My brother doesn’t apologize; instead, he shrugs like,You know I’m only telling the truth.
He is. I am dumb. Who needs smarts when you’ve got pretty privilege?
Dad sighs and levels me with a trademark Dad stare that tells me he means business. “Renée is not some hot young thing who can be spontaneous with you—”
“I’m not that spontaneous.”
Dane throws a blanket he was folding over a railing before he turns to me. “You drove to Orlando six months ago after watching a viral video about a restaurant that makes elote.”
That elote was fire.
But he has a point, so I shut my mouth.
“Son, she’s a single mother. Her priorities are very different from yours.”
I scoff and rub Ginger’s velvety nose that’s so darn soft I could melt. I’ve always been able to get what I want. Heck, I’ve always been lucky enough to fall right into things I didn’t ask for, but made my life easier. Good looks and charm have given me everything, so if I want Renée Wilde, it’s only a matter of time before I have her.
Her feistiness from earlier will only make our inevitablebedroom tangle that much sweeter. She can’t run away from this for long. I’m too fast, and she’s too mouth-watering.
I smile when the best idea ever springs forth. “I bet she’ll come with me to Isaiah’s wedding next month if I ask her.”
Dad turns to Dane. “Did he hear anything I just said?”
My brother’s lips flatten. “Unlikely.”
“So you take her to the wedding,” Dad says. “Then what?”
“I don’t know.”
“Exactly. See, that’s something you’ve gotta sort out. She doesn’t seem like the type who’s just in it for kicks when it comes to weddings.”
Dad’s words settle in while I detangle Ginger’s mane. He might have a point. I haven’t had any serious relationships since college because I was always a stepping stone before my exes found their better match. Like I was a detour on their way to their destination.
I’ve pretty much always been Good Time Jonah. Partly because I do genuinely enjoy a good time (who doesn’t?), but mostly, if I’m honest, it’s because I don’t want to get hurt again. Breakups are brutal. Like when your college girlfriend breaks up with you the day before finals, moves out, and takes the dog you bought together two months earlier!
It’s not that I want to stay single forever—I just figured the right person would fall into my life one day. Like—boom—here’s your wife. She’s gorgeous and thinks you’re funny. That’s how most good things happen to me.
But Renée’s not exactly falling into me the way I thought The One would. If anything, she tries to leave as soon as possible when we’re together. Which is weird because, did she not feel our connection that night at Strip Tease? We were so in sync, our bodies like a duet. Or magnets. I don’t know; I’m not good with metaphors.
I’ve hooked up with enough women in my life to knowone-night stands are neverthatgood. What we shared was more memorable than any try I’ve scored, and more beautiful than any place I’ve been, and I’ve been to France... or maybe it was Greece? Either way, there was ice cream and pretty ocean views, so like, really romantic.
Perhaps Dad is right, and she’s not spontaneous. But what could be spontaneous about attending a wedding with me? She’ll have a few weeks to prepare, and I can show her the side of me that dances with my clothes on. Well, clothes thatstayon. Eh, who am I kidding—if I can get her to that wedding, I’ll charm our clothes off and we’ll just have to fall into my bed to stay warm for the night.
I am but a simple man with simple needs.
Chapter 9
Only One Garden Bed
Jonah
After Renée left yesterday, Dane showed me how to take care of and ride Ginger. I had this image of dashing through a field of wheat with her, climbing over rolling hills at breakneck speeds, throwing my hands up in the air. But apparently, those days are in the old girl’s past. She prefers a simple life. Long walks and maybe, if she’s feeling frisky, a trot or two. That’s probably for the best anyway, because riding a horse is nerve-wracking.
Ginger and I wind through my property with a muddy Rugger beside us while Yogi stays back with his ducks by the pond. I couldn’t even get the boys to come inside with me last night. They usually sleep in my bed, but with Ginger here, they both refused to come inside. Instead they slept in the barn with their goats, ducks, and new horse.
I took pictures when I found them this morning, all cuddled up. So cute.
As we make our way back toward the barn, I peek over at Renée’s house. That house can’t be over eleven hundred square feet, and I’m not entirely sure it has a basement. Her yard is small too, and I notice the itty-bitty garden in her backyard.
