Hot to Trot (Dancing in Texas #5)

Chapter Twenty One

CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

A DAM STARED UP AT THE myriad of lights above him. He almost lolled his tongue out but was afraid it would be overacting.

"Cut!" Tipsy Nolan yelled.

He pushed himself to an elbow and studied a grinning Marco, clad in a flowing cloak. "Watch that damn sword. You almost emasculated me."

"If emasculate means cut your cajones off then I almost completed my mission."

Adam gave the former gang member a scowl and rose from the dusty wooden floor of the high-school stage. The dress rehearsal had gone smoothly and Tipsy had pitched only two fits in the past hour. He figured the show would go on. He'd thought about not showing for the play, but his sense of duty won out over his utter despair.

She'd left yesterday.

Jared had seen her roar out of town and hadn't bothered with a ticket because he'd been in the middle of eating a banana split at the Diary Barn.

Adam wanted a do-over on their last moment together. Maybe then he wouldn't feel so damned empty. Maybe then he could have fixed what had broken so easily between them when she’d shown up in his living room.

He’d let her go.

Truth had sat in Scarlet’s words. He hadn’t been prepared to fight for their future together. Because what difference would it have made to do so? He couldn’t figure out how they could work, and he’d given little thought to a future before he’d tipped over into the territory they’d traversed that night under the Texas sky. Because he was the police chief and she was an up-and-coming actress. They were at cross purposes, living in two different worlds.

So he’d let her go.

When he’d wanted to do nothing more than scoop her up and keep her locked away in Texas.

The past few days had been hard, the only bright spot coming when he found out that Jared had used his computer to file some reports. That the cursor arrow had been on the file with the security footage had likely been happenstance. His guilt had had him jumping to conclusions. He figured that any threat had been neutralized with Scarlet’s vacating Oak Stand, and if it hadn't, he would deal with whatever repercussions came his way.

He’d done the delicious crime, he’d do that time. Or whatever.

"Okay, that's a wrap, folks," Tipsy said, her bright pink fuzzy shoes clacking up the steps to the stage. The shoes looked like something out of a black-and-white movie. Except the color, of course. "Everyone be here at one o'clock for hair and makeup. No exceptions."

The guys looked at each other with horrified expressions.

"I ain't wearing no makeup," Juan said. "My old lady's coming and she ain't seeing me looking like no-"

Tipsy clapped her hands. ''This is theater, gentleman. Not a beauty pageant. On this stage, your job is to become someone else. Don't forget to tell your old lady that."

With that, Tipsy sashayed away.

Adam's radio crackled to life. "Chief, give us a twenty-one."

He dialed dispatch. “At the high school.”

"Some lady called in about a body part on Leonard. At least that's what it sounded like. She was hysterical," Jared said.

A body part?

“ Are you sure? A body part?”

“That’s what it sounded like. She was cryin’ and stuff so…”

Adam rushed out the double doors of the auditorium into the late-afternoon sun. "What sort of body part? Are you sure this isn't a prank?"

"Sounded real. Want me to check it out?"

"No, I'll go, but send backup."

"Ten-four."

Adam slid into his cruiser, fully alert but suspicious about the nature of the call. He'd never in his ten years as a police officer had someone find a body part. A body? Yeah. A part? No. Very strange.

He headed southeast toward Leonard Road. The sun had dropped in the sky, but heat still radiated in waves off the asphalt. It took him four minutes to reach the turn to Leonard Road, and two more to pull in behind a black convertible BMW.

What in the hell?

He glanced at the license plate. It was Scarlet's car, but she wasn't in sight.

Terror filled him as he automatically flicked open the strap of his gun holster. Could Scarlet be in trouble? Harvey's hard smile invaded his thoughts. Surely he hadn't done anything to Scarlet.

Adam opened the cruiser’s door, stepping onto the gravel on the side of the road. It did not escape him that he stood almost exactly in the spot where he'd pulled Scarlet over for speeding. The day he'd first laid eyes on the woman who would flip him upside down, yank him sideways, and hang him out to dry.

He hoped like hell she was okay.

He drew his gun from his holder and cleared the car, surveying the perimeter. He could see no one at all. He needed backup quickly so he reached for his radio, and then he heard it.

Crying.

The sound caused his hackles to rise. What the devil was going on? He moved cautiously around to the front of the car.

Scarlet sat on the pavement, knees drawn up to her chin, crying as if there were no tomorrow. She looked at him with the most fragile look he'd ever seen, and if he hadn't been so damn relieved to see her unharmed, he might have chewed her ass out.

"What in the hell are you doing, woman?" He asked, holstering his gun.

She shook her head and continued to sob.

He looked left then right again, wondering if he were on some kind of prank show. Like maybe someone might jump out and shout, "You've been punked!"

