1109 Cowboy Way

I smile then but try to cover it quickly. I’m hoping she’s warming up to the idea of me being here, but I don’t want to push my luck. “I’m sure it’s great. Anything has to be better than heating up cans of food on an open flame.”

She flinches, showing me again that she’s just a good person. She doesn’t want to, but she’s obviously worried about my well-being.

Her hands start to fidget, and I don’t say anything because I don’t want to draw attention to the fact I’m noticing her. I look at the three beds in the room and then the drawers next to each one. I’m trying to give her space, but I don’t know if it’s working.

When I chance a glance at her, she’s flushed and looks really uncomfortable with the whole thing. “Hadley, I just want you to know that you’re safe here… with me. I know you’re taking a chance on me, allowing me onto your land. I’ve only been in one fight, and that was because a cowboy thought it was okay to beat his horse. I don’t raise my hand to women, I’ve never hurt one, and you’re safe with me.” Her big brown eyes widen, and I’m wondering if I’m scaring her more. I try to shrug it off. “I just know you’re probably worried about me being here, and it's just the two of us.” I can feel my face heat. “I’d never force myself on you or anything is what I’m trying to say.”

My last sentence hangs in the air between us. I know exactly what it sounds like I’m saying. I’m letting her know that I’m not going to push myself on her or anything, but the more I keep talking, the worse it begins to sound. Hell, she’s probably not even thought of all this, and I shouldn’t even have opened my trap.

She looks at the ground, toward the door, and then at me. Her voice is soft, and I feel like I shouldn’t even take a breath for fear I might miss something she says. “I never would have thought you’d hurt me, Grayson, or that you’d, well, you know. I know I’m not your type. You don’t have to warn me off or anything.”

She turns to leave, but I can’t let her leave—not like that. “Hadley!” I say, touching her shoulder.

She stops, and I pull my hand back. When she doesn’t turn, I ask her gently even though the man I am, I want to demand her. “Will you please look at me?”

She turns and finally lifts her head. “I wasn’t trying to warn you off me. I told you those things… I mean, I said what I said because I am attracted to you, but I don’t want you to be uncomfortable about it.”

She thinks I’m joking, but I'm not. She starts to laugh and waves me off. “Good one, Grayson. Supper will be ready in an hour.”

I stand at the door and watch her, forcing myself to stay where I’m at. She’s obviously not ready to hear exactly what I feel for her, but I know one thing for sure. She’s crazy if she thinks her scars make her less attractive because Hadley Fletcher is the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid eyes on.

7

Hadley

“I am attracted to you...” Those five words keep playing in the back of my head no matter how hard I try to bat them down as I work on making my mom’s homemade cheesy hamburger helper. One of the few things I'm not too bad at cooking.

“I'm attracted to you.” I shake my head, tucking a stray hair behind my ear. “Why didn’t I add a kitchen in the bunkhouse?” I mutter to myself. “Maybe because I couldn't afford it?” I answer myself.

I am not a chef, that’s for sure. I usually live off waffles and sandwiches. Now I am going to have to figure out three meals a day for Grayson and me. I lean against the kitchen counter with a frown on my face. What the heck was I thinking bringing on a cowboy?

I’m attracted to you. A funny cowboy to boot. He had to have been joking. There was no way a man who looks like Grayson, a man who could easily have a beauty queen on his arm, would look twice in my direction. But there is something in the way he looked at me, the way he spoke and held himself around me. Like he really, maybe, might actually be attracted to me.

“Quit fooling yourself!” I shake my head. I’m being ridiculous. He was probably just being sweet. He saw how uncomfortable I was at the idea of someone else on my land, and he was trying to lighten the mood. Trying to make me feel safe.

You already do, a small voice whispers, and I shake it away. He’s a big guy. It’s normal to feel safe around Grayson.

I stir the pan one more time before turning it off. It’s easier to make myself believe he was kidding around than to think he had been talking honestly. Because if he had, I didn't know what to make of that.

I glance at the clock on the wall and hurry about, grabbing cutlery and a place mat, and walk to the dining room. I set up a place for him and make a plate. The homemade cheesy hamburger helper and a side salad with a roll is set nicely out on the big table. I will eat in the kitchen and give him his space here.

“Hadley?” his deep voice calls from the front door, and I exhale slowly, trying not to let the nerves overwhelm me. I’m attracted to you.

I shake his voice from replaying in my head and wave him over. “Hey!” I awkwardly smile and try not to freak out when I realize my hair is still up in a ponytail since I was cooking. My face is fully exposed. Great! Poor guy is going to lose his appetite.

“Wow, this looks amazing,” he says as he stands next to a chair at the end of the long dining table.

“It’s nothing fancy. Just something simple. I wasn’t planning on you today, but I’ll make something a little heartier tomorrow.”

“Hadley, I’m pretty easy to please, sweetheart. This looks great,” he compliments me, and I look away .

“Okay, I’ll leave you to it. Enjoy your dinner.” I start to walk past him to get back to the kitchen, but his hand reaches for mine, and I stop. My eyes on his hand holding mine and my heart rate picks up as warmth fills my body. How long has it been since anyone’s touched me?

“You’re not going to eat with me?” he asks, his head dipped low. I can almost feel his lips at my temple, and I shiver.

I want to say no, and I’m ready to do it, to set that boundary between us when he clears his throat and lets go of my hand, gently dropping it. It puts a little space between us and the electric current that seems to be bouncing between us when he speaks.

“I just thought we could talk about the ranch. Like where you would like me to start on tomorrow with that list you gave me. Maybe give me an idea of the things you find as a priority and what not. Figured it’d be easier for us to talk about during dinner, but if you don’t, it’s fine.”