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Chapter 5
Nash spent an hour meeting people whose names he had no hope of remembering and didn’t want to. He also avoided Luna McKinley of the fine ass and body. The woman had fallen into his lap, literally. He’d have sleepless nights from the memory for weeks. He may loathe everything she stood for but that didn’t stop his body’s reaction to her.
She wore a short gray skirt and off-the-shoulder top that showed him plenty of smooth skin, a fact that Luke Trainer was noticing as he talked to her. The woman was way too good-looking, and team that with what she did, and she was pretty much hell in a glamorous package.
“Luna’s nice,” Maggs said, moving to his side. “She gave Mal and me some of her face oil.”
“I doubt she’s nice, Maggs. She just knows how the game is played.”
His little sister was a pint-sized firecracker. That had changed briefly while she’d worked through what happened when she went to the UK. Nash still went cold when he thought about how close that bullet had come to ending her life and changing his family forever.
“Why do you have to be cynical all the time? Seriously, Nash, it’s getting old.”
“I’m not cynical; I’m real.”
“I’m just glad you’ve moved here. This town will sort you out.”
He looked down into her pretty face and felt that tug of love inside him. Not many made him feel it, but she’d always been one of them. He’d do anything for this woman.
“You should try talking to her. She’s nice.”
Anything but that.
“No, and I don’t want anyone sorting me out. I want to be left alone.”
She gave him a smile that bordered on scary, then patted his chest. “You’ll see.” She then walked away, leaving him doing what he did best. Standing alone, people watching.
He knew Ryker was a tight-knit community, but here, with everyone jammed in the small space, he witnessed it firsthand. They were close. All of them laughed, teased, or annoyed each other.
Nash knew people thought him grumpy. Knew it and didn’t care. A few life lessons had molded him, and he was happy where he was. Ford, he noted, was talking to Charlotte Howard. His siblings were both good at that, talking to strangers. He’d never perfected the art.
He moved closer to the food and took a slice of cake. It had thick cream icing and nuts on top.
“I’ll come to your shop, and we can take a few pictures,” he heard Luna McKinley saying to Mrs. L.
Nash felt his temper burn. He wasn’t having her manipulating the people in his town. Someone needed to say something, and he didn’t care what she thought of him, so he’d do it.
He moved to where she stood with Mrs. L. Then when the older woman walked away, he leaned in and said, “I need to say a few things to you,” into her ear. She jumped and spun to face him.
“I can hardly wait.” Her words dripped with sarcasm.
He glared at her.
“Is that scowl permanent?”
“What?”
“That look on your face; I wondered if you woke up with it each morning.”
“Don’t mess with these people and especially not Mallory. She’s young and impressionable, and people like you have influence over her for some reason.”
“People like me?” The words came out covered in ice.
“With agendas,” he said softly. “This is a good town with good people. They’re not big city like you. They don’t understand how your type work.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Sorry, did I not say that slow enough for you to grasp?” Nash growled. “How about this? Don’t try anything with this town or its people.”
