Czytaj książkę: «Tempting The Beauty Queen»

Chapter 1

“I was able to find a Hamilton ticket easier than trying to find a date for this month,” said Kenzie Swayne, Southwood, Georgia’s town historian. To say she had problems was the understatement of the century. Her strictly platonic go-to date, Rafael “Rafe” Gonzalez, bailed on her this morning. Something about the time being right to go after the woman he loved. Deep down inside, Kenzie knew she needed to be happy for her friend, but damn, couldn’t love wait a month?

With a heavy sigh, Kenzie flipped her word-of-the-day calendar over. “Lugubrious,” she announced. “Yep, gloomy, bummed and bleak pretty much summarizes my life right now.” Where else could a girl get a hot guy who lived in the next town over to show up for important dates and who wasn’t looking for long-term commitments?

At the hint of a chuckle, Kenzie glanced up at her dear friend, Lexi Pendergrass Reyes, who graciously hid her laughter behind her left hand, where her blindingly gorgeous wedding ring caught the fluorescent lights of the room. Kenzie grumbled and leaned back in her black leather office chair and rolled her eyes when the chair hit the wall behind her. Sure, her tiny headquarters in City Hall were small but she had bigger problems. She needed an escort for her cousin’s wedding tomorrow and the four major events of June, when three friends were tying the knot, along with a gala and a beauty pageant.

“Come on now,” encouraged Lexi. She shifted the four teal garment bags into her left hand and leaned against the door jamb. “What about one of the Crowne twins? Surely they’re going to their brother’s ceremony?”

The last wedding Kenzie agreed to attend and be in was a surprise for the bride. At least with Waverly Leverve, knowing about the nuptials meant she could at least back out of this one. Kenzie shook her head from side to side. The coppery, red-gold hair fell over her shoulders. She frowned as she twisted it up into a bun. She couldn’t control her hair in this humid weather, so what made her think she’d be able to control her life?

Last winter Kenzie became fast friends with the handsome Crowne twins, Dario and Darren. They took Southwood by storm when they moved here to run their brother’s garage. The single ladies in town were smitten with the twins and their playboy charm but alas, neither Dario nor Darren would work well as a believable date for her cousin’s wedding tomorrow. Most of the Hairston clan, her mother’s family, coming back to Southwood wouldn’t believe Kenzie was involved in a relationship with either twin. Kenzie did not date playboys. Anymore. Playboys were a waste of time and she saw no need to be strung along by a man with a commitment phobia.

Four weeks. That was how long Kenzie was going to have to endure the scrutinous gaze of her kinfolk, especially Great-Auntie Brenda—Auntie Bren for short. She’d be there for Cousin Corie’s wedding tomorrow, Felicia Ward’s next week and the Southwood Sesquicentennial Gala. In her mideighties, Auntie Bren was a force to be reckoned with. You’d never know her age by looking at her or witnessing her spunk. At her assisted living home in Miami, Florida, she kept friends like a queen held court. At the hundred-and-fifty-year celebration, more of Auntie Bren’s friends would come and hear the story of her twenty-eight-year-old great-niece who was still not married or dating anyone serious. Both the Hairston and Swayne sides of Kenzie’s family were attending and everyone would have a date but her.

“The twins offered to split two of the weddings, one with each, and the Southwood Sesquicentennial Gala and thought the three of us could attend Dominic’s all together,” said Kenzie, “but I can’t. I need someone, as in the same guy, who will be here every weekend. Dario can do the first two but then he’s swapping places with Darren. I think they’re working on a project with Dominic, something about the baby’s room.”

“Aww,” Lexi cooed.

“They look alike but not that much. You know Erin Hairston has an eagle eye. She came here last summer to help Chantal pack up for her big move overseas and had to point out to everyone in the studio how I had more freckles from being in the sun so much.” Kenzie scowled and pressed her fingers against her freckle-covered face. As a child it was bad enough she sported this distinct red hair, but to top it off with more than a splash of freckles was downright cruel. Cousin Erin...perfect Cousin Erin, turned her nose up at beauty pageants to become an occupational therapist. In Auntie Bren’s eyes, Erin was the closest thing to a doctor on the Hairston side of the family.

