Some Like It Hot (Sweetrock Cowboy Romance Book 1) (2 page)

“I know, but maybe you could start your restaurant here.”

Sam’s heart twisted at the needy edge in Tessa’s voice. Though they’d not been able to see each other very much in the five years since college, they’d stayed close with phone calls and texts. Still, it wasn’t the same as actually being there. When things had gone bad for Sam, she’d called the one person she’d known she could count on—Tessa.

Just as Sam had helped Tessa when she was at her lowest after a big breakup in college, Tessa was now helping Sam. She was the one who had suggested the contest which would get her enough seed money to get back on her feet. And meanwhile, Tessa was putting her up at her place—a small house on the edge of her family’s ranch. Good friends like Tessa were hard to find.

But she couldn’t start over here in Sweetrock, could she? No, the city life suited her. Besides she was opening a bistro that would be more suited to Boston, not urban Montana. And she had all her Boston friends to get back to…didn’t she?

Sam’s brows tugged together as she realized she’d lost most of her friends along with her job. She still had her family back east, though. Not that they were that close…but family was important to her.

“My parents are expecting me to start it back there…”

“You still haven’t told them yet, have you?” Tessa asked.

Sam looked away and focused on putting the chopped sirloin in the small fridge that had been provided to her. Tell her parents she was a failure? No way. They wouldn’t understand.

Failing was not an option in the Dunn household. To her parents, everything was about careful planning and organization. And people who planned and organized did not get fired, no matter whether it was their fault or not.

Images of the jealous head chef, Lizette came to mind and she slammed the door of the small fridge closed.

It wasn't fair that she'd gotten fired in the first place. She'd been practically running that restaurant as well as cooking in it. But her combined skills were a threat to Lizette. Those skills made Sam more valuable which was why she’d always suspected Lizette had done something to get her fired.

To add fuel to the fire, Sam's boyfriend, Eddie, had broken up with her to date Lizette the year before. So, Lizette had two reasons to want Sam out of the way. She'd probably hoped Sam would leave town and there'd be no chance of her stealing Eddie back.

Not that Sam wanted Eddie back. She'd gotten over him pretty quick. But she'd really liked the job. That was one of the reason's she'd stayed in Boston after the break-up. She wasn't going to let something stupid like that run her out of the only place she'd been able to put down roots, shallow as they were. Even if she did end up having to work with the sultry blonde that had caused it.

Sam placed her palms on the table and leaned across it toward Tessa who stood on the opposite side.

“You know how my parents are. I can’t tell them I got fired from my job.” She lowered her voice, whispering the last three words. “I just need this one little break. I know I can make a go of a new restaurant, and they’ll never need to know about that.”

Tessa hefted the last grocery bag up onto the table and pushed a damp red curl off her forehead. “Well, I just hope this works out for you. Let’s get these things put away. You need a break. You’ve been working hard to set this up. It’s a billion degrees out, and I have just the thing that will help us blow off some steam and relax.”

Sam raised a skeptical brow. Tessa had that look in her eye—the one that told Sam she was up to something. Something Sam probably wouldn’t like. Unfortunately, the look also meant that Tessa wouldn’t take no for an answer.

Oh, well, blowing off some steam might be fun. She could use a break to clear her head before the contest opened tomorrow. Looking around, she could see the other contestants preparing their booths for the big day. She didn’t know how many people she was competing against in the chili contest, but it didn’t matter. She had an edge. A secret weapon.

Opening her purse, she pulled out a yellowed and worn piece of paper which was protected in a plastic sleeve. Feathery writing in faded ink scrawled across it. Her grandmother’s spicy chili recipe. Gram had won chili contests all over the west with that recipe and Sam just knew it was going to help her win this one. She’d be a shoe-in as long as she kept her focus.

Feeling more positive about her chances of success, she shoved the recipe back into the zipper compartment in her purse. She didn’t dare take her eyes off it for fear it would fall into the wrong hands.

