Bailey: Can we not do the babe thing?
Beau: Why not?
Bailey: It’s just so unoriginal.
Beau: So, not only do I have to be your fake fiancé, but I also have to come up with an original nickname?
Bailey: Correct. It’s a new requirement for our deal.
Beau: You drive a hard bargain, Jansen. How many carats on the diamond, fancy-pants?
Bailey: Lol. Four? Five? So big I can barely lift my hand.
Beau: Wow. My girl is high-maintenance. Got it. See you tonight, snookums.
Bailey: Yeah, no. That’s not it either.
Bailey has her back to the bar, typing something on the touchscreen computer. Which is why she doesn’t notice me sliding onto my regular stool. The one at the end of the bar that puts my back to the wall and gives me a view of the room—and the door.
A way out.
“How goes it, Sweet Cheeks?” Might as well rip the Band-Aid right off.
She freezes in place and Gary’s head whips my way.
“The fuck did you just say to her?” Gary’s jaw is practically on the floor.
I grin. Yep. This already feels good. I can do this. A show. A mission.
“We’re trying out new nicknames.”
She turns slowly, and the menacing expression on her face indicates she’s going to kill me.
“Why on earth?” The older man sounds genuinely flabbergasted.
“Did Bailey not tell you the exciting news?”
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Gary’s brows wrinkle together, but my gaze stays fixed on Bailey. The imaginary nukes she’s firing at me do nothing but make me grin back at her. It strikes me that while Bailey is sharp-witted and funnier than I expected, she doesn’t know how to have fun. She works too hard. It’s like being playful is a privilege never extended to her.
I plan to change that while I have her.
My smile widens to the mega-watt version that has gotten me out of trouble many a time. “We got engaged over the weekend.”
“You what?”
Bless Gary. He’s totally giving off protective dad vibes now. Makes me feel like an even bigger asshole for the things I said to him that night—even though I’ve made amends.
“Yeah. We’ve been kind of … ” Bailey trails off, eyes wide as saucers. Like she’s just realized she has to speak about this arrangement aloud. In front of people. “Seeing each other.”
Gary’s head pivots back and forth between the two of us. Bailey staring at me. Me, smirking back at her, feeling more like myself than I have in a very long time.
It’s the thrum of adrenaline in my veins, the camaraderie of being in on something. Having a purpose—a purpose that goes beyond working cows on the family ranch day in and day out.
“That’s fast, boy. What are your intentions? She’s a lot younger than you. Nicer. A hell of a lot prettier. What are you up to?”
I turn to Gary now, appreciating that he has Bailey’s back. It’s about time someone did.
“You’re not wrong. She’s all of those things. But she’s also … ” My eyes slip back to her. She looks fucking terrified. “Brought me back to life. Can’t imagine my days without her.”
It’s not a lie. In fact, every word is true. I don’t only spend four nights a week sitting here like a loyal guard dog because I hate the idea of her working alone.
I’m not quite that noble.
But I can’t bring myself to hold her gaze after I’ve said it.
“Shit.” He scrubs at his wiry gray stubble. “Guess I should have known by the way you’re always watching her like you’re imagining her with her clothes off. Was gonna tell you to tone down the gawking this week, to be honest.”
Well, fuck.
I fall back on my training to keep my face blank, but Bailey coughs like she’s got something stuck in her throat. I blink in her direction to see her pretty heart-shaped face painted with both humor and shock.
Once she’s composed herself, she says softly, “Gary, please. Beau is a tier one operator. He would never be so obvious.”
She sends me a sly wink at the end of her sentence. A dry laugh lurches from me. Sarcastic Bailey never fails to knock me off my feet. And it would appear I’m never living that one down.
“Yeah. My years spent in the special forces impress most people. Bailey though? Bailey just makes fun of me for it.”
“You could use someone who is a little less impressed with you,” Gary grumbles with a light slur as he takes another drink.
My fingers rap against the top of the bar. “Wow. You’re on a roll today.”