand. “I wasn’t being snotty or sarcastic. I promise. It’s just—”

He stared at her slim pale fingers resting on top of his big, rough ones, brown like leather from working in the hot sun. Her skin was soft, her touch so light it felt like a butterfly had landed on him. She withdrew her hand, and he looked up, wishing she hadn’t.

“It’s just...” she began again. “In this business it’s important to keep things in perspective. My looks don’t define me. I can’t let them or I’ll end up—” Lila blushed. “Oh, jeez. I can’t believe I’m telling you all this stuff.” She took a hasty sip of beer and made a face. Coughed a little. Muttered something about sticking to iced tea. And coughed again.

Clint hid a smile behind his mug, drinking his beer and giving her time to recover. She thought he was disappointed that she wasn’t a movie star. Not even close. It wasn’t that he thought he had a chance with her. He’d be a damn fool to think she’d go for a guy like him, some hick steeped in family tradition and the routine of ranch life. But he really admired her for not using her beauty as a crutch.

She stopped coughing, pushed the beer aside and looked at him while dabbing her watery eyes.

“I saw a sign for sarsaparillas. Only two bits,” he said. “Maybe we can order you one of those.”

“Very funny.” With a cute little smile, she leaned forward as if she had a secret to tell him. “I’ll admit I’m an umbrella drink kind of girl. And if the drink is pink or blue, that’s even better.”

“Elaine’s on her way back. Let’s see what we can do about that.”

“No. I can’t,” Lila said, laughing. “I have to get up early tomorrow.”

“Okay, then, when’s your day off?” He saw her smile slip and knew he’d overstepped.

This was just part of the job for her. Have a beer with him, convince him to be the silent cowboy standing around like a jackass. Yeah, no way that was going to happen.

He watched more people come through the front door—three men, and a woman with purple hair, all in their twenties, looking a lot like they needed to let off some steam. They sure weren’t locals.

“Sunday,” Lila said. “I’m off on Sundays. Everyone is. You know, union rules and all.”

Clint had no idea how unions operated. He knew a whole lot about ranching and raising cattle. But that was it. So why had he thought about asking her to go out with him? He’d bore her to death.

“How are you two doing?” Elaine laid his change on the table. “Can I get you anything else?”

Lila smiled and shook her head.

“No, thanks, Elaine. This is it for me.”

“Well, good seeing you, Clint. You take care.” Elaine gave Lila a parting nod and a lingering inspection as she went to the next table.

Lila was staring at him with a furrowed brow. “I know Sundays are usually family days, so I’m guessing it won’t work for you.”

Clint’s heart lurched. He took another gulp of beer and discreetly wiped his mouth. Hell, he hoped he wasn’t misreading her. “Sunday is fine. So is Saturday night—”

“I knew it was you hiding in the corner.” A guy with tattoos on his neck came up behind Lila and tugged on her ponytail. “Can’t miss this hair.”