The Cougar and the Cowboy

“All right. Pick the day and we’ll leave on our adventurous road trip. I need to contact a few people first and you said you had some loose ends to tie up?”

He nodded. “I do.”

Camille left the kitchen and Will dialed a number. When he heard her answer, he spoke quickly before she could hang up. “Allie, please don’t hang up on me. I don’t want anything from you but forgiveness. Allow me to take you to lunch and I promise you won’t recognize the penitent me. I won’t even mention Camille’s name.”

CHAPTER 40

WILL SAUNTERED INTO The Branding Iron trying to keep a straight face but it wasn’t possible. Once he saw the look on Maggie’s face, he started laughing.

“Here I am, ma’am. Your new grill cook reporting for duty.”

“You’re kidding me, right?” was her reply.

“Nope. I contacted Jace when you and I spoke on the phone and during that conversation, you said he was putting an ad i

n the paper. He told me to come on out and we’d give it a try.”

“I can’t believe this. Who, in their right mind, chooses sweating in a bar kitchen over working in a prestigious investment firm?”

He cleared his throat. “That would be me, I guess, but no claims about being in my right mind.”

“Where are you staying and seriously, Will, how long do you plan to do this? As much as I love the idea of working with you, I don’t want Larry to have to train you and then train someone new in a week or two when you’ve had your little fling.”

“I can’t guarantee staying long-term, Maggie, but it will be longer than a few weeks…promise. I’m looking into an apprenticeship at a restaurant in Billings, but this can’t hurt my resume. A well-rounded chef should have experience in all types of establishments. I made Jace aware of my plans when we spoke. There are no more secrets in my life. It’s too difficult to keep track of things we say when only half of it is true.”

She nodded in agreement, then grabbed a clean apron and helped him put it on. “Where did you say you were staying? I’m only asking so I can tell you how long it might take you to get to work at certain times of the day.”

“I’m staying at the house on Flagler Rd. Yes, the same one…Camille’s house.”

Maggie stopped tying the strings of the apron and just stood there, looking at him.

He put a hand on each of her arms and sat her down. There were only a few customers so he pulled a chair up beside her. “Listen to me, Maggie. I told you I would tell the truth, no matter what. Many, and I mean many, years ago, Camille and I were married…we were still in college. Due to many factors, it ended in divorce. However, we have been close friends ever since…sometimes hating each other…but always being there for each other. I guarantee you we are not ‘friends with benefits’. We have lived together, off and on but we have not slept together since the divorce. Please believe me. It’s important to me that you believe me.”

“I don’t know what to say. I’m not fond of your ex-wife at the moment. I wouldn’t believe anything she had to say. She deceived all of us and in doing so, she probably messed up some people’s lives. People I care about. The lies she wrote in her little magazine were just that…lies.”

“Yes, I’m sure they were but in the publishing world, it isn’t lying. It’s called embellishing the truth to connect with the readers. She didn’t mention any names or locations, did she?”

“No. But I know the one encounter she described was with Jace. I could tell.”

“So, tell me, are you upset because you think she lied about Jace or because it might have actually been Jace?”

“I don’t know, Will. Now that you’ve asked me, I’d have to say it made me very jealous.” She laughed a bit and confessed, “I’ve been trying to get that man undressed and in bed for so long, I couldn’t stand to read about some other woman unbuttoning his shirt.”

“I understand. Maybe you need to focus your fantasies on someone else.”

She nodded and smiled a little, “Perhaps you’re right.”

Jace came out of his office, crossed the floor to where they were sitting and shook hands with Will.

“I see you made it back to Bozeman. Like everyone else, once you’re here, you never want to leave for long. Did you have a good trip?”

“Yes. It doesn’t take long when you have two drivers.”

Jace gave him a questioning look. “Did Emily come back with you?”

Will nodded and Maggie rolled her eyes as she corrected him, “Her name’s Camille,

Jace. You can’t call her Emily any longer.”