Call Me Irresistible (Wynette, Texas #5)(53)

" . . . and with my software," Ted said, "communities improve their power efficiency. Dynamic load balancing."

The way Sunny licked her lips made her response sound like soft-core porn. "Optimizing their existing infrastructure. That's brilliant, Ted."

They soon formed a foursome. Sunny, Meg observed, was the whole package. Sexy, smart, accomplished. Her father obviously adored her, and he went on ad nauseum about her accomplishments, from her GRE scores to the design awards she'd won for the company. Ted introduced them to everyone, which turned out to be surprisingly entertaining, because even Birdie, Kayla, and Zoey had to be polite to Meg in front of the Skipjacks. She'd never been around so much sucking up in her life, not even in Hollywood.



       
         
       
        

"Wynette is the best-kept secret in Texas," Birdie trilled. "This is God's country for sure."

"Just walking down the street, you can run into Dallie Beaudine or Kenny Traveler," Kayla's father said. "Name another town where that could happen."

"Nobody can match our scenery," Zoey offered, "and people in Wynette know how to make strangers feel welcome."

Meg could have debated that last point, but a hand that didn't belong to Spence gave her elbow a warning pinch.

By the time the barbecue was served, Sunny was treating Ted like a long-term boyfriend. "You have to come to Indianapolis, doesn't he, Dad? You're going to love it. The most underrated city in the Midwest."

"That's what I've heard," the mayor replied with all kinds of admiration.

"Sunny's right." Spence gave his daughter a fond look. "And I guess Sunny and I already know just about everybody in town."

Kayla came over to flirt with Ted and announce that the bid had gone up another five hundred dollars. Since she seemed happy about it, Meg suspected "Daddy" was responsible. Sunny didn't seem threatened by either the higher stakes or Kayla's blond dazzle.

When Zoey joined them, Ted introduced her to the Skipjacks. Although she wasn't as obvious about it as Kayla, her gazes at Ted left no doubt how she felt about him. Meg wanted to tell both Zoey and Kayla to get a grip. It was obvious Ted liked them and just as obvious his feelings didn't stretch any further. Still, she felt more than a little sorry for both women. Ted treated all females-Meg being the lone exception-as infinitely desirable creatures, so it was no wonder they continued to hold out hope.

Sunny had grown bored. "I heard they have a beautiful pool here. Would you mind showing me, Ted?"

"Great idea," he said. "Meg's been wanting to see it, too. We'll all go."

Meg would have thanked him for making sure she wasn't left with Spence if she hadn't recognized his true motive. He didn't want to be alone with Sunny.

They all wandered out to the pool. Meg met their host, Kenny's father, Warren Traveler, who looked like an older, rougher version of his son. His wife, Shelby, came across as a bubblehead, an impression Meg knew could be deceptive in Wynette, and sure enough, she soon learned that Shelby Traveler headed the board of the British boarding school where Emma Traveler had formerly been headmistress.

"Before you start yelling at me," Shelby said to Ted, "you should know that Margo Ledbetter made an audition tape for you and sent it in to The Bachelor. You might want to start practicing your rose ceremony." 

Ted winced, a string of firecrackers went off, and Meg leaned in close enough to whisper, "You really need to get out of this town."

The small muscle she was becoming increasingly familiar with began to tick at the corner of his jaw, but he smiled and pretended not to hear.





Chapter Eleven


A t the pool, Meg watched Torie wrap two future beauty queens in beach towels. The happy kisses she planted on both noses testified that she was all bluster when it came to complaining about her kids. Kenny, in the meantime, was refereeing an argument between two young boys with hair as dark as his own, while a little girl with her mother's butterscotch curls stole the disputed rubber raft from behind their backs and ran into the pool with it.

Eventually Meg managed to excuse herself to use the bathroom only to find Spence waiting in the hallway with a fresh glass of wine as she came out. "I seem to remember you were drinking the sauvignon blanc." He hit the consonants hard, like a man with no patience for any language other than English, then poked his head into the bathroom. "Kohler toilet," he said. "But those are my faucets. Brushed nickel. Part of our Chesterfield line."