He didn’t want to admit to himself how glad he was to see her, but he was. “Checking me out, huh?”

“Yes, you know, to make sure the bar wasn’t going to fold due to lack of business.” She looked around at the packed house, then gave him a crooked smile.

He laughed. “No fear of that tonight.” He finished filling the drink order so his waitress could take it to the table.

“No kidding. Are you giving drinks away tonight?”

“Not exactly. Good baseball games, and I’m running a drink special.”

“Obviously it worked well.”

“Can I get you something to drink?”

She studied the alcohol behind the bar for a few seconds. “A vodka cranberry sounds good.”

“Coming right up.”

He made her drink, then handed it to her, sliding his fingers over her hand. “I’m glad you’re here, Chelsea.”

Her lips curved. “Me, too. I’ve actually got a surprise for you.”

His brows rose. “You do?”

“Yes. For after work.”

“Now I’m intrigued.”

“You should be.”

She sipped her drink while he worked, though he periodically checked back with her. This being Hope, she knew a lot of people, so she mingled. He knew he didn’t have to worry about her. For a while, she had Lou on her lap. His dog happily snoozed while Chelsea sat at a table with several couples that had stopped in. Bash recognized one of the guys as a Hope teacher, so he assumed that’s how Chelsea knew the group. He was glad she was in good hands.

He didn’t see her again until about an hour later, when she came back to the bar, still holding Lou.

“Your girl seems wiped. Mind if I take her home?”

He leaned over the bar. “And by home, I assume you mean my place?”

Her lips tilted. “Of course.”

“Sure. You know the code to the garage door.”

“I do. I’ll see you there in a little while.”

“Hang on a second.” He hollered to the other bartender that he’d be back in a minute, then grabbed Lou’s crate and came out from behind the bar.

Chelsea gave him a quizzical look.

“Walking my girls to the car.”

She smiled. “Okay.”

Chelsea waved goodbye to her friends. He noticed there were two couples there, and a guy by himself. The guy was definitely giving Chelsea interested looks.

Huh.

He knew one of the teachers, Joe Bretano, was married, so he waved to Joe and his wife.

“Were all of those people teachers?”

“Oh, the group I was sitting with? Yes.”

“I know Joe and his wife, Elaine.”

Chelsea nodded. “Yes. There was also Terri Frontman and her husband, Rick. Terri teaches English.”

They stopped at her car and Bash put Lou’s crate in the backseat.

“Who was the other guy? The one by himself?” he asked.

“Oh, he’s the new football coach, Zach Powers. He was just hired at the end of the school year, since Red Davis retired.”

“I heard Red retired. I didn’t know they hired his replacement.”

She nodded. “Zach will be teaching history.”

“He was giving you looks.”

She paused as she was about to slip Lou into her crate, straightening to give him a shocked look. “What? He was not.”

“Yeah, he was.”

She shook her head and put Lou into her crate. “I think you’re imagining things.”

“I’m a guy, Chelsea. I know when another guy is giving a woman a once-over. More than once, as a matter of fact.”

She leaned against the side of the car and crossed her arms, an amused smile on her face. “You’re jealous.”

“No, I’m not. I’m just telling you what I saw.”

“You are jealous. That’s so sweet, Bash.” She pushed off the car, shut the back door, then wrapped her arms around him and kissed him, the kind of kiss that told him she was into him, not Zach the new football coach.

When she pulled back, there was definite desire—and promise—in her eyes.

“Don’t forget, I have a surprise for you at home. I’ll see you later.”

She climbed into her car, and he waited until she drove off.

He was not jealous. But as he walked inside, he stopped at the table to say hello to Joe and Elaine, who introduced him to Terri and her husband. And to Zach.

“I hear you’re the new football coach at Hope High,” he said to Zach.

Zach was tall and well-muscled. He looked like he’d played some football himself in the past.

Zach offered an easy smile. “I am. I’m looking forward to it.”

“Welcome to Hope, Zach.”

“Thanks, Bash. You have a great bar here. I hope to spend some time hanging out. I’m a big sports fan.”

They spent a few minutes talking about tonight’s games as well as Hope High’s football team’s chances for next season. Then Bash had to get back to the bar.

Dammit. Zach was a nice guy. He’d gone to school in Tulsa, had attended college in Texas, and had played football there. He’d gotten drafted by Detroit, but a knee injury had forced an early end to his career. He’d ended up teaching in Detroit, but he wanted to come back home. When Coach Davis announced his retirement, Zach said he applied for the job and got it, so he moved to Hope to be closer to his family.