Champagne and Lemon Drops: A Blueberry Springs Chick Lit Contemporary Romance (9 page)

Nash laughed and slung an arm around Beth's
shoulder, steering her into the ice-cream shop. Beth blushed as a
few people she knew looked the two of them over, their gaze
lingering on Nash's arm.

He dropped his arm off her shoulder and
opened the fridge by the shop's entrance, saying, "I'm not the
country bumpkin lovin' type. And besides, I'm not going to start
anything serious until I'm back in Dakota." He waved a Coke bottle
in her direction. "Drink?"

She nodded. "Please." She let out a relieved
sigh. If she didn't want a city man and he didn't want a country
bumpkin they would remain perfect, platonic friends. Which was
great because she'd come to rely on his shoulder to cry and laugh
on when she had a tough day or simply wanted someone to sit with in
the cafeteria.

"So, you're going to put your whole life on
hold?" she asked Nash, lightly touching his forearm. "Because
having your life on hold sucks the big one."

"Well," he paused, considering her comment,
"nothing in life is guaranteed. I've seen how fast things can
change in a person's life." He glanced at her and said, "My life's
not on hold, but my focus is on my career." He continued, "I need
to gain as much experience as I can so I can leverage it when I
return to Dakota. I'm planning to move into administration."

"Why?" She frowned. "You'll never get to
work with patients." From what she'd seen and heard, Nash had
talent combined with great instincts.

"It's the next step up the ladder. You
should really consider finding more ways to move up with your own
career. You don't want to stagnate."

Beth frowned at his
suggestion. "Yeah, maybe." Moving up the ladder was exhausting.
Despite the thrill of organizing her own outreach program, she
couldn't imagine doing this extra work
all
the time. She missed having her
whole weekend to chill out and relax like she used to do with Oz.
Today was the first full day off she'd taken since the info session
back in March and next week she opened the outreach, meaning her
life was suddenly going to kick into high gear.

"The experience I'm getting here is great.
There aren't any specialists so I get to dabble in a lot of areas
before sending patients to Dakota."

"But wouldn't you miss working with
patients? I can't see admin being a heart job."

Nash shrugged.

"But what about all those years of med
school? I mean... you've got talent. You won't get to use that in
an office."

"Wouldn't be wasted. Good doctors make good
administrators. Usually." He smiled down at her. "But not always.
It is important to have someone in the position who understands
what it's like on the floor." He placed a hand lightly on her lower
back and directed them to the cash register where a few people were
lined up buying cones.

Nash tilted his head toward the row of
farmers and town folk drinking coffee out of plain white cups at
the beverage bar at the back of the shop. "Think I should get some
local head gear?"

Beth glanced at Nash's perfect hair, barely
mussed by the sunglasses perched on top of his head. All the men at
the bar wore caps, even though they were indoors. "Where are your
manners?" she called out to them.

Hats popped off in unison as the men
realized she was speaking to them.

Grinning, she shook her head and waggled her
finger at the men. A few smiled sheepishly while Nash stared at her
with a mix of mock fear and true awe. Laughing, she reached over to
the nearby hat rack and dusted off a cap that had been there for
ages. "How about this?" She turned it to face him.

"Chevy?" he asked with distain. He spun the
wobbly rack. "Is there one that says BMW?"

"Careful now!" she whispered. She glanced
around the busy shop like he'd said something offensive. The man
seriously needed to learn what was cool and what wasn't in a small
town. "If you want to fit in, it's either this one, or this one, or
this one." She added a green John Deere cap and a blue Ford hat to
her collection.

Nash grimaced. "Maybe I can be an uprooted
city boy a while longer?"

"Well, then how about this?" She held up a
hat advertising fertilizer, and snatching Nash's sunglasses, popped
it on his head.

"Don't you let him go paying good money for
that hat, Beth," said a man joining the line behind them. "I can
get you one for free at the elevator. Got a whole box of 'em behind
my desk. Ranchers don't want 'em. They just want their feed.

"Thanks, Alvin." Beth gave him a grin and
set the hats back in the rack. "Sounds like you're set, City
Boy."

