Chapter Three
Josie put her hand over the top of her glass as Lula started to pour her another drink. "I'm kind of a light-weight when it comes to alcohol."
"No worries," Lula refilled her and Naomie's glasses. "Here's to one hell of an interesting assignment."
"Says the woman ecstatic to have wormed her way out." Josie teased and raised her glass. "Not that I blame you. Damn, girl, Lincoln is—"
"Thor," Lula said and took a drink.
"Holy shit, you're right. He does look like Thor. The question is, does he have moves like a superhero?"
"Asgardian God, baby."
"Well here's to you, Lula. You brought home gold."
"Isn’t that the truth? And listen, it's no real burden to be around Dillon. I mean aside from those blue eyes and hot body, he's actually fun to be around when you get to know him."
Josie would have eaten her arm before she'd have admitted that she knew all about Dillon Walker and how attractive and appealing to the opposite sex he was. As far as anyone in Cotton Creek knew, she'd never heard of the man, and that's how she wanted it to stay.
"He is hot, I'll agree with you there, but good God, his uncle and father are ... whew! And hey, Naomie, what's with the fireworks between you and Russell Walker? Every time I've seen the two of you together, it's like something's about to blow."
"Nothing is ever going to blow. Never, ever."
"Why not?"
"It's just not. I don't get involved with people I work with."
"I hear you. I follow that rule, too. Which makes this assignment difficult. I'm supposed to act like I'm knocking boots with him on a regular basis?"
"Yep," Lula said. "And you're going to have to let people see you cop a feel or kiss him every now and then and tell him to do the same. You're supposed to be two people who met over the holidays, fell madly in lust and can hardly stand to be out of each other's sight. Which reminds me, did he give you a key to his place?"
Josie pushed her half-full glass away. She was starting to feel a little queasy. "I have to say something, and I don't want either of you to think bad of me, but I have to say it. This assignment is so fucked up."
Lula snickered, and Josie scowled at her. "I'm serious, Lula. I'm supposed to move into some man's house that I don't even know, make an entire town think I'm so hot for him I can't breathe unless we're in the same room, and somehow convince him to pretend the same. How the holy hell am I going to manage that?"
"Easy," Lula said, "use what God gave you girl."
"Pardon?"
"Don't pull that shit with me, Josie. You know you're gorgeous. And sexy. So, use it. Flirt with him, let him know that even though it's a job it doesn't mean you can't have fun. Use your powers of persuasion to get him on board with looking at you the way a man looks at a woman he can hardly keep his hands off of."
"I agree." Naomie chimed in. "If the two of you don't have that yeah we're doing it and it’s fucking mind-blowing vibe then you won't convince anyone of the cover story."
Josie put her arms on the table and then lowered her head down to rest on them. "You want me to seduce the football coach?"
There was silence, and finally, she looked up. "Well?"
Naomie and Lula looked at one another and then at her. "Yeah, that pretty much sums it up," Lula answered. "I'm not saying to have sex with him because that is definitely outside the scope of your assignment, but you can make him want it really bad."
"I hate you. I should never have let you talk me into this."
"You do not hate me. You're doing this because you're my friend and I needed a favor."
"This goes way beyond a favor, Lula."
"Yes, I suppose. But consider this..."
"What?" Josie asked when Lula just sat there with a cat who licked the cream smirk on her face.
"What if you discover that the act isn't an act?"
"Seriously? You think I'm seriously going to fall for a good-looking, high school football coach who lives in bumfuck—sorry, small town USA?"
"I think stranger things have happened. Think about it. You both love football, you're both active and probably like to work out and –and who knows how much else you have in common. What if this is fate, Josie?"
"Fate is a bitch who takes what you love from you."
Lula reached out to take Josie's hand. "I know it seems that way and I'm so sorry about what happened to Mike. He was a good guy. One of the best. But you know he died doing what he loved, and what mattered to him. You know that, Josie. We should all be so lucky."
"I know. I get it, Lula, I do. And I know if he was here, he'd literally thump me in the head and tell me to get on with it. Life is for the living. That's what he used to say after he cried and drank himself to sleep over losing someone to war. Life is for the living. Don't you ever forget that Josie."
"He meant it. And you've been alone too long. It's been what, three years?"