They finished putting things away and left the booth. Her eyes drifted over to the tent across the aisle as they walked away. Nick was still there. He looked up, catching her eye. Then a slow, lazy smile spread across his face, and he inclined his head toward her, setting her heartbeat galloping in her chest.

What was wrong with her?

She turned abruptly and jogged after Tessa, who had gotten several paces ahead. She’d have to make an effort to keep her eyes out of Nick Bradford’s booth. She wasn’t about to let any charming cowboy distract her from making the best chili in Sweetrock.

Her future depended on it.

“
Y
ou’re not wearing
that
, are you?” Tessa stood in the door frame, her brows pulled into a tight frown as she appraised Sam’s outfit.

“What? Isn’t this nice enough?” Sam hadn’t expected to go out clubbing while she was in Montana and she hadn’t brought any of her usual outfits. Most of her clothing was in storage back in Boston along with a few personal items she’d packed from her apartment when she’d been forced to move out. But she had managed to cobble together what she thought was a respectable outfit. She knew Montana’s bars wouldn’t be as sophisticated as the places she was used to in Boston, but she thought her slim A-line black skirt, cream-colored silk blouse, and three-inch stilettos would suffice.

“No. No.” Tessa shook her head and darted over to the closet pulling out fringed vests, gingham shirts and denim, denim and more denim as Sam watched in horror. The country look was perfect for petite Tessa with her voluptuous curves and mass of curly red hair. But Sam couldn’t pull it off. Her looks called for something more…simple.

“I don’t think these would fit me.” Sam hoped that would be a good enough excuse.

Tessa leaned back to look her up and down. “Have you gained weight since college?”

Sam shrugged. “Maybe just a few pounds…”

“Good. Me, too. These should fit perfectly.” Tessa slid a denim skirt out of the pile and paired it with a yellow checked shirt that had flap pockets in the front with embroidered daisies on them. She pulled Sam over to the mirror then held the outfit up in front of her.

Sam blanched. She looked like a rodeo clown, and she was pretty sure the flap pockets and daisies would only serve to draw attention to her ample breasts—something she always tried to play down when dressing.

“Maybe something a little less ostentatious,” she suggested.

Tessa shot her a look. “Are you saying my clothing choices are ostentatious? This is the kind of stuff we wear out here. We’re in cowboy country.”

How could Sam forget? Her thoughts flicked to the cowboy, Nick, she’d met earlier.

Why was she still thinking of him?

Sam had only had a few serious relationships in her twenty-seven years, but they never seemed to last long. Much like her childhood residences, never hanging around in one place for too long, her boyfriends never seemed to want to hang around for long either. Which was fine with her. Sam didn’t need anybody to complete her. She could count the dates she’d had in the past year on one hand.

The men in Boston had been different than Nick and Cash. Back east, they wore Armani suits and smelled of flowery cologne. But Nick had been different. Rugged. Manly. She had to admit there was a certain attraction to the cowboy type. Maybe that’s why Tessa had wanted to move back here so badly.

Her eyes fell on a plain white scoop neck tee-shirt with a thin line of denim piping around the collar and the edge of the cap sleeves. It was simple. More her style.

“How about this?” She held it up, pairing it with the denim skirt. The blue around the neck made her gray eyes pop, and Tessa smiled her approval.

“Okay, but there’s one more thing you need for the outfit.”

Tessa bent down and rummaged at the bottom of the closet, then pulled out a pair of red cowboy boots.

Sam looked down at her expensive stilettos. “But these are Jimmy Choos.”

“Choos, Schmoos.” Tessa shoved the boots into her hand. “We don’t care about designer shoes out here, and besides, these boots are a lot more comfortable. You’ll thank me for this later, especially with where we’re going. “

Sam’s stomach knotted. “Why? Where are we going?”

Tessa smiled and gestured at Sam to get going with changing her outfit. “Where everybody goes to unwind. The Bull Sheep Bar.”

* * *

S
am stood
in the doorway of the dimly lit bar and tugged at the bottom of her skirt, which showed off a lot more leg than Sam usually liked to show.

