by Ava Grace
That night, when Jackson came into the bar and went to talk to the girls, I made sure to pass by their table so I could hear what they were saying to each other. Everyone in town knew that Jackson had a thing for Faith and I enjoyed watching her embarrassed, dismayed reaction every time he asked her out or tried to flirt with her. I coughed out a laugh when I caught her expression right after he asked her if she’d like to grab dinner. She looked like a deer caught in headlights and it was as cute as hell.
But seriously, couldn’t the man take a hint?
It was obvious to everyone but Jackson that she wasn’t interested in him, but he was a persistent sonofabitch. Right after Faith had rejected him for what had to have been the tenth time, I saw Mason stride into the bar and make a beeline for Libby. I stared, transfixed as he grabbed her, bent her over and kissed her like his life depended on it.
I couldn’t have looked away if I’d wanted to because the kiss made something unfurl in my gut that I hadn’t experienced in the longest damn time. Jealousy. But the weird thing was, I wasn’t jealous because it was Libby, I was jealous because, for the first time in what felt like forever, I wished that I had someone I felt that strongly about—someone I felt so passionate about. I wanted that feeling of not being able to breathe properly until they were in my arms.
Don’t get me wrong, I’d flirted with Libby on countless occasions and I’d even asked her out on a date, but the moment I saw that she had eyes for no one but Mason, I’d backed off. I’d spent way too many years sharing the affection of a woman with him and they had been some of the most miserable years of my life.
I had no desire to repeat that stupid mistake.
No, I couldn’t look away from the kiss because it made me want to experience that feeling of being in love and that was a very bad, very dangerous thing. I never wanted to be that vulnerable again. I wouldn’t survive the pain of my heart breaking a second time.
When my gaze landed on Faith again, my pulse sped. She was watching the kiss too and her yearning expression made my gut clench. For one wild and crazy moment, I wanted to be that someone for her. I mean, I knew how easy it would be for her to be that someone for me.
I shook the thought from my mind.
That shit would never happen.
I couldn’t let it.
Jesus, what the hell was wrong with me?
I scrubbed a hand over my beard and sighed. Maybe I needed to get laid. I could forget about all of this craziness between the legs of a beautiful woman—certainly until the next one came along.
I needed a distraction.
That was all.
Just as Libby and Mason broke apart, a couple of young women came into the bar. They were both reasonably pretty and even though I couldn’t say either of them particularly floated my boat, one or perhaps both of them would do in a pinch—at least until I got myself out of this funk. I grinned at them and noticed the blonde practically trip over herself to return my look of interest.
Game on.
I was just about to ask the woman what she wanted to drink when I noticed Faith get up from her seat and walk over to Jackson’s table. What the hell?
The blonde I’d been speaking to asked me a question, but I couldn’t have replied if I’d wanted to because I hadn’t actually heard what she’d said—I was too focused on what Faith was saying to Jackson.
When Jackson’s face broke out into the biggest damn smile I think I’d ever seen on his face, bile rose up in my throat and I knew in that instant that she’d finally said yes to him. As Faith walked back to her girls, I glared at Jackson, wanting to go on over there and wipe the damn smile off his face.
I turned back to the blonde and tried to drum up some enthusiasm, but on a scale of one to ten, my interest in bedding her was now somewhere around a zero.
Chapter Three
Faith
I threw my head back and let out a loud burst of laughter.
“Are you kidding me? She really asked you that?”
Jackson’s eyes crinkled with amusement. “She did. Can you believe it? I mean, who says something like that?”
I grinned. “Jessica, apparently.”
I took a sip of wine and studied Jackson for a moment. The dinner we were eating at Bucks was part our second date night and it was going really well. The more time I spent with Jackson, the more I found to like about him. Just as I’d always known, Jackson was sweet, attentive, kind, and he made me laugh. A lot.
Throughout dinner, our topics of conversation had been varied and interesting and had highlighted the fact that he was actually much more intelligent than I’d given him credit for. He’d talked about his work at the lodge, but we’d also touched on topics like politics and world affairs.
Jackson had told me about his time in college and how he wanted to travel the world, visiting exotic locations and learning about different cultures.
I had to admit, the idea had merit.
I’d always wanted to travel and the thought of doing it with someone who was as passionate about seeing the world was definitely appealing.
I was ashamed to admit that I’d misjudged Jackson and both surprised and pleased to learn that we had so much in common.
It occurred to me that I should have accepted a date with him years ago. Maybe then I wouldn’t have made the colossal mistake I’d made by sleeping with Coop.
I couldn’t hold back the wince that always accompanied thoughts of Cooper Brown.
I hoped that one day I’d be able to think about him without it causing such an uncomfortable feeling in my chest and belly, and perhaps if I spent more time with Jackson, that day would come a lot quicker than anticipated.
Just as the thought entered my mind, Coop breezed in through the door and my heart began to beat out an erratic tune against my ribcage. My breathing sped and butterflies flittered inside my belly. I tried not to watch him move through the room with such confidence and ease, but I didn’t quite manage it. As if guided by some unseen magical force, Coop’s gaze swung in my direction and he stopped to stare at me unashamedly.