"I'm not going to fall in love with the football coach, Lula. Not. Going. To. Happen."
"Okay, then just do your job the way we were trained. Make your cover more believable than what's real."
Josie knew her friend was right, about a lot of things. She knew the minute Lula showed up that her life was about to change. Even though she was now questioning, and even resisting, Josie knew that when she left Lula's house, she'd drive to Dillon Walker's. Once there, she'd put on her game face and set about creating a character for herself to be for the duration of this assignment. A woman who was insanely in lust with the high school football coach.
*****
Dillon popped the tops on two longneck beers and carried them both to the back deck where his brother Riggs sat waiting. "Thanks," Riggs accepted the beer.
"Wait. You're telling me there's no one camped on your doorstep guarding you night and day?" Dillon asked.
"Don't go there, little bro. You and I are not birds of a feather, and you know that. But in answer to your question, there is additional security, and at the risk of pissing in your cornflakes, the old man asked my opinion on the recommendations for the rest of the family."
"And you approved the—bodyguard they selected for me? Thanks, Riggs, even my brother thinks I'm such a pussy that I need a girl to watch out for me. What the fuck, man?"
"There you go, playing the baby of the family card. Don't you get it? He's scared for all of us, Dillon. When that threat came in, it scared him and Uncle Richard. They'd thumb their noses at someone who threatened them, but their families? You know better. Dad may be a hard-ass, but he loves us, and he'll do whatever it takes to keep us safe."
"Including hiring a girl, who I'm supposed to be involved with, to watch over me. Like I'm a kid."
"But dude, what a girl. I mean, damn bro, if he wanted to hire me a bodyguard that looked like Josie Harper, I'd be like bring it on, you know what I mean?"
"Yeah, you'd be in her pants before you knew her last name. I get it."
"That's not what I meant, but whatever. If that's what it takes to sell the idea that the two of you are hot and heavy, then live the fantasy man."
"I don't—you don't get it."
"Then explain it to me."
"I can't just pretend. Either it's real, or it's not."
"Then I'd say you have a problem and you better get a handle on it because," Riggs checked his watch. "She'll be here in under two hours, and you've got to have your mind wrapped around how to deal with it."
"I really hate this. With Lula it was easy. She made it a game, and we knew it wasn't real. With Miss Harper—"
"Josie. You've got to get used to using her name, man."
"Fine. With Josie, it's different. She's not married. I mean she was, but her husband was killed and –and why the hell did she say yes to this crazy plan?"
"Because Uncle Richard and Lula asked her to."
Dillon nodded, tipped up his beer and chugged down half of it. "Maybe it's because he's family, but don't you find it remarkable how devoted people are to him?"
"Not really. It's like Dad. People stand in awe of Dad, respect and even fear him and it's not because he acts like a badass or bullies anyone. He's just naturally the leader of the pack, if you know what I mean. Uncle Richard, he's that guy that makes you believe and believe in and inspires people to want to do better and be better, and they'd do anything to help him get us—all of us, to that shining dream he's made us see.
"He's the real deal, man. He's the shining star, and Dad's the mind and muscle that holds it all together so that Richard can charm the birds from the sky and we can all rest easy. He's the equivalent of the man on the wall, standing watch over all of us, ready to die when needed."
"I guess they are pretty special. But that doesn't change the fact that they don't think I can take care of myself."
"No, it doesn't. But what would you rather have, little brother? A father who didn't care, or one who'd give it all to make sure you survived? Remember what he told us when we were kids? We're the future, the ones who'll hold the legacy for all the Walkers to come.
"That means something to him, Dillon. Don't fault him for it."
"So, I should just shut the fuck up and play along?"
"Well, that's one way of putting it. And who knows? You might just have a good time. Stranger things have happened."
"I'll believe it when I see it."
"Yep, I guess so. Okay, I'm outta here. Keep it between the ditches."
"See ya."
Dillon sat there after Riggs left, thinking about what his brother had said and what was about to come. What he hadn't told Riggs and wouldn't tell anyone is that the thing that bothered him the most about this awful plan was that he'd taken one look at Josie Harper and had damn near gotten an erection.
From one look. God only knew what would happen when she moved in and he had to see her every day. Weren't there drugs to control that?
As crazy as that might seem, he got up and hurried inside to grab his Macbook and do some research.