Miss Firecracker by Lorelei James Page B

garage.
    You’re a big girl. Not a Daddy’s girl. You’re entitled to put a big ol’ she-rocked-my-world smile on any man’s face.
    Paul parked his rig next to hers but didn’t bother to get out. “Hey, Will.”
    “Hey, Paul. What’s up?”
    “I haven’t seen you around for a day or so. When I saw your truck out here, I thought I’d check and see if everything is okay, bein’s your dad is out of town.”
    “Everything’s fine.”
    Paul’s gaze flickered between Willow and Blake.
    She could see Paul sizing up the situation and her first thought was to run interference. “Paul, this is Blake West. Blake, Paul Shulman.”
    Blake walked over so he could shake Paul’s hand through the pickup window. “Nice to meetcha, Paul.”
    “Same goes. So, Blake. What brings you to Broward?”
    “Blake is filling in for Dave at LeRoy’s Tavern.”
    Blake sent her a why-are-you-speaking-for-me look.
    “A bartender, huh?”
    “Yep.”
    “You planning to stick around these parts? Or is this temporary?”
    Blake said, “It depends,” at the same time Willow said, “Temporary.”
    “He’s headed back to Sundance when Dave returns,” Willow said in a rush. Shoot. She’d done it again.
    “You tend bar in Wyoming?”
    “Yeah.” Blake’s eyes shot daggers at Willow daring her to contradict him.
    “Whereabouts in Wyoming?”
    “Sundance.”
    “Beautiful country. I suppose there’s always a need for bartenders.”
    Blake shrugged. “There are worse things.”
    Paul pointed to the open tailgate and the buckets in Willow’s truck bed. “Whatcha got there?”
    “Oh nothing.” She slammed the tailgate shut, hoping to hide her overnight bag from Paul’s prying eyes. “Just a fix-up I’m doing at LeRoy’s to help Blake out. No big deal.”
    But by the way Paul’s eyes narrowed, it’d become a big deal. “Since when do you hang out at LeRoy’s?”
    Was she supposed to confess she’d gone on a drunken rampage she didn’t remember and trashed the place? Before Willow considered the implications, she looked at Blake instead of answering. When she realized what she’d done, it was too late.
    Paul smiled, which scared Willow far worse than Paul’s scheming expression. “I won’t keep you from exercising your helpful nature, Will. When did your dad say he’d be back?”
    That big jerk. Paul knew exactly when her father planned to return. “Tuesday.”
    “Yeah, I believe you’re right.” He nodded at Blake. “Good meeting you. Take care. You need anything, holler.”
    “Thanks.”
    She didn’t say a word until Paul’s truck was gone.
    “Interesting friend you have there,” Blake said. He shoved her duffel bag beneath the toolbox.
    “He’s not my friend; he’s my employee.”
    “At any rate, word’s gonna get around town about you bein’ out with me.”
    “Does that bother you?”
    “No.” He paused. “But I’m pretty sure it bothers you.”
    Before she could protest, he’d climbed into the truck and slammed the door.
    Halfway into town, Willow decided enough with the silence. “Look, Blake—”
    “No need to explain. In fact, I wish you wouldn’t.” He directed his sigh out the window. “I understand. And believe it or not, I’m used to it.”
    Darn it. She didn’t want his easy acceptance. She wanted his anger. Maybe even a hint of his possessiveness. She wanted to know where she stood with him.
    With the standoffish way he’s acting, you already know.
    Willow just didn’t know what to do about it.

    Another slow afternoon in the bar business.
    She and Blake hadn’t spoken much. If he wasn’t busy restocking or handling phone calls, he was in the office doing paperwork.
    Right. He was avoiding her.
    Do you blame him?
    No. But this was the perfect example of why she hadn’t had a steady boyfriend since she’d been away at Vo-tech. This male/female sex thing seemed harder as she got older, not easier.
    She spent her days surrounded by men, but she couldn’t get a date to