The intensity in Coop’s eyes was compelling and the expression on his face seemed stark and astonishingly open. There was a certain vulnerability about him at that moment that I’d never seen present in him before.
It caught me off guard.
Coop’s gaze flicked to Jackson and a frown creased his brow.
“What do you think?” Jackson asked, pulling my gaze back to him and away from Cooper Brown.
“I’m sorry?”
Jackson grinned and shook his head. “About the barbecue we’re having tomorrow at the lodge. It won’t be anything fancy, just my family and a few of our guests. It’s getting colder by the day so I think it will be our last chance for a barbecue this year. Do you want to come?”
“Oh! The barbecue,” I said, pretending I’d heard what he said. “Um, yeah, sure, Jacks. It sounds great.”
In the beginning, I’d had to summon up enthusiasm when I agreed to go out with Jackson, but since our first date, that had changed. I enjoyed his company so much that when he invited me somewhere now, I actually looked forward not only to the date itself but to see him again.
A boyish grin stretched his lips wide and the exuberance of it made me smile, too.
“Great,” he enthused. “I’ll see you there.”
I glanced up at the exact moment that Coop passed by our table.
“The weather has certainly taken a turn for the worse in the past couple of weeks,” Jackson said. “I reckon it won’t be long until we see the first snowfall. Especially higher up in the mountains.”
Coop snorted and I tried my hardest not to glare at him and instead to focus my attention on Jackson.
“Yeah,” I replied distractedly. “I think you might be right.”
Jesus, I wanted to strangle Coop.
What the heck was his problem?
I didn’t like the derisive noises he made whenever he heard Jackson say something. It was childi
sh and rude.
Coop got a drink at the bar then grabbed a seat a few tables away from us. He was close enough that he could have listened in on our conversations without too much effort. I spent the rest of dinner trying to ignore him, but ultimately, my gaze found his a few times and each time it did, he winked at me. My belly might have been doing somersaults, but my jaw got tighter each time I caught that damn wink.
My wine glass was halfway to my mouth when Jackson said quietly, “Did you realize that Coop has been staring at you ever since he got here.”
I nearly choked on my surprise. He had, of course, but I hadn’t thought that Jackson had noticed him.
“Oh, I don’t think he has,” I replied offhandedly before taking a sip of wine.
I forced myself to swallow it then took another sip.
Jackson nodded. “No, he has. It must piss him off that there’s one woman in town he can’t have.”
I averted my gaze. “I doubt he’s thinking that,” I said, wanting the ground to open up and swallow me.
I should have been honest with Jackson about what had happened between Coop and I right then and there, but how was I supposed to say anything after his last comment? Now, if we ever got to the stage that we wanted to have a discussion about our dating history, I’d either have to lie to him or admit that I already had. Although technically, I suppose, I hadn’t actually dated Coop. We’d slept together one time. That was it—an experience never to be repeated.
I finished the rest of my meal in silence.
“Will you excuse me?” I asked before throwing my napkin down on the table. “I need to use the restroom.”
Jackson nodded. “Of course.”
He got to his feet as I stood.
I kept my gaze lowered as I passed Coop’s table and made my way to the corridor where the restrooms were situated. Once inside, I turned on a tap then splashed some cold water on my face.
Why did Coop have to show up tonight?
Coop’s presence always got me off kilter and I didn’t like feeling that way. I took a few deep breaths to calm down and forced myself to relax. I’d just have to get used to it. I mean, Creede was a small town and I often saw Coop around, but seeing him when I was on a date was a new experience for me and an unpleasant one at that. I shook my head on a sigh then dried my hands before walking out of the restroom and right into Coop’s hard, muscular body.
He reached out his hands to steady me. “Wow,” he said. “Easy.”
I waited for him to let go of my arms and move out of my way so that I could pass, but he didn’t.
“Have a nice dinner?” he enquired politely.
I glared at him and tried to pull out of his grip. No dice. “Yes, thank you. Do you mind moving so that I can get back to my date?”
He held my gaze with ease. “Yes, I do mind. Are you going to go home with him?”
The bluntness of his question caused my mouth to snap open in surprise. “That’s none of your damn business.”
My heart pounded erratically as Coop leaned in and for one shell-shocked, painfully long moment, I thought he was about to kiss me. My head was in a spin and as I fought an inner battle with myself, I was afraid that I might actually let him. Instead, Coop tilted his head to the side and whispered in my ear.
“Don’t fuck him.”
I sucked in a sharp breath. “That is definitely none of your business.”
When he leaned back, his eyes searched mine as if looking for the answer to an unspoken question.
“Trust me. You’d be making a mistake.”
I cleared my throat. “Yeah? Well, it’s not like I haven’t made one of those before, eh Coop?”
I didn’t wait for a reply.
I tore myself roughly out of his grip then walked away from him, my head reeling from our exchange. Despite how badly I wanted to turn back to look at him again, I resisted. What the hell had all that been about? What business was it of Coop’s who I slept with? Especially when you took into account all of the women he fucked on a regular basis.