Nash tried to smile and moved up to the
counter to make their purchases. "The elevator?" he asked in an
undertone.

"Grain elevator," she whispered back.

"What the hell? There's farming out here
too?"

"Not much. It's turned to ranching. The
elevator is more of a feed mill now." She made a face, hoping he
wouldn't bring it up any louder. The way ranching had taken over
was still a sore spot with some.

"So... this is your new man. I've been
hearing about him all over town." Alvin eyed up Nash.

"Nash and I
work
together, Alvin."
She turned to introduce them. "This is Dr. Leham."

Alvin leaned back, sizing up Nash who was
paying for their drinks. "Thought you and Oz were getting married."
His eyes lingered on her bare finger. "That's what my old lady was
telling me when you were running that playground bake sale all
those months ago."

"Oz is taking some time, that's all." She
turned her shoulder, trying to politely end the conversation.

"I s'pose he's got some business to attend
to with his old man leaving him the business." He shook his head to
and fro. "Sad to see Barney retire so young, but heart attacks can
be real life changers." He looked up, meeting Beth's eye. "Oz needs
a good woman by his side while he works on filling some mighty big
shoes."

"I know." Beth bit the insides of her cheeks
and calmed her breathing, hoping to quell the humiliation and rage
brewing within her, ready to spew forth like lava.

"I heard he's been losing clients."

"He's contracted some to Ed," she managed in
a tight voice. "He has a big workload."

Nash gently took Beth's elbow. "Shall we?"
he asked.

Beth nodded and Alvin stepped up to the
counter, his gaze still on Beth and Nash. "Send Oz my regards," he
said as they made their way to the door. Beth stiffened but kept
walking.

On the street Nash let out a breath and
said, "Wow. That was hardcore." He dropped her elbow and turned to
face her. "You okay?"

She pushed past him, her thoughts streaming
through her head like an old VCR stuck on fast forward. How could
Oz put her in this humiliating position? Why couldn't he just get
back together with her or dump her outright? Limbo was like hell
and all its subsidiaries all rolled into one.

Nash snatched her elbow when he caught up.
"Whoa. Slow down."

Beth stopped on the street corner and forced
herself to calm down and slow her breathing. "Why can't he just
figure out what he wants and either marry me or dump me?" Her eyes
filled with tears and she sagged against Nash when he put an arm
around her for support. He brought her close against his chest in a
one-armed hug.

"Sorry." He released her. "I hope hanging
out with me isn't making things tougher." He gave her a sympathetic
look. "Do you want me to head out?"

"No." She swiped at her tears and
straightened her spine. "Fuck them and the horse they rode in
on."

Nash let out a laugh. "Whoa! What do you
have against horses?"

She laughed and tried to shake off her
mood.

He opened a bottle of Coke and handed it to
her before opening the second bottle. They took a swig and watched
each other. Feeling self-conscious, Beth began walking, allowing
Nash to fall into step beside her. His shoulder bumped against hers
as they walked and before long she found herself nudged up against
the buildings to her left. He was a nice guy, but city folks must
be used to having less personal space. Every time she looked over
at him he was right up against her like he was trying to avoid
being separated from her in the nonexistent crowds.

Nash rested a hand on her lower back as they
stepped off the curb to cross the street. Beth forced herself to
relax and enjoy having a man looking out for her. Holding doors.
Buying her a drink. Standing close.

Nash stopped to point out a fancy coffee
maker in the hardware store's window. "That's nice."

Beth dropped her empty bottle in a recycle
bin. "That looks a bit over the top," Beth said, coming over to
look. "Seriously. That thing looks like it could send monkeys to
the moon."

Nash let out a bark of laughter and slung an
easy arm over her shoulder. "I've been looking for an espresso
maker like this. It makes everything you could ever want."

"Does it make black coffee?"

Nash chuckled. "You'll never want black
coffee again."

Beth gave him a skeptical frown and slipped
out of his embrace and continued walking. "Want to check out the
museum?" she asked, walking backward as he caught up. "It has some
interesting old farming and ranching stuff. Some of the meadows
used to be farmland. There's also some old expedition equipment and
mining stuff. This mountain town has been a bit of everything."

