Not a Chance (10 page)

"I'm right here," Nick said from behind him. Nick walked around him and stood at Arden's side. He slipped his arm around her waist. Arden gave Travis a smug look. Travis's eyes narrowed. "I'm glad you're here, Travis," Nick said. "I wanted to thank you for taking care of Arden. I hate to think how she would have fared without your assistance."

Travis, amiable as ever, said, "It was my pleasure."

"I'm sure it was," Nick said, pulling Arden tighter against him. "You're not planning on trying to steal her away from me, now, are you?"

Arden couldn't believe Nick would bring his fears into the open like this. She examined her nails and pretended to be bored, hoping no one would notice her surprise and discomfort.

Travis laughed. "I'll tell ya, if I had it to do over again, I'd have already stolen her." He glanced back at Vince and Russell who had tensed up like a couple of beta wolves sensing danger. They relaxed after Travis gave them an almost imperceptible nod. Arden wondered whether the behavior was conscious or if it just happened from somewhere deep in the primitive places inside their minds. Either way, it was fascinating.

Nick smiled, but it was a bitter, hate-filled thing. "Fortunately for me you've got nothing to offer her."

Travis's smile vanished. "We can't all get rich preying on little old ladies retirement funds."

Nick stepped forward and Travis didn't back down.

"Okay," Arden said, pulling at Nick's arm. "I think that's enough social interaction for us today. It was good seeing you all," she said to the group. She breathed a sigh of relief as Nick allowed himself to be led away.

"I could have had you if I really wanted, Princess," Travis said.

She stopped and turned around, her expression registering disbelief and amusement. He was wearing that cocky half-grin. "How do you figure?" she asked, not sure why she was letting herself be drawn in like this.

He shrugged. "I've never been told no. Not when I really turn on the charm."

"You hit on me within minutes of getting stranded. You tried to convince me to sleep with you at least a dozen times." She'd taken a few steps toward him and he'd closed the distance even more so that she had to lean her head back to look at him.

"Not because I was trying. That's just what I do when I'm around women. If I'd really wanted to, you'd be wearing my ring right now."

"Your ring?"

"That's right."

"And my finger would be green, too, wouldn't it."

He laughed. "Yeah. But you wouldn't care."

"I think I probably would," she said, holding her hand up so the diamond caught the sunlight.

He grabbed her hand and shoved it down to her side, keeping ahold of it for longer than he should have. He lowered his voice, leaned down and whispered in her ear, "Give me one night and I'll make you forget there ever was a Nick Wheeler."

She felt herself turn red, but she boldly met his eyes. "I'm not impressed, Travis."

He assessed her for a few moments and then stepped back. "You're wasting your time and mine with that prick," he said, nodding at Nick who stood only five paces back, seething with hatred.

Arden glanced over her shoulder at Nick. She'd never seen the veins in his neck stick out like that before. She looked back at Travis. "I like the ring I have just fine. Have a good life, Travis." She turned and walked away, taking Nick with her. She didn't look back and was very proud of herself for it.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Dustin had started going to church three years ago. Mainly he'd done it to support Travis who had all of a sudden decided he needed God in his life. So he'd gone with him and kept going. But then the preacher's daughter came home from college one day looking nothing like the gangly teenager he remembered and a lot more like the kind of woman he'd like to take to dinner. So his motives for going had changed, which was why even though Travis had slept in, he was still attending this morning.

When he walked in, Emma was standing in the foyer talking to Shannon and Alice. There were always other women around her. If there weren't he may have made a move by now. Probably not...but maybe. After glancing her way he headed to his usual seat. He propped his elbows on the back of the pew and bounced his knees, waiting for service to start.

Emma suddenly appeared at his side. He froze, staring at her. She smiled brightly at him. "Where's Travis?" she asked.

"At home," he answered automatically.

"Oh. Is he okay?"

"Yeah." Dustin knew he was acting like a victim of shell-shock, he just couldn't seem to snap out of it. And then the piano started playing and service started.

Emma leaned up and whispered, "You don't mind if I sit here, do you?"

He couldn't even verbalize an answer to this. He just shook his head. And here she was sitting next to him, sorting through some papers she'd pulled from her Bible. With his elbow propped as it was, her face was too close to his hand. He thought about scooting over and pulling his elbow down from the back of the pew. But he didn't want her to think he was purposely inching away from her. So he stretched his arm out over the back of the pew, resting his hand on the cool, oak backing. Then he just hoped she wouldn't take his gesture the wrong way.

He glanced at her throughout the service, amazed that she was sitting here next to him; wondering what it would be like to have her here at his side still, fifty years from now; thinking more and more that this was how it was supposed to be.

Still, she didn't seem nearly as impressed as he was by the situation. She sang when it was time to sing. Bowed her head during prayer. Never once smiled up at him. And then service was over and she packed up her Bible and lifted her purse onto her shoulder. Then she looked up at him. "So...I couldn't help noticing that Arden wasn't here either. Do you think they're together?"

It took him a moment to realize she was picking back up where she'd left of in her inquiries about Travis. This annoyed him a little. "Why would they be together?" he asked.

