Considering she’d be leaving soon, maybe she should provide him some assistance. “You have more money than the governor. Buy some ads.”
“I’m not spending money on ads. It’s a waste as well as an insult to hardworking people.”
“Tell the governor you aren’t interested in his niece.” Juliet narrowed her gaze. Quinn Lodge didn’t kowtow to anybody.
“Refusing the governor is a bad idea.” He stalked closer to the ladder. “His niece is Amy Nelson, a woman I briefly dated, and she wanted more. Her daddy is Jocko Nelson, and he’s more than willing to spend a fortune backing Miles Lansing for sheriff. My already dating somebody saves my butt, sweetheart.”
The last thing she wanted to talk about was his fine butt. Nor did she want to think about him dating some other woman. “I’m not your solution.”
“Besides”—he reached the bottom of the ladder and held up a hand—“aren’t you tired of dancing around this? For the last few months, we’ve danced around this.”
“That’s what responsible adults do.” She automatically took his hand to descend.
Electricity danced up her arm from his warm palm.
“Bullshit.” He helped her to the hard-tiled floor. “You feel it, too.”
Yes, she did, and the crass language actually turned her on. But he didn’t know her, and he wouldn’t like her if he did. “I’ve chosen not to act on any temporary attraction.” As a tall woman, it truly unnerved her when she needed to tilt her head back to meet his gaze. “How tall are you, anyway?”
He shrugged. “Six four, last time I checked. How about you?”
“Five ten.”
He nodded. “Petite. Very petite.”
The man was crazy. She tugged her hand free. “I’m not dating you.”
“I know. We’re pretending.” He glanced around at the many paintings on the wall. “Are these from Sophie’s new collection?”
“Yes.” The damn man already knew his sister-in-law’s paintings adorned the walls.
“Didn’t you promise her an amazing showing for the opening of your gallery?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Well, then. This is the only place to have an amazing showing, right?”
Wasn’t that just like a man to go right for the kill? Sophie was Juliet’s friend, one of her only friends, and the showing meant a lot to her. “You’re not being fair.”
He reached out and ran a finger down Juliet’s cheek, his gaze following the motion.
Heat flared from his touch, through her breasts, right down between her legs. “Stop.”
His hand dropped. “I need a pretend girlfriend. You need to keep the gallery open. This is a perfect agreement.”
Darn it. Temptation had her glancing around the spectacular space. Three rooms, all containing different types of Western art, made up the gallery. The main room already held most of the paintings created by Sophie Lodge. Rich, oil-based paintings showing life in Maverick, life on the reservation, and the wickedness of Montana weather. The showing would put both Sophie’s art and Juliet’s gallery on the Western-gallery map just like the C. M. Russell Museum in Great Falls or the National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson Hole.
She wanted on that map. Perhaps badly enough to make a deal with the sheriff. Plus, she was tired of dancing around her attraction to Quinn. Would that attraction explode or fizzle if they spent time together? Frankly, it didn’t matter. She had to leave town soon. Why not appease her curiosity? “Okay, but keep your hands to yourself.”
“But—”
“No.” She pressed her hands on her hips. The man was too dangerous, too tempting. A woman had to keep some control, or Quinn would run wild. No question. “You’re creative, and this is your idea. If we pretend to date, you keep your hands off me.”
His eyes dropped to an amused, challenging expression. He held out both hands, palms up. “Tell you what, darlin’. These hands won’t touch you until you ask nicely. Very nicely.”
“That will never happen,” she snapped.
His left eyebrow rose. “I wondered if that red hair came with a temper.” Interest darkened his eyes to midnight. “So much passion locked up in such a classy package. I thought so.” He leaned into her space. “Be careful, or I’ll make you beg.”
She almost doubled over from the spike of desire that shot through her abdomen. How many pairs of high-end panties had she gone through the last month, anyway? “Back away, Sheriff.”
He stepped back, as she’d known he would, but the knowing desire in his eyes didn’t wane. He glanced at his smartphone. “Give me your cell in case I can’t find you at the gallery.”
She shuffled her feet. A cell? Yeah, right. Even if she had the money, they were too easy to trace. “I, ah, don’t have one.”
Watchful intelligence filled his eyes as he glanced up. A cop’s eyes. “Why not?”
“I have not had time to find the right one and choose a plan.”
“Interesting.” He slipped the phone into his pocket, turned on the heel of his cowboy boot, and headed for the door. “Be ready at six tomorrow night for the Excel Foundation Fund-raiser in Billings. The drive will take us an hour.”
All tension disappeared from the room as he left. Well, except for the tension at the base of her neck from the phone being silent. It had been ringing for almost a week with nobody on the other side. Surely a bunch of kids just goofing off, but she couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling that kept her up at night. Well, when erotic images of a nude Quinn weren’t haunting her dreams.
She sagged against the ladder as she forced herself to relax. Yeah, right. Pretending to be the sheriff’s girlfriend would be anything but relaxing. What in the world had she just done?
…
The fund-raiser was located at the Billings Mountain Hotel, and the grand ballroom sparkled like something out of New York. Chandeliers lined the ceiling, and real crystal decorated the tables.
Juliet willed her nerves to stop jumping.
Just inside the main doors, Sophie Lodge grinned and looked her up and down. “You are gorgeous. Now stop being a chicken. I let you drive in with me earlier so you could avoid Quinn, but your time is up.”
Juliet smiled to keep from frowning at her friend. “First of all, we needed to come to the city to choose the music for your showing next month. Then, apparently, you needed to shop like you’d won the lottery.” It had been fun to shop with a friend again. Although her life had been odd, at one time, she’d had friends she’d enjoyed shopping with. Cool, cultured friends who minded their own business.
Not Sophie. Nobody in the town of Mineral Lake minded their own business. Shopping with Sophie had been more like an inquisition into Juliet’s feelings for Quinn.
Sophie flipped her wispy, blond hair over her shoulder. The mass framed her pixie face perfectly. “The menu we chose from the caterer was ideal, too.”
Yes, it was. Unfortunately, the deposit for the food included the last dime Juliet owned. Now she had to go through with the sheriff’s charade no matter what. It was way too late to turn back.
Sophie teetered on her heels. “It was nice of the hotel to let us change in one of the guest rooms.”
The hair prickled on the back of Juliet’s neck. Was somebody watching her? She cased the room, and too many shadows slithered around the corners.
“I really like your dress,” Sophie continued chattering.
For goodness’ sake. Juliet needed to get a grip. Nobody was watching her. She glanced down at the sparkling green dress she’d brought when she moved to Montana. “I think I should’ve worn basic black.”
“Why?” Sophie smoothed her hands over the blue fabric hugging her hips and the very slight baby bump. She’d wanted a fun pregnancy dress, but at only two months pregnant, everything had been too big. Her dress had spaghetti straps, a cinched waist, and great lines. “We work hard and deserve a break. Every woman should sparkle.”