Ask Me to Stay (Honky Tonk Angels #4) (10 page)

Unfortunately, fantasy fell victim to fatigue and she succumbed to sleep. Callie woke and looked over her shoulder at the clock on the nightstand. It was nearly six in the morning. She turned her head to look at Jayce to find him looking at her.

“Shhh.” He put a finger to his lips, rolled Lily off him and to the center of the bed. Callie pulled the bedcovers over her as Jayce rose.

Lily never budged. Callie got up and took the hand Jayce offered. Together, they went downstairs.

“I can’t believe we fell asleep,” Callie said as she turned on the light. “How about some coffee and breakfast?”

“Sounds good. And I’m a little surprised, myself.”

Callie started fixing a pot of coffee. “I’m surprised you even slept with both of us piled on top of you.”

“You know, it’s funny.” Jayce took a seat at the table. “But I don’t remember when I’ve slept so well.”

Nothing could have made her happier. Callie turned to look at him, smiling. “Same here. So, eggs, hash browns, bacon and toast, or would you prefer grits?

“I’ll eat whatever you put in front of me. Or.” He rose. “I could help.”

“You cook?”

“Uh, single dad?”

“Oh yeah, right. Okay, sure. You want to do the hash browns or eggs? I have potatoes in the fridge I cooked the other day.”

“Hash browns.” Jayce went to the refrigerator and started gathering things. He piled tomatoes, peppers, onions and the potatoes on the counter.

Callie poured him a cup of coffee. “Cream and sugar?”

“Cream please.”

She added cream to his cup, took a sip and then handed it to him. Jayce leaned over to kiss her, then sampled the coffee and got busy chopping peppers and onions. For the next fifteen minutes, they laughed, talked and cooked. They sat in the kitchen to eat.

“So, what do you have planned for the weekend?” Jayce asked.

“Nothing. I mean aside from cleaning and doing laundry. What about you?”

“I’ll probably head home, grab a shower and see if Carson is home yet. He stayed over at JD’s last night with the twins. Then I need to check on the strip mall job. And, oh, today is the start of boating season so there’s always a big thing at the lake. Didn’t Cody tell you?”

“Oh, yes, yes, she did. She said she wasn’t doing a stand because there’s usually a big crowd at the bar after it’s over. And Hannah is helping her mother at the bakery stand.”

“Right, so I’m taking Carson – actually the whole family is going and I wanted to see if you’d like to join. You and Lily, I mean.”

“Yeah, I’d love to. I can meet you there.”

“Okay, great. One o’clock work for you?”

“Sounds good. What do I take to one of these things?”

“Well, if you swim, wear a swimsuit and take some dry clothes. And whatever Lily likes to play with in the water, and some towels.”

“Okay.”

“Great. It’ll be fun. But right now, I hate to eat and run but I need to get home. No, wait. Let me help you do the dishes.”

“No, go. I’ll take care of the dishes.”

“I can’t—”

“Sure you can. Go. I’ll see you at one.”

“I’ll look forward to it.” Jayce got up and leaned over to give Callie a soft kiss. “And maybe sometime today, we can talk about the two of us having an actual date.”

“Maybe so.” She smiled.

“I’ll see you soon, beautiful.” He gave her another kiss, then headed out.

Callie watched him leave, then got busy cleaning up the kitchen. She was going to need to head into town and check out the consignment shop. Lily needed a swimsuit and maybe a float. Callie had a swimsuit, running tops and shorts, but she wasn’t sure she was ready to bare that much skin. Maybe she’d just wear shorts and a T-shirt. People swam in T-shirts all the time.

Swimming. Jayce swimming. Jayce with no shirt.

Suddenly, she had a whole new set of visions dancing through her mind, and all of them had her wishing she and Jayce could have an actual date.

Hannah clipped a note to the file folder for Callie. The quarterly tax payments were due for the bar in two weeks and Hannah wanted Callie to take over doing that. She had just placed the folder on top of the closed laptop when the office phone rang. She had nearly answered it when her cell phone rang. She looked at the cell phone on the desk. It was her father.

Hannah chose to let the business call go to voicemail and answered the call from her father. “Hey Daddy.”

“Hey honey. Listen, we’ve got a little bit of a mess. Mama and KC both have some stomach bug and I don’t expect they’ll make it to the opening of boating and swimming season at the lake. Mama asked if you could take over.”

“The whole thing?”

“’Fraid so, sugar.”

“Oh lordy. I’d planned on helping but…but…never mind. I’ll take care of it, Daddy. You just tell Mama and KC to stay in bed and get well.”

“I will sugar. Thank you.”

“You bet. Love you.”

“Love you.”

Hannah ended the call, then accessed the voicemail.

“Good morning. My name is Janice Garretson. I’m an Assistant District Attorney for the city of Nashville, Tennessee. I’m trying to get in touch with Callie Williams, and according to the IRS, she is currently working for you. It’s vital that I speak with her as soon as possible, so if you could have her call, my number is…”

Hannah was so shocked she forgot to reach for a pen and had to play the message again before she got the ADA’s office and cell phone number written down. She stuck the notepaper in her pocket. She’d call Callie as soon as she spoke with Cody and let her know that she was going to be tied up with their mother’s booth at the lake all day. Cody would have to get the bar ready to open on her own. Hannah couldn’t be in two places as once.

