imagine most ministers don’t.”
Charity was certain her mouth had dropped open. Were they really suggesting that she might want to have that kind of relationship with Mike?
“I don’t keep any condoms around,” Sam added, as if the conversation needed to go any further, “and I know Lauren doesn’t, either, which is really quite obvious. It’s a long trip to the store, but we’ll head there this afternoon if... well...” She smiled coyly. “If it’s necessary.”
“Mike’s a minister,” Charity blurted out. “For heaven’s sake! You don’t think I’d sleep with him, do you?”
“Well,” Sam said, drawing out the word, “maybe it would be a little unorthodox considering his vocation and the fact that the two of you aren’t married, but he is a man, an awfully good-looking man even though he can be a bit highhanded at times. And you know perfectly well, Charity, that things sometimes happen when you least expect them to.”
“Nothing’s going to happen with Mike. Not now. Not ever.”
Lauren’s eyes narrowed. “Oh, dear, it hadn’t even crossed my mind that you might not be interested in men.”
“I’ve never met one I wanted to be interested in.”
“But you’ve noticed how good-looking Mike is?”
“Of course I’ve noticed. What woman in her right mind—or out of her mind, for that matter— wouldn’t notice a man who’s drop-dead gorgeous? But he’s a minister, and ... and I’m not interested.”
Sam stretched a hand across the table and squeezed Charity’s fingers. “I think you protest too much, but maybe we’re teasing too much, too.”
“It’s just that we’d like to get you out of Vegas,” Lauren added, shifting Tyler to her shoulder and patting him gently on the back. “One of those bullets that hit your friend Josh could have hit you.”
“But it didn’t,” Charity interrupted. “It was a fluke. A once in a lifetime thing. What all of you seem to forget is that I’ve worked long and hard to get where I am. I don’t know anything else, so what would I do if I left Vegas? Sing and dance on a street corner somewhere and hold out a hat for tips? Go to New York and try to get a job on Broadway, which is nearly impossible, and while I’m fighting a million other singers and dancers for a slot in a chorus line, hold down a waitressing job?”
“Max has asked you a dozen times to come to Florida and work with us,” Lauren said. “It would mean the world to him, and me, too.”
“I know you mean well, but Max would hover over me far more than he already does. My dad hovered and I hated it. I don’t want to go through that again.”
“Then move here,” Sam said. “No one would hover.”
“What could I possibly do here?”
“I know I’ve told Jack over and over again that I don’t want him hiring someone to help me, but when I really think about it, I know I won’t be able to handle everything when the new baby comes.”
“You need a nanny. A cook. A housekeeper. You don’t need a showgirl.”
“What I need is a friend,” Sam said. “There aren’t many women out here, and as much as I love Jack, there are times when I just want to chat with a girlfriend.”
A pleasant feeling wrapped around Charity’s heart and hugged it warmly. But as nice as Sam’s offer sounded, she knew she’d need much more than friendship with this woman to make her give up the life she’d worked so hard for in Vegas.
“I’m just a phone call away,” Charity said, but she knew that talking across the miles could never be as good as sitting across the table from each other. It was, however, the only thing that made sense. “Thanks for the offer, Sam, but I’ve got an audition coming up for the job of a lifetime. It’s a singing role, as well as dancing. It’s what I want more than anything else.”
“Then go for it,” Sam said, her smile infectious. “My mama always told me I should reach for the stars and far be it from me to tell you something
Charity was certain her mouth had dropped open. Were they really suggesting that she might want to have that kind of relationship with Mike?
“I don’t keep any condoms around,” Sam added, as if the conversation needed to go any further, “and I know Lauren doesn’t, either, which is really quite obvious. It’s a long trip to the store, but we’ll head there this afternoon if... well...” She smiled coyly. “If it’s necessary.”
“Mike’s a minister,” Charity blurted out. “For heaven’s sake! You don’t think I’d sleep with him, do you?”
“Well,” Sam said, drawing out the word, “maybe it would be a little unorthodox considering his vocation and the fact that the two of you aren’t married, but he is a man, an awfully good-looking man even though he can be a bit highhanded at times. And you know perfectly well, Charity, that things sometimes happen when you least expect them to.”
“Nothing’s going to happen with Mike. Not now. Not ever.”
Lauren’s eyes narrowed. “Oh, dear, it hadn’t even crossed my mind that you might not be interested in men.”
“I’ve never met one I wanted to be interested in.”
“But you’ve noticed how good-looking Mike is?”
“Of course I’ve noticed. What woman in her right mind—or out of her mind, for that matter— wouldn’t notice a man who’s drop-dead gorgeous? But he’s a minister, and ... and I’m not interested.”
Sam stretched a hand across the table and squeezed Charity’s fingers. “I think you protest too much, but maybe we’re teasing too much, too.”
“It’s just that we’d like to get you out of Vegas,” Lauren added, shifting Tyler to her shoulder and patting him gently on the back. “One of those bullets that hit your friend Josh could have hit you.”
“But it didn’t,” Charity interrupted. “It was a fluke. A once in a lifetime thing. What all of you seem to forget is that I’ve worked long and hard to get where I am. I don’t know anything else, so what would I do if I left Vegas? Sing and dance on a street corner somewhere and hold out a hat for tips? Go to New York and try to get a job on Broadway, which is nearly impossible, and while I’m fighting a million other singers and dancers for a slot in a chorus line, hold down a waitressing job?”
“Max has asked you a dozen times to come to Florida and work with us,” Lauren said. “It would mean the world to him, and me, too.”
“I know you mean well, but Max would hover over me far more than he already does. My dad hovered and I hated it. I don’t want to go through that again.”
“Then move here,” Sam said. “No one would hover.”
“What could I possibly do here?”
“I know I’ve told Jack over and over again that I don’t want him hiring someone to help me, but when I really think about it, I know I won’t be able to handle everything when the new baby comes.”
“You need a nanny. A cook. A housekeeper. You don’t need a showgirl.”
“What I need is a friend,” Sam said. “There aren’t many women out here, and as much as I love Jack, there are times when I just want to chat with a girlfriend.”
A pleasant feeling wrapped around Charity’s heart and hugged it warmly. But as nice as Sam’s offer sounded, she knew she’d need much more than friendship with this woman to make her give up the life she’d worked so hard for in Vegas.
“I’m just a phone call away,” Charity said, but she knew that talking across the miles could never be as good as sitting across the table from each other. It was, however, the only thing that made sense. “Thanks for the offer, Sam, but I’ve got an audition coming up for the job of a lifetime. It’s a singing role, as well as dancing. It’s what I want more than anything else.”
“Then go for it,” Sam said, her smile infectious. “My mama always told me I should reach for the stars and far be it from me to tell you something
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