Not that he knew the bars from before he’d left.He’d been way too young to go, so any Shiners he and his buddies had enjoyed were usually consumed down by the creek at the base of his dad’s property.His dad never overtly said anything, but Jace always found the empties recycled and bottle tops in the trash.His old man had been pretty damn cool, hadn’t he?
“If you’re buying, we’re going to Joe’s,” Owen said, brushing off his jeans and wiping the sweat from his brow.The dude was built like the result of a truck and a Hemsworth brother having a baby.He and Paige, who more closely resembled Tinkerbell, made a cute pair.Jace’s chest ached.He longed for companionship, but where the hell in LA could he find anything close to authentic in that department?
“The lunch spot?”It’d been good, but he didn’t want it twice in one day.
“Man, you really have been away a while.Joe built a live music venue to keep locals in town on Friday and Saturday nights, and it’s kinda hopping.”
“No shit?”
“Nope.Anyway, they’ve got a helluva food menu, too, but don’t let any out-of-towners know.We wanna keep this place sacred.”
Jace smiled not just at the idea of a cool local place where he could join the boys for some grub and grog, but at the idea that they’d lumped him in with the locals and not the out-of-towners.
“You bet.I’m gonna shower off, and I’ll meet you there.Like twenty minutes or so?And I’m buying dinner, so come hungry.”
“Good man.”The guys took off, and Jace rushed through the cleanup.Some things were the same whether he was in Montana or LA.He’d be going home alone, for one.But that didn’t bother him as much as it might’ve in the past.For the first time in a long time, he found himself looking forward to an evening after work, good banter with some great guys, and hopefully, enough food and drink to ease his already aching muscles.It might take a bit to get used to the demands of physical labor, but he didn’t mind it.It was so much different than a good burn from the gym.Brad and Owen didn’t get their physique from supersets on a bench press.
He showered and dressed quickly.In the garage, he couldn’t help the grin that spread across his face.His dad’s old Chevy sat under a thin layer of dust, but otherwise still looked like it was in good shape.His old man had always been a helluva mechanic.The hunk of metal would be hell for commuting—if the old girl still had it in her—but it would be a good truck for the ranch, for hauling shit and checking perimeters when a horse wasn’t an option.
A small thrill whistled through his nervous system.He hadn’t ridden outside extremely curated sets, where every move on a horse had been watched and assessed, in years.The freedom he’d feel when he could get out on the trails and open up made him smile.
And the truck was perfect for tonight.
As he maneuvered around the ridiculous rental Cammie had set up for him, he thought about the mystery surrounding Aurelie, of all people.Not his father, not his new-again neighbors, not the unnamed guy buying up properties around Banberry.Just…Aurelie.
Her hair, wild as her eyes, that fell most of the way down her back in soft waves.
The way she stood, chest forward, like she was leading an infantry to battle.
Her lips, like liquid rubies cast into plump pockets of satin…
Then of course, her sass.Her energy alone could power the city of LA for a month.Too bad so much of that ire was leveled at him at the moment.
Everything about her took over his senses, his good sense included.
Maybe tonight he’d be able to get some insight into the woman from his new friends.All in all, it was shaping up to be a helluva first two days back in Montana.Hopefully, luck would stay on his side; God knew he’d need it while he remembered everything he’d pushed to the back of his mind about ranching and construction.
Too bad that information was competing with another mystery: Aurelie.
This wasn’t going to be a drama-free trip, that was for sure.
CHAPTER FIVE
As he drove,Jace noted small changes to the town.Smallbeing the operative word.There were new signs over some of the buildings, but that was to be expected after a couple decades.What was missing was a complete landscape change, with highways, high-rises, and hotels cropping up like in Bozeman.Banberry had stayed true to the footprint he’d grown up with.
Small-town quaint with class and country in equal measure.He didn’t think he’d mind being here as much as he’d feared it on the flight up.
He felt light behind the wheel of his dad’s Chevy.Older and wiser than the last time he’d stolen the vehicle to pick up a girl he’d wanted to make out with, but still the same at his core.At least he thought so.
He flipped on the radio; country music came through the speakers loud and clear, and Jace settled back into his drive.The guys were right about Joe’s.It was hopping busy on both sides, it seemed, and Jace smiled.All the vehicles in the lot were trucks with oversized beds, some even with horse trailers still attached.Not a Porsche in sight, or within a hundred miles, outside his rental, which was going back tomorrow, no question.
He pulled into the last open spot in the dirt lot and hopped out, making his way to the entrance of the restaurant side, only to slam into the back of a man who stood at the end of a line out the door.Damn, this place was like the Warwick on a Saturday night.
Inside, he saw—and smelled—why the place was so packed.Every booth, every four- and two-top was packed with people enjoying mile-high plates of food that caused his stomach to rumble.Salads toppling off the plates, burgers that stood taller than a large beer stein, fries spilling onto the table… It all looked too good to pass up.
The guys were already seated, and more importantly, they had a round of drinks in front of them.
“Sorry, it took a sec to clean up.”
