Kate batted her eyes at him once. “I’m not going to wear any underwear.”
Jake looked at her for a moment and then pulled his hat back over his face. “Me neither,” he said.
Wednesday night, things were always slow, Nancy told her. They used the time to clean and restock, talking and laughing together about disastrous dates past and future, and she gradually forgot to feel guilty about Rick. The bar was quiet with the low murmur of voices and the faint click of the balls from the pool table. As the time drew close to ten and all but the regulars had filtered out, Kate looked around and realized she knew everyone in the room by name.
She leaned on the bar and smiled at them all. Nancy, Jake, Will, Ben, Thelma, Henry, Early. Friends. Her eyes swept again to the back of the room where Jake was playing pool with Ben. He always looked taller and broader from the back. He was so easygoing and he always seemed to be just a minute away from laughing, and she’d look at his face and forget he was so big. But he was.
Then he bent over to make a shot, and his jeans stretched tight across his rear end. Nice rear end. She remembered how warm he’d been on top of her. If he were anybody but Jake…
“Don’t lean over the counter like that. You’re giving Rollie Beamis a heart attack,” Nancy said.
“I love it.” Kate turned around. “I know it’s unliberated of me, but I love being a hot blonde in a low-cut top. I especially love it because I’m thirty-five. I figured sexual magnetism had passed me by, and now here it comes when I least expected it.”
“I don’t see why it’s unliberated,” Nancy said.
“I think the idea is to use your mind for power, not your body.”
“Why? Men use their bodies to intimidate people every day.”
“I don’t think it’s the same thing.”
“Honey, use what the good Lord gave you, and since he did give you plenty, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t give others the pleasure of the scenery. Besides, the profits are up considerably since you started bending over the tables.”
“Well, hell, let’s shorten our skirts, then.” Kate grinned at her.
“Is that part of this plan?” Nancy said, pulling Kate’s notes out from under the bar.
“No,” Kate said. “This plan is boring and practical. For instance, did you ever think about buying your liquor in bulk with Will up at the hotel?”
“No,” Nancy said. “Why should I?”
“Major savings,” Kate said. “Look…” She pulled her notes around and showed Nancy her figures.
“Where’d you get these numbers?” Nancy asked.
“From Will.” Kate jerked her thumb toward the back of the bar where Will was sitting. “He’s enthusiastic about the idea. And he said there’s no problem with storing your overstock up there.”
“You talked about this with him?”
“Shouldn’t I have?” Kate looked uneasy. “He had the numbers. It’s just a suggestion.”
“No,” Nancy said. “No, it’s great. I’m just not used to having somebody else doing things about my bar.”
“I didn’t do anything,” Kate said. “I just asked him.”
“Kate, it’s all right. In fact, it’s great,” Nancy smiled at her. “In fact, it’s more than great, it’s wonderful. It’s just that I’ve done everything by myself for so long, I was surprised.”
“Well, you’re going to do this by yourself, too,” Kate said, turning to the back of the bar. “Let me get Will, and you can work this out.”
“No, wait.” Nancy caught her arm. “Show me the rest of the stuff you’ve cooked up first.”
They bent over the plans again.
Half an hour later, Nancy leaned on the bar and said, “This is amazing.”
“Well, if you like that, look at this,” Kate said, and pulled out her master plan. “If you doubled the size of the bar, put in a stage and dance area, and added another twenty tables, you could handle the hotel overflow crowd. Your profits should-”
“Wait a minute,” Nancy said, laughing. “Where would I get that kind of money? And how could I manage that big a place?”
Kate sighed. “I had a feeling you’d say that. I have this tendency to look at the bottom line and see profits first.” She smiled. “I may have caught Will’s employ-the-universe disease, too. This would create a few more jobs around here, give local bands some exposure, and bring more people down into town to see the shops. I just never stopped to think that it would also make life a lot more complex for you.”
“Let me see that plan again,” Nancy said.
Kate handed it over and shook her head. “You’re right. You couldn’t do it alone.” She hesitated. “Do you suppose maybe Ben might help you manage the bar?”
“Only over my dead body,” Nancy said absentmindedly while she studied Kate’s notes. “One of the reasons we’ve been married for twenty years is that he has his life and I have mine. Twenty-four hours of togetherness would break us up in no time. And besides, I like running this place by myself. I don’t need anybody else in here confusing me.”
“Oh,” Kate said. “Well, it was just a thought. I’ll go get Will and you can talk over the liquor problem.”
“You know, if I had the money for this…” Nancy began, but Kate was already gone.
At ten-thirty, Nancy called last drinks, and Kate dropped her tray on the bar.
“My feet are killing me,” she said.
“Well, if you hadn’t spent the morning hiking…” Nancy began.
“Is there anything that escapes this town?” Kate asked.
“Nope,” Nancy said. “Who’s on the schedule for tomorrow?”
“No one.” Kate shook her head. “I’ve maimed enough hotel guests. I’m retiring. Besides, watching you and Ben has spoiled me. I’m holding out for love, and I don’t think that comes with my plan.” She leaned her back against the bar. “Although I’ve got to admit, I love being a local sex symbol. I can flirt with everybody and not get in trouble.”
“Don’t push your luck too far,” Nancy said, grinning at her. “Men are only human.”
“Oh, I’m careful who I flirt with.” Kate smiled confidently. “I know who’s safe.”
Nancy shook her head.
“You floozies work here, or are you just holding up the bar?”
Kate turned and found Jake with his arms crossed, leaning on the bar behind her. “I don’t mean to interrupt, but we’ve been signaling for beer for quite a while back there.”
A lock of dark hair had fallen over his eyes, and his grin was warm and familiar, rakish under his mustache. He was so cute. Her buddy. She crossed her arms and leaned on the bar to mimic him, leaning over until her nose was an inch from his and their hats touched. “Maybe you just weren’t sending the right signals, sugar,” she drawled.
Jake looked at her, startled.
Then Kate saw his eyes darken and noticed the sudden heat that was there. She flushed and he smiled.
“I’ll tell you what,” he said, his voice low and husky. “You tell me the right signals, and I’ll send them.”
She went hot and then cold and then hot again, and his smile widened.
“Two beers, Nancy,” he said without taking his eyes off Kate. “And hurry it up. I’ve been waiting a long time.”
When he’d gone, Nancy said, “Do you want me to pour some ice water over your head?” When Kate didn’t say anything, she added, “I warned you to be careful.”
“What happened there?” Kate tried to breathe. “I feel like I just got hit by a truck.”
“And about time, too. The past couple of days here, most people in the bar have been wishing the two of you would just sleep with each other and get it over with. The sexual tension is kind of getting to all of us.”
“What sexual tension?” Kate asked. “We’re friends.”
“The sexual tension that just plastered you all over the bar,” Nancy said.
Kate carefully didn’t look back at Jake for fear her knees would go. God, she’d been stupid. “Am I the last to know?”
“Pretty much, although Jake ran you a close second. He’s been so careful about women for so many years, and then you sneak up and poleax him from behind. I can’t tell you how we’ve enjoyed it.”