Or maybe he's simply a nice, decent man, who, incredible as it may seem, is single, heterosexual, and interested in you.
As the waitress set their drinks and plates of food on the table, Lexie couldn't help but again notice that she was staring at Josh as if he were a succulent morsel and she was starving. When she'd laid down the last dish, she said in a breathless rush, "You're Josh Maynard. I'd recognize you anywhere."
Lexie's brows crept up in surprise. Oh, boy. Hopefully this woman didn't recognize Josh from the FBI's Most Wanted poster at the post office.
Josh smiled at the young woman and stuck out his hand. "Yes, ma'am. I'm Josh Maynard. Nice to meet you, Miss-?"
Lexie feared the girl might go down like a tenpin as she clasped Josh's hand. "Baker. Vickie Baker. Ohmigod. I told Sally and the other girls it was you, but they didn't believe me. Can I have your autograph?"
"I'd be honored, Vickie. 'Fraid I don't have a pen, though."
"I have one." She yanked her apron askew in her zeal to remove it from her pocket. A frown creased her forehead. "But all I have is my order pad to write on. Would you wait while I get a decent piece of paper?"
"I'll be right here."
Vickie gushed out another, "Ohmigod," then sped away. Josh turned to Lexie with a sheepish grin. She stared at him for several seconds until she located her voice.
"Okay, so what are you, a country singing star?"
"No. Remember how I mentioned last night that I'd done some rodeo?"
"Yes. That's how you got your scar."
"Right. Well, truth of the matter is, I've spent a fair amount of time on the rodeo circuit, and managed to make a bit of a name for myself."
"What's a 'fair amount of time'?"
"I rode some in high school and college, but except for that year doing research, the rodeo is how I've made my living since college."
"And you're how old now?"
"Thirty-four."
"And I'm guessing that since Vickie recognized you and gushed over you as if Mel Gibson and Brad Pitt had just strolled in, you did a little more than make a 'bit' of a name for yourself."
He shrugged. "I won a few."
"A few what? Blue ribbons?"
"World championships."
Her eyes widened. "So you're some sort of rodeo celebrity?"
"I suppose. In certain circles." He flashed her a grin. "But hey, how famous can I be? You'd never heard of me."
"Maybe because I know squat about the rodeo."
"I'd be happy to tell you anything you might want to know."
"Why didn't you mention this before now?" His gaze searched hers. "It hadn't really come up in conversation. I retired from the circuit a few months ago. And to tell you the truth, it was nice to be with someone who didn't know. Who didn't make a fuss about it."
An image of adoring female fans "making a fuss" over Josh flashed in Lexie's mind, followed by the taunting phrase "been there, done that." "Does the rodeo have groupies-like rock and roll bands?"
"Groupies, fans, corporate endorsers," he said.
Any further elaborations he might have planned to make were cut off by the arrival of Vickie and three other young waitresses.
"I told you it was him," Vickie said with a smug grin to her cohorts. She turned to Josh. "This is Sally, Trish and Amy."
Josh nodded at the women and smiled. "Nice to meet you, ladies. And this is Lexie."
All four women said, "Hey," in greeting, but their attention was focused on Josh with the sort of zeal a jewel thief would bestow upon the Hope diamond.
"I told Ben, the bartender, that you were here," Vickie said, "and he about split a gut. He's holed up in the boss's office, printin' off some pictures of you from the Internet so you can sign 'em and we can hang 'em behind the bar."
One of the other women-Lexie believed it was the one named Amy-craned her neck around. "Are you wearing one of your All-Around buckles, Josh?" she asked in a breathless voice.
"As a matter of fact, I am."
"Oo-hh! Can we see it?"
"Sure." He scooted his chair out, then stood. Lexie noted that four pairs of female eyes zeroed in like laser beams on his big belt buckle. And all four women looked as if they'd like to polish that big brass buckle-with their tongues.
With a flip of his wrist, he removed the buckle and handed it to Amy who accepted the shiny piece as if it were the Holy Grail. The four women crowded around, oohing and aahing. Josh shot Lexie a sheepish grin and mouthed "Sorry." She waved her hand, indicating it was no problem, then she simply sat back and watched, half amazed, half amused, as he proceeded to charm the women with several rodeo anecdotes while signing autographs for them. Ben the bartender joined the group, Internet print-out pictures in hand, and Lexie watched Josh scrawl his name across images of himself atop huge, bucking Brahman bulls.
Her stomach flipped at the eye-widening images in those photos, and she gave herself a mental slap on the forehead. Good grief, so much for meeting a man who wasn't another adrenaline junkie! She could sum up what was depicted on those printouts in two words: in sane. The thought stilled her. Yes, it was insane. And dangerous. And based on the behavior of these waitresses, woman clearly flocked around him like geese. Good Lord, he was just like Tony.
But did it really matter? No, of course not. She wasn't going to marry him. She wasn't even dating him!
He was temporary. A fling. A way to regain her confidence and to ease herself back into the singles scene, and as an added bonus, to pick up some extra money for teaching him on the side. It didn't matter that he'd spent years being tossed onto the ground by two-ton beasts, or that women hung on him like mold on cheese. Her heart was not involved. Yup, everything was now settled back into its proper perspective.
It wasn't long before curious patrons started looking toward the group gathered around their table and came over to check out what was happening. Soon a crowd had formed, men and women alike, all anxious to get an autograph and to shake Josh's hand. He was unerringly polite and patient, chatting, signing, even posing for pictures with several people who had cameras with them. He frequently squeezed Lexie's hand, smiling at her in an apologetic way, but she assured him she was fine. He introduced her to the crowd as "his friend" Lexie, and she noted that several women in the crowd raked their gazes over her in a way that indicated they'd like to take her out back and fling her in the Dumpster.
She couldn't help but admire his attitude toward all these strangers. He was charming and friendly, but even though, in spite of her presence, a number of the women flirted outrageously with him-what was she, invisible?-Josh remained merely friendly and polite in return, not rising to any of the overtures, innuendos or invitations issued to him. She couldn't deny she appreciated the courteous gesture. It definitely wasn't the way Tony would have handled a similar situation.
After he'd signed an autograph for everyone who wanted one, and Vickie had shooed off the crowd, saying, "Okay, let's leave the poor man to his evening," he turned to Lexie.
"I'm sorry that took so long, but I hate to disappoint fans. They're a loyal group, and without them, I wouldn't have had a job."
"Please, don't apologize. I enjoyed watching you." She shook her head. "It's like being out with a movie star. That one man referred to you as the Michael Jordan of rodeo!"
He shrugged. "A reporter called me that once, and after the media picked it up, it sort of stuck."
Leaning forward, she looked into his eyes. "That entire thing was amazing, but what I find most amazing of all is how modest you are about your accomplishments."
"I can't deny I'm proud of them, but I guess I don't talk about them much, especially away from the circuit. If I talk about it with other cowboys, it's business. If I talk about it with anyone else, it seems like braggin'."
"Certainly no one could blame you-you have plenty to brag about."