by Becky McGraw
"Yeah, for seven years or so. He has a ten-year-old son named Trey. You'll like him, he's a cute kid," Rocky informed then shoved a checkered shirt at her. "Put this over the tank top, then let's go try on boots."
"Yes, ma'am." Leigh Ann gave her a salute then took the ugly brown and green checkered shirt and slid it on. Trying to keep some fashion sense, she tied it at her waist, so it didn't look so bulky. "There, how's that?"
"Curvy Country Barbie," Rocky said with a chuckle.
"I can't help that I've got curves, the extra weight kind of accentuated them," Leigh Ann pouted. She had to go on a diet, it was going to be lettuce, cucumbers and water for her for a week.
"They look good on you, sis, I was just kidding. You still look beautiful, that's what I meant. We could put you in a burlap sack, and you'd still be a beauty queen, that's a tough thing to hide where you're concerned."
Happiness floated through Leigh Ann at her sister's compliment. She threw her arms around Roxanne's waist and hugged her. "Thanks for helping me," she mumbled into her shoulder.
"You're welcome, just don't let mama come out there, and don't give Wes grief, okay?" Telling her mother where she was definitely wasn't in her plans, but that didn't mean she wouldn't find out on her own. Sometimes, she thought Trudy Baker was psychic or something. Psycho maybe would be a better description.
"I won't tell mama where I am, promise. It'll work out, just watch."
Leigh Ann was determined it was going to work out. She was going to do everything she could to make sure of it. This was her chance to change her life, and she wasn't screwing it up, or disappointing her sister.
Wes's stomach growled loudly. Glancing at the clock, he put his hand there and realized why he was hungry. It was nearly seven o'clock and he hadn't eaten yet. His mother and Trey had gone out for burgers, but Wes had declined to join them so he could stay and work on his billing. Even though Rocky had caught up two months of it, Wes was still a month behind.
It was a never-ending chore for him to maintain the accounting side of his business. Mostly, because he sucked at it, and knew it was useless anyway. People knew what they owed him, they would pay him when they could. Usually though, his invoices got shuffled to the bottom of their monthly stack, or not paid at all. Just like the ones he needed to pay to keep his head above water. Everyone was struggling.
Wes knew he gave the farmers and ranchers too much slack, which led them to assume he would give them more. That slack had tightened into a noose around his neck now. He couldn't afford to give them more time, because his business was going under if he didn't figure out something quickly.
If his ex-wife hadn't raped him financially before she left, he would have been okay. Even if he gave away free services now and again, he could have survived. But by emptying both their business and personal accounts, as well was running up all his credit cards on her way out the door, she had put him in a position he might never recover from. But the price he paid to buy his son from her had been worth it.
He paid another price when she left too though. Even though she had been a terrible wife, Laura had been a good assistant who kept him organized. He only found out when she left that was the last thing she wanted to be. Right behind being his wife and Trey's mother. She wanted to be a goddamn actress of all things. She blamed him and her son for stopping her from realizing that dream. Since then, Wes had a hell of a time trying to replace her in the office. Good assistants were evidently hard to come by, even harder than finding a good wife.
Instead of trying to replace her with another woman in his life though, Wes had used the last seven years to reevaluate what he wanted in a woman. He figured out it wasn't a high-maintenance, show-stopping woman that every other man wanted. In horse terms, Wes wanted an easy keeper, someone who was self-sufficient and didn't require much to make them happy. He just didn't have the energy left to fight to keep the other kind of woman. He had more important things to worry about, like making sure his son was happy.
For a little while he thought he had hit pay dirt with Rocky Baker in both respects. Until she told him the other day she was marrying someone else, and then today informed him she didn't have time to be his assistant anymore.
That bombshell had hit him right between the eyes. Finding a replacement for her would be a challenge, because Rocky had been perfect in the job. Even better than Laura had been.
Wes had called the paper and placed an ad, but it wouldn't be published until next week, so he just had to survive on his own between now and next Thursday when Rocky came back again. That meant he had to collect some money himself, or his lights would be off by next Friday. He had been robbing Peter to pay Paul for too long, and both men were on his doorstep now with their hands out.
