Cheri rolled her eyes. “He asked me if I wanted to take a roll in the hay. When I pointed out that there wasn’t any hay around, he said he’d be so good I wouldn’t notice.”
“EEEEEWW!” Rubi shuddered.
“Right?” Cheri flicked her hand. “I told himno thanksand took off.”
Cash threw himself back against the seat, shaking his head. “I can’t believe he hit on you. Did he know I’d asked you out?”
Cheri lifted one shoulder. “I don’t know. Maybe.”
He rubbed his face, and then his eyes fell on Rubi. She watched him openly. He could use a shave or a trim of some sort. He must be friends with Cheri if he was willing to show up for a date looking like he’d been running for three days straight.
“Are you gonna follow me all night?” he asked.
“Yep.” She smiled at Cheri, who returned the grin.
“Heaven help me,” he muttered. “What do I have to do to get rid of you?”
“Take me to Trent.”
His gaze dropped. “I can’t.”
She shrugged. “Then you’re stuck with me.”
Cheri put one hand on each of their arms. “We could settle this in a sportsmanlike manner.”
“How?” asked Cash.
Cheri’s eyes twinkled. “Pie style.”
Cash lit up. “Yes. I’m in.”
“Pie style?” asked Rubi.
Cheri signaled to their waitress. “Four pieces of coconut cream pie, please.”
The waitress hurried to fill their order while Cash moved their cups and such off to the side. “Basic pie eating contest rules. You can’t use your hands. You have to eat the crust. And the first one with two clear plates wins.”
“Hold on a sec.” Rubi threw her hands across the table to prevent the waitress from setting down the plates. “What do I get if I win?” She was all over this. Coconut pie was her favorite and she could down a slice in seconds flat.
“If you win, I’ll set up a meeting for you and Trent and I’ll make sure he shows. If I win ” Cash’s eyes sharpened. “You go on home.”
“Fine.” Rubi pulled her hair back and twisted it into a knot. She put her hands behind her back and the waitress set two plates in front of her and two in front of Cash. “Cheri—you say go.”
“On your mark.”
Rubi leaned over the plate on the right. She sniffed, catching the scent of sugar and toasted coconut.
“Get set.”
Rubi lifted her gaze to meet Cash’s. Along with the fierce competitiveness, she caught a sense of enjoyment that flooded from his eyes into hers and right on down to her wedges.
“Go!”
Rubi attacked her slice of pie, chomping and swallowing as fast as she could. It disappeared quickly despite the heavy Crisco taste in the crust. Her mama’s pie was light and flaky. This one was making a ledge in her stomach to hang out on. She plowed into the second piece, not caring that her nose and chin were covered in whipped cream. The more on her face, the less she had to actually eat.
“Done!” shouted Cash, raising his hands in the air. His face was almost clean, just a few smears of white around his mouth. Happy as he was, and with that confident little smirk, he might taste pretty good.
Disgusted with herself for even thinking that about the guy, and for making a mess of herself when he’d been able to stay clean, Rubi grabbed a handful of napkins from the dispenser. A lone piece of crust was all that was left on her second plate, and she glared at it.