Nash's eyebrows perked in interest. "I like
museums." He guided her through a line of people piling into a hay
wagon to take them to the exhibition grounds for the tractor
pull.

"Or we could go to the tractor pull," Beth
said as they passed the wagon. Tucking a tendril behind her ear,
she tightened her ponytail. She hooked her arm through his and
pulled him through the crowd, trying not to care who saw them and
what they thought. "There's also going to be a logging
competition."

"Actually," Nash said when they reached the
other side of the crowd, "how about we grab a bite to eat?"

"Okay."

"Shall we clean up and meet somewhere for
dinner?"

Beth glanced at her outfit, then at Nash's.
"What's wrong with what we're wearing?"

Nash gave her a blank stare before blinking
a few times. "I was thinking it might be nice to go out for a real
dinner."

Beth stopped short, panic racing through
her. "Like... a date?" A formal date was not safe. It was not
innocent. It was not above board. She had been certain he knew they
were only friends.

Nash met her eyes with his calm, blue seas.
"Sure. If you'd like."

"Well..." She looked down the street.

"Nothing official," he said. "I know you and
Oz are on a break and you're not single. I'm thinking, sort of like
friends on a date. I don't want to get involved with anyone. And
you're waiting for Oz. We're both lonely and bored. We could use a
treat, and it sucks treating yourself alone. What do you say?"

"Yes," she blurted. She grew dizzy with
visions of Oz morphing into a primal alpha male who would charge in
and carry her off to his den when he saw the competition closing
in. Happily ever after, here we come.

***

Beth entered the restaurant, still dressed
as she was for Sports Day. Glancing around the bustling place she
said to Nash, "It's a good thing we came early. It's going to be
packed by six."

Nash nodded, his face
lighting up in recognition and delight. "Mandy! You work
here
, as well?" He gave a
laugh. "I never pegged you as a workaholic."

He gave her the kind of smile that made Beth
want to blurt out that she took work home, too. Even though she
never had until she met Nash and began working on an outreach
program. In fact, it had never even occurred to her before
then.

Mandy grinned at Nash, her Lusciously Pink
lipstick making her already full lips tantalizing kissable. She
clutched the plastic menus to her chest in a way that made her
breasts lift higher, exposing more cleavage. Beth had to admit, if
she was a guy looking for a hot number, Mandy would be the first
girl she'd hit upon. But she wasn't and the urge to slap Mandy was
unreal.

"Just started my shift," Mandy said as she
waggled closer to Nash, eyes never leaving him. "Can't miss the
busiest night of the year." She let her shoulder bump into his. "I
like to satiate men whether it's with ice cream or something
else."

Nash smiled back and said, "Table for two,
please."

"You two are together?" Mandy asked, raising
an eyebrow at Beth as though she couldn't possibly imagine someone
like Nash with someone like Beth.

Beth smiled and linked an arm through
Nash's. "Yep. We're moving up from cafeteria food. We intend to
write a book on the best...," she raised an eyebrow at Mandy, "and
worst dining establishments in the area."

Nash let out a chuckle and patted Beth's
hand. "Will you rate the restrooms? I hear that's often missing
from eating guides."

Mandy's mouth tightened and she said
crisply, "Follow me," and strode away.

"Next time we'll have to go to Dakota," Nash
said, ushering Beth with a hand resting lightly on her back.
"McKenzie's has amazing crème brûlée. Although, that might be out
of our book's range. Maybe we'll have to go just for fun."

Beth laughed, wondering why she felt so
jittery and nervous. Like this was a real date and impressions were
being made as to whether they'd be suitable mates. A blush seeped
over her cheeks at the thought of Nash as more than a friend and
wearing less than his shorts and t-shirt.

"What do you think?" he asked quietly,
leaning in to speak in her ear.

She gave herself a shake, removing the
thoughts from her mind. They were strictly friends dining together
with a possible added benefit of showing her fiancé that she was
something he missed. "I've heard good things about the place."