Prima Donna (4 page)

“You can’t be serious.” She nudged Maya a little farther down the table. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, he’s hot and all, but…
Carter
?”

“Uh,
yeah
!” Maya’s voice was little more than a tight growl. “You’ll have a good time, he’ll have a good time, you’ll both have some amazing sex, and then you’ll both move on, no harm, no foul. It’s not like he’ll care; he’ll just go find someone else. It’s what he does.”

Well, that was true. “Yeah, but—”

“But nothing. If anyone deserves a little distraction, it’s you, and at least with Carter, you know what you’re getting; he’s not going to hang all over you like Todd did, he’s not going to expect a lifetime commitment, and it’ll be good for him, too, because when it ends, he won’t have to deal with some whining sniveling bimbo who thought she’d get a ring out of him.” Maya cast a quick glance at Carter, then raised her brow at Regan. “Sounds like a win-win to me.”

Maybe Maya was right; maybe a distraction was exactly what Regan needed to help take her mind off losing her salon and facing the fact that unless she won LottoMax in the near future, her mom’s time at Hillcrest was coming to a rapid end.

Then again, maybe they’d both just had too much to drink. Shaking the idea from her mind, Regan elbowed Maya and tipped her head toward the living room.

“What about you and Bachelor Number One?” she whispered. “Anything?”

“Meh.” Maya popped a cherry tomato into her mouth, then proceeded to try and talk around it. “He’s okay. Better than Number Two.”

“Maya. Just because your bastard cheating ex is a teacher, and a proven dickhead, doesn’t mean all teachers are dickheads.”

“Yeah, well, you know what they say about one bad apple.” Maya added another tomato to her plate and grinned. “See what I did there? Teachers, apples.”

“Hilarious,” Regan groaned. “Too bad Ellie’s not here, Jayne could’ve tried to hook her up with one of them.”

“Better one of them than Brett.”

“Ha! Not even Jayne would try to hook Ellie up with a cop, especially the one whose signature is on about ninety-five percent of her speeding tickets.”

“I don’t know,” Maya said, setting a spring roll on her plate. “Jayne’s pretty determined to get us all married off now that she’s become the poster child for happy endings.”

“I know,” Regan groaned. “Maybe we should hop on a plane and go join Ellie; she’d protect us.”

“I’d love to, but I don’t even have a passport.”

“Really? Mine has a grand total of one stamp in it.”

“Where did you go?” Maya’s eyes widened. “Venice? Scotland? Ohmygod, I’ve always wanted to—”

“Seattle.”

“Seattle?” Maya couldn’t have looked less impressed.

“The continental U.S. doesn’t count.” Carter’s voice startled Regan, tickling against her ear, but at least she was able to stop the shiver before it racked her entire spine again. “That’s like saying you’re going out for dinner when all you’re really doing is going next door for a barbecue.”

He flashed a quick smile at Maya then immediately focused back on Regan, who took another step away from him and tried her damndest to appear unaffected as she lifted a mini–shrimp quiche in Maya’s direction.

“Want one?”

Maya stared back at her with disbelief before a slow smirk worked its way over her mouth. Lifting her brow, she shook her head slowly. “Uh, no thanks. I’d like to live to see tomorrow if you don’t mind.”

Even before Maya finished, Regan realized what she’d done. One bite of that shrimp and Maya would’ve gone into anaphylactic shock.

“Oh my God,” she choked. “I didn’t…I mean…”

“Yeah, whatever Reg.” Maya snickered, lifted a napkin from the pile and rounded the corner of the table. “I’m going to go talk to Bachelor Number One; at least he’s not trying to kill me.”

She headed back toward her seat, leaving Regan alone with Carter again, his voice far too close to her neck.

“What d’you say we get the hell out of here?”

“Yeah,” she snorted. “Wouldn’t that thrill Jayne if we ditched her party when she’s trying so hard to hook me up with Bachelor Number Two?”

“That guy?” When Carter openly stared at Leon, Regan elbowed him hard until he sputtered. “Oh, come on—
him
? That’s the best she could come up with?”

Regan hid her laugh behind her napkin and veered into the kitchen where Nick’s sister was sitting at the table munching a pile of nachos. Katie was always fun to talk to, so long as Ben wasn’t…
damn
.

Katie’s husband turned from the window, his phone pressed against his ear, and gave Regan the same look she was no doubt giving him. Whatever. She liked Katie, so if it meant putting up with Ben once in a while, so be it.