I couldn’t believe his nerve.
“Would you like another drink or are you ready to leave?” Jackson asked as I got back to the table.
I pulled in a shaky breath and tried not to let him see how rattled I was. “I think I’m ready to leave.”
He nodded. “No problem. I’ve already paid the check so we’re good to go.”
“Thank you, Jacks,” I said. “I really enjoyed dinner.”
Jackson grinned as he got to his feet. He put a hand on the small of my back then led me to the door.
“So did I. I’m already looking forward to seeing you again tomorrow.”
As we made it out to the parking lot, a line of motorcycles roared past, their growling engines loud against the otherwise quiet night. Their riders wore leather vests with patches on the back that proclaimed their club name and I recognized it as the club Coop used to belong to. He’d left a few years ago just as the rumors hit that he’d been about to become their new president.
I scowled, annoyed at myself for allowing my thoughts to wander to Coop yet again. It just wasn’t right or fair to Jackson. I was either in this with him or I wasn’t. What man wanted to be with a woman who couldn’t stop thinking about someone else when they were with them? I had hoped that spending more time with Jackson would finally rid me of my feelings for Coop, but after spending just a minute in Coop’s company, I couldn’t get him out of my head.
What was it going to take to get Cooper Brown out of my heart and mind once and for all? I liked Jackson and I didn’t want to hurt him, but if I continued to see him while I still had feelings for Coop then that was exactly what would happen.
Jackson would get hurt.
It was inevitable.
Chapter Four
Coop
I chugged down the rest of my beer as I watched Faith walk out of Bucks with Jackson’s goddamn hand on her lower back. It was taking every ounce of my self-control not to go running after them so I could grab that hand and shove it up his ass. I didn’t but only because, really, how would that have made me look? Like the pathetic idiot I was. That was how.
I tried to get the bartender’s attention so that I could order another beer just as Jack Grayson, the owner of Bucks, walked up to my table and helped himself to a seat.
“Smoke,” I acknowledged, calling him by the name he’d always gone by. It was in part a nod to his surname but also referred to the place he’d grown up in North Carolina near the Smoky Mountains.
“Coop,” he said gruffly. “Sorry to keep you waiting, had some shit to sort out.”
I shrugged. “S’okay. Ethan’s running late too.”
He nodded. “Got a text to say he was five minutes away.”
I looked at my watch. “When was that?”
Grayson turned towards the door with a grin and right on cue, Ethan strode through it. “’Bout five minutes ago.”
I chuckled and shook my head as Ethan made a beeline for our table, nodding acknowledgments to a couple of people on his way. Right after he’d pulled up a chair and sat down, the bartender deposited three bottles of beer on our table.
“Thanks, Sam,” Grayson said with a nod.
After Sam had left, Ethan and Grayson looked at me expectantly.
“What gives, Coop?” Ethan asked after a beat.
I sighed and scrubbed a hand over my beard. “We’ve got a problem.”
Grayson leaned in closer but Ethan sat up straighter in his seat. The sheriff in him was always on alert.
“You gonna share it or keep it to your damn self?” Ethan asked.
On any other occasion, I would have grinned at his impatience, but the news I had to share was no laughing matter.
“Arlene overdosed a couple of nights ago.”
Arlene was a waitress at The Shack, the bar I’d owned for several years now, and she’d been there since long before I had bought the place. But everyone knew she had a drug problem and despite promising to so
rt herself out, this had been the result.
Grayson cursed under his breath.
Ethan became incredibly still. “She okay?”
I nodded. “Yeah, but it was touch and go.”
A muscle ticked in Ethan’s jaw. “Why am I only just hearing about this?”
I met his gaze and held it. “Because Al didn’t call it in. He drove her over to the emergency room in Rio Grande himself.”
“Fuck.”
I lifted my shoulder in a shrug. “Yeah that about sums it up.”
“Was it intentional?” Grayson asked.
I shook my head. “No. She didn’t even take too much. I spoke to Al yesterday. He said it was bad shit.”
Ethan’s eyes became more alert. “You know where she got it?”
I nodded. “Yeah, I know. Finally managed to wrangle the information out of Al. He said that Owen sold it to her.”
Ethan frowned. “Owen, as in Owen Leigh?”
I lifted my beer bottle in a salute. “One and the same.”
Ethan took a sip from his bottle. “Shit.”
I leaned back in my seat. “Yep.”
“That kid is bad news,” Grayson declared. “How the hell can he and Jackson be related? They’re like night and day. You think maybe their mom was having an affair when she conceived him? That would sure explain how he’s such a waste of space when Jackson turned out so well.”
I sighed then took a sip of beer, unwilling to have a conversation about Jackson Leigh’s merits, especially considering the fact that he was currently with Faith, literally and figuratively.
Why couldn’t Jackson be an asshole like his brother?
It would make it so much easier to hate him.
Ethan scrubbed a hand over his chin. “Do you think this is something he got into on his own or could he be selling for the club?”
My shoulders slumped at the question I’d known was coming. “Owen is far too stupid to do something like this on his own. I’d bet my life that the club is involved in some way.”