The Bull Sheep Bar wasn't anything like the bars she was used to in Boston. Sure, they had a wide variety of places there just like anywhere else. But the places she was used to ranged from upscale bars with sleek marble floors, shiny contemporary bar-tops, plush seating, and the tinkle of jazz in the background to dark rooms with sticky floors, strobe lights, and pulsing disco music.

But The Bull Sheep was none of these. It looked more like an old barn than anything else. The walls were rough sawn boards, the floor polished concrete. The decor consisted of ropes, saddles hanging on the wall, and pictures of cows. The tables of long pine boards and chairs that looked like they'd been made from logs were scattered around the edges of the room. The center stood empty—a dance floor, Sam assumed, given the fact that a band was just now assembling their equipment at the front of it.

It must be a popular place because it was quite full. Plenty of beer bottles lined the tables. The noise level was a constant drone of laughter and clinking glass. The tables were all full, but one couple over at a long table with plenty of extra seats was waving to them. Tessa waved back. "There's my friends. We'll sit with them."

Sam grudgingly let Tessa pull her along. Though she wanted to spend time with Tessa, she wasn't up for a big party. She wanted to focus on the next day. The start of the chili contest. She certainly didn't want to make any new friends since she had no plans to stay here.

But Tessa had saved her butt by letting her stay with her for the contest, not to mention suggesting it in the first place. She owed her. What could it hurt to have a fun, relaxing evening and meet some new people? After this, it would be all work and no play.

"Hey, everyone, this is my friend Sam from college." Sam relaxed amidst the welcoming smiles as Tessa did a round of introductions. "This is Kade Morrison, Melina Diaz, Jackson Jennings, and over there Iris and Donnie Walters."

Sam shook hands with all of them. Each one of them had a firm, friendly handshake. She immediately felt right at home in the midst of them, and the men even stood to make her acquaintance. Apparently, chivalry wasn't dead after all.

As they all sat back down, she couldn't help but notice how Donnie pulled the chair out for his wife and how they immediately intertwined their hands again after they were seated. A pang of envy shot through her when she caught the loving look they gave each other. Weird, because she'd never been one to be envious of other couple’s relationships. Was this part of getting older? Some sort of biological clock thing? She certainly hoped not. She was barely twenty-eight and liked things just the way they were.

Melina, a bubbly woman with mink-brown colored curls and a figure that would make a swimsuit model jealous shot out of her chair, waving enthusiastically in the direction of the front door. She swayed a bit and Sam's eyes dropped to the two shot glasses sitting in front of her. Apparently, she'd had a head start with the drinking. "Oh, hey, y'all. Here comes Cash and Nick!"

Sam's eyes jerked to the front of the room. Nick? Certainly she couldn't mean the Nick that Sam had met earlier in the day. The Nick that was her competitor in the chili contest. The Nick that made her heart do strange things. Surely, there was more than one Nick in the town of Sweetrock?

No such luck. The crowd parted, and that very same Nick strode toward the table. He wore faded jeans and a gray tee-shirt that might've looked sloppy on someone else except the way he filled it out looked anything but. He wasn't wearing a hat like he'd been at the fair, and she could see his hair was dark brown and cut short. He'd shaved, and his face was baby clean. He wore that cocky smile as he strode over to the table and then his eyes met hers. Her heart jerked, and she looked away, but not before noticing his eyes widen.

She shot a look at Tessa, who was seated directly across the table from her. The smirk on her friend's face told Sam that Nick's presence was no coincidence. Tessa was up to something. Sam shook her head and raised a brow, letting Tessa know she was on to her. Then she leaned across the table and whispered, "It won't work."

Tessa stood, placed her hand on Nick's arm and addressed the two newcomers. "Nick and Cash, you remember Sam, don't you?"

Tessa moved one seat over and shoved Nick down into her vacant chair so that he was sitting directly across from Sam. Why had she done that? Now Sam would have to stare at Nick all night. Of course, that was precisely why Tessa had done it. Tricky. She'd have to remember that so she could get back at her some day.

"Ma'am." Cash tipped his hat at her before taking it off and stowing it on his knee. Sam nodded back, managing a smile. After all, it wasn't Cash who was her competitor.

