Free Red's Hot Cowboy by Carolyn Brown Page A

“As long as I get a piece of pecan pie, I’m fine. How good is that pie?” Pearl asked Austin as she set her plate down across the table from Wil.
    “Best this side of heaven,” Austin said. “I swear I’ve gained ten pounds since I married into this family. And I’m supposed to have Granny Lanier’s DNA and that means I don’t gain weight. But Maddie can sure test their powers.”
    Pearl picked up her fork. “That better not be the last slice or I may fight you for it.”
    “There’s one more in the pan.” Austin smiled.
    One bite of the corn bread dressing and Pearl forgot about good guys, bad boys, and even motel rooms. Two bites made her forget everything but how good the food was. Three and she would have fought a full-grown coyote away from her plate with nothing but a long-handled teaspoon.
    Austin, a tall brunette with eyes the color of a summer sky, grinned. The girl Austin had known as a child was brazen and foolhardy; the woman hadn’t changed a lot. She’d quit her job as a bank executive but took a firm hold on that old motel and ran it single-handedly without so much as a backward glance.
    Pearl’s cell phone sent up a ringtone and Wil looked at Colleen.
    “Don’t be lookin’ at me. Mine plays ‘Hello Darlin’.’”
    “And mine plays ‘Sweet Home Alabama,’” Austin said.
    “It’s mine,” Pearl said. “They’ll call back.”
    Two minutes and three bites later, it rang again. She sighed and reached for her purse.
    “Hello,” she said.
    “Hi, darlin’. Thought I’d call early and invite you to the New Year’s Eve party at Billy Bob’s. Bunch of us are going down early and staying the whole weekend. I’ll pick you up at five,” Trent said.
    Pearl smiled. “Can’t, sweetheart. I’d love to but I’ve got a motel to run. Maybe next year I’ll have things ironed out and some help. Don’t give up on me.”
    Wil was sitting close enough he could hear every word of the conversation. Just how many men did she know, anyway?
    “We’ll miss you. Party won’t be the same without you there.”
    “Jasmine will take up the slack.” Pearl laughed.
    “No way that’s possible. It’s a shame you have to work so hard, darlin’. Sure I can’t talk you into shutting down the motel for a couple of days?”
    “I’m sure, Trent. Got to run, honey. Enjoy the party and think of me.” She smacked him a kiss over the phone and snapped it shut.
    Austin giggled. “So the tribe misses the queen bee of the party girls, does it? How in the world are you surviving without a social life?” Austin asked.
    Gemma pulled out a chair and sat down beside Austin. “Y’all hadn’t seen each other in a long time? Why? Sounds like you were good friends when you were kids.”
    Pearl explained between bites. “My father sent me to Aunt Pearlita for two weeks every summer because she didn’t have any kids and she adored my daddy. Aunt Pearlita and Granny Lanier were best friends so they always had a few play days for us since Austin visited the same weeks I did. When we were about sixteen we got summer jobs so our trips ended and we drifted apart. We did see each other last spring at a rodeo down, remember? Besides, it was probably for the best that we drifted apart. She got me in trouble every time we were together.”
    Austin pointed her fork at Pearl. “Me! You were born a hellion and grew up to be the party gal. I was the good kid who studied hard and never did a thing wrong. Someday I’ll tell you stories about what a daredevil she was.”
    Wil finished eating and went back to the kitchen for dessert. He grabbed the last piece of pecan pie and carried it to the table. “I believe you, Austin. Ever since I met this woman I’ve been in trouble.”
    “You!” Pearl exclaimed. “I was minding my own business running a motel when you showed up. Cops had never come around beating on my door at the Longhorn until you rented a room. Don’t blame me.”
    Austin turned her fork toward him. “I