“You told me you came here because it was yours, free and clear. It took you, what, almost two years to show up?”
She nodded. “I was in school, then the DEA called me, and that pushed me back a bit.”
Yeah, the whole Jett Markle fiasco. Looking back, I was glad it had happened since Rob had met his mate. In a way, Natalie had helped them get together.
“Why now?” I wondered.
Yeah, that was the biggie.
She set the sandwich down, took a sip of lemonade. “L.A.’s expensive. Not a lot of jobs for a classically trained violinist.” She picked a bit of lettuce from her sandwich, sighed. This was an issue for her. A weak spot. I didn’t like the idea of her struggling, of her parents being dicks. “I wasn’t going back to living with my parents, letting them think I was going to help support them again. This was really the only place I could think of to go where I could afford the rent.”
“Why didn’t you just sell the place?” I asked, looking up at the ceiling.
“Uncle Adam left it to me. I didn’t get to see him or come here after that summer when I was ten, but… well, we had a connection. He was the one who introduced me to the violin, made me love it. Like you remembered, we used to fiddle together.” I shrugged again. “I don’t know. This place has seemed more like home than anywhere else. I just have to figure out how to make it work.”
“You mentioned a B&B,” I said, bringing up the subject carefully.
Nodding, she picked up her sandwich. “Like I told you and Nash, one of my girlfriends back in L.A. suggested the idea. It’s a way to make this place viable. I’ve got to earn income somehow. Working at Cody’s pays the bills but not you.”
My eyes widened when I caught on. She thought she was going to have to pay me for work on the house. As. Fucking. If.
“Darlin’, don’t worry about paying me none. We’ll get to that another time. I can work on this place and get it spiffy for guests, but do you really want them? I mean,” I cleared my throat. “If you chose Cooper Valley over L.A., you can’t miss big city life and a gaggle of people.”
She smiled. “Yeah, who likes people?”
I grinned. “I like you.” I wasn’t going to hide my feelings. She knew how I felt about her with every lick of her pussy, but I’d tell her, too.
Her smile fell, and her cheeks got as red as her hair.
“That got you all flustered.”
“And you?” she asked, blatantly redirecting the conversation.
“Me?” I asked, leaning back in my chair and tucking my hands behind my head, elbows out. I wanted her to know I was open to any questions she had. There would be no secrets between us.
“Yeah, you. What have you been up to these fifteen years?”
I dropped my arms, leaned forward. Pierced her with my gaze, so she didn’t have any doubt she was the center of my focus. My world. “Don’t think I didn’t notice you changed the subject.” I winked. “Went to college in Missoula with Nash. Studied business. Came back here after. We started the contractor business together.”
“You were a big help to Uncle Adam.”
My gaze softened, remembering the guy. “He was a good man, Red. You’ve got good people in your family.”
She looked away then took another bite of sandwich.
“What? What did I say?”
She took her time to chew and swallow. “My parents aren’t like Uncle Adam. They’re small-minded, miserable folk. I was supposed to stay in Nebraska and get a job at Walmart and take care of them in their old age. I haven’t even told them I own this place because they’d probably hound me to sell it and give them some of the money. They don’t know I’m in Montana, working at a bar to fix up Uncle Adam’s old ranch house.”
Yeah, that wasn’t ideal. I needed to come up with some other way for her to earn a living and fix this place up. It sure as fuck wasn’t bartending at Cody’s, that was for damn sure. I didn’t like the idea of her being down there having every eligible and not eligible guy in the valley hitting on her like she was fresh meat.
Every one of them would know my fist first hand. I also wanted to track her parents down and have a talk with them. Right after I beat the shit out of any guy she’d fucked before me. Shit, the list was getting long. “That sucks. Not that you’re here. About your parents. I love mine. They’ll like you.”
Shit, they would. They were going to be thrilled. Both sons mated.
“Me?”
“Yeah, you.”
“Rand, I—”
I held up a hand, cutting her off. “Eat your sandwich, Red. You’re safe, for now.”