By the end of the month, electricity would be the furthest thing from his mind though. His mortgage note would be due then, and if he couldn't pay it, he would lose everything. As much as he hated collection calls, they were necessary now if he was going to save his business and home.
Wes was a veterinarian, not an accountant. Animals were his first priority, not balancing his books or worrying about if a farmer could pay him before he treated their animals. Whoever he hired this time would have the bookkeeping experience he didn't have, and the drive to keep up with the collections. That was going to be the first qualification he looked for.
The front door opened and closed. Wes figured it was Trey and his mother coming back from dinner at the hamburger joint in town. "In here, sport, did you have fun with Nana?" he yelled, but didn't get up, he had to keep going on this billing.
"It's me, Wes," Rocky yelled as her boot heels clicked across the tile in the outer office. The sound of a second set of boot heels behind her had him wondering if her fiancé Ethan was with her, but the steps were light so he doubted it.
"What the heck are you still doing out--" Rocky stopped midsentence as her eyes scanned his desk. Earlier when she left it had been neat and organized, now it looked like a bomb had gone off. "Holy hell, Wes, you need a match?" The question was followed by a snort and a shake of her head.
That would definitely solve his immediate problem of having to look at the mess too, but then he would just have to start over again. "What I need is for you to say you came back to tell me you changed you mind about leaving."
Her smile faded. "I can't, Wes," Rocky said. With another attempt at a smile, she added cheerfully, "But I think I've solved your problem.
Someone moved behind her, and he saw she was flanked by another blonde who was a little shorter and a helluva lot more curvy. Rocky glanced back at the woman. "Come in here," she ordered grabbing the woman's arm to pull her front and center.
"Wes, this is my sister Leigh Ann, she's going to be your new assistant."
Intense blue eyes met his, and their impact hit him in the solar plexus like a sledgehammer. Her face flushed then she licked her soft pink mouth to slick it with moisture, and that sledgehammer hit him lower. Her posture correct, her words practiced and well modulated like a queen, she began, "It's a pleasure to meet--"
Rocky jabbed her in the ribs with an elbow, and she stopped to glance up at her sister. Some kind of strange sister or woman telepathy went on between them, then after clearing her throat, she tried again, "Hi Wes, glad to meet you."
The soft southern drawl wrapped around his name sent his blood pressure up a few notches. She punctuated her words with a blindingly bright smile that would make any actress proud, and it went off the charts. Like soldiers, every tooth was perfectly aligned and cozy with its neighbor, the overall affect mesmerizing. Wes was definitely mesmerized by it.
A sensation like he had heard people describe as someone walking over his grave sent a chill racing up his spine. He felt like he'd met this woman somewhere before, but knew he hadn't. He definitely would have remembered her.
Like he was moving in slow motion, Wes set his pen down beside the stack of manila folders on his desk to stand and extend his hand out to her, but h
is eyes slid to her fascinating mouth again.
Leigh Ann Baker took two halting steps forward, then steadied her gait to glide regally toward him. Once she was in motion, Wes had much better things to appreciate than her mouth, if that was possible. Like the substantial cleavage showing over the top of her white tank top. Her curvy hips as they gave her tight blue jeans a run for their money. And her small waist where her ugly green overshirt was tied. Unconsciously, Wes wiggled his fingers wanting to see if his hands could fit around her there.
Dragging his eyes away from her to Rocky, who was leaning on the doorframe with her arms crossed over her chest, he said, "I didn't even know--"
"I had a sister..." Rocky finished for him with a roll of her gray eyes. "You never asked, so I didn't volunteer. Yes, I have a sister, she's here now, and she needs a job. You need an assistant. Do you want to hire her or not?"
Wes knew he should ask if the beautiful woman was familiar with animals, probably should get her background and find out if she had ever done billing before, but at the moment it didn't seem to matter. There was a party going on in his pants that hadn't convened in a helluva long time, and he couldn't seem to find his words.