With her mind mentally making a list of what all needed to be done, Hannah hurried outside, got in her car and headed for the bakery.

By the time she arrived, she’d put the phone call completely out of her mind.

*****

Even though she’d been told there would be a lot of people at the lake, Callie had not expected this kind of crowd. It seemed as if the entire population of Cotton Creek was there. The area cordoned off for parking had overflowed, leaving people to park on both sides of the road. By the time she found a place to park, she had a good quarter mile hike to the entrance of the lake park.

That wouldn’t have given her a second thought had it not been for all she had to carry. Aside from Lily, there was a big bag of Lily’s toys, extra clothes, towels and sunscreen, and a cooler with drinks, snacks and ice. Then there was the smaller bag with her own change of clothes, towel and a hairbrush.

Callie was about to change her mind and go home when Briggs and Dawson Weathers rode up on motorcycles. Carson rode behind one of them. They stopped beside her car.

“You headed for the lake?” Carson asked.

“I was trying.”

“You can’t carry all that by yourself.”

“Well, I guess I could if I could get it all situated.”

“We can help,” Briggs offered.

“Yeah,” Dawson agreed. “Give me your stuff and we’ll strap it to the bikes. You and your little girl can ride with me.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. Carson, help me get this stuff on the bikes.”

Two minutes later, Callie and Lily were seated behind Dawson, who drove very slowly toward the entrance of the park. Once inside, he parked his bike under a tree where a dozen other bikes were parked. Briggs did the same, and all three boys gathered up Callie’s things.

“Come on,” Carson said. “We’ll show you where the family is.”

“Great.” She fell in step beside Carson with Lily riding on her hip.

They hadn’t gone ten feet before Lily was squirming and reaching for Carson.

“My want my boy.”

Carson grinned and stopped. “Okay, trade.”

He offered Callie the cooler. She took it and let him take Lily. He lifted her up and onto his shoulders.

Lily laughed in delight and squealed. “My big. My rewwy big.”

All three of the Weathers boys laughed at Lily, which made her laugh as well. They continued through the crowd of people. Callie started to see canopies set up along the shore. Beneath them, vendors were selling food and drinks, as well as arts, crafts, home-goods, leather-goods, even saddles and chaps. It was like a town fair, with the same cheerful atmosphere, the smell of food in the air and even the sounds of music.

Callie looked around. “Where’s the music coming from?”

“Riley’s band and another one from Rock Ridge are set up under the trees. They’ll be playing off and on all day,” Briggs answered.

“My dad says you’re a real good singer,” Carson remarked.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, he says you should be recording CDs.”

“Well, that’s nice of him, but I don’t think that’s in the cards. Oh, is that your grandfather?”

Carson grinned. “Yep. Come on.”

Callie felt just a little out of place when they reached the Weathers family. They had an enormous canopy set up, covering four picnic tables. Other beach and lounge chairs sat in the shade of another canopy, along with half a dozen coolers.

Jason Weathers turned and smiled. “Well looky here, we got us a little princess joining us.”

Lily squealed when he reached up and tickled her under her chin. “Come to Pop, pretty girl.”

She didn’t hesitate to go to him. Carson looked around. “Where’s Dad?”

“Helping JD and Bronson get the ropes set to cordon off the swimming area for the smaller kids.” Jolene’s voice had Callie and Carson turning.

“Let’s go see if they need help.” Carson directed the statement to his cousins, Briggs and Dawson.

“Okay. Where do you want us to put your stuff, Ms. Williams?”

“It’s Callie, and anywhere is fine.”

“Put it over there on that chair beside mine – mine has the green towel,” Jo said

Carson took the cooler from Callie and placed it beside the chair as Dawson and Briggs plunked the bags down. They stripped off their shirts, kicked off their shoes and took off in a trot for the water. Callie watched for a moment and couldn’t help but notice the number of teenaged girls lying on towels near the water’s edge who took note.

“Yep, the Weathers men are something, aren’t they?” Jolene asked and chuckled.

“That’s putting it mildly,” Pressley Pursell said as she walked up beside them.

“I take it Bronson finally got up the nerve to invite you to join the family today?” Jolene asked.

“He did. And hey, Callie. You here with Jayce.”

“Uh, I—”

“Yes, she is,” Jolene interrupted.

“Where’s Lily?”

“With Jason.” Callie turned her head to look at Jason, who had Lily in the crook of his arm, pointing out a bunch of balloons tied to a hotdog cart. She smiled and looked back at Jolene. “Should I rescue him?”

“Are you kidding?” Jolene asked. “He adores kids, and in case you haven’t noticed, the Weathers don’t have any little girls.”

“None?”

“Not a one and there are six grandkids.”

“Wow, what are the odds?”

“Or maybe it’s the curse.”

“The curse? You mean the one you talked about on that episode about your kin, he Nash family? ”“Well, I didn’t know you watched the show.”

Callie grinned, unembarrassed. “Are you kidding? I l
ove your show. And yes, I did have a total fangirl moment when I met you.”