Lexi, gorgeous since the day she was born, rolled her eyes toward the barbaric florescent lights in the room. “Your freckles are what make you, you.”

“Whatever. The least these spots can do is shield me when I’m dying of embarrassment when my eighty-five-year-old aunt is quizzing me about my sexuality.”

As hard as she tried not to, Lexi laughed. “What? She wouldn’t.”

“She did with Maggie,” Kenzie said of her older sister, Magnolia “Maggie” Swayne. “Auntie Bren started questioning her about whether or not she liked men and Maggie got graphic with the peach in her hand.” Kenzie laughed along with Lexi. “So needless to say Maggie won’t be seated at the family table.”

“With any luck you won’t be seated with Auntie Bren then,” said a deep voice from behind Lexi. “I’m sure she put a hex on me.”

One could hope, Kenzie thought before she realized who the deep voice belonged to at her door. The half laugh she almost shared with Lexi died and in its place came a scowl. By cruel fate, Kenzie’s high school boyfriend, Alexander Ward, had been appointed city manager by his best friend, Mayor Anson Wilson. Kenzie was positive Anson had placed Alexander on the same City Hall floor just to annoy her since he held her responsible for not being able to get close to her friend Waverly. Last year Waverly Leverve came to town as a dethroned beauty queen being taunted by mocking memes of her crying when she’d had to give up the crown. Anson thought he could win her heart but Waverly was destined to be with someone better. “What do you want, Alexander?”

“Aw, babe, is that any way to talk to the higher-ups?”

Kenzie sneered and cut her eyes over at Lexi who made room for Alexander to stand in the doorway with her. “When the higher-up refers to me as babe, he reverts back to an ex-boyfriend.”

Foolish as it sounded, Kenzie had accepted Alexander’s marriage proposal at their high school graduation, caught off guard in front of hundreds of witnesses. She’d figured since they were both attending Florida A&M in the fall there’d be no problem. But the problem came when Alexander made several friends of the female kind over the summer semester. Kenzie didn’t find out about his extracurricular activities until the first week she arrived on campus and was greeted by several other women who claimed Alexander as their boyfriend.

She’d returned to Southwood for a semester and endured a pity party from family and friends every turn she took. Not being able to take it, she’d left town for Georgia State and come back with her PhD in history. So far all she had done was archive the town’s information to bring it into the digital world but Kenzie had been destined to be the first historian of her hometown. Southwood was in her blood and her family made history. The Swaynes, her daddy’s side, and the Hairstons, on her mama’s side, helped found the town a hundred and fifty years ago. So to come back to town after everything she’d been through, in Kenzie’s mind, she’d had the bounce-back of the decade. In her family’s eyes, she was twenty-eight and unmarried with no children.

Alexander doubled over with laughter. “She’s still in love with me,” he explained, giving Lexi a slight elbow to her ribs. Nobody loved Alexander more than Alexander. Everyone had had their role in school. Alexander had been president of their senior class, captain of the basketball team and shared the accolade of most likely to succeed with his best friend, the current mayor. Regardless of the morning’s temperature starting off in the high eighties, Alexander wore a dark suit, including the jacket. The air conditioning these days was spotty, having to work overtime to fight the summer heat.

“Anyway, how are you doing, Mrs. Reyes? Ready to expand your studio?” Alexander went on to ask Lexi. “There’s space right by your building.”

“The building next door to Grits and Glam Studios, is next door to the old barber shop, and it’s historic,” Kenzie retorted and heard the contempt in her voice as she spoke. A hardware store had already disappeared when Lexi expanded her Grits and Glam Gowns to accommodate her successful pageant training studio.

“It’s old, not historic,” Alexander corrected. “The block of land belongs to the city, not the Swaynes, Kenzie. We’re allowed to sell it to developers if we wish.”

