by Kadie Scott
About how he’d expected—snarling and hissing like a kitten. The urge to kiss her awake, then kiss her into laughing with him, had manifested as teasing. Because no way should he be thinking about kissing her after years of waiting for her to get a clue. Then he’d gone and given in just as he’d been about to make his escape this morning.
Her distracting sexy lingerie, red lace against cream-colored skin peeping out from beneath the sheet she had wrapped around her, had just about killed him. Even now he was uncomfortably hard at the mere memory.
“Jennings!” Will snapped, yanking him out of his thoughts about a brunette who managed to get under his skin faster than a two-headed mosquito.
He rubbed a gloved hand around the back of his neck. “Sorry. I didn’t sleep much.”
Ashley had slept snuggled up to his side most of the night, and he’d been caught between a rock and hard place—literally hard as his body responded to her nearness.
Will, having finished looping and twisting both ends of the barbed wire together, grinned as he reached for the stretcher. “Ashley Hughes is that much of a wildcat in bed, huh?”
“How did you—” Jennings scowled as he looped and twisted the other end. “Autry? Or Carter?”
Autry was working on another patch farther down so couldn’t defend himself.
“Neither. Word gets around when your truck stays outside her motel room all night. Small town, big ears,” Will said.
Should’ve known better.
“Wait.” Will paused. “Why would Carter know? She didn’t go with you to Harry’s last night, did she? I didn’t think she came home for a visit.”
“She didn’t. Just forget it,” Jennings muttered, not about to reveal how he’d asked their sister for advice.
He held the line up as Will ratcheted the section tighter, then Jennings pulled the fence pliers out of his back pocket. He cut the new section of wire fence and finished securing it through his loop.
“Mama’s thrilled, by the way,” Will continued. “Said something about how she knew when you were toddlers that you’d end up together—”
“I didn’t sleep with Ashley. She was sick. I took care of her.”
Rather than get irritated with Jennings’s curt tone, Will shrugged. “Too bad. Finally getting her out of your system could be a good thing.”
Jennings eyed his brother. The oldest of the Hill siblings, Will tended to be the quietest of the bunch—and the most observant. Usually, though, he kept his opinions to himself. Anyway, this time, he had it all wrong.
“You think I should hit it and quit it? You sound like Autry.”
Will rolled his eyes. “That’s not what I said.”
“Sure it is.” Jennings had no intention of getting into an argument over it, so he snapped his mouth shut with an audible crack and moved on to the next section of fence awaiting repair.
“Who are you talking about?” Autry appeared from around the side of the truck.
“Ashley Hughes,” Will said before Jennings could stop him.
Autry’s grin had Jennings gritting his teeth. “Is that who you ditched me for last night?” he asked. “I wondered what had your panties in a wad.”
Autry turned to Will. “Mid-pool game, this guy”—he hooked a thumb at Jennings—“just walks out. I didn’t see him again. Not even a text.”
Damn. He’d completely forgotten. “Sorry about that,” Jennings muttered. “Ashley got sick and I took her back to her motel. And I don’t get my panties in a wad.”
“Could’ve fooled me, the way you bolted out of there with no thought for me.” Autry batted his eyes and wrung his hands in his best Scarlett O’Hara southern belle impersonation. “I could’ve been out of my mind with worry.”
“Clearly that wasn’t the case.”
Jennings’s earlier comment about Ashley must’ve sunk in with Autry because mid-climb into the bed of the truck, he paused. “Wait. You slept with Ashley Hughes? Way to go, bro. About fucking time.”
Jeez. Was there anyone in his family who didn’t think he needed to one-night stand his childhood pal?
“He says he just took care of her,” Will offered.
Autry barked a laugh. “Yeah, right. We know what that really means.”
“Nothing. Happened,” Jennings gritted.
Will cocked his head and eyed Jennings speculatively. “If you’re not interested, maybe I’ll introduce her to Reed Gabriel.”
