Golden Trail by Kristen Ashley

his
laughter but he did it by asking, “Sweetcheeks, if you can’t even
talk about it, tell me again how were you gonna pull off this grand
scheme of yours?”
    “Shut up, Layne,” she whispered irately and
he knew he had her.
    “Just sayin’,” he whispered back, smiling at
her.
    Finally remembering where she was, her hands
put more pressure on his chest.
    “Get off me,” she demanded.
    “Sure,” he replied, “Once I know we got a
deal.”
    “Well yes, now that you’ve pointed out how
gross it would be to… whatever, then obviously your plan is better
than my plan so fine,” she bit out that last word, “we’ve got a
deal.”
    “Good, then you’re comin’ over for dinner
tonight.”
    He had no idea he was going to say it until
he said it but once he’d said it he liked the idea. Maybe too
much.
    “What?” she whispered.
    Layne looked at her and, fuck him, it was
out there so he had to go with it.
    “You’re comin’ over for dinner tonight,” he
repeated.
    “But… why?”
    “’Cause they might be tailing me, watchin’
me.” That was a lie. They weren’t. He’d know. They thought he’d
backed off, taking three bullets had a way of doing that with most
men. Layne, however, wasn’t most men. But the look on her face made
him know she bought it, she didn’t like it and she was even scared
of it which made him feel guilt but he had no choice but to use it.
“And ‘cause I owe you a dinner.”
    “You owe me a dinner?”
    “You fed me and my boys last night,
sweetcheeks.”
    “But –”
    “Though you aren’t getting leg of lamb.
Probably Hamburger Helper.”
    “Hamburger Helper?” she repeated on a
breath. She wasn’t keeping up, finally he had her off guard and he
needed to use that too.
    So he went on. “And you’re goin’ to the game
with me tomorrow.”
    She blinked and kept using that breathy
voice. “I’m going to the game with you tomorrow?”
    “Yeah,” he replied. “Though, Rocky, you
gotta know I hang with the boys and I watch my sons play ball so
you’ll have to hang with the boys too.” He smiled at her. “Gotta
say, though, I figure they won’t mind.”
    “But… um… everyone in town goes to the
game.”
    “Yeah,” he agreed.
    “So that means everyone will see us,” she
informed him.
    “Sweetcheeks, Sully saw us, Colt saw us,
half a dozen other people saw us and Betsy was at the reception
desk when we walked out hand in hand. She was probably on the phone
with one of her kids or grandkids before the doors even closed. You
don’t think that shit’s not already flyin’ through the ‘burg?”
    Her face got even paler and her eyes grew
unfocused in a way that didn’t sit right with Layne.
    When she didn’t speak and her eyes stayed
distant, he called, “Roc?”
    Her eyes focused on his and she whispered
one word.
    “Jarrod.”
    He felt something sweep through him, an
emotion that he didn’t quite get, but one he liked, and it rushed
through him strong, leaving a golden trail.
    “Bonus, baby,” he whispered and he felt her
body relax beneath him.
    “You know,” she said softly.
    She meant about Astley’s new piece.
    “I know,” he confirmed.
    “Even if he’s got… even with her there, he
won’t like this, Layne,” she informed him.
    “Good,” he replied without hesitation.
    She started to look uncomfortable and her
body tensed. “Layne –”
    “The whole town’s gonna know.”
    He thought she’d like that, getting her own
back against her asshole husband, getting in his face by moving on,
publicly, to an old flame after only two months separation.
    “But –”
    “You done with him?” Layne asked and her
face grew sharp.
    “Obviously.” Her voice was sharp too.
    “Then what do you care?”
    Her eyes narrowed. “What about Jasper,
Tripp… Gabrielle?”
    Shit.
    He hadn’t thought of that.
    He looked over head.
    “Layne,” she called and he looked back at
her.
    “The boys’ll be in on it.”
    Her body went so solid,