Page 7 of Owned By The Cowboy
“Sorry about that,” Blayne says once she’s gone, his deep voice gone flat. “Jennifer Patterson’s got a mouth like a megaphone.”
I let out a surprised laugh. Blayne Madison has a sense of humor… who knew?
I shake my head, waving a dismissive hand. “It’s fine. I expected it.”
He shrugs one mountainous shoulder. “Still sucks.”
He’s right. It does suck. But there’s something about the way he says it, like he genuinely cares about my feelings, that makes it suck just a little less.
We’re quiet for a beat, eyes lost in each other’s. Then I shake myself. Determined to be friendly to this man who’s done so much for my family over the years, and now me and my children.
“Are you feeding an army?” I ask, nodding toward his overflowing cart.
His perfectly sculpted lips twitch again. “Crew’s coming over Sunday to watch the game. These guys eat everything in sight.”
I let out another laugh. “That sounds fun.”
“It’s loud and they leave a mess,” he replies with a slight frown, but I see the amused twinkle in his blue eyes. “But they’re good guys,” he ends with an actual smile this time. And seeing his face relax, the corners of his eyes crinkle, I wish I could be the one putting that expression on his handsome face.
What the hell, Regina?!
“Well, I should let you get back to your shopping,” I say rapidly, even though I don’t want to. But I need to put some distance between this man and my ovaries.
“Yeah,” Blayne replies, but he doesn’t move. He hesitates for a second. “The kids settling in okay?”
“Annalise is treating our move like an adventure. Nia’s pretending she hates everything, but,” I raise a victorious finger.“I caught her arranging her books on the shelf in the living room. And Jaylen’s becoming one with the couch.”
Blayne lets out a short chuckle that instantly makes my nipples harden. Oh, Lord… “Sounds about right for a fifteen-year-old.”
“You remember being fifteen?” I can’t help but ask curiously.
“I remember being a pain in the ass, yeah,” he lets out another deep rumble of laughter. Then his tone turns matter-of-fact, no longer amused. “Kid’s probably doing better than I was.”
Before I can respond, Annalise appears at my elbow, arms full of cereal boxes. I roll my eyes.
“Mama, can we get these?”
“Baby, that’s like six boxes of cereal.”
“But they’re all different flavors!” My baby girl…
“Hi there,” Blayne says in his husky voice, looking down at her from his mighty height.
I watch as this mountain of a man crouches down to get closer to my daughter’s level, and my breath catches. He’s even bigger than I remembered. Easily six-foot plus, with shoulders that strain against his black t-shirt and arms that look like they could lift a car without breaking a sweat. The cotton fabric clings to his chest in a way that makes my lady-bits notice. His dark hair is curling at the collar under his hat, and I can smell his soap. Something clean and masculine that makes me want to step closer instead of maintaining proper grocery store distance. There’s a day’s worth of stubble along his jaw, and when he speaks to Annalise, I can see the way his throat works, the strong column of his neck. Fuck, he’s hot. Am I reacting this strongly to this man because I’ve been celibate for so long? I mean, I’m not blind. Even when I was dating my ex, then engaged to him, and then married, I noticed how incredibly handsome Blayne was. But I guess I didn’t really allow myself to linger on it…
“I’m Blayne,” he introduces himself in a gentle voice.
“I’m Annalise. Are you the one who fixed our house?” my girl asks, all big brown eyes and bright smile.
His forearms are on display as he rests his hands on his knees, and I find myself staring at the way his muscles shift under his tanned skin. There’s a thin layer of hair there, cut by a scar running from his wrist to his elbow. And I wonder if it’s from work or maybe his time in the army that Daddy told me about. For some ridiculous reason, I want to trace it with my finger. Or my lips…
“I helped fix it, yeah. You like it?” Blayne continues talking to my daughter like she matters, like she’s not just some kid taking his time.
“I love it! My room has a window seat and everything.”
I smile, looking at my little sunshine. Then, turn my gaze back to Blayne. Something shifts in his expression, and I watch the way his ice-blue eyes warm for my baby girl. His eyes have always been his most striking feature, pale blue against his sun-kissed skin, framed by long, dark lashes that any woman would kill for. Gah…
“Good. Your grandma told me you might like that.”
