Charlie grimaced. “I find you annoying when you’re this earnest. It confuses me.”

“I know. I’m more natural being sarcastic, but I really care about the bookmobile. I’ve been thinking about a festival fundraiser. I need to talk to Pia.”

Pia was responsible for the dozens of festivals in Fool’s Gold. She worked miracles out of a tiny office. Due to her extraordinary planning, decorative flags went up on time, vendors arrived and Porta Potties were delivered.

“We’ll help,” Heidi said. “Just tell us what you want to do.”

Charlie shook her head. “I’m not volunteering.”

“Yes, you are,” Heidi told her. “You know you are.”

Charlie sighed. “Fine. I’ll be there.”

“I’m still in the planning stage, but I’ll let you know when that changes to action.”

Jo delivered Heidi’s margarita. She promised their burgers would be out shortly, then went to check on other customers. Heidi reached for her glass only to realize her friends were staring at her.

“What?”

“That’s your second,” Charlie said.

“I know.”

“You usually don’t get a second drink until the food arrives. Sometimes not at all.”

“I’m having a bad day.” Heidi slumped back in the booth. “I don’t even know where to begin.”

Annabelle patted her arm. “Jump in wherever you want. We’ll catch up.”

“Glen is sleeping with May. At least I think he is. She was in his room and they were laughing, and it sounded very intimate. I’m worried about her, about Glen breaking her heart. That’s what he does. He’s not a one-woman kind of guy. But when I tried to talk to Rafe, he wouldn’t listen. He thinks Glen is too old to have sex. Stupid man. And all my life, Glen told me love wasn’t real, and if it was, it was for suckers. Now suddenly he’s saying May is the one, and his feelings are real. That he was wrong about love, and I should forget everything he told me before.”

She paused to draw in a breath. “And Rafe has a matchmaker, if you can believe it, and he’s on a date tonight. Because if you had a chance to land someone like him, what’s a three-hour drive to Fool’s Gold, right? And the cows are gone, which is good, because I need the money, and I’m hiring a sales rep for my cheese, which is scary. It was Rafe’s idea, so he’s helping me and trying to take my home from me at the same time.” She drew in another breath. “There’s a lot going on.”

She reached for her margarita and took a long drink.

Annabelle and Charlie exchanged a look.

“That’s quite a list,” Annabelle said.

“Most of it was about Rafe, and she’s drinking more than usual,” Charlie added. “You know what that means.”

“Trouble.” Annabelle shook her head. “Big trouble.”

“Man trouble.”

“There’s no man trouble,” Heidi announced. “None. Zero. Zip. I’m not attracted to Rafe.”

“But you’ve kissed him,” Annabelle said smoothly.

“Yes, but it was—” Heidi slapped her hand over her mouth. She hadn’t meant to mention the kiss. She dropped her arm to her side. “It’s not what you think.”

“Was there tongue?” Charlie asked.

Prepared now, Heidi pressed her lips together and didn’t speak.

“That’s a yes,” Annabelle said with a sigh. “I miss tongue. Or any kind of kissing. I miss sex and men and orgasms.” She sighed again. “I’m sorry. What was the question?”

“Tongue is exactly what I think,” Charlie said.

Jo brought their burgers. When she left, Heidi grabbed a fry from her plate.

“No, it was an accident. Or meaningless, or both. He has a matchmaker. Who does that? I don’t know why he can’t get his own girl. The man is rich and good-looking. And when he rides Mason… Oh!” She turned to Charlie. “Did you know your horse knows how to rope a steer? Well, the horse part of it. He’s not the one throwing the rope.”

Charlie picked up her burger. “Seeing as I bought Mason, yes, I knew. So Rafe is sexy on a horse?”

“More than should be legal. With those shoulders and in that hat?”

“Oh, no. You have it bad.” Annabelle stared at her. “I thought you were going to sleep with him to keep him from getting the ranch. Not fall for him.”

Heidi took a bite of her burger and chewed. She swallowed, then flicked her fingers at both of them. “I’m not falling for him. He’s not my type. He’s a townie. I know better.”

“Townie?” Charlie mouthed. “I can figure that out in context, but it’s not like you’re still in the carnival. You live in a town. You’re a townie now.”

“Not in my heart.” Heidi drank more of her margarita.

The tequila went down smoothly. If her brain was a little fuzzy, that was a good thing. Soon she wouldn’t have to think about Rafe on a date. With some San Francisco-based bimbo.

“Stupid man,” she muttered. “Who does he think he is, looking that good on a horse? It’s not like I started the kissing, either. He kissed me.”

“Was it amazing?” Annabelle asked wistfully.

“Yes. But it’s not like he wanted to have sex with me.”

“Not that you’re bitter,” Charlie murmured.

“I’m not. Stupid man.”

“You said that already,” Annabelle told her.

Heidi gulped the rest of her margarita and signaled for another.

“You really don’t want that,” Charlie told her. “You’re plenty drunk as it is.”

“You’re not the boss of me,” Heidi announced.

“It’s too late,” Annabelle said. “There’s nothing we can do.”

“You’re going to be hating life, come morning.”

Maybe Charlie was right, but at this moment, Heidi didn’t care.

CHAPTER EIGHT

“BUT I NEED MY CAR,” HEIDI said, leaning against the door in Charlie’s truck. “Not that I would have driven, but we could have towed it. Or herded it. Like the cows.” She giggled at the image of herds of cars following faithfully behind. “They should make a commercial.”

“What are you talking about?” Charlie asked.

“Nothin’. My cheeks are numb.”

“You’ll be throwing up soon enough.”

“Na-ah.” Heidi liked the way the sounds felt in her mouth and made them again, then laughed. Her amusement ended in a snort that had her covering her mouth. “That wasn’t me.”