“Regan—good to see you! I was just talking about you yesterday with the other moms at Baby and Me.”

“All good I hope.”

“Of course—you should have seen their faces when I told them about you and Griffin Carr.”

“That actor guy?” Carter spun a chair around next to her, straddled it, and set his bottle on the table.

“Duh,” Katie grunted. “Regan styled his hair last month when he was in town filming.”

“Yup, that’s me, stylist to the stars.” With an eye roll, Regan took a sip of her beer, then changed the subject. “How’s the baby?”

“More beautiful every day.” Chip in one hand, Katie used the other to flip her phone around, and there on the screen was five-month-old Sophia, dark hair standing straight up off her head, and her chubby cheeks dimpled in the sweetest toothless smile Regan had ever seen.

“You’re right, she’s gorgeous! Look at those cheeks…and that nose! But what’s with the hair?” Regan grinned as she handed the phone back. “Is it some kind of Scott trait or something?”

“Hey—I resemble that remark.” Carter leaned in a little, his head making the slightest of motions toward the living room. “Number Two’s looking lonely out there.”

When Katie raised a brow in question, Regan winced a little. “Leon.”

“He seems like a nice guy,” Katie said, her gaze moving past Regan to where Leon sat at the far end of the living room. “Didn’t Jayne say the school promoted him to athletic director or something?”

“Yes, she did,” Regan muttered. “About nineteen times now.”

Why did Carter smile at that? “Sounds like the jock’s gonna be out of luck come midnight.”

“You got that right.” Oops. She probably shouldn’t have said that; made it sound like Leon was an ugly troll or something, which he definitely wasn’t. He was just…not for Regan.

“Well, that’s good then.” Carter bobbed his head in a slow nod as he sipped his beer.

“Why’s that good?” Katie slid her nacho plate to the left a little as Ben tucked his phone away and took the chair beside her.

Carter fixed his gaze on Regan as his grin grew wider, sexier. “Because I’d hate to get my ass kicked by Linebacker Leon when I kiss Red here at midnight.”

Katie choked on her chip, but Regan just shook her head and laughed.

“What makes you think I’m going to let you kiss me?”

He nipped the last mozzarella stick from her plate, bit off a chunk, then chased it with a long swig of his beer. “Because it’s New Year’s Eve, we’re both here alone, and going by the last guy I saw you with, I’m bettin’ it’s been a while since you were good and kissed.”

“Carter!” Katie’s scolding might have been more threatening if she hadn’t still been choking behind her napkin.

The thing was, Carter might be obnoxious, and he might be cocky as hell, but he wasn’t wrong, and even as Regan laughed, Maya’s voice echoed in her brain.
If anyone deserves a little distraction, it’s you.

After a while, she wiped her mouth on a napkin and lifted her right shoulder. “Even if that were true—and I’m not saying it is—what makes you think you’re the man for the job?”

“You shittin’ me?” The half smile was back. “After what happened down at your shop?”

Katie’s hand froze halfway to her mouth, letting a couple of olives tumble from the chip. “What happened?”

“She couldn’t keep her hands off me.”

“I
what
?” Regan choked. “I cut your hair, Carter; it involves a little touching.”

“Not like that.” He winked at Katie and grinned cheekily. “And you should’ve seen her over there getting some food a minute ago. She tried to kill Maya just so we could be alone.”

“Oh my God,” Regan laughed. “In your dreams maybe.”

“No
maybe
about it.” He thumbed to the spot where they’d been standing when he touched her hair. “And what about over there? You telling me you react like that every time some guy talks to you?”

His grin was too cocky, too confident.
Too right
.

Damn it. Pulling her plate out of Carter’s reach, Regan tried to give him a look of utter indifference, but her mouth kept twitching against a smile. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Ohmygod.” Katie let her chip fall to the table. “What happened?”

“Nothing
.
”
Regan tipped a warning look at Carter, who simply shrugged and stared straight back at her.

“Me and you, Red.” He took another sip of his beer, his dark eyes never leaving hers. “Midnight.”

“Not gonna happen.”

“Oh, come on. Give me one good reason why not.”

“I’ll give you three.” She took a sip of her drink, then held up her index finger. “The first is because it would be bad form given Jayne’s efforts tonight with Leon.”

“She doesn’t have to know.”

