Page 24 of Tee’d Up For Trouble

“He’s got that look about him,” Mickey explained to Ronan when asked about it. “Like he knows how to take a hit, but more importantly, he knows how to get back up.”

Jax Caldwell had been here for half a minute and had become a part of Ballybeg, which was bad in itself, but what was worse was that he’d become a part ofmylife. Some people lived around you for years and didn’t make an impact, and some did it in a moment.

It was a Monday morning, and we didn’t open on Mondays until five in the evening. I’d have liked to take the day off, but ends don’t meet if you take days off, and Ronan had assured me that he had no life and didn’t mind cookingevery day. If I didn’t love him like a brother, I’d marry that man, I thought as I wrapped a scarf around my neck. It was, after all, still February in Ireland, and while the calendar might’ve been shouting about spring coming soon, the weather was having none of it.

I had just zipped up my jacket, ready to brave the sunny cold day, when the man who was occupying my thoughts sauntered down the stairs.

“We don’t open until five today,” I informed him.

While I looked like a bundle of wool, he looked like he’d stepped out of a catalog forHandsome Americans Braving Irish Weather. He had on a dark coat, a gray scarf, and a pair of gloves that probably cost more than my most expensive whiskey.

“I know.” He flashed me one of those damn deep dimple smiles that made my stomach flip. He nodded toward the door. “Paddy said the walking paths around here are worth seeing. Thought I’d check them out. Care to join me?”

I arched an eyebrow. “I am going for a walk, and if you wish,youcan join me.”

“Sounds wonderful,” he said cheekily, and I realized I’d stepped into it as he’d hoped.

Spending more time alone with Jax Caldwell was probably a terrible idea, but for some reason, I couldn’t tell him to take a hike.

“Fine.” I tucked my hands in my jacket pockets, looking at his designer boots. “But if you can’t keep up, don’t expect me to slow down.”

He laughed, holding the door open for me. “Noted.”

The fields around Ballybeg were still wet from last night’s rain, but the sun had coaxed some life into the grass, and little white flowers were starting to bloom along the edges of the path. Jax walked beside me, his long legs eating up the distance with ease.

“What’s that over there?” His chin angled toward the low stone walls that crisscrossed the countryside like a patchwork quilt.

“Old boundary walls,” I told him. “Some of them are hundreds of years old. They used to separate farmland.”

He nodded, taking it all in with an expression that was hard to read. For someone who came from a world of fast cars, luxury resorts, and PGA tours, he seemed genuinely interested in the quiet beauty of Ballybeg. I couldn’t fault him for that. Stunningly beautiful, our village was.

“You know,” he said after a while, “this place reminds me of something out of a storybook. Like it hasn’t changed in centuries.”

“That’s the idea.” I pulled my scarf tighter around my neck against the wind. “We’re proud of that. Ballybeg doesn’t need changing.”

He glanced at me, his lips curving into a faint smile. “You’re pretty protective of this place, aren’t you?”

I shrugged, trying to downplay the sudden warmth in my chest at his insight. “I’m not anything special, everybody in Ballybeg feels that way.”

We stopped at a small hill with a circle of ancient standing stones near the top. Jax studied them with curiosity. “This reminds me of the Stone Henge.” He squinted at one of the taller stones. “OrOutlander.”

I chuckled. “You watchOutlander?”

“You don’t?”

I rolled my eyes. “Of course, I do. Sam Heughan, even though he’s a Scotsman, takes his shirt off, and it’s a pretty sight.”

“Same here,” he joked.

“This is older thanOutlander, I can tell you that much. These are the Lover’s Stones of Ballybeg. There’s a legend about them.”

He grinned like a kid in a candy store, excited and intrigued. “Go on.”

I walked toward the stones, letting my fingers graze the rough surface of one as I spoke. “They say that centuries ago, a young farmer fell in love with the daughter of a local chieftain. She was promised to another man, but they couldn’t stay away from each other. One night, under the light of a full moon, they ran away together and made their vows here, in this very spot. It was a sacred place back then.”

“And what happened to them?” Jax asked, stepping closer.

I glanced at him, my voice softening. “Her father found them and tried to separate them. But before they could be torn apart, they prayed to the gods to protect their love. The legend says the gods turned them into the standing stones so they could be together forever.”

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