Kenzie cursed under her breath and shuffled through the stack of folders on her desk—her contribution to Southwood—and found the file she needed. “Here’s the decree, marking the barbershop as a historic site. Martin Luther King Jr. had his hair cut here and spoke in front of the buildings in the sixties.” The proof shut the city manager up and an awkward silence fell in the room. Both ladies waited for Alexander to leave. He lingered.

“Well, I’m good for now, Alexander,” Lexi replied dismissively. “Thank you for the option.”

Alexander ignored the dismissal. “What brings you to City Hall?”

When Lexi raised a questioning brow at Kenzie, Kenzie refrained from rolling her eyes.

“She’s here to see me,” Kenzie answered. “Is that okay with you?”

“You’re allowed to have visitors,” said Alexander. “It’s kind of cramped in here. Would the two of you like to go into my office and talk? I have a beautiful view of the town square. It’s beautiful this time of year.”

“Yes, it is,” Lexi answered, “but I just needed to drop off Waverly’s dresses for all four events this month.”

“Ah yes, starting with your cousin’s wedding. I thought I saw Corie around town, or more importantly, her fiancé, Hawk Cameron.”

Everyone who was anyone knew about Hawk Cameron, the star athlete for the Georgia Wolves basketball team. In the Hairston family, Hawk was more known as the man who’d knocked up the golden child of the HFG, the Hairston Financial Group. When Corie admitted her pregnancy, she’d been the topic of brief gossip. All seemed to be forgiven since Hawk stepped up as a father. No, Kenzie thought with a frown, since Hawk the athlete stepped up to the plate. Meanwhile, Kenzie was considered a pariah in her family’s eyes.

“Was there anything you needed, Alexander?” Kenzie swallowed past the irritation growing in her throat.

Alexander admitted he had nothing and then said goodbye, leaving Kenzie and Lexi alone. Finally.

“Must be tough working with your ex?”

Kenzie frowned. “Not as bad as working with him as a boss.”

“No chance he’d...”

Kenzie held her hand up to stop her old friend and mentor. “No, thanks. I’d rather run naked through Four Points Park at the height of mosquito season.”

Mosquito season in the South was unlike anything else in the world. “I’ll take that as a definite no.”

“Exactly. I shouldn’t be embarrassed or single-shamed just because I don’t have a date, or a boyfriend, or anything to pass off as a boyfriend,” said Kenzie.

“Hey, last summer you and...”

With a cut of her eyes Kenzie quieted Lexi once again. Days after the abrupt end to her summer fling with him, Kenzie had perfected the art of masking her hurt and frustration with spite and irritation. “Do not mention his name.”

“Don’t be so stubborn,” Lexi joked. “I don’t understand how you can work with Alexander but you can’t with—” Lexi gave pause and consideration for saying the name “—him. You two bonded last summer.”

Kenzie didn’t miss the way Lexi’s fingers bent into air quotes as she said bonded. “And then he humiliated me by standing me up for the party after the Miss Southwood Pageant. You know I hate to be embarrassed,” said Kenzie. “And sure, I was mortified when I found out about Alexander cheating back when we were college freshmen. I could at least deal with Alexander when we started college, and thanks to a lot of therapy, I accept he’s the one who should be ashamed, not me. Working with him, well, he annoys me but that’s it. We have no...”

“Feelings for each other?” Lexi supplied.

An uncontrollable upper lip curl tugged at Kenzie’s face. “Feelings?” She scoffed and waved off the notion. “Not a chance. I want nothing to do with him.”

“That’s why you had his truck towed?” Lexi mused and played along with Kenzie by not saying the name.

Feigning innocence, Kenzie batted her lashes. “Anyone who parks one inch too close to a fire hydrant needs to be reported, Lexi,” explained Kenzie. “I was looking out for the good citizens of Southwood.”

“Yeah, right,” said Lexi with a knowing smile. “Well, look, let me get out of here.”

The back of the black leather chair scraped against the pale gray wall behind Kenzie. It had a deep groove from the numerous times she’d done the exact same thing. “My goodness, let me get these off your hands.” She reached for the garment bags and immediately the wave of guilt hit her. “I’m so wrong. Here you are, five months pregnant in the summertime. A woman in your condition shouldn’t have to stand and listen to me complain.”

