Page 18 of Cowboy of Convenience
Or duration.
Evelyn's dark brows lifted. "Really?" Her plush lips twisted into a sly little smile. "Now I'm the one who’s surprised. I wouldn't have guessed strait-laced Officer Grady was the type to party."
Grady shook his head. "My time hanging around with party girls was short-lived."
It'd been fun while it lasted, but his career was everything to him and wasn’t worth risking, so he’d reined it in, thinking he’d settle down. Find someone to spend his life with.
But then everything came crashing down, dragging him with it.
Evelyn poked at the food. "I can't say the same."
Grady studied her, trying to figure out what she meant. He was skilled at reading between the lines. Hearing what wasn’t said instead of only relying only on what was allowed out. But Evelyn held her secrets close. Close enough he was starting to wonder just how off he might have been about her.
"You haven't done much partying in Moss Creek." He wanted to know more about her. Unravel the truth behind what really brought her here and what had Sasha chasing after her. It would be easy to believe it was simply the way she looked, because Evelyn was fucking stunning. But that didn't seem to be what Sasha was interested in.
"Unfortunately, partying didn't get me where I thought it would." Evelyn dropped her fork, abandoning her dinner.
"There's probably a lot of people who say the same thing." He wasn’t one of them. He’d give anything to be able to go out. To drink until his problems didn’t matter.
But he couldn’t. He had a reputation to uphold and responsibilities to see to.
Evelyn gave him a small smile. "That’s probably true." She wiped at the corner of one eye, blinking a few times before letting out a sigh. "I really appreciate you coming over here and being willing to help me, but I just don't know if it's a good idea."
"You think telling Sasha the truth is a better idea?" He'd been around Sasha for all of five minutes, and it was clear the guy didn't know how to take no for an answer. Didn't intend to get anything less than what he wanted. "Because I think that sounds like a terrible fucking idea."
Evelyn dropped her head back, slumping into her chair as she let out a little groan. "I'm just so over the bullshit. I'm over the games."
"I've got bad news for you. Life is always bullshit." He faced it every day. "I wish it wasn't, but it is."
She huffed out a bitter sounding laugh. "Yeah, but some bullshit is worse than others."
She wasn't wrong there. Everybody had problems, he knew that. And they all thought their problems were the worst problems. Not him. He'd actually seen enough to know his weren’t anywhere close to being at the top of the scale.
They weren't the best of problems to have either, though. He’d take Sasha’s bullshit any day of the week. Technically, had since somewhere along the way he’d decided Evelyn’s problem was another of his responsibilities.
"He's not going to stick around long." Grady waved a hand in the general direction of the house across the street. "He won't be able to stand living without a Starbucks. I'm willing to bet he's on a flight home before the weekend."
Evelyn seemed to perk up a little bit. "You think so?"
"Abso-fucking-lutely I do." Grady downed a little of the beer she'd passed him. "His kind come here all the time. Spend a few days out at The Inn at Red Cedar Ranch. Pretend like they could be a cowboy. And then they hightail their asses back to their fancy cars and expensive suits."
Evelyn’s head tilted a little as she considered. "That does sound a lot like Sasha." One side of her nose scrunched, lifting her lip. "All except the cowboy part. There's no way he would ever get on the back of a horse."
“That would be one way to keep him away.” Grady looked Evelyn over, imagining her in the saddle, wind blowing her dark hair, eyes and smile bright. “I could probably get a horse down here tonight.”
Evelyn stared at him for a few beats. "I can’t tell if you’re kidding or not."
“Maybe I’m just trying to make you think of me as the more convenient alternative.” He gave her a wink. “Just to sweeten the pot, I can promise I won’t eat your grass or shit on your driveway.”
Evelyn laughed, her head tipping back, the sweet sound solidifying his desire to keep this going. Even if nothing came of it, he needed this. Needed something to look forward to in his life.
And he most definitely looked forward to spending more time with Evelyn. Even more than he looked forward to driving Sasha fucking nuts. It was a win-win and he planned to do whatever it took to make sure it continued.
Whatever it took to get to keep seeing her smile like this.
“I think I’ll pass on the horse then.” Evelyn stood, going to collect a bottle of water from the fridge. “I’m not sure I’d know what to do with one anyway.”
"Are you telling me you’ve been here for almost a year and haven't gotten your ass up onto a horse yet?" He shook his head. "I'm pretty sure that's illegal."