But there was no one around.

"Scarlet, I got a call about a body part."

She threw something at him. A rock. It pinged against his boot.

"You are stupid!" she shouted, unfurling from her position against the bumper of the car. She wore a pair of high heels and a very short skirt. His mind registered the fact she was off her rocker, but it also sent a message to nether regions about long, bare legs and a spectacular ass.

He took a step back. "Have you lost your mind?"

She jabbed a finger in his chest. Right beneath his badge. "You didn't even bother to come to the airport. You were supposed to come get me."

"Jared said there was a body-"

"It's my heart, you jackass. That's the body part, the one you took and tossed away."

He blinked. "You called in a false report?"

She wiped the tears from her cheeks. "So arrest me."

He didn't know what to do. The woman had called in a false report. But then again the woman stood in front of him. In Texas. On Friday evening. She hadn't gone to Los Angeles.

She was here.

“I-I-don’t know what to say.” He snapped his mouth closed to prove it.

She pushed her hair back. "You are the biggest idiot in Howard County. Don't you know the hero always comes for the girl?"

Huh?

He begged his brain to click, whir, and figure out what in the hell she meant. Maybe he was an idiot. Maybe he'd always failed at relationships because he didn't understand women. Especially not the rather complex one glaring at him.

"You wanted me to stop you from achieving your dream?"

She crossed her arms. "No, I wanted you to want to stop me."

“I did. I do, but I don't understand. I thought-"

She pressed a finger over his mouth. "Stop. Aunt Fran was right. I'll have to do everything in this relationship."

She pulled her hand away.

He stared, not sure what to do. She no longer cried. Instead she looked aggravated, yet pleased with herself.

"Let me ask you something." She tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Do you care about me?"

He swallowed. Did he care about her? How could she ask that? Was it love? He wasn’t sure. But it was a constant pressing in his chest, sort of like indigestion. And the ever-present yearning for her smile, her laugh, her cranky frown when she didn't approve of something he said. He thought about her night and day, wondered where she was, who she was with. Was that love? “Of course I do. You know that.”

“Do I?”

“Yes. I…care about you.”

"You don't sound sure."

"No, I'm sure. It might even be close to lo-”

"Good," she interrupted. Then she slapped him.

“Holy shit. What in the hell?" He grabbed his cheek, bending over, because she’d put a lot into that.

Scarlet strolled toward his police car. He watched as she placed her hands on the trunk and spread her legs. "I intentionally assaulted you. Are you going to arrest me now?"

He straightened, fighting against the aggravation rising inside. “Are you out of your damned mind?"

"Yes. You not only stole my heart, but you also wrecked me mentally. So, come here and frisk me."

He stalked toward where she stood. ''Scarlet Rose, stop playing games and tell me what is going on in that beautiful, but also scary, head of yours. Why are you doing this?"

She rolled her eyes. "If you arrest me, I can't be at an audition, can I? I'd probably have to do more community service."

Then the reason for Scarlet's whole fabricated call and ensuing slap hit him. She wanted him to arrest her.

He stared at her trying to process what was happening. And then he couldn’t stop it. He laughed. “You are the most over-the-top woman I've ever had the pleasure of-"

"Pat me down. I could be packing heat."

"Oh, you're packing heat, all right.” He tried not to smile but failed. He hadn't felt too much true happiness in his life. Life mostly felt like business, with no time for gut-wrenching laughs and silly daydreaming beneath the glow of fireflies. Scarlet Rose had changed that the minute she'd asked him to kiss her. And she'd cemented it into his heart by coming back to Oak Stand, choosing him over a role as a bisexual hooker.

He pulled the handcuffs from his belt.

"You're going to cuff me?"

"You're dangerous," he said, clipping one cuff around her left wrist. "Besides, I thought you liked being cuffed."

"Only if they are lined with fur," she said, as he snapped the other over her right wrist. Now her hands were immobile. Exactly what he wanted. Scarlet at his mercy. His mind tripped to his thoughts after the first time he'd ticketed her, the way she'd arched over the car, tempting him, and the way he'd guiltily desired to have her under his control.

"Now I'm going to pat you down," he murmured in her ear. She shivered.

He smiled, sliding his hands down her shoulders, reaching beneath her arms to brush the undersides of her breasts. She sucked in her breath.

"Why, Officer, this feels a little inappropriate."

"Do you surrender your rights?" he asked, sliding his hands over her ribs before cupping the curve of her hips and pulling her spectacular bottom against the hardness of his body.

"Ooh, Officer, is that a nightstick or are you glad to see me?" She asked with a smile in her voice, grinding against him at the same time.

He brushed his lips against her ear and whispered, "You’ll never know how glad I am to see you."

