Naked Desire: Naked Cowboys, Book 5 by Desiree Holt Read Free Book Online

won’t break my budget. Then I need some pots and pans.”
    “And they’re delivering the stove on Saturday.” Cyn was bubbling with enthusiasm. She had to raise her voice slightly to be heard over the buzz of conversation and the jukebox in the corner. But the table they’d scored in a far corner gave them at least a semblance of privacy. “The salesman was even able to schedule the installation for late in the afternoon, which is really unheard of. Usually, you have to wait weeks.” She took a swallow of the cold beer. “They aren’t charging me any extra for the weekend either. I can’t believe it.”
    It was ladies’ night at the Lone Star Bar, and as usual, Georgie had insisted Cyn come along. It was a warm, informal atmosphere that made Cyn feel unexpectedly at home. How could she ever tell these bright self-confident women how eternally grateful she was they had taken her under their wing? They were her anchor. Her life raft. She would never be able to repay them for the intangibles they gave her.
    Jinx caught her excitement. “I think I should stop over with Lew and have him take a couple of pictures.” She sipped from her beer glass. “And do a little tease with it. Get people’s juices flowing.”
    Cyn frowned. “You think they’d be interested in a range and a half-finished store?”
    “Trust me. With the teaser I’ll write, they’ll be lining up.”
    “I can’t wait to try it out.” Cyn took a swallow of her own beer. She’d never been much of a beer drinker, preferring wine. But since coming to Saddle Wells, she was beginning to acquire a taste for it. Especially Lone Star beer. When in Rome, she thought. “I’m picking up some of the rub and the sauce from Alfredo on Friday, so on Monday morning, look out world.”
    “I see big things on the horizon for Cyn’s Cyn-Sational Rub.” Amy grinned.
    The women all raised their glasses and clinked them in the middle of the table.
    “When do you want to meet to discuss your website?” Reenie asked her. “You can come out to my office at the ranch or I can come to you with my laptop. What works for you?”
    Cyn nibbled her bottom lip. “I think we need to discuss costs first.” She hated how tentative she sounded. “I’m really trying to keep to a strict budget, and I have Alfredo to pay and accessory items to order.”
    “Cyn,” Jinx interjected, “a website’s the way to go today. You can reach endless customers that way.”
    “Yeah,” Amy added. “Today Saddle Wells, tomorrow the world.”
    “But then I need to think about packaging, labor, all the stuff that’s not in my initial budget.”
    “How about this.” Reenie hitched her chair a little closer. “Let me design the site and get it ready to launch for you. We can discuss price and work out whatever fits your budget.”
    “I can’t ask you to do that. I’m sure you get a lot of money for your work.”
    “Depends on your definition of a lot.” Reenie laughed. “Besides, we’re friends, right? So let me do this for you.” She lowered her voice. “Everyone at this table is what I call an asshole survivor. We prop each other up, help each other out. Consider this my contribution to your new life.”
    “How will I ever—” Cyn’s throat tightened as tears threatened. She had never had this kind of support before.
    “Okay.” Amy topped off everyone’s glasses from the pitcher in the middle of the table. “Enough with the mushy. I officially declare this a celebration.”
    They clinked glasses again and Cyn took a big enough swallow to drown the butterflies dancing around in her stomach.

Chapter Four
    Cyn stood back and watched as the installer double checked all the hookups and made sure the range was securely in place. Jesse stood to the side, watching, making himself available if his skills were needed for anything. But the stove fit exactly into the space Cyn had designated for it, beneath the hood Jesse had built and hooked into the vent pipe that