COWBOY FOR SALE--A Second-Chances Spicy Romance Read Online Free PDF Page A

fine.”
    It was pretty obvious Kandy agreed with anyone who had the opinion that Lacey needed to relax a little more and let down her guard. Okay, so she would. At least she’d try. Maybe it really was time she stepped away from the past and at least considered the future. She was certainly wiser for having gone through hell, right? So, wiser and perhaps ready. Time would tell.
    “Who’s doing a watermelon?” one of the young women yelled as she waved to the waitress.
    When Gloria took their order Lacey agreed to join the group in a shot. When the tray arrived of shot glasses filled with bright pink liquid, the young women all tipped their heads back and slammed back the watermelons, then let out a woot . Lacey sipped half hers and was surprised it was so sweet. It definitely reminded her of the watermelon-flavored hard candy she'd loved when she was a kid, always trading the green sour apples for the pretty pink watermelon ones.
    Gloria stood by in case refills might be ordered, Lacey assumed.
    “What are these made of,” she asked her.
    “Jack Daniels, pineapple juice, a little grenadine for color. Careful, though, a few too many and they’ll kick you in the ass,” Gloria warned.
    Though she didn't really care for the strong taste of alcohol, as a rule, the sweet watermelon went down easy. She finished her shot and placed the empty shot glass on Gloria’s tray, but waved off a refill. The rest of the women yelled in unison, “one more!”
    The alcohol definitely took the edge off her nervousness and Lacey felt her anxiety ease a little. Maybe everything would be all right tonight. It could happen, right?
    After the group’s second round of shots, a popular line dance song enticed Kandy and her friends to the dance floor while Lacey stayed behind and watched from the security of her barstool. She watched as Kandy danced quickly to the front, placing herself directly in view of Luke as he sang. The floor quickly filled with solo dancers who slipped into the pattern of steps, while some couples ringed the outside in a quick two-step. Lacey studied the repetition of steps and smiled at Kandy's determination to hold Luke's attention.
    Kandy was a good friend who, despite her young age, probably knew her better than anyone. Most importantly, she'd been there for her during the last year when she'd thought her whole world was falling apart. Though Kandy was immature in many ways, she had a level head and a solid foundation built from growing up in a loving, supportive family. Something Lacey envied.
    Kandy had managed to help her face the fact that even when everything seemed devastatingly horrible, life just went on anyway, and that ultimately everyone needed to look for a way out of their own unhappiness.
    The young stylist’s solution had sounded so simple. Over egg rolls and chop suey at lunch one day in the food court, Kandy had convinced her that she had to give up the whole idea of life being unfair. In fact, she'd told her, life was basically unfair and she’d reiterated how each person was responsible for creating their own happiness. That’s what her grandmother had preached to her since she could remember.
    Even Lacey's fortune cookie had agreed, affirming that There is no way to happiness, happiness is the way.
    From that moment on, Lacey's journey of healing had begun.
    Her life had been such a roller coaster of ups and downs. Promoted to Salon Manager one month. Falling in love the next month. Then she'd been busy planning a wedding and picking out china and registering at the mall’s nicest department store.
    Things had changed drastically in one dreadful day.
    Lacey shuddered, trying her best to keep the dark memory under control. Dirk had appeared to be the perfect catch: undeniably handsome, charming, seemingly financially secure, and a single dad with custody of a four-year-old son. She had fallen head over heels with Dirk very quickly in their dating relationship. She had also fallen in love