“I have you,” she said softly.
“And that won’t change,” Eve said. “I want you to make me a promise.”
Cheyenne knew where this was going, but she asked, anyway. “What kind of promise?”
“Stay away from Dylan. Don’t see him again.”
“Tell me Baxter and the others can’t hear you.”
“No, they’re dickering with a street vendor.”
“Good. Anyway, I don’t think Dylan does drugs or anything else that’s too bad. I’m beginning to wonder if he’s sort of taken the blame for everything his brothers have done.”
“You can’t be that generous, Chey. Your whole future could hinge on this decision. Please? Will you forget Dylan and go out with Joe? For me?”
Cheyenne wasn’t as excited as she thought she’d be by the prospect of dating Joe. That came as a surprise. What happened to all those angst-filled evenings when she’d passed him on the street and hoped he’d linger? Or when she’d waited outside Eve’s house just last Friday?
He was still the same guy.
Somehow she’d changed.
“I have your blessing?” she asked.
“Of course you have my blessing,” Eve replied.
She should be elated. So why was it Dylan’s face that appeared in her mind every time she imagined herself in a man’s arms? How had he replaced Joe in her fantasies so quickly?
“Chey?” Eve said. “You’re going to stay away from the Amoses, right?”
“Right.” She agreed because she’d come to the same conclusion. She had to be smart, choose wisely, or her life would never improve.
“And you’ll go out with Joe?”
“If that’s what you really want.”
“It is. Gail’s going to have him call and ask you to the Victorian Christmas celebration tomorrow night.”
“Okay.” She sat up and peered at her closet. “What should I wear?”
“It’ll be cold so…I’d go with your pea coat, furry boots and that knitted beanie. It looks great on you.”
“Good idea.” She sighed. “I wish you were here.”
“Me, too. I can’t believe you finally lost your virginity and I wasn’t around to hear about it.”
Cheyenne wasn’t sure it would’ve happened had Eve been home. Feeling so alone had made her vulnerable.
“So? What’d you think?” Eve asked, her tone taking on a positive note. “Was it good?”
Cheyenne smiled. “Dylan might have his issues, but…he’s definitely talented in bed.”
Eve laughed. “Somehow I don’t doubt it. From what I’ve seen of him, he’s got quite a body—and a wickedly sensual mouth. But a good body doesn’t necessarily equate to a good husband. You want a relationship that’ll give you something worth hanging on to, don’t you? You want a family.”
She definitely didn’t want a broken heart. “Eventually.”
“Then go to the Victorian Christmas celebration with Joe and see where it leads.”
Considering what she’d done, it probably wouldn’t lead anywhere. “Don’t you think I should wait a few weeks? I was just…intimate with Dylan.”
“Are you and Dylan together?”
“No!”
“Then forget about it. Sex means nothing to the Amos brothers.”
Cheyenne wasn’t convinced that was entirely accurate. Eve didn’t know them. But there was no point in arguing while they were on a long-distance call. Aware that their time was limited, Cheyenne felt pressure to let Eve go. She didn’t want her to wind up with a big phone bill. “But what about Joe’s perspective on it?” she asked. “Surely he wouldn’t want to go out with me if he knew I’d just slept with Dylan.”
“He has no claim on you yet. Just don’t see Dylan while you’re seeing Joe and it’s all good.”
Cheyenne didn’t feel comfortable with that. Sunday was too soon. But she supposed she might as well take the opportunity she’d been offered. Maybe Joe could help her forget Dylan. Apparently, she needed something to make that happen because she wasn’t having any luck forgetting him on her own. “Okay, but I’m going to tell him. I have to be honest.”
“About Dylan?”
“Yes! It’s only fair.”
“No way! You can’t tell anyone about Dylan. What you’ve done is no one’s business but yours. Forget him and move on. So you’ve had a sexual relationship. Most women have had several by the time they’re thirty-one. Put it behind you. Maybe it was ill-timed, but it was…a fling, nothing more.”
She fidgeted with the edge of her blanket. “He wanted to give me a key to his house.”
“That’s not a commitment.”
It’d sort of felt like one—or at least, a step in that direction. It told her he wanted to continue seeing her. And that he wasn’t worried she might run into another of his love interests in the night.
“I have to go,” Eve said.
Cheyenne drew a deep breath. “I know. Have fun. Wish I was there.”
“Me, too. Although it sounds like you’ve been having more fun at home.”
“Stop already!” she said with a laugh.
Eve laughed with her. “I’m just so shocked!”
“Don’t make me sorry I told you.”
She was teasing and knew Eve could tell because she kept laughing. “I won’t.”
Chey said goodbye and almost hung up, then pulled the phone back to her ear when she realized Eve had one last piece of encouragement.
“Joe’s twice the man Dylan is. You’ll see.”
He certainly fit the profile of the perfect candidate. He was all she’d ever wanted.
But she was afraid that being with Dylan had changed her in some way, that now she wouldn’t be satisfied with anyone else.
17
Cheyenne had planned to go in to work for a couple of hours. Although he had no help, since Jacob was spending his Saturday at a friend’s house, Riley was there. But she’d overslept and, because of that, had decided to restructure her day. She didn’t really need to go to the inn. There was plenty of time to get ready for the grand reopening. And it was the holidays. With Christmas right around the corner, she had shopping and wrapping to do.
She was just finishing breakfast before heading to the closest mall in Sacramento when her sister wandered into the kitchen.