Left to the ranch, right to Jerome—and Jenny.
Cain turned right.
There was a chance Jenny was staying at the Grandview. He should call her, let her know he was on his way, but something held him back. He drove the curves to the top of the mountain and pulled into Jerome, turned up the hill to the Grandview.
A quick trip inside told him Jenny wasn’t there.
He should have figured she would still be working. When he drove up in front of the Copper Star and got out of the Jag, he could hear country music playing. He pushed through the batwing doors.
Jenny stood behind the bar. She was smiling, leaning over the counter, resting on her elbows, talking to a good-looking, dark-haired man with a two-hundred-dollar haircut, designer jeans, a cashmere sweater, and expensive Italian loafers. His buddy was romancing a redhead, while Romeo had set his sights on Jenny.
The guy laughed at something Jenny said, and she grinned. Cain felt his blood pressure rise.
As he crossed the room, Jenny spotted him, rounded the bar, and ran toward him. She threw her arms around his neck.
“You’re back early,” she said, smiling up at him. “Why didn’t you call and let me know?”
Cain didn’t hug her back. “Looks like you had plenty of company while I was gone.”
“What?” Jenny followed his gaze to the guy at the bar. She frowned and took a step back. “I’m bartending tonight. Bartenders talk to people. As long as they’re being entertained, they’re buying drinks. You’ve been around long enough to know that.”
When Cain made no reply, her features tightened. “You have some nerve coming in here and looking at me like I’m doing something wrong. What about you? Did you spend last night with Anna? Or was there someone new?”
Irritation trickled through him. “I was working, just like I said. I wasn’t with Anna or anyone else. We made a deal. I don’t break my word.”
Jenny set her hands on her hips. “Well, I don’t either.” She was wearing a denim skirt and cowboy boots. His mind returned to the night she’d been wearing the black knit dress, the way she had looked bent over his sofa.
His body went hard. That was the trouble. He was thinking with his dick and not his brain.
He blew out a breath. “Can we talk for a minute somewhere private?”
“I’m busy. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“Please,” he said, catching her wrist as she started to turn away. “Okay, I’m sorry. I was jealous. It’s a new experience for me. Can you break away for a minute?”
She gave him a long, assessing glance, then turned and asked one of the waitresses to fill in while she stepped outside.
Cain led her through the batwing doors onto the sidewalk. It was too cold to stay out there long. He was still wearing his navy blue suit. He took off his jacket and draped it around her shoulders.
“You were right in there. You weren’t doing a damn thing wrong.”
“No, I wasn’t.”
He sighed. “I learned something about myself tonight. I learned that Scottsdale isn’t my home anymore. I decided to drive back up the mountain to the ranch. Then I realized what I really wanted to do was to see you.”
Jenny’s big green eyes stared up at him. “So you stormed into the bar, making accusations.”
“I was still getting used to the idea.”
Her lips twitched. Then her amusement faded. “So . . . I guess this is the moment when we decide whether or not we’re going to trust each other.”
He nodded. “I guess it is.”
“Do you trust me, Cain?”
Did he? He knew her history, knew all about her. He had trusted her even before he had hired her. “More than any woman I’ve ever known.”
“Except for Nell.”