She rested her head on his shoulder. "I think I do."

He kissed her neck and spun her so she faced him. Her eyes shimmered in the Texas sunset. He lifted her and placed her on the trunk of the car, settling himself between her knees. She looped her cuffed hands around his neck and kissed him. It was sweet as summer melon, and for the first time ever, Adam's blood didn't sing at a kiss.

His heart did.

She pulled back and looked deep into his eyes. "I think I’m falling in love with you, Adam."

He closed his eyes at those words. Then opened them. "But what about the audition? About Hollywood and that director?"

As happy as he was about her being here in his arms, so much still stood between them and a happy-ever-after.

“Well, I drove away, thinking you and I were done. That Hollywood and this role were my new beginning, my keys to happiness. But I couldn't get a flight until morning, so as I lay in the hotel room in Dallas, bawling my eyes out, it occurred to me I'd stepped out on the chance to be truly happy. To be truly loved. Not for a month or two, but forever."

"You think this is a forever kind of thing?"

“I wouldn’t be back here if I didn’t. Everything happens for a reason. You leaving Houston. Me canceling my villa on the Riviera. Oak Stand. A speeding ticket. Community service. Fate."

He slid his hands up to cup her face and kissed her tenderly. "It won't be easy."

"Nothing worthwhile ever is, but I want you. I want a shot at having something more than mere success as an actress. My career is important, but so is my heart.”

“You can have both. But that won’t be easy either.”

“But maybe it will be worth it. I will still have a career. You will still have a career. And that might mean we make concessions, that we fall asleep without each other some nights. But I want you more than I want convenience.”

He smiled. “That sounds almost rational.”

“No. It’s intentional.”

“Touché.” He paused and looked up at the fading day. “Well, guess I better go ahead and take you in.”

She laughed. "I was counting on that. Rick smoked a brisket and all this drama has me starved."

"You really didn't call in a body part, did you?" he asked, pulling her close so he could nibble on the sweetness of her neck.

"No, Roz helped me. I waited at the airport, missing three flights, hoping you'd show up to bring me back. But sometimes a gal's got to do things herself." She licked his ear, heating his blood and making him forget they were in plain sight on the side of the highway.

The blast of a horn ripped him from the perusal of the sexiest earlobe he'd ever had the pleasure of contemplating.

"Now, that's what I call po-lice harassment," Bubba yelled, pulling up parallel with them.

Normally, Adam would have been appalled at being caught necking on a county highway while in uniform. But today he felt too good holding the woman he loved in his arms to worry about it. Misconduct be damned. Scarlet tipped her head and smiled at the man in a Dallas-size diesel truck. "And he's good at it."

"When you going to sign me up for the squad, Chief? I'm seeing more benefits than dental in wearin' that uniform." Bubba grinned as he readjusted his Texas Longhorns ball cap. "Course, I already got a broad."

"Better not let Meg hear you call her that," Scarlet said, removing her hands from around Adam's neck. "We might have another code... what was it, Adam? An appendage discovered?"

"And I know which one that'd be."

Bubba laughed and then nodded toward town. "I'm headin' to Phoenix. Rick's got the smoker goin' and I don't miss them kinda meals. Y'all goin', too?"

Adam helped Scarlet from the back of the car, steadying her on the uneven gravel. "We'll be there shortly. Scarlet has broken the law and penalties have to be paid.”

She turned as red as her hair. It was the first time he'd seen her embarrassed, and something about her blush pleased him.

"Then I'll be gittin' gone." Bubba grinned. "See you later, Chief."

The truck roared away.

Scarlet held up her hands. "Are you going to let me go?"

He shook his head. "Not a chance."

"Well, in that case, can I get another pat down?"

He wrapped her in his arms, trapping her handcuffed hands between them. "I may never let you go again."

She sighed. "We've got a play to put on. But later... I never got to test out your mattress and I've got mosquito bites you can scratch, not to mention a patch of poison ivy."

"So you're staying?"

“I already talked to my agent. Let him do the dirty work. I’m available if they want me for the movie, but I’m upholding my commitment to the guys.” She nipped his neck. “And I’ll be going back to work next month. Turns out I’m great at biting people in Collinstown."

''And maybe you can think about your other job?"

"What job?"

“Being the police chief's gal?”

"Hmm. Not sure. Phone calls at night about dog poop on the square? Stolen goats? Might be too exciting for a city girl like me."

He took out his key and unlocked the cuffs binding her hands. "Then you've never seen the Saturday night poker game at Tucker House. Sometimes we have to raid and confiscate muscadine wine and laxatives. It gets wild."

They linked hands and walked to her car. "I think there is no place I'd rather be than in Oak Stand, Texas. With you."