Free Do Me Right by Cindi Myers

away. To Theresa's surprise, Cherry was casting a few sly looks of her own.
    Well, well, well. Maybe there was some spark between those two....
    The bells on the door jangled and she turned, expecting to greet a customer. Instead she found one of her favorite people, Madeline Cupples, who owned the Excessories Boutique down the street.
    The petite, white-haired woman with a single diamond in the side of her nose held up her arms and enveloped the much taller, younger woman in an embrace. "Theresa, chica! You're just who I wanted to see."
    "Hello, Madeline." Theresa smiled at her friend. "How are you doing?"
    "I'm hanging in there. That's the best that can be expected these days."
    "What can I do for you? You ready for another piercing? Or maybe another tattoo to go with the rosebud I did for you last year?"
    The older woman grinned. "Maybe later. Right now, I wanted to tell you what's going on on the street."
    Theresa led her friend over to a pair of folding chairs and they sat. "Not more bad news, I hope," she said.
    "No, this is good news. The local business owners are banding together to get rid of the mud Carter and his cronies are slinging at us. And we want you to join us."
    Theresa made a face. The idea of endless meetings, even with people who were mostly her friends, didn't appeal to her. "Do you really think it will do any good?"
    "We can't just sit here like lumps and let them do all the talking, can we?"
    Theresa shook her head. "I wish you luck, but that's not really my kind of thing. I'm thinking if we ignore all this, it will die down after the election."
    "Or maybe not, if Carter wins."
    Could that happen? Would people really vote for a blowhard like Carter, who was trying to do away with what was after all an Austin institution? She shook her head. "Thanks for asking me, though."
    Madeline patted Theresa's knee, then stood. "You think about it. We'd love to have you working with us anytime."
    Theresa stayed seated and watched Madeline bounce out of the shop. Where did the older woman get all her energy? Between trying to sort out her employees' love lives and deal with protesters and run a business, Theresa was exhausted. She was doubly glad she'd let Kyle talk her into getting away with him tonight. Things with him were uncomplicated. So far, he'd been the rare man who didn't ask a lot of questions or expect her to be anything other than herself.
    She wasn't optimistic that attitude would last, but then, it didn't have to. They were in this for the short haul, for a vacation from the other problems in their lives. She only wished she'd thought of a similar arrangement sooner.



6
    T HERESA GOT BACK TO HER apartment a little after six o'clock and changed her jeans and halter for a pair of formfitting leather pants and a red satin bustier. She nodded approvingly at her reflection in the bedroom mirror. This was an outfit guaranteed to keep a man off guard. And Kyle deserved to be a little more unsettled around her, especially after the way he'd shaken her up last night.
    She still couldn't believe she'd actually let him blindfold her. And that she'd enjoyed it. She rubbed her hand across her stomach, trying to ignore the nervous shimmy that ran through her at the memory. Okay, so the cowboy was dynamite in the sack. No problem with that. None at all. It didn't mean anything in particular that he rocked her world the way no one ever had.
    Besides, that was probably just because it had been their first night together. All that anticipation and the excitement of being with someone new probably combined to make things a little more erotic than they would have been otherwise. Things would probably be downhill from here on out.
    She turned away from the mirror and began to rummage through her jewelry box. She hoped the sex didn't get dull too soon. She still had--what?--almost five weeks to enjoy her cowboy. She wanted to make the best of them.
    When the doorbell rang, she took her time answering it. It wouldn't do