Jolene laughed. “Well, thanks. And listen, after hearing you sing, I’m the one with the fangirl thing going. Callie, you’re amazing. Any chance you’d want to be on my show?”

“Oh, no. Thank you, but I am the last person you’d want on your show.”

“I don’t know about that.”

“You’re just being nice and – oh my god.”

Callie momentarily lost the ability to form a coherent sentence. Jayce, JD and Bronson walked out of the lake and it was like something out of a television show. Every woman within sight turned to watch.

“I know, right?” Jolene said.

“Amen to that, sister,” Pressley added. “The Weathers men are definitely something.”

Callie nodded. This was a moment she wasn’t likely to ever forget. Three gorgeous, well-built men with water streaming down their muscular bodies, emerging from the lake and walking toward them. Oh yeah, she’d replay this scene in her mind a few hundred times. It inspired all sorts of lusty imaginings. Particularly when Jayce spotted her and gave her a smile that made the warmth of the sun pale in comparison. It was like a blast from a furnace, the way it heated her. She could only stand there, letting her eyes roam over him and feeling a bit envious of the water that worked its way down his body.

“Hey there, gorgeous.” He stopped in front of her and leaned down to kiss her cheek.

“Hey yourself and damn. Do you know that you and your brothers have every woman out here watching you?”

Jayce laughed. “Then they live some mighty boring lives.”

“Who does?” JD asked as he walked up with Bronson beside him.

“Never mind.” Jolene took his hand and smiled at Callie. “I’ll help Jason watch Lily if you want to go swim.”

“And I promised your kids we’d take them out to the diving platform,” Pressley told Bronson.

“Then round ’em up and let’s go, Red.”

Everyone grinned at Bronson’s nickname for Pressley and waved as they headed out to find his kids, Jimmy, Michael and Bobby.

“So, you want to take a swim?” Jayce asked Callie.

“Actually, I promised to take Lily swimming.”

“Then let’s get that munchkin in the water. Where is she?” Jayce said and looked around. “Oh, there they are.”

Jason had Lily sitting on his shoulders, with his Stetson on her head. She had hold of it with both hands to keep it from falling off.

Jayce took Callie’s hand and together they walked over to Jason. “How ’bout we take this little princess off your hands for a while?” Jayce asked and stuck out his hands to Lily. “Want to go swimming, Lily?”

“My wim.” Lily dove off Jason’s shoulders and into Jayce’s arms. “My wim, Mommy.”

“Yes, indeed,” Callie agreed. “Let’s just take off those shorts and you’ll be good to go.”

“Where’s your stuff?” Jayce asked.

Callie pointed to where Liz and JD were sitting. “Okay, first things first,” Jayce said as he carried Lily over to a vacant chair and put her down. “Let’s take off those shoes.”

Callie watched as Jayce took off Lily’s shoes and shorts. The little bathing suit she’d found for Lily was adorable and Jayce made a big fuss over it, which tickled Lily.

Jayce grabbed a couple of towels and picked Lily up again. “Okay, let’s do this. Callie, you want to leave your stuff here?”

“My stuff?”

“Shoes, shorts…you know.”

“Oh.” She felt a little foolish, stripped off her shorts and then hesitated. She wasn’t ashamed of her body, or the tattoos on her skin, but she knew that many people had set notions about the kind of women who had tattoos and the last thing she wanted was to be the topic of gossip.

But as she’d already learned, in small towns, everyone was going to end up the topic of gossip sooner or later. So it might as well be now.

Callie took off the T-shirt and piled it on top of the rest of her stuff. “Okay, I’m ready.”

“Damn girl.” Jayce’s eyes tracked down her body and back up.

Callie felt a stab of self-consciousness. “That bad?”

“If by
bad
you mean
bad ass, smokin’ hot
,
then hell yeah, baby.”

“Oh, you are
so
good for my ego.”

“And I haven’t even warmed up yet. Come on. Let’s get the princess in the water.” Jayce grinned and reached for her hand.

All thoughts of what anyone might think of her vanished. Jayce carried Lily in one arm. His free hand was clenched with Callie’s as they walked to the water’s edge. He kept Lily giggling and still managed to give Callie smiles that turned her into the equivalent of a high-school girl with a crush on the star quarterback.

“Okay, here we are, Lily Belle.” Jayce walked out into the water until he was knee deep. “You want to put your feet in the water?”

“I wim.” She squirmed out of his arms, planted her feet in the water and promptly fell face first.

“Oh shit!” Jayce grabbed for her at the same moment Callie knelt down to grab her. Surprisingly for both of them, Lily righted herself, stood, shook her head and pushed her hair back out of her eyes. “I wim, Mommy.”

“Well, yes you did,” Callie said and laughed.

“And I bet you can swim even more,” Jayce said and took her hands.

Callie sat and watched as Jayce pulled Lily through the water, her little fists wrapped around his index fingers. Within ten minutes, he had her pushing off to glide toward him and even got her to hold her nose and stick her head under the water. She was so excited and pleased with herself that she wanted to do it without help, so Jayce took a seat beside Callie and they watched as Lily practiced.