Lexi waved off Kenzie’s fret. “Trust me, I’d stand here and talk to you longer. I’ve been hunched over the sewing machine for the last few days getting ready for Bailey’s pageant debut in a few weeks.”

The two of them headed off to the elevators just outside Kenzie’s door. Pressing the circular down button, Kenzie smiled fondly at the image of her seventeen-year-old niece winning Miss Southwood and keeping the Swayne beauty queen dynasty going. It meant a lot to Kenzie to know Lexi saw the beauty queen potential in Bailey. In the pageant world, Lexi was a goddess. Not only did a one-of-a-kind dress designed by Lexi bring good luck, but her guidance as a pageant coach always brought her girls in at least the top five of every competition.

For Kenzie’s family, pageantry ran in their veins. So far six older relatives on Kenzie’s father’s side of the family were former beauty queens and four on the Hairston side, all before the age of eighteen. More had won Miss Southwood between the ages of nineteen and twenty-five, including Kenzie, but Bailey winning would be quite a feat for someone so young. Plus, there hadn’t been a Swayne queen since Kenzie.

“I’m so excited.” Kenzie beamed. “I know the former Miss Southwood is supposed to hand over the tiara but I plan on crowning her myself.”

“Because we both know she’ll win.”

Kenzie gave her friend a high five and the elevator doors dinged and opened. As they waited, Lexi pressed on. “I can’t wait.”

After the elevator doors closed, Kenzie crossed the long hallway of her office floor toward the big bay windows to make sure Lexi made it safely down the front steps. Pride filled her heart at the sight of the well-manicured, lush green lawn of the town center. Cobblestone sidewalks encased the stretch of space in front of City Hall. Scattered diagonal parking spaces filled either side of the roads. Surrounding the area were diverse businesses such as The Cupcakery, Grits and Glam Gowns, The Scoop Ice Cream Parlor, Osborne Books and others in attractive brick buildings with colorful awnings.

Kenzie rolled her eyes at the only thing she considered an eyesore: the upscale Brutti Hotel, built last year. With its modern architecture and glassy windows, and height, it stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the quaint, old town setting. There was nothing historical about the forest area where the hotelier, Gianni Brutti, built the spot and it wasn’t even considered Southwood land but everything about the place irritated Kenzie. The upscale hotel did push tourism, which kept revenue in town, so she guessed she couldn’t be too mad. In the distance a church bell rang. She was reminded once again of her hectic month ahead. Stress over her single status was going to plague her. The second wedding would be worse only in the sense she would be forced to be around Alexander’s and the questions from his well-wishing kin, wondering why the two of them never married. There weren’t many things Kenzie disliked about her small town—the folks around here always remembered Kenzie and Alexander as a couple in high school but forgot about her heartbreak when she’d returned. His family, never knowing the full story, always felt the need to remind Kenzie that they were both still single.

In the reflection of the glass Kenzie spotted a sparkling strand of hair mixed with her awkward reddish mess. As if the stress of her life couldn’t mount any higher, she’d spied a gray strand. Kenzie pressed her head against the cool glass to inspect. To make matters worse, she spotted the silver Ford F-150 truck driving down Main Street. The same tug on her upper lip returned, just as it had when Lexi almost said his name. Ramon Torres was in town.

* * *

There were a few things that could cause Ramon Torres to break the strict set of rules he lived by. After battling childhood obesity, Ramon had a no-sweets rule. But for the debut of the summer cupcake, the Wedded Bliss, sold at The Cupcakery in downtown Southwood, he made an exception. The cupcakes were so famously known and loved, Ramon took time away from his boutique hotel, Magnolia Palace, on the outskirts of town just to get one.

The other ban he broke was his No Kenzie rule. Southwood’s historian had a knack for getting under Ramon’s skin and under his covers. At the moment of spotting the unruly curly red hair secured in a high ponytail on Kenzie Swayne’s head, Ramon Torres contemplated leaving The Cupcakery. Considering the debut of the dessert, he decided to stay.

