Page 54 of Smokin' Situation

“Just sayin,” he chuckled with a shrug. “But that’s okay because we have new guests comin’ in on the fifth and as of right now, we’re booked solid, so I was gonna have to kick you out, anyway. How gracious of Tripp to take a lady in distress into his home.”

“Who’s in distress?” the man in question asked, wiping the back of a leather glove covered hand across his sweat and dirt-streaked forehead.

While my first instincts were to saymy ovaries, I had a feeling that was not the answer to his question. Even if it was true.

No matter what this man was wearing, it was seriously unfair the effect he had on me. I only hoped I held even half the appeal to him. And the tight denim jeans hugging his strong thighs added to a straw speckled plaid shirt that stuck to his muscles in all the right places was a seriously dangerous combination when you added a cowboy hat, some leather boots and a smirk.

“Nice of you to offer up your bed to our little Annie here,” Marty teased, winking at his ranch manager and laughing when Tripp’s cheeks tinted just the tiniest bit of pink. “Real selfless to sacrificeyour comfort like that. Since I’m guessing you’re staying on that lumpy old couch in the living room.”

Charley snorted, and I unsuccessfully held in a giggle when Tripp tried to stutter through a response.

“Well, you see, sir… itisa king-sized mattress. So, there’s plenty of room for both of us to sleep without any problems.”

“Pretty sure the two of you could make a twin sized bed work without a problem, too,” Marty guffawed, and Tripp’s composure slipped once he realized his boss was just teasing him. “Just don’t keep my horses or my guests up at night, and you’re fine.”

Once her dad walked away to harass some other employees, Charley pulled me aside, shooing Tripp away with her glove-covered hands. “Girl talk. No sweaty, stinky boys allowed.”

When she’d dragged me far enough out of earshot, she turned on me with an expectant look. “Have you been ignoring all our texts?”

“What?” I absently patted my back pocket until I remembered I still didn’t have a phone. Which honestly wasn’t as bad as I thought it’d be. What had seemed like a necessity in my life before was easier to live without when you were enjoying the person you were spending most of your time with. “Oh… no. My phone was lost when Tripp rescued me, and I haven’t been able to replace it yet. That’s why I called Hudson from Tripp’s phone to check in.”

“Gotcha. Well, maybe I need to get his number to get ahold of you. Hudson was trying to see if you wanted to come in tomorrow night for a little while. Should be slow with the holiday, but since fireworks are still prohibited with the burn ban right now, it might pick up in the evening once people get bored.”

Hesitating, I didn’t want to agree to anything. Selfishly, I wanted to spend a little more one-on-one time with Tripp, but I didn’t want to assume he felt the same way. I knew his family lived nearby, and post wildfire, their emotions were still running high. Maybe they wanted time with Tripp, and maybe that time wouldn’t include me.

“I’ll think about it. I can call Hudson to let him know later once I figure out what my plans are.”

She looked over my shoulder, her grin widening. Turning to follow her gaze, I smiled as I took in the man leaning against the wall, his gloved hands propped on the handle of a stall shovel.

“I have a feeling your plans are gonna involve a whole lot of that man,” she teased. “Don’t forget to write my dad a thank you note for his matchmaking skills. Who knew bringing on someone to lighten his workload would lead tolove at first horseback rescue?”

“Not me,” I laughed, shaking my head. Part of me had just resigned to being alone. Now I had all kinds of crazy thoughts running through my mind, each getting just a little too far ahead of itself.

“I’m gonna assume since you don’t have a phone, you haven’t heard from Reid’s cousin?”

Charley knewofJayden from when he came into the bar, but since he was closer to Reid, and not as much with Hudson, I wasn’t sure how well she knew him personally. Jay was quite a bit older than her, so it wasn’t like she ran in the same circles as him before she started dating my boss.

“Last I knew, he was still up in Breckenridge,” I commented offhandedly, feeling a little guilty that I hadn’t made more of an effort to check in with him. But that’s not how things were between us. Especially not lately. “He’s been trying to get some chef to come down here to help him open the restaurant. But Jay’s been tight-lipped about things.”

“Gotcha,” she replied, nodding toward Tripp. “Well, just be careful. Once he gets back to town, things might get a little more complicated for you. I’m sure Hazel can have Reid talk to him if you need him to.”

Shaking my head, I glanced at Tripp out of the corner of my eye, glad he was giving us space to talk. “Tripp knows I was involved with someone. But I’m ending it when Jay gets back to town. I mean, it’s kind of been over for months, anyway.”

“Just be careful. I know things were casual with you and Jay, but men can get territorial when they think their toys are about to be taken away.” I gave her a look, and she held her hands up. “I wasn’t saying you were a toy, per se. But the comparison works. I just don’t want to see your friendship blow up because he’s jealous.”

“Things weren’t like that between us. It was never an exclusive arrangement.” To be honest, I wasn’t sure if Jayden could be jealous. Even after seven years together, he still never truly showed me the real him. The only people who seemed to get the real side of him were his best friend Colette and the ex from college he never talked about.

“Well, I’m glad Tripp found you, because this is the happiest I think I’ve ever seen you.” She thankfully let the conversation go, brushing off her jeans before she left her parting shot. “But I’ll still fuck him up if he hurts you.”

Annie

TrippandIheadedinto town late in the afternoon, and with the 4thfast approaching, it didn’t look like as much of a ghost town as it had previously. It still wasn’t as busy as I’d seen it in years past, but maybe Sage Springs had a chance of bouncing back with the fire completely suppressed. Watching the people milling about as we drove past, I admired the resilience of this community. How, despite our tragedies, people were still coming out to support local businesses and celebrate the holiday.

And now maybe assholes with fireworks would respect red flag warnings and burn bans now that they’d seen the aftermath of their stupid decisions.

“Do you want to check in with Reese?” Tripp asked, his thumb tracing distracting patterns on the inside of my knee. His hands seemed to gravitate toward me whenever he was near. And I craved the overt affection after years of being involved but not in an actual relationship.

“She’s usually on shift by now, and I know she volunteered to work the holiday tomorrow, so I’ll check in with her after. I’m sure she’s got her hands full with Baker.”

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