Heat rushed up his neck, and Wes sat down behind his desk then scooted his chair under the desk, taking short, uneven breaths. "I do need an assistant."
God, he needed a lot more than that right now, and it was damned difficult to focus on business while managing a raging hard-on.
Leigh Ann made the situation even worse by leaning over his desk to put her palms on a stack of bills. Her breath fanned his face as she said, "I'll get you fixed right up. If you give me a chance, I promise I'll do a good job for you." Her soft flowery scent intoxicated him, and Wes made the mistake of looking up. His eyes were on eye-level with the firm globes of her beautiful breasts. Within three feet of his suddenly dry mouth.
Wes dragged his eyes up to hers, which he had thought was safer ground. Another mistake, he realized when he drowned in the liquid blue pools. Wes was in a fix all right. If he didn't get his senses back, he going down for the count, and he would hire this woman whether she was qualified or not. He would probably do that anyway, because her equally beautiful sister had asked him to. Wes wasn't a man who was controlled by his dick, but between the two of them, he didn't stand a chance.
"I need someone full-time, and I need..." His words trailed off when she licked those beautiful lips again. Wes's breath caught in his throat, because that is exactly what he needed, badly. To taste them. He hadn't had this kind of instant reaction to a woman, since Laura, and it scared the hell out of him.
That thought made him realize this woman was a lot like his ex-wife. She had that it factor men couldn't ignore. She was abnormally beautiful, so she was used to having attention, probably got plenty of it, and liked it. But looking into her eyes, he just couldn't make that fit. All he saw was openness and honesty there.
With Laura, there was an on and off switch to her genuineness, one moment she was sincere and honest, the next she was in used car salesman mode, using her sexuality to manipulate men to get what she wanted. Wes remembered how difficult it had been to figure out who the real Laura Jepson was.
Wes definitely didn't want another woman in his life like that.
"Someone capable?" Rocky supplied moving to stand beside her sister and put a hand on her shoulder. "Leigh doesn't have experience, but she is organized and your clients will love her. I'm going to train her, and make sure she can do the job."
Wes noticed Leigh Ann's shoulders stiffen. He noticed everything about the woman, was tuned into her like a divining rod to water, which wasn't good for him. What Roxanne was saying in not so many words registered, and he latched onto it. "You've never worked with animals before?"
"I've worked with plenty of animals, mostly of the human variety though," Leigh Ann replied with a nervous chuckle, her eyes crinkling at the corner. Instead of humor though, he saw sadness and maybe fear in her eyes. "When I was Miss Tex--"
Roxanne nudged her and her full pink lips formed an O as she cast a nervous glance at her sister. "Um, never mind."
Wes frowned, as the all-too-familiar instinct to protect her eclipsed his attraction for a moment. Laura had liked it when that instinct kicked in, so she incited men with her sly smiles, then expected him to defend her, fight for her when the dumbasses fell for her tricks. Wes wasn't a fighter, and after a while he figured out that is how she got her jollies, so he stopped responding. It had been a game with his ex-wife, but he didn't think it was with this woman for some reason.
"Is someone bothering you?" He didn't know what he could do about it if they were, but he would damn well try to help her, if he could.
"Not anymore..." she told him softly with a shake of her head which sent her ponytail swishing behind her head.
"She'll do a good job for you, Wes," Rocky assured him, her words more sure than her expression. "Otherwise I wouldn't recommend her, you know that."
"I trust your opinion, Rox," he replied as he shoved his hand out to Leigh Ann. " You're hired, Leigh Ann." Had he just said that?
When his hand closed around the smooth skin of her smaller hand, electricity shot up his arm to zap him in his chest. This crazy magnetism he was feeling toward Leigh Ann Baker was going to get him in big trouble if he didn't get a grip on himself. This woman was his employee, not someone he could let himself become personally involved with. He needed a competent assistant, nothing more from this woman, Wes reminded himself.
