Evidence of Trust by Stacey Joy Netzel Page B

poked his chest. “Don’t flatter yourself. All you’ve proven is that you can kiss halfway decent. Any guy can do that.”
    She spun around and left him standing alone on the dance floor whether it was rude or not.
    Back at the table, she noted the dark look Kelly Stevens cast her way, and rolled her eyes at the raised eyebrows her ranger buddy Randy Gifford tossed over from a neighboring table. Sitting with her back to the wall, she snatched up her soda and willed her pulse back to normal.
    Kiss halfway decent? Major understatement.
    The chemistry she felt when near the man—hell, just when she thought of him—was stuff she’d only read about in her favorite romance novels. She’d certainly never felt it with Daniel—had in fact told herself writers made it up for a good, hot read.
    Then bam! A couple kisses from Joel Morgan, and she knew the true meaning of desire. And he knew it, damn it. Too bad she couldn’t just have some fun and be done with him. Looking around, she knew there were plenty of people who had relationships based on nothing more than the physical. Mitch. The redhead Lindsey. Undoubtedly Kelly. Why not her?
    She left the table and sidled up to the bar where Gina and Billy were doing their best to talk as he flipped bottles and mixed drinks. He was so much faster than the other two bartenders, he’d gained a considerable audience along the length of the bar.
    The guy to her right offered his stool, and she accepted with a smile of thanks before turning to Billy. “You’ve upped your game,” she called over the noise.
    “I can say the same for you,” he hollered back. “What are you drinkin’?”
    “Same as always. Juice or soda, whatever you've got.”
    He passed off a tray of drinks, exchanged glances with Gina, and reached for a glass from beneath the counter. “Just thought I’d ask.”
    “In the years you’ve known me, have I ever ordered alcohol?”
    “We’ve never seen you kiss anyone like that, either,” Gina said. “But it seems there’s a first time for everything.”
    As her friend sipped her drink and raised her eyebrows, heat flooded Britt’s face, then spread throughout her body. It made the warmth of the crowded bar so uncomfortable, she had to resist the urge to fan herself with her hand.
    Billy set a glass of orange juice in front of her, then folded his arms on the bar and leaned close. “So, what’s the scoop, Ms. Flirty Skirt?”
    “You make it sound like I’m a tease.”
    “Well you are. A horrible tease.”
    “I am not.” Then, despite his joking tone, she leaned back and frowned at both of them. “Am I?”
    “No,” he said. “But seriously, what’s the deal with Morgan? You haven’t dated since you and Randy struck out that first summer.”
    “He’s completely conceited and stuck on himself. Joel, not Randy.”
    “No way. Of all the ‘pretty-boy’ rangers, that guy is the most down to earth I’ve met.”
    “Put on a dress and you’ll see.”
    Gina grinned as Billy straightened and swiped a rag across the bar to wipe up stray drops of alcohol.
    “Ha! I don’t think he’d be attracted to my hairy legs.” He leaned to the side to listen to a drink order, then started pouring and talking again. His voice rose as the band began a new song. “He seems like a nice guy to me. You know how small Estes gets in the winter, without the tourists? News of his arrival spread like wildfire, and not only because of his job. I’ve seen him here at the bar a few times, and he doesn’t strike me as a conceited womanizer.”
    She slapped her palm on the gleaming surface in front of her. Grimacing at the sting, she said, “My point is, because of his looks, he doesn’t have to chase them—they come to him. Jerk thinks he’s God’s gift to women.”
    In the dim light, Gina rose up on her stool, craning her neck in the direction Britt knew Joel was. “He is really good-looking.”
    She reached over and yanked on her friend’s arm to sit her back