“I’m Johnston Rhodes.” He pulls his white shirt off before sliding into the hot tub.
A little too close to me.
“Hadley,” I say with a nod.
“No last name?” His brown eyes glint with mischief.
“Not tonight,” I say before realizing how flirty it sounded. He scoots closer. “My boyfriend is on his way over here.” I can’t even bring myself to regret the lie that I so desperately wish was true because at that moment Johnston places a hand on my thigh.
He makes a show of looking around before saying, “I don’t see him.”
At that moment, I notice Braxton dash out of the cabin and head straight towards me.
Chapter Seven
Braxton
WhyamIgoingto join Hadley in the hot tub? One that I guarantee is crawling with germs and other disgusting content that I do not want to think about because cabins share it?
BecauseOperation Make Hadley Dawson Weak in the Kneesis in full swing. It’s still a working title, but you get my point.
I will endure the public cabin hot tub if it means getting to hear Hadley stumble over her words, get flustered, and not to mention her swimsuit.
Oh God, help me. I want to be a gentleman. But she makes it so hard.
I didn’t even consider the swimsuit until this very moment.
Tugging the white t-shirt neckline, I chase away all thoughts of Hadley in a bikini. I think about Scripture, drilling operations, my dad…
Ah, that last one helped.
Shrugging on my swim shorts, I step out of the bathroom and begin walking down the stairs.
The cabin is cozy, warm, and inviting. It’s similar to the one I’m building for myself—cypress wood, two stories, though mine is larger in square feet with three bedrooms. It has the same open-floor layout I have with the kitchen, dining, and living areas.
Hadley picked a great cabin to stay in.
The walk down the cabin stairs was too short. The walk to the outside door felt like a millisecond. And now I stand looking through the glass door of our cabin, surveying the area, trying to collect my wits. The hot tub sits in a courtyard shared with two other cabins.
With Hadley inside of it.
And another man sitting a little too close.
With emboldened fire, I throw the door open and make a beeline for the hot tub. Hadley looks at me through her spider-like mascaraed eyelashes, innocent as apple pie. At my piercing gaze, the man slowly scoots away from her.
“Meet Johnston Rhodes from the cabin next to ours.” Hadley’s voice is thick and sweet as honey though her eyes convey discomfort. This guy looks like a weasel, and I’m not having it.
He may be a great person, but sitting with Hadley in the hot tub makes him Mortal Enemy number one. Am I going to have to punch another dude?
“Ah, the boyfriend,” Johnston says, and I fight to keep my face straight and my eyes trained on the man instead of glancing at Hadley. If she called me her boyfriend, it must have been to get this man away from her. Though I can’t lie, I love the sound of that statement.
“Yes, I’m the boyfriend. Braxton Rawls.” I hold out my hand to shake his, which is perfect because I am standing opposite the two. He has to wade over to me to be a man and shake my hand.
Away from Hadley.
He grabs my hand, and I give it a none-too-gentle squeeze with a nod. Letting him know, clear as day, that this ismywoman.
“It was nice to meet you, Hadley.” Johnston squirms, his eyes still fixed on mine. “I better be on my way. Meeting coming up in an hour.” He rakes over her with a sleazy look, gets out, and then nods to me saying my name once before grabbing a towel and walking away.
