They said goodbye and hung up.
Amber seemed like a nice enough girl, and Blake didn’t want to hurt her, but better her than him at this point. She was tight with Catie Bay McCray, and that meant she had access to cash.
Blake needed cash.
He also needed his legs walking and his heart beating. If he didn’t come up with cash soon, he’d lose all of that. Paul Donetto’s goons would see to it.
He fired up his laptop. Damn thing was so freaking slow. Of course it was, it was five years old now. Rachel’s in San Antonio. Hardly the classiest place in town, but one of the biggest money-makers. He and his cronies had hung out there a lot. He fed in the URL to Lance’s web site and started looking around.
Candy Hart. Eliza Bends. Taryn Apart. All ladies he recognized. He crept through page after page, discovering some new faces, enjoying some old ones.
Bingo.
Ambrosia Love.
Otherwise known as Amber Cross, best friend of Caitlyn McCray.
He didn’t relish hurting such a beautiful young woman, but hey, times were tough. Surely young Amber would pay handsomely to keep the good folks of Bakersville from finding out about her past.
Chapter Five
“When you asked me to dinner, I figured you meant we’d go out.” Amber smiled as Harper pulled his truck into the driveway of his ranch home on the Cha Cha Ranch grounds.
“Why? I love to cook. And I’ve got the best beef right here.”
Amber let out a laugh. “Chad McCray always says he’s got the best beef.”
“He’s dreamin’. He’s got the third best. I raise the best here at Cha Cha, and a close second comes from Bay Crossing, our place on the western slope.”
“Right, Angie’s ranch.”
“Angie’s and Catie’s, technically. But Catie lets Angie and Rafe run it. She’s busy at Chad’s ranch.”
“Yeah, I know.” Since when was her voice so wistful? “Catie sure is a lucky girl. She’s got everything her heart desires.”
“True that, especially since she’s desired Chad McCray since she was five years old.”
“I’ve heard the story.” Amber grinned. “She stole Chad right out from under my nose when she got home from Europe last spring.”
“Were you really interested in Chad McCray?”
Was that a twinge of jealousy in his voice? She wasn’t sure. “No, not really. He’s great looking and a lot of fun, but it was never more than a little fling. It didn’t go anywhere anyway.”
“You mean you didn’t sleep with him?”
“Not that it’s any of your business, but no, I didn’t. I haven’t slept with anyone since I moved here. I’ve hardly dated. It hasn’t been a priority.”
Oops. Had she said too much? She didn’t want him to think she wasn’t interested. She definitely was interested in him. Which surprised the heck out of her. He was a stud, for sure, but not really her type. A little too stiff. Why all the fuss about a co-ed shower? Sheesh. And too lawyerly. Course he was a lawyer, if only a non-practicing one. The real reason was she just wanted to be free of men for a while. Dancing naked in front of them for two years did that to a woman.
“Maybe we can change that.”
“Are you saying you want to date me?”
His dark gaze seared her. “I think we’re dating right now, aren’t we?”
“I would have bet everything I had that I wasn’t your type at all, cowboy.”
“I didn’t think you were either, but that kiss changed my mind.”