Her grin caught her by surprise, but she carried on, lifting her second finger up as well. “The second is that we hardly know each other, so I’m not about to start locking lips or any other body parts with you. And the third—”

“Whoa whoa whoa. Hold on.” He held up his free hand and stared straight back at her with eyes that both sparkled and mocked. “Nice to know you’ve thought about it, too, but all I’m talking about is a kiss. Lips only; no other body parts involved. Not yet, anyway.”

He popped the rest of the deep-fried cheese stick in his mouth and looked up at the clock.

“We’re running out of time, so if you want to get to know me better before I kiss you, let’s get to it.” He barely took the time to breathe before carrying on. “Favorite color?”

Regan shrugged indifferently. “Green.”

“Mine’s red.” He waggled his brow as his gaze moved over her hair. “Family?”

“Really giving it the old college try here, aren’t ya?” Regan sat back in her chair, arms crossed over her chest. “Okay. Mom lives out in the valley.”

“No brothers or sisters?” He didn’t let her finish shaking her head before he was on to his next question. “Favorite hockey team?”

“I only watch during the Stanley Cup.”

“Ooooh.” His wince was almost convincing. “Wrong answer.”

“What are you guys talking about?” Nick strode into the room with an empty wineglass in one hand, two empty beer bottles in the other, and headed straight for the makeshift bar they’d set up on the counter.

Katie laughed. “Carter’s hitting on Regan.”

Nick’s hand stilled against a bottle of Grey Goose, his hesitant gaze moving from Katie to Carter and finally to Regan, who still sat with her arms crossed. With a slow chuckle, he tipped the vodka into the martini shaker.

“Looks like he’s striking out. Guess there really is a first for everything.”

“First for what?” Jayne asked, setting a couple dirty plates in the sink. When no one made to answer her, she turned straight to Nick. “What?”

“Nothing important.” He shot Regan a quick wink over his wife’s head. “Just talking about Carter’s batting average.”

“Baseball? You should talk to Leon.” Jayne held out her glass for Nick to fill, then turned to Regan. “Did I tell you they made him the athletic director at the school?”

“Yeah, you might have mentioned it once or twice.”

“Come on, Reg, I bet you’d really like him if you gave him a chance.”

“I’m sure he’s great, but…” Regan lowered her voice and leaned closer to her friend. “I don’t think so.”

“What’s wrong with him?” Jayne couldn’t have looked more offended if Regan had insulted her directly. “He’s smart, attractive, has a great job…”

“Sure, but come on, Jayne, look at him.” As it turned out, Jayne and Regan were the only ones in the kitchen who didn’t crane their necks to get another look. “The khakis, the golf shirt,
the loafers
—ugh, I bet he drives a minivan, doesn’t he?”

“No.” Jayne’s one syllable dragged out into about four before she finally huffed out a sigh. “It’s a Volvo.”

Carter kept his head down, but Regan didn’t miss the way he choked back a snort. Ben, on the other hand, grunted hard and deep.

“You won’t go out with a guy based on what he’s wearing or what he drives? What a shock you’re still single.”

Regan blinked slowly and ground her teeth together, choosing to ignore him and talk directly to Jayne. “I’m sure he’s great, but he’s obviously looking for someone who wants to be ‘Mrs. Athletic Director,’ and we all know that ain’t gonna be me, so why bother? I mean, come on, I bet he’d have our children’s names picked out by the second date.”

Again, she ignored Ben’s muttered remark, but she couldn’t miss the way Katie gave him a sharp jab with her elbow. After a second, Jayne’s dramatic sigh gave way to a slow smirk as her cheeks pinked up.

“Well, crap. Now what am I going to do?” she chuckled. “You don’t like Leon, Maya’s totally faking it with Brad—am I really that bad at this whole matchmaking thing?”

Regan moved her gaze from Jayne to Katie and back again. “I’m hoping that’s a rhetorical question.”

Katie laughed, but Jayne just blushed deeper.

“Go ahead, laugh now, but one of these days we’re going to find you someone who’ll make you rethink the whole marriage and family thing, and you’ll be swept off your feet so fast and so hard, you won’t know what hit you.”

“Yeah…no thanks.” Regan groaned, shaking her head. “I prefer to keep my size sevens planted firmly underneath me.”

“We’ll see,” Jayne mused, chewing the inside of her cheek. After a few seconds, she perked up and nudged Carter’s shoulder. “Thanks for fixing his hair. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s sweet and all, but sometimes it’s just…
wow
!”