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“Oh, Poppy. You’re gonna be covered up by enthusiastic partners. You’re fresh meat.”
That sentiment sours in my stomach immediately.
* * *
It’s Saturday night, so the bar is busy as hell. It’s a small town, but there are only a few places to go, and the majority of the town heads here because they have the biggest dance floor and the nicer beers on tap.
Hayes and Poppy go searching for a table while Wells and I try to fight our way to the front of the bar. I hate a bar that has seating all the way down. How is anyone supposed to order a damn drink if you’ve got people takin’ up the entire fuckin’ thing?
“So…” Wells says, leaning his elbow against the bar and wagging his eyebrows in my direction. “Poppy.”
I grunt. “What about her?”
“You like her.”
I get the attention of River, who’s working behind the bar tonight. She smiles when she sees us and walks over. No wonder Hayes took off running with Poppy. He wouldn’t want to be anywhere near River. I don’t know what happened between them, but I know it wasn’t good.
“She’s alright,” I answer.
Wells sighs, already fed up with me, as I order our drinks. But he’s not gonna get shit out of me. Because there’s a rule at the ranch: you don’t get involved with people you work with. Not that it’s an official rule, because, well, we haven’t had this issue before. There’s also the fact that she’s a whole decade younger than me, and I have two kids that I take care of full-time. I can’t drag her into that.
What happened earlier this evening was stupid and irresponsible. My head was all over the place from seeing her in Addie’s apron, cooking with Momma, and I was filled with so many conflicting emotions that I couldn’t sort through it. And then she came into that room, smelling like flour and whatever perfume she wears, and I just lost it. I couldn’t help myself.
It won’t happen again. It can’t.
“You know you don’t always have to be such an uptight asshole, right? You can let your guard down sometimes…live a little.”
I grunt again.
“I know that Leah did a number on you, Rhett. She fucked you and the kids over, turned your life upside down right as all that Dean shit was going down. Hell, the whole family was turned on its head for a hot minute.” The drinks get slid in front of us, and I nod my thank-you to River. “But we all love Poppy. And she looks at you like she’s gonna tackle you in the dirt.”
He grins and side-eyes me.
“That’s because she hates me. She’s probably waitin’ ’til I turn my back so she can beat the shit out of me.”
“Don’t you consider that foreplay?”
I ignore him because once I see Hayes, I notice he’s sitting by himself. Following the direction of his gaze, I find Poppy smack-dab in the middle of the dance floor, her hands all over a guy who looks very familiar.
“You let her go off with a stranger?” I growl as I slide in next to Hayes. I’ll be damned if I’m puttin’ my back to her.
“They aren’t strangers. I went to school with Gray, and they met on the plane.” Hayes rolls his eyes, then looks over at my tense form. A pit of anger and jealousy settles deep in my gut. “And you look madder than a snake.”
“Don’t know why he’d be mad,” Wells says. “Told me himself at the bar that she’s just alright. No interest in her whatsoever.”
“Interesting.” Hayes leans forward like he’s telling a secret, but I can’t take my eyes off the way Gray’s hands are touching Poppy’s waist. “Because when he came downstairs for dinner, he was sportin’ quite the woody.”
“Rhett Black,” Wells says, doing quite the impression of our momma. “What in the world were you doing upstairs alone with that new ranch hire?”
“Fuck off,” I spit in his direction. Then I turn to Hayes. “Saw River at the bar. Maybe you should go say hello.”
His face drops and so does his playfulness. Instead, he becomes very interested in downing the drink in front of him. Which is stupid, seeing as he’ll just have to go talk to River to get another.
“That was below the belt,” Wells chides.
The song changes, and now Gray is teaching my girl how to line dance. And as soon as that thought enters my head, it’s like a damn record scratch. She is not my girl. Why did I just call her that? Why do I feel this sudden possessiveness over her?
She gives him the biggest smile while they pull apart and come back together. Her feet are stumbling, but he catches her each time, which makes her head fall back in laughter. She’s having the time of her life out on that dance floor while I’m dying a little on the inside just watching.