His ex-wife had told him she was out of his league many times. This woman was a helluva lot more attractive than Laura, so he knew Leigh Ann Baker wasn't only out of his league, she wasn't even in the same ballpark as him. He didn't need a woman like her anyway. If Laura had made his life hell trying to protect and keep her, this woman would put him in the seventh ring of that hotspot. Wes just didn't have the energy left for that.
"I have a son," Wes blurted and Leigh Ann's eyebrows shot up. The words were meant as a reminder to himself, as well as a warning to her.
Leigh Ann smiled sweetly, then drawled in her hypnotizing southern belle voice, "Yes, that's what Annie said...Trey isn't that his name?"
Wes watched her lips move, but like those Kung Fu movies that were filmed in Chinese, then voiced over in English, her words were delayed in penetrating the fog in his brain. "Annie?" he repeated dumbly.
"Oh, sorry...Rocky," she clarified with a glance at her sister spiced with another blinding white smile. "I've just always called her that."
"My mother's idea," Rocky grated, with a tight smile. "But Leigh Ann is going to call me Rocky now, aren't you Leigh Ann?"
The practiced smile on Leigh Ann's face turned into a genuine grin, causing Wes's heart to do a somersault in his chest. "Yes, ma'am, I am going to call you whatever you want me to call you."
"Good. Now get your butt out of here, Wes. We need to straighten out this mess you've made," Rocky ordered gruffly, walking around the desk. Wes stood then stepped to the side, as Rocky breezed by to sit down in the chair.
Leigh Ann squeezed between him and the desk to look over her sister's shoulder, her light floral perfume wafted up to his nose and sent his senses into overdrive. He savored it, tried to identify it, then decided it almost smelled like the honeysuckles that grew wild out by his fence line during the summer. Like the bees that swarmed on those flowers, Wes wanted to hover around her neck and get drunk on the scent.
Clearing his throat, Wes stepped back putting more distance between them, then turned toward the door to put more between them, before he did something more stupid than hiring a woman who had zero experience with animals. "I'll leave ya'll to it then. Trey and my mama should be back soon."
"Wes, I have one more favor to ask..." Roxanne said quickly, before he went through the door. His shoulders stiffened as he turned back toward her.
"Yeah? What's that?"
"Leigh Ann is new to town and doesn't have a place to stay. Can she stay with you up
at the house until she gets the money together to get a place in town?"
Wes's heart skidded to a stop and he swallowed hard. If he had the money, he'd offer to pay for her to stay somewhere else, anywhere other than at the house with him. But he didn't. He did have a spare bedroom though, and Rocky knew that. She had done a lot for him, so how could he refuse? If he agreed though, how could he keep his sanity? Wes knew it was a no-win situation, but he didn't have any choice.
"Okay," he agreed, but added, "As long as she can put up with two guys who are used to living alone. We're a little messy." That was putting it lightly, and Wes knew if he didn't pick up soon, the place would probably look ready for an episode of that reality show Hoarders. Well, not that bad, but bad enough.
He just wasn't home enough to keep up with it all.
"I'm good at cleaning and organizing things, so I'll do that in exchange for you letting me stay awhile," Leigh Ann offered with another smile.
God, he could stare at her all day if given the chance. Study every nuance of her beautiful face and magnificent body like a masterpiece painting, until he had a master's degree in it. But he had other things to do, more important things, he just couldn't remember what they were.
Leigh Ann didn't look like much of a cleaner, she looked too elegant and refined, even in the blue jeans and ugly shirt she wore. A high-class city girl, masquerading as a country girl. A picture of her in a fancy low cut evening gown wearing a crown, as she entertained the many men sitting at her feet begging for her attention, flashed through his mind. That was the kind of woman she was under those clothes. Just the kind of woman he didn't need in his life. Exactly like his ex-wife.
When Wes shook her hand a few minutes ago, he also noticed it was too soft for her to have done manual labor of any kind. He didn't know why, but had a feeling this was a woman who was used to elegant things, and smooth men who could afford to supply her with those things. Someone totally unlike Wes Jepson at this moment.