“That is so the least of what you’re going to be doing tonight,” Charlie told her, as she pulled around the ranch house and stopped by the front porch. “When next we see each other, I’m going to say, ‘I told you so,’ and I don’t care how pitiful you look. You’re going to be living in a world of regret.”

“Already there,” Heidi said, fumbling with her suddenly complicated seat belt. There were many regrets, most of them fuzzy. A few of the more clear ones were about Rafe and his date.

“I hate her.”

“Who?” Charlie asked.

“I don’t know yet. But her.”

“Okay, then.”

Charlie climbed out and came around the truck. As she reached for the door, Heidi saw someone on the porch. The shape moved toward them and she recognized Rafe.

“You shouldn’t be back,” Heidi said as Charlie opened the door. “You should be out with her.”

“Oh, Lord,” Charlie muttered. “Come on. Let’s get you inside.”

“What happened?” Rafe asked.

He was tall. With big man-shoulders. Heidi remembered how he’d looked in that towel—all wet and sexy. She would like to see him na**d again. She hadn’t seen a penis in a long time, and she had a feeling his would be especially nice.

“Too many margaritas,” Charlie said, unfastening the seat belt. “Heidi’s not much of a drinker. She’s going to have a difficult night. Come on, kid. There’s going to be a big step.”

“I’ll get her,” Rafe said, stepping closer.

Charlie moved back, giving him room. Heidi found herself at eye level with Rafe.

“This is your fault,” she told him.

“I’m sure that’s true. Come on, goat girl. Let’s get you inside.”

She wanted to protest the “goat girl” title, except the way he’d said it sounded kind of nice. Friendly. Maybe teasing. Like they were friends. Not that Rafe was the friend type. He was more the kind of man who took what he wanted, leaving women broken and desperate and…

“What’s so funny?” he asked.

“What?”

“You’re laughing.”

Heidi felt her face. “No, I’m not.”

He glanced over his shoulder. “How much did she drink?”

“Let’s just say, around two in the morning, I wouldn’t get between her and the bathroom.”

“Thanks for the warning.” He turned back to Heidi. “You ready to get out of the truck?”

“All right.”

She took a step forward, only to realize she hadn’t gotten out of the truck yet. Her feet got tangled, and she would have fallen out of the cab face-first if Rafe hadn’t grabbed her.

He muttered something she didn’t catch and wrapped his arms around her. “I guess we’re doing this the hard way.”

He eased her out of the truck and stood her next to him on the driveway. Balancing was harder than she remembered, she thought, as she swayed and tried to stay upright. She had a vague idea that she should see Glen, and go get some of his post-bender elixir, but the notion faded as quickly as it had arrived.

“You’re not getting up the stairs on your own, are you?” he asked.

She was too busy staring at his mouth to answer. She liked his mouth, especially how it felt when it was busy touching hers.

“Charlie asked if there was tongue and I wouldn’t answer, but I think she guessed the truth.”

Rafe was sure Heidi thought she was whispering. Unfortunately, she was wrong. He glanced at the tall, broad-shouldered woman who’d driven Heidi home.

“You Charlie?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Mason’s your horse?”

Charlie nodded. “I heard you were riding him. I appreciate you giving him the workout. I’m less sure you should be messing around with Heidi.”

“Me, too. And I’m not.”

Her steady gaze didn’t waver.

“It was one kiss,” he added.

“That’s generally how it starts. She’s my friend. Don’t make me hurt you.”

Rafe sighed and put his arm around Heidi. As he helped her to the porch, he wondered why he couldn’t be back in San Francisco, at a baseball game with Dante, or even working late. Right now a financial crisis or lawsuit threat sounded pretty damned good.

“I promise not to hurt her,” he said. “Good enough?”

“We’ll see.”

He half led, half carried Heidi to the porch. Charlie closed the passenger door and went around to the driver’s side. She got into her truck and drove away.

“Bye, Charlie,” Heidi called after the retreating vehicle. She tried to wave and nearly slid to the ground.

He caught her and pulled her back to her feet. She rubbed his arm. “You’re so strong.”

“Thanks.”

“It’s very nice. I’ve seen you in a towel and that’s nice, too. If you weren’t trying to steal my home, I’d like you more. Want to change your mind about that?”

“This isn’t the time to have that conversation.”

“Sure it is. Or we could kiss.” She stared up at him hopefully.

“Are those my only two options?”

She nodded her head, then stopped. “You had a date.” Her tone was accusing. “With a woman.”

“Would you be happier if it had been with a man?”

She considered the question, then blinked. “I don’t know.”

He had a feeling that for her, it was a brand-new day.

“Did I mention the kissing?” she asked.

“You did.”

“Any thoughts?”

“None you want to hear.”

He knew he could break the mood by mentioning his date, but he didn’t want to talk about it. Bad enough he’d lived through it once already. While Julia had been perfectly lovely, he’d spent their two hours together trying not to get caught staring at his watch. He’d found himself thinking about Heidi and the ranch, wondering why he would rather be there than out to dinner with a charming companion. He’d ducked out early, and had turned off his cell phone so Nina couldn’t call to ask how the date had gone.

“Let’s get inside.”

He managed to guide Heidi up to the porch and into the house. Rather than risk her navigating the stairs, he picked her up in his arms and carried her to the second floor. From there, it was a short trip to her bedroom.

Once inside, he set her on her feet and turned on the light. She gazed up at him with wonder.

“You carried me.”

He nodded.

“That was so romantic.” She smiled. “You can kiss me now.”

She obligingly closed her eyes and pursed her lips.

The smartest thing would be to walk away. She was drunk, and he was just trying to get through the days without stepping in too much crap.