Jennings got back to work hoping they’d drop it. “Our neighbor?” The man who’d bought a spread not far from High Hill ranch a few years ago had recently bought a couple of stock horses from Will and they’d become buddies.
“Yeah.” Will grinned. “Ashley and Taylor are some of the prettiest women in the county, and I saw Ashley’s name on the list for the ladies participating in the Christmas Date Auction today.”
Jennings stopped unwinding the spool of barbed wire and winced as a barb pierced his thick leather gloves. “Shit.” He pulled the glove off and sucked at the small wound on this thumb before glaring at his brother. “What are you talking about?”
“The Christmas Date Auction. You didn’t know she signed up?”
So that was what Taylor was talking about this morning.
Autry hooted with laughter. “I hope you’ve been saving up little brother. Taylor was in it every year and usually went for a mint, if memory serves. And Ashley’s the mysterious one, so…”
Jennings scowled. “I’m not interested in Ashley Hughes.” Ashley had never signed up for the stupid auction before, to his recollection, because she was taken. And, yes, he remembered, though heaven help him, he shouldn’t. Irritation with himself clawed like scratch marks from a cat, and he went back to wrestling with the wire.
“I think it starts at five this afternoon,” Will commented idly. “Reed’s been practically a recluse on that ranch. He could use some fun. If we finish up early enough, maybe I’ll take him.”
The man might be his brother, but he could be an interfering dick on occasion, as only big brothers could. Of course, younger brothers could be equally annoying. Time to divert the conversation away from himself.
Jennings hooked the spool of extra wire over the top of a nearby fence post. “I think Rusty needs to come home soon. If anyone around here needs to get laid, it’s you.”
Autry paused and listened with interest.
Will tried to blank his expression, but he’d never had a poker face. “I can handle a few weeks without my wife.”
“Yeah, right. You’ve been walking around all forlorn since she left.” Jennings mimed hunched shoulders and a tragic expression.
“Has.” Autry barked a laugh, grin stretched wide. “He totally has.”
Irritation hardened Will’s jaw, and he pointed his pliers at the wire. “Let’s get a move on. We started late, thanks to someone not sleeping with Ashley Hughes, and I want to be done by four.”
“Sure.” Jennings turned back the post. “Time for your nightly call with Rusty?” he teased.
“Asshole,” Will grumbled under his breath.
Jennings chuckled.
But as they got back to work, thoughts of Ashley going to the highest bidder at that damn auction started to rankle, crawling under his skin like a bed of fire ants took up residence there. Maybe he should go to the festival…just to laugh at whatever poor schmuck ended up with her, of course.
Chapter Five
After plying herself with water and aspirin, and, yes, greasy hash browns, Ashley felt marginally more human. A shower and clean clothes helped as well. Seeing as she was up for auction—disregarding how the thought had her poor stomach churning again—she dressed up.
Deliberately, she went with her favorite winter dress, Christmassy enough with red and black stripes. It showed off her curves and slim waist while hiding her too-wide—at least in her opinion—hips and thighs with a floaty, almost sheer skirt made decent by a built-in slip underneath. She paired the dress with tights and knee-high black boots.
If she had to parade herself on stage, and subject herself to a date that had no hope of going anywhere, at least she’d bolster her confidence by looking halfway decent.
Maybe prove she’d moved on to the folks watching too.
Now, bundled up with a knee-length pea coat, she wandered the booths at the festival with her sister and the rest of the bachelorette party, counting down the last hours until the torture would commence.
Like many Texas towns, the courthouse stood tall and proud at the center of the downtown. Around it, forming a square, shops and restaurants and other establishments enjoyed the extra business brought by the annual Christmas Festival.
Not a white Christmas—those were rare in this part of Texas—but the spirit of cheer and goodwill filled the air nonetheless. Christmas carolers, dressed in traditional Dickensian garb, stood on one corner, singing old hymns in lovely, if occasionally off key, harmony.