Emma shrugged. "They had a little scene, yesterday. It's obvious he has feelings for her...but I can't get a good read on her."

Dustin hated this topic. "He'll get over her. She's not worth it."

Emma's eyes widened in shock. "You're talking about my best friend." She lifted her chin in a most adorable gesture of stubbornness.

"If she's your best friend, then you know first hand what a bitch she is."

Emma gasped. And then laughed. "You've got to be kidding. Do you even know her?"

"I know I haven't seen Travis this depressed since Tonya left."

"And that's Arden's fault."

"Yep." He folded his arms over his chest and stared down at her, mentally daring her to keep fighting.

She shook her head, an incredulous grin on her face. "Well I guess it's admirable, you being loyal to your big brother. But it's not her fault he fell in love with her and she didn't fall in love back."

Dustin shrugged. She had a point. But he didn't care. The last thing Travis needed right now was heartache. He had enough to deal with with Duane. Besides that, Travis had battled back depression and alcoholism and was finally at a place in his life where he could relax a bit and just be happy.

"Is Travis okay?" Emma asked again, this time real concern in her eyes.

Dustin looked at her. "He's fine. If you're so concerned, why don't you go see him."

"What's your problem?"

"I don't have a problem. I just think if Travis is so damned important to you, you should be talking to him and not me."

Emma's brows furrowed in frustration. "Are you jealous?"

"What the fuck would I be jealous about?"

"Do you think you could ease up on the language at least until you're out of the church building?"

Dustin dropped his hands to his sides in frustration. He was getting nowhere. Of course, he wasn't sure where it was he'd wanted to get to in the first place, so that was part of his problem. "Why did you come sit with me?"

"I thought I'd try to flirt with you."

Dustin burst out laughing. "You're really bad at it."

She drew herself up to her full height, which was only slightly above average. "I haven't flirted yet. You haven't stopped being a jerk long enough for me to try. Besides, I shouldn't have to. You should just be a man and ask me out. And you'd better do it quick, because I've already got three offers for dates to Shannon's Christmas party Friday night."

Dustin froze, then. He swallowed. "You...you want me to ask you out?"

Emma exhaled loudly, hefted her purse over her shoulder and stormed out of the church building.

Dustin looked around and realized they were the last ones there. Everyone else had cleared out. So he followed her out into the parking lot and caught up with her. "Hey," he said. "Can I drive you home?"

"It's just four blocks away," she said. But she'd stopped. So he crossed in front of her.

"Yeah, but it's freezing. Let me drive you home." He gently took her elbow and led her to his '67 Camaro Z28. He opened the door for her and then walked around to the driver's side, wondering why he wasn't more nervous.

He drove through a few residential streets toward her house. "Since I've got you in here, you wanna go for a ride?" he asked.

"Sure," she said.

He smiled at her. He drove with his wrist resting on the top of the steering wheel, his other hand operating the gear shift. They drove back toward town, made a left on main street and headed toward the river. Before they got there, though, Dustin took a left on a back road that turned into gravel just five miles out of town. There was good scenery, this way, and he liked the curves and dips in the road.

He noticed Emma's hands fidgeting in her lap. He smiled again, glad to see a chink in her armor.

"Do you do this a lot?" she asked. "I mean...just drive?"

"Oh yeah," he said. "I love driving."

She shrugged. "I guess you would in a car like this."

He glanced at her. "I've won a few drag races in this baby," he said.

She looked at him, then. "You used to race?"

"What used to? I race all the time. Didn't you know that?"

Emma shook her head. She muttered something and he thought he caught a reference to James Dean. He grinned. The hills grew steeper. For a while, the road followed the river, but then it veered east and began climbing. It came to an intersection where they made a right onto a paved highway. Dustin stepped on the gas and shifted up several times, enjoying the sound of the engine and the rhythm of the curves. The slow-building adrenaline giving him that feeling of invincibility.

It took him a few minutes before he realized that Emma was clutching her seat in a death grip.

"You want me to slow down?" he asked.

"No," she squeaked, "I trust you."

He slowed down a bit anyway. They were getting to some of the good scenery, now. Off to the right he could see through the trees the rolling Ozark Hills. They drove another couple of minutes, the elevation increasing, and then he turned abruptly onto a gravel parking area. There were no trees here and the parking area dropped off a cliff edge. In front of them was a blanket of hills with the river winding off into the distance below them.

Dustin kept the engine running for warmth. But he leaned back and slid his arm along the back of Emma's seat. She was leaning forward admiring the view.

"You've been up here before, haven't you?" Dustin asked.

"No. I've seen some lovely spots. But not this one." Then she turned and smiled up at him.

She was so beautiful. It occurred to him, then, just how young she was, both in years and in experience. Anyone looking at her could tell she was different from other women her age. She'd been sheltered and spent most of her life running around this little town helping other people. She was like a young, rural-Missouri Mother Theresa. He admired these things about her, but he also couldn't wait to dig past that and find out who she was when no one was looking.

"I'd sure like to kiss you, Emma," he said.