Page 18 of The Maverick’s Legacy

He squatted down next to the spot. He lifted his fingers to his mouth and kissed them before pressing them down to the floor.

Jesse whispered, “Goodbye, MaryBeth.”

He stood up and exited the house, shutting the door gently behind him.

Chapter Seven

Carly stared nervously at her reflection in the mirror. She didn’t know where Jesse was taking her for their first date, but she’d wanted to wow him. She stood in her robe but held a milkmaid-style red floral dress against her body. The dress was one of her favorites, and it hugged her curves in all the right places. Carly resisted the urge to grab her matching Stetson and shove it onto her boundless hair. It sat on her dresser, a familiar armor she’d worn through rodeos and heartbreaks, protecting her against unwanted eyes. Whenever she wore it, she felt like the strong, no-nonsense woman that she was supposed to be. But she wasn’t going for that image tonight. She wanted a soft, approachable, come-hither look.

As she hung the dress on her closet door handle so she could start putting her makeup on, she heard her phone ring. Her mood immediately took a dive. When Jesse hadn’t called her for days after they’d run into each other at the game, Carly had assumed he wasn’t interested in her after all. It had disappointed her, more than it should have. She was almost embarrassed with how many times she’d checked her phone before he’d called, always feeling let down when there was no message or missed call from him. She’d wanted to message him, but she’d stupidly only given him her number. He had never given his in return.

By the fourth day, she’d pretty much given up. She’d tried not to let it affect her mood too much. She had other things to focus on.

Carly had spent the week researching what she needed to do to get her school off the ground. She still hadn’t decided if she was going to pursue it or not, but it didn’t hurt to start a business plan. Just in case she needed to apply for any grants or loans.

That hadn’t stopped a little pit from forming in her stomach whenever her phone remained silent, leaving her with a deflated sensation. She felt like she’d missed out on something that she hadn’t even realized she had. It was unsettling.

By the fourth day of zero communication from Jesse, Carly had convinced herself that she’d imagined his interest. When he finally did call, she’d actually been taken aback. She had wanted to give him a hard time about it when she’d heard his voice, but there had been something in his tone. He’d sounded a little sad, and despite her mood, she hadn’t hesitated to say yes.

Jesse Abernathy fascinated her. He was like no one she’d ever met. Her last boyfriend, Fletch, was similar to her, someone who lived for the circuit life. He had loved the limelight—and the groupies—a little too much. It had actually been a relief to see the man go. Neither of them had expected to be each other’s forevers, but she had foolishly expected him to be faithful. Especially after they’d become Australia’s it couple, thanks to Fletch’s family connections. His father owned one of the top PR firms in the world—just one of his many business ventures— and Fletch had made sure they were always in the spotlight. Carly had grown burned out on that life, even if it had put her on a level where money poured in faster than she could spend it.

Jesse was the complete opposite of Fletch. He was almost shy around her, and she found it refreshing. He didn’t seem to care that she was a well-known person in her industry. She was pretty sure he didn’t even realize how famous she was. He hadn’t even known who she was until his son had said something. Most of the men in her circle had loved what she could bring to them by dating her. Fame, building their ego. To date someone who couldn’t care less that her last show had sold out in eight hours was really refreshing. She had really looked forward to his call, which was why she’d felt more than a little crushed when he hadn’t made the effort.

And if he was calling her now to cancel their date, she either was going to track the man down and give him a good talking to…or buy herself the biggest tub of ice cream she could find and eat her sorrows away for the rest of the night.

She hurried to get the phone, answering it without looking at the caller ID. “Hello?”

“Carly, my girl, how are you?”

She frowned. It took her a second to realize that it was her agent calling and not Jesse. Her emotions went from dread to joy to caution in the span of a second. “Oh! Hello, Dex. I’m doing good. Sorry—I wasn’t expecting you to call.”

“I know, I know. You’re on a break. But I have some exciting news!”

“Okay,” Carly replied, her stomach suddenly tensing with nerves. The last time he’d had exciting news, she’d ended up in Australia for years.

“I’ve been in contact with a company in Europe,” he said quickly, as though already sensing the direction of her thoughts. “They’re starting a tour in a couple of months, and they want to give you top billing. This is what we’ve been waiting for. This will knock you out of the park. Sponsors are already salivating at the idea of you joining the circuit. And that’s not even talking about the pay they want to offer you.”

He named a number that made her head spin. Carly was already well off, but the amount Dex mentioned would mean that she would never have to worry about money again.

“What do you say? Should I have them draw up the contract?” Dex asked.

“I…” She knew she should say yes. A part of her was cursing the other half for even hesitating, and yet she found herself saying, “Can I think about it?”

“Think about it? What is there to think about? Girlie, this is the chance of a lifetime. It’ll set you apart from all of the other rodeo riders out there.”

“I know, and I appreciate you telling me about it, but I told you before—I’m exhausted. I’ve only been home for a few weeks, Dex, and I have Remi’s wedding coming up, and Amy’s daughter will be turning one soon. Plus, I bought myself this homestead, and I don’t know if I want to leave it before I can get any work done on it.”

Then there was Jesse. Not that Carly would ever make a life-altering decision based on a man, especially one she barely knew, but she couldn’t help but think of her earlier excitement when he’d called her. How flattered she’d been when he stumbled his way through asking her out. Yes, the rodeo tour would put her in the stratosphere, but did she need that anymore when there were possible other options for her, just like her mother said.

“I still need to think about it,” she told Dex.

He sighed, long and dramatic. “Sure, sure. You think about it. But let me know soon, all right?”

“I will.” They hung up, but Carly could tell from Dex’s tone that he fully expected her to accept.

A knock on the door made her frown. She still had an hour before Jesse was supposed to be here. She grimaced down at her silk robe but ran to answer the door.

“Oh, thank goodness,” she said when she saw Amy and Remi. She would have been mortified if it’d been her date. “Wait…what are you doing here?”