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“Let me guess. Melba Wadley suckered you into adopting her.”
“I don’t get suckered, but Corbin sure did.”
“This cute kitten belongs to that asshole? No wonder she’s feeling used and abused.” She gingerly held out her hand, then pulled it back when the cat hissed.
Jesse laughed. He had one of those deep-chest laughs that made you smile even when you didn’t want to. “Believe me, this cat isn’t abused. One look at her collar should tell you that.”
Liberty leaned closer to examine the pink rhinestone collar around the kitten’s neck, then wished she hadn’t.
Jesse smelled good. Real good. After selling scented candles in high school, she knew a best-selling scent when she smelled it. She could make a fortune on a candle that smelled like Jesse Cates. He smelled like a mixture of all her best-selling candles. Home Sweet Home, that had smelled like a cozy blanket straight out of the dryer. Into the Woods, that had an oaky, autumn scent. And Liberty’s all-time-favorite candle, Toasted Marshmallow, that smelled of night air and toasty campfires.
“Is something wrong?”
Jesse’s question made her realize she was leaning into him and inhaling like he was a bouquet of flowers. She jumped back and tried to act like she’d only been examining the cat’s collar.
“Don’t tell me those are real diamonds.”
“No. But they are Swarovski crystals and cost a pretty penny. I was there when Corbin ordered it. You should see her food and water dishes. He loves spoiling the women in his life. Especially his sister.”
Liberty only vaguely remembered his sister. “So if you’re friends with Corbin, explain why he refused to let Rome pay off our loan.”
“I don’t know and I haven’t been able to get ahold of him.” He hesitated. “You said that Corbin had a crush on you. Did you maybe do something to hurt his feelings?”
The truce they’d been experiencing ended and her anger flared. “So you think I’m the reason Corbin is being such an asshole?”
“I just don’t understand why he wouldn’t let Rome pay off the loan. It’s just smart business.”
She snorted. “I thought you told Mimi you were friends with Corbin. Which is it? Are you friends or do you help him run his business?”
“I don’t help him run his business. But I know enough about the loan business to know that getting your money back with interest is the better deal. So there must be another reason Corbin is foreclosing.” He held up the kitten. “You think I could put her down in one of the stalls?”
There was a part of Liberty, the pissed part, that wanted to tell him to get gone. But there was another part of her, the logical part, that was wondering if maybe Mimi was right. Maybe there was a chance Jesse could be their ally. Especially if he was Corbin’s friend—a close friend if he was cat-sitting for him. Jesse did seem just as confused with Corbin’s decision as she was. If she could get him on her side, maybe he would be willing to stand up to Corbin for her family.
“This way.” She turned and headed to the stalls at the back of the barn. She opened the gate of the first stall and allowed Jesse to enter before her.
The stall was small and felt even smaller with the bales of hay stacked in it. For her sisters’ weddings, they had cleaned the barn and stalls from top to bottom, removing all the old moldy hay bales. But because she’d wanted the country look for Cloe’s wedding, she had ordered fresh bales to place around the barn for decorations and wedding guests to sit on. With her dreams of turning this barn into a money-making venue, she had made sure to keep the bales and stack them in the empty stalls for later use.
The thought of all the weddings she could have here made her need to enlist Jesse’s help even stronger. She watched as he carefully set the kitten-filled jacket on the ground. Tay-Tay sprang out of the pile of denim immediately and raced between two bales of hay.
Jesse sighed. “We’ll never get her out of there because I’m sure as hell not reaching a hand in to get her.”
“Scared of a little kitty?” Liberty sat down on a bale of hay. “I thought a rodeo cowboy could tame any animal.”
“That’s not a kitty. She’s Satan incarnate.”
“She’s probably just missing her owner. When is Corbin getting back?”
“I don’t know.” He took a seat on the bale across from hers, his soft brown-eyed gaze direct. “But I plan to talk to him before that and see what’s going on.”
“I hope you’ll relay the information. And just for your information, him wanting to foreclose on the ranch has nothing to do with me.”
“Are you sure? You can be a little prickly.”
“Only with men who annoy me.”
He laughed. “Exactly why do I annoy you, Libby Lou?”
“That right there, for one. I feel like you’re always laughing at me. As if I’m one great big joke to you.” Most men would have denied it. But she was learning that Jesse Cates wasn’t most men.
