Page 30 of The Devil in Blue Jeans
Jaxon sighed heavily as thoughts of having all these men working on his ranch ran through his head yet again. He was proud to have such a loyal and hardworking team of men and women working on his ranch—until Charly arrived. He couldn’t help the rush of jealousy that filled him when the men would look in her direction. He knew he had no right to be possessive, but he couldn’t bear the thought of anyone else getting too close to her during her stay at the ranch. He wanted to get to know her better himself.
He cleared his throat, drawing Decker’s attention to him and prompting the man to stop smiling so widely.
In a more serious tone, Decker asked, “So I hear you took over the bar?”
Charly nodded. “Me and some of my friends,” she replied.
“That’s why she’s here,” Jaxon quickly added. “To learn more about life in town to help the locals feel more welcome at the bar.”
Decker gave her an inquisitive look. “At your bar that caters to heartbroken out-of-towners?”
Charly let out a deep sigh. “Is that what people are saying?”
“Well ma’am it is,” Decker stated, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “Sorry if that’s not what you wanted to hear.”
She fixed her gaze on him intently, a frown marring her features. “Thank you for telling me. I appreciate your honesty, and that is why I’m here. We want to make everyone feel welcome in the bar. And we’re not just creating a safe space for heartbroken out-of-towners, it’s to celebrate achievements too. For everyone. Most importantly, for the people in town.”
Growing curious, Jaxon asked, “Would you throw a party for a man going through a breakup?”
She glanced over at him briefly before nodding. “Of course, if they wanted one.” Peering at him closely she muttered suspiciously, “Why, Jaxon? Has someone broken your heart recently?” She paused and grinned, all sass. “Oh, right, you don’t do relationships.”
Decker coughed lightly to hide his amused laughter.
Jaxon let the dig roll off him. She thought he was scum—maybe even worse than scum. It got right under his skin.Shegot right under his skin. “Nah, no recent breakups.” He edged closer to her, her cheeks flushing with color at his nearness. “I never said that I don’t do relationships, Charly,” he murmured softly. His words had the desired effect as her breath caught in her throat and heat filled her gaze. He could feel the tension between them too, his cock hardening to respond to it. He grinned, before taking the reins from Decker’s hand, saying to him, “Thanks. We won’t be too long.”
“I’ll be here when you’re done,” Decker said. He tipped his hat to Charly and added, “Enjoy your ride.”
“Thanks, Decker,” she said with a smile. “It was nice to meet you.”
Decker smiled again, only this time with less eagerness than before.
Jaxon took in her warm smile with a glimmer of hope that it contained nothing more than friendliness. The ladies liked Decker.
As soon as the thought crossed his mind, Jaxon shook his head at himself. When had he become...jealous?
“You’ve got a really nice group working here, don’t you?” Charly asked, drawing him away from his thoughts.
He nodded, opening the gate and heading into the sand ring. “We’ve got good people here in Timber Falls.”
But she disagreed, shaking her head and commenting, “Every cowboy I’ve met before today has been cranky.”
Raising an eyebrow at her, he leaned closer and questioned jokingly, “Even this cowboy?”
“You have your moments.” She laughed and glanced away ahead of her.
Chuckling softly—something he seemed to do a lot with her around—he couldn’t take his eyes off her as she headed through the gate, and he and Thunder followed. He tried to pinpoint what it was about Charly that captivated him. She was a challenge, certainly, but it wasn’t about a game with her. There was something...there. Something that made him want to wrap himself around the feeling she stirred in him and keep it and savor its warmth.
As they continued through the sand ring, Jaxon took in the gorgeous day on the ranch. The bright blue sky was clear, the sun was bright, warming the earth and everything on it. The air tasted of dry, unforgiving heat, and while he did miss the bar, spending his days outdoors again brought an unexpected comfort, making him feel like his father was always nearby.
“Is that Gunner and Eli?” she asked, dragging his gaze to her.
He followed where she was looking, spotting them farther down the sand ring, riding horses. “Yeah, they both work for me.”
“Have they always?” she asked.
“Growing up, they worked on the ranch during the summers and on the weekends for my dad, just like I did. But both only recently came back home. Gunner, a year ago, after living in Nashville. He’s a singer in a country music band. His last album didn’t do so well, so he’s now taking time off from touring to write new music. As for Eli, he came back six months ago, but his story is a bit complicated. I’ll tell you about it another time.”
Charly watched him closely, but let it go with a slow nod.
