“After I stopped her from getting on a plane to New Zealand.”
Matthew held his hands in the air. “That’s enough from the McKenzie brothers. I’ve got a game of poker to win.”
Jordan picked up his cards. “Not going to happen, but you’re welcome to try.”
An hour later, Matthew was sitting in front of a small mound of one dollar bills. “What was that you said about not winning, Jordan?”
“You probably put something in the hot dogs to reduce my awesome poker powers.”
“Or not,” Matthew grinned. “Now that I’ve recouped my twenty bucks, how about Brett tells us about Hannah?”
Trent threw his cards onto the table. “It’s got to be more interesting than those cards.”
Matthew, Trent, and Jordan stared at Brett as if he were a science experiment that had gone wrong.
“There’s nothing more to say.”
“Sure there is,” Jordan said. “As the only single person at the table, you’ve got a moral duty to give us something to talk about. There are only so many stories about our wives, fiancées, and kids that a man can handle.”
Matthew sat forward. “Why didn’t you ask her on a date?”
Brett crossed his arms. “Okay, you were right. I chickened out. But she wouldn’t have said yes, anyway. We’d only just met. Apart from what Pat told her, she knows nothing about me.”
“That could work in your favor,” Jordan said. “If Hannah’s blown away by your good looks and charm, she might overlook your other issues. It worked for me.”
Trent laughed. “You’re forgetting that Sarah saw through your cowboy charm quicker than anyone you’d ever met.”
“But she still agreed to marry me, so I must have done something right.”
Matthew picked up his soda. “Are you going to try again?”
“I don’t know,” Brett said. “I live an hour from Bozeman and Hannah’s busy.”
“Offer to help her with something. It isn’t that busy on the ranch at the moment.”
Jordan nodded at Matthew. “Good idea. Or you could call her and invite her to the movies. If she says no, it’s better to hear it over the phone than in person.”
Trent’s eyebrows rose. “Is this pearl of wisdom coming from your vast dating experience?”
“As unlikely as it sounds, I had my fair share of rejections,” Jordan said with a smile. “At least talking to someone is better than sending them a text to say everything’s over.”
“It’s just as well I’m married,” Trent said. “I wouldn’t want to be in Brett’s shoes. It was bad enough with Gracie, but at least she was married to me when she realized I was the man of her dreams.”
Jordan shook his head. “Don’t listen to my brother. All you need to do is call Hannah.”
Brett was beginning to feel sick. “I’ll think about it.” He pushed his chair away from the table. “Does anyone want a cup of coffee?”
Matthew and Trent nodded.
Jordan grabbed hold of his arm as he walked behind him. “Are you all right?”
“I will be. I’ll be back soon.” With the kitchen door closed, Brett leaned against the counter and took a deep breath. He’d known his friends for years, but they didn’t know much about his life.
Worrying about whether Hannah wanted to date him or not was making him feel sick. He was scared of making a mistake, of not being good enough. Even when he’d dated, nothing lasted more than a few months. He was damaged goods and Hannah deserved more than he could give her.
***
Hannah put down her phone and frowned. “You’re not going to believe this.”