The police shut down the streets, rerouting traffic, and vendors set up tents, selling anything and everything. Many of the booths sold gifts or holiday decorations as befitted the season. In May, when the town held its May Fair Festival, the wares would change to spring and summer themed.
Taylor stopped at a booth sporting Santa figures. She collected them, so Ashley kept track of those paid the most attention by her sister, as one might make a good Christmas gift. She’d completed most of her shopping, but could use a few more items.
A small white and gold Santa figurine caught her eye, and she picked it up, studying the intricate detail.
“Just what I always wanted,” a deep male voice murmured in her ear.
She squeaked and spun, then smacked a hand in the middle of Jennings’s chest. “You scared the heck out of me.”
That was twice now he’d snuck up on her like that—at the bar and now here.
He gave her an unrepentant grin as he gently took the Santa from her hands and set it down. “Don’t want to risk having to buy it after you break it.”
The man had the memory of an elephant. “That only ever happened one time, and it was your fault.” What would he do if she ran a finger over that sexy indent in his chin?
“Having fun?” he asked, ignoring her comment.
Ashley did a quick sweep of the area. Not surprisingly, several curious eyes turned their way, along with a few secret smiles. Everyone already had ideas about the two of them after last night. Appearing to flirt in public was a guaranteed way to keep those tongues wagging. He should know better.
“Go away,” she hissed.
He put a hand over his heart. “After everything I did for you last night?”
Sheesh, his deep voice carried. Ashley dropped her head into her hands and tried to restore sanity with a couple of deep breaths.
“What?” Laughter lined the edges of the word.
She raised her head, but paused with her mouth open as the amusement dancing in his ocean-deep eyes tugged at her. Why did she suddenly want to let go and just laugh it off with him?
Jennings tipped his head, the lines around his eyes deepening.
Before she could comment, Taylor’s squeal had her whipping around to find Eric cuddling her sister. “There’s my girl,” he said.
Then he glanced up, recognition dawning in his eyes. He blinked, glanced at the woman in his arms, then back to Ashley. “Sorry,” he muttered, and let Taylor go.
Two years and still all kinds of awkward. Someone just shoot me. She couldn’t help but glance over at where Jennings watched her first reunion with her ex, all traces of humor gone.
“Jennings,” Eric said, holding out a hand. “Been a while.”
“Eric.” They shook.
Then all four of them stood there in silence while Ashley’s shoulders crept closer to her ears with each beat of tension.
“Well…” The word hung in the air along with her icy breath. What next? “It was…errrr… nice to bump into you again, Jennings,” she said over loudly for anyone listening. “Why don’t you shop for your mama?” Ashley gave Jennings a little shove and pointed to a booth two down with jewelry on display. “I seem to remember she likes pearls.”
“The pearls are right next to the engagement rings,” Jennings observed in a loud voice. “Are you trying to drop a hint?”
Ashley stopped dead in her tracks, then swung to face him, trying to hold on to her irritation in the face of the devilry dancing in his eyes, inviting her to join his fun. Would she get in trouble if she picked up one of the glass paperweights on top of the display nearest her and lobbed it at his head? Probably.
“Then I guess you better find yourself a girlfriend,” she said in an equally loud voice.
With a sigh, she turned back to an obviously confused Eric and worse, an amused and speculative Taylor. “Ignore him,” she said through a smile that felt as stiff as starched blue jeans.
Eric smiled, and she forgot Jennings for a moment as the same relief that happened any time she saw him happened. She’d always loved Eric’s smile—sweet and sort of lopsided. This one did nothing for her. Not a blip of regret, longing, old feelings. Nothing.
I really am over him.
The fact that she’d been worried, even subconsciously, might be the reason Taylor still worried. That was worth a think.
Suddenly, a pair of laughing blue eyes popped into her head. An image she immediately stuffed into a don’t-even-think-about-it mental box with the earlier thoughts of Jennings. She refused to allow herself to even glance over at where Jennings stood, not having left.