"How are you doing? Did you get your setup squared away at the fairgrounds?" Nick asked.

"Yep. You?"

Nick nodded.

"Fairgrounds?" Kade asked. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Sam here is in the chili contest," Nick said. "If you can imagine a New Englander making chili."

His comment rankled Sam, but got a laugh from the others, so she held her tongue.

"That's right." Cash signaled the waitress then turned his attention back to the table. "We've got two competitors right here at the table."

The waitress came and they all ordered a beer, then Jackson picked up the conversation again. Leaning across Melina, his beefy forearm on the table, he addressed Sam. "So, you're some kind of chef? Is that why you entered the contest?"

Sam's chest tightened. She didn't need to get into the whole thing about losing her restaurant job with these people. Nor did she have any intention of letting Nick know about her grandmother's prize-winning recipe.

"Yes, I'm a chef back in Boston. While I'm here visiting Tessa, I figured it would be fun to enter the contest." She turned and looked straight at Nick. "They say my chili is the best in Boston." She knew it was snippy, but couldn't help herself after his earlier comment implying New Englanders didn't know how to make chili. Little did he know Grandma Dunn was actually from Montana…and so was her recipe.

Nick's posture stiffened.

Cash burst out laughing. "Well, that sounds like a challenge."

"It sure does!" Jackson chimed in.

"Hey, I think that calls for a side bet," Kade said.

"Yeah!" Everyone at the table bubbled with enthusiasm that made Sam uncomfortable. Clearly they were all good friends and the bet was just in fun, but she had everything riding on this contest and she wasn't sure she wanted the added pressure. But what could she say?

Donnie pulled his wallet out of his back pocket. "My money's on Nick." He produced fifty bucks and slapped it down in the middle of the table.

Iris, a petite woman with spiked up, blonde-streaked hair and large green eyes, frowned at her husband. "Well, that's not very gentlemanly, betting against a newcomer." She pulled a brown suede purse loaded with fringe off the back of her chair and rummaged inside, coming up with a handful of crumpled bills, which she threw on top of Donnie's. "My money is on Sam."

"Well, I'm in a bit of a disadvantage." Melina tipped back another shot. "We've all had Nick's chili. What's yours like, Sam?"

Normally, Sam would've felt uncomfortable at being put on the spot, but she liked the camaraderie of the group. She could tell it was all in fun. She paused for drama before answering and then said, "Hot and spicy with lots of meat."

The table erupted in laughter.

"Well, that's just how I like it." Melina tossed fifty bucks into the middle of the table. "I'm going with Sam."

"Hey, mine's hot and spicy, too," Nick said.

"Maybe not as hot and spicy as hers, though," Cash wiggled his brows as he pulled out his wallet. "But since we're such good friends I'll put my money on you."

"Well, then, I can go with my good friend Sam. I've had her cooking, and it's top notch." Tessa had to yell to be heard over the sound of the band tuning up behind her. She stood and slapped her money on the table.

Jackson and Kade added their money to the pile, Jackson earning a smile for his support of Sam and Kade earning a good-natured scowl when he announced he was betting on Nick.

Donnie stood and gathered up the money. "It's settled, then. I'll hold the money. We'll do the usual rules. Half of the pot gets split among the winning betters and the other half goes to either Nick or Sam, depending on who wins."

Sam was pleasantly surprised. That would be around a hundred and fifty bucks which would help reimburse her for some of the money she'd had to put out to outfit herself for the contest. She'd almost drained her bank account dry and without a job, she didn't have any way to replenish it. She was betting everything on winning this contest.

Besides, since she was planning on winning, she might as well win this bet money, too.

The band started playing, and Tessa jumped to her feet. "Come on, you guys. Let's dance!" She pulled on Cash's arm and shot Sam a smirk.

Panic lapped at Sam as she recognized the song—a slow dance. She looked around the table. Donnie and Iris had already made it to the dance floor. Kade had his arm around Melina's waist, and Jackson was flirting with a perky blonde from the next table.