Some Like It Hot (Sweetrock Cowboy Romance Book 1) by Leighann Dobbs Page A

locked. For a second, she forgot they were in the middle of the fairgrounds and almost ran over there and jumped into his arms. Then reality crashed in. She tore her eyes from his smoldering gaze and got back to work.
    Dammit. Why did she have to be attracted to someone who lived a million miles away? Could there ever be something between her and Nick if she stayed? Maybe it was worth it to start something up, just to get him out of her system so she wouldn’t be distracted by thoughts of him when she went back to Boston. She’d need to have a clear head and put all her focus into her new restaurant, not moon over some cowboy that was halfway across the country. Then again, she had a feeling that once she got a taste of Nick Bradford, there would be no getting him out of her system.
    Her eyes moved over to the score board again. If she didn’t get cooking chili, she wouldn’t have any money to start a restaurant in the first place. As she focused back on her work, her thoughts turned to her conversation with Rena.
    Had she really just committed herself to looking at The Chuckwagon’s processes? Would Nick be mad? He hadn’t seemed that keen on it yesterday, but what did it matter? She could tell Rena was terribly worried about it, and if she could help a single mom and her child, then she was going to do it. And if that made Nick mad, then so be it.

9
    N othing went right for Sam for the rest of the day. First, she dropped scrambled hamburger on the ground, then one of her crockpots stopped working, and then she spilled chili all over herself. There was only one high point in the day. Beulah stopped by to sample her chili again. Sam had gotten more ghost peppers at Dickinson’s, and Beulah gave it her seal of approval, favoring Sam with a wink before swaggering back to her own booth.
    By the end of the day, she was covered in chili, dripping in sweat and desperate for a drink. Tessa had texted to say their plans for a horseback ride had to be postponed to the next night. Sam was glad. There was no telling what might go wrong if she tried to get on the back of a horse.
    She cleaned up her tent and practically ran out of the fair. At Tessa’s, she showered, threw on a white tee-shirt, a denim skirt—but longer this time than the one she’d borrowed the other day—and a pair of Tessa’s red and white cowboy boots. Then she hopped back in her car and headed to The Bull Sheep Bar.
    It was early, and the nightly crowd had not yet descended which was fine with Sam. The music was low. No band tonight, just the jukebox. A few couples sat at various tables and a loud, rowdy bunch of cowboys occupied a booth in the back.
    She’d taken a seat at the bar far away from everyone else, preferring to be alone right now until she could drink away the stress of the day. Beer wouldn’t be enough for that. Upon finding out that her favorite liqueurs were Baileys and Kahlúa, the bartender had suggested a concoction called a screaming orgasm that was made from vodka, Baileys, and Kahlúa.
    The drink had a kick to it, but it was soothed by the creaminess of the Baileys. It went down easy. By the time Sam was halfway done, the alcohol had made its way into her bloodstream and was working its magic on her mood. She’d have to slow down, or she’d be calling Tessa for a ride home.
    Relaxing back in her chair, she ran her fingertips on the smooth bar top. It was one long slab of honey colored wood with the bark still attached to the edges, encased in a thick layer of shellac. Across from her, three tiers of booze bottles were stacked against the wall, lit from behind so as to display the colorful glass. Stained-glass panels hung down from the top of the bar, and she relaxed back into her chair, resting her cowboy boots on the brass foot rail in front of her as she eyed the mocha concoction beckoning to her from its martini glass in front of her. She picked up the cool glass and took a big sip, then signaled the bartender. Just one more