What he hadn’t planned on was the way his body responded to the sight of Kenzie’s backside in a pair of light-colored jeans. She teetered on a pair of red heels and he recalled how her long legs felt wrapped around his waist. He then ticked off the Yankees’ last world series starting lineup in his mind. If he planned on breaking a rule, let it at least be one, not two, in a single day.

The dozen people separating them weren’t enough. He needed a battalion. Ramon shifted in his boots and tried to blend in with the group of high school–aged football players with letterman jackets. According to the time on his watch, school hadn’t let out yet. Skipping class with identifying clothing to get a cupcake wasn’t smart, but Ramon understood. A couple of bankers Ramon worked with on occasion waited patiently in line. Even the kids he’d seen hanging around in the park doing nothing but skateboarding and intimidating some of the locals stopped and stood in line for a cupcake. Ramon understood the things a person was willing to sacrifice for a cupcake. In his quest for one, he’d put himself in the path of the wrath of Kenzie.

Last summer had given Ramon and Kenzie the spark they’d needed to enjoy some heated moments together. Their time had been brief, but most of all pleasurable, until Ramon realized what a distraction Kenzie had been. He’d moved to Southwood to get away from his controlling family. Generation after generation, the Torres men and women were successful. Ramon knew how to throw a party. The family always teased him about making a “good time” a profession. His oldest brother, Julio, became the mayor of their hometown. Another brother became a United States Marshal and Raul, just one year older than Ramon, owned a booming nightclub in Villa San Juan. Ramon’s own success gene did not kick in until he reached thirty and just as the gears started to grind, he met Kenzie Swayne. Kenzie put a whole new spin on sexy—and bossy at the same time. She’d been a dangerous distraction when he was supposed to get his life together and grow up. He couldn’t live on his parents’ property forever, so when the opportunity to buy the old, plantation-style home in Georgia came open, Ramon took it. Since he’d been so great at making sure his friends always had a good time, whether at a party or on vacation, Ramon turned that into a profession and opened the doors to the boutique hotel for families to come and enjoy the Southern town. Magnolia Palace was his baby, his investment and his chance to prove to his family he’d matured.

They worked together on a favorite pastime of Southwood’s—the Miss Southwood Beauty Pageant—as a favor to his extended family. Lexi Pendergrass, a former beauty queen, had married Ramon’s cousin Stephen. Stephen and his brother Nate were closer to Ramon than his own brothers. With Lexi being kin, as they said in Southwood, Ramon helped her out when the theater downtown, the usual beauty pageant venue, flooded by hosting it at his hotel, Magnolia Palace. With hindsight being 20/20, Ramon now knew he had been in no place to start anything. Had he known hosting the competition would get him involved with Kenzie, Ramon would never have done it. Kenzie wanted a man who was ready to settle down and Ramon was getting on his own two feet.

Ahead of him in line, Kenzie dropped something from her pocket when she retrieved her cell phone from her hip. The ample, heart-shaped view of her behind caused Ramon to forget about the No Kenzie rule. Every red-blooded male in line sighed and cocked their heads to the side to unabashedly appreciate the view. A collective sigh of admiration stretched through the store. Unaware, Kenzie straightened and juggled her oversize purse on her shoulder and committed the ultimate sin...she stepped aside. Whoever was on the other end must have been pretty damn important. Ramon’s jaw twitched with a twinge of something. He couldn’t put his finger on the feeling. He didn’t like the idea of someone so important in her life.

“Torres,” someone called out.

Ramon willed Mr. Myers to keep quiet until Kenzie left the bakery. The retired history teacher went so far as to wave his arms in the air. Ramon offered a quiet head nod in the direction where Mr. Myers sat with three older women. He breathed a sigh of relief when the glass doors closed behind Kenzie.

“Hey,” Ramon said with a head nod in the direction of the table. The line moved forward to the point where the glass counter came into view. Ramon counted the number of people in line versus the number of cupcakes in the display case. If his calculations were correct and if everyone purchased only one cupcake, there would be two left by the time he reached the register.

“Get your stuff and come over here,” Mr. Myers ordered. “I want you to meet my fiancée.”