“Um. It’s good to see you.” Eric gave her an awkward hug with lots of space between them.
She gave herself a second to take in Eric’s appearance. Tall and handsome, with dark blond hair and brown eyes that could give a baby calf a run for her money, she’d always been proud to be his girl.
Still nothing, though, beyond a vague fondness.
And Jennings still stood close by, probably picking apart every nuance of this interaction and getting it wrong.
Right. So, take charge and give him the right impression. “How was the bachelor party?” she asked with a bright smile. At the same time, she continued “casually” shopping, moving on to the next booth. The others followed suit, Eric talking about the night before with his friends, and Taylor and Ashley showing each other items of interest. As soon as she could politely do so, Ashley moved on to the next booth alone, needing a moment of space to breathe. Ironically, the jewelry booth from Lucy’s, the local shop, that she’d pointed Jennings to when Eric showed up.
“Ash?”
Eric’s frantic whisper had her jerking her head up to find they were alone in the booth. She raised her eyebrows. He wasn’t going to do some relationship rehash the same as Taylor had, was he? “Yeah?” she asked warily.
He gave her an embarrassed look. “According to the guys at my bachelor party, I’m supposed to get Taylor a wedding gift?” He flung his arms, indicating the shop.
Ashley pursed her lips against a grin. Oh. He was definitely in a panic, but thankfully nothing to do with her. “That is a tradition, yes.”
“Well…” He waved at the glass cases around them glittering with jewels of all shapes and colors, then glanced over his shoulder.
A furtive check told her Taylor was still looking over rustic fence signs next door. “Diamond earrings would be lovely with her dress.”
“Darn. I hoped you wouldn’t go with diamonds.” Eric groaned as she dragged him over to the glass cases filled with various bling.
“Diamonds,” she insisted, and pointed.
After all, knowing Eric, Taylor wouldn’t get a ton of those jewels in her lifetime. “And don’t even think of bringing up price. This is your wedding gift to your bride, and I happen to know how much you have saved.”
Did it make her a bad person that she was secretly gleeful to throw that at him?
Eric gave a reluctant chuckle. “No fair. You’re my accountant. You’re not supposed to use that information against me.”
&nbs
p; She winked. “All’s fair in love and war.”
An inadvertent glance in Jennings’s direction caught him watching from outside the booth, that familiar frown pulling his brows down again. Had he caught her wink and didn’t like it? Too dang bad.
Still, probably better to scoot away now that she’d provided Eric direction. Except Eric glanced over his shoulder and cleared his throat. “I heard something today about you and Jennings Hill.”
“Seriously?” Annoyance had her voice rising. At his shushing motion, she lowered it. But Jennings was looking over again. She turned her back on him and lowered her voice to a whisper. “That was just last night and you were out of town.”
He glanced back, probably checking too. “Word like that travels fast in a small town. I thought you couldn’t stand the guy?”
Ashley lifted a shoulder, doing her best to play it cool. “He helped me out last night. That’s all.”
“You didn’t sleep with him?”
Now it was her turn to shush him. A glance revealed carefully averted faces, which didn’t mean others hadn’t heard that. “That’s not your business anymore.”
Eric held up a hand. “I know. But I still care about you, Ash.”
Again, she waited for any emotion associated with that statement, but nothing like that came, except maybe another wave of relief.
Did I ever really love him?
Of course she had. But maybe with the naïve love of a girl. She’d outgrown those feelings. Jennings would laugh his ass off if he could hear her thoughts now.
“So, if last night was nothing, why is he here now?” Eric asked, looking as confused as she felt.
Ashley opened her mouth to answer but stopped when she caught the hopeful glint in his eyes. Oh, God. Was he like Taylor? Did thinking Ashley had a love interest make him feel better about his own situation in some strange way?
“I don’t know how I feel about him,” she found herself saying. The truth. Maybe more than she wanted to acknowledge.
He gave a slow nod. “He told me once, just before college, that I wasn’t right for you.”