He loved seeing her stand up for herself.
“I heard Huck just fine.” Tully glanced around the table. “Now y’all need to listen to me. It won’t be Honky Tonk Heaven without a mahogany bar. I’ll come up with the money somehow.”
Poppy rolled her eyes. “Just like you think you’re going to come up with enough money to buy the dancehall? Wake up, Princess. Unless a deputy makes more than I think, you won’t be able to get enough together to pay us off. And I’m sure not floating you a loan.”
Tully hiked her chin and got a determined look that made Jaxon want to lean over and kiss her. Of course, it didn’t matter how she looked—determined, happy, angry, desire-drugged—he always wanted to kiss her. The only thing keeping him from it was their decision to keep their relationship a secret. Or really, Tully’s decision to keep it a secret. And she was right. What good would come from telling people about their relationship when it wasn’t going anywhere? He was leaving. He had never planned to stay in Promise Springs.
Which didn’t explain why every time he thought about leaving, he got a tight feeling in his chest.
Or maybe when he thought about leaving Tully.
“I don’t expect you to float me a loan, Poppy,” she said, pulling him from his thoughts. “I’ll figure something out. But right now, we need to finish the bar or neither one of us are going to get what we want. If we have to put in a bar anyway, it should be the right bar. And stop calling me princess.”
Jaxon waited for Poppy to have some snide comment. Instead, she only rolled her eyes before she reached down to scoop up Dumplin’. The cat came to dinner every night with Tully. Dumplin’ had taken to the Hennessys as much as they had taken to her. She even put up with Poppy’s exuberant attention.
“If . . .” Poppy said as she squeezed the cat tighter. “Tully is willing to cover the costs, I vote in favor of a mahogany bar.”
“I second that.” Huck winked at Tully. He and Tully had become the best of friends. Dawson, on the other hand, continued to be suspicious of her. Especially now that he knew she wanted to buy the bar. In fact, he and Jaxon had gotten into it just that morning over Tully buying the dancehall.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to sell the bar. He wanted to sell it, but only with the stipulation that it would never be called Honky Tonk Heaven again. It was Dawson’s way of getting back at their mama. And he knew there was no way Tully would change the name . . . or anything else about the bar.
Which was probably why he voted against her.
“I don’t think we should spend the money on a mahogany bar,” Dawson said. “Nor do I think a deputy should buy a country bar.”
Jaxon hadn’t told any of his siblings about Tully quitting. Probably because he didn’t think she could do it. Not with how she loved to please her daddy.
Tully lifted her chin. “We’ll just have to wait and see. Now, won’t we?”
“I think you’ll make a great bar owner, Tulls.” Huck picked up the casserole dish of enchiladas Jaxon had made for dinner and scooped the last of them onto his plate before glancing at Jaxon. “Well, don’t keep us in suspense, Jax. Are you for a mahogany bar or not?”
He shrugged. “My vote isn’t going to make a difference. Majority rules. You, Tully, and Poppy have all voted yes.”
Tully turned those big brown eyes on him. “I’d still like to hear your opinion, Jaxon.”
God, he loved the way she said his name. Like it belonged to her and only her. Last night, when he’d brought her to orgasm bent over a table at Honky Tonk Heaven, she’d moaned it over and over again. He’d give her just about anything when she said his name.
“I think Honky Tonk wouldn’t be heaven without a solid mahogany bar.”
The brilliant smile Tully gave him made his heart feel like it had just jumped out of a swing at full arch.
“Then mahogany bar it is!” Huck crowed.
Dawson shoved back from the table and walked out of the room.
After they finished dinner, Jaxon left Poppy and Huck to do the dishes, while he took Tully to see the improvements they’d made to the treeboat. Whenever he and his brothers—Poppy refused to do any more renovations—had spare time, they worked on stabilizing the different decks and replacing any wood that had rotted. This past Sunday, they had attached a new rope ladder that was more secure than the last one with a higher weight limit.
Tully still looked skeptical when she saw it. “Are you sure it’s sturdy?”
“Positive. Dawson, Huck, and I got on it at the same time and it was steady as a rock. And I’ll be right behind you every step of the way.”
He didn’t know why his words caused an intense pressure in his chest. Maybe because he knew he wouldn’t always be there for her. Once he got his inheritance, there would be no reason for him to stay.
No reason, but Tully.
And she was becoming more of a reason every day.
They made it to the top without incident. Once there, he intended to show her all the improvements they’d made. But when she turned to look at him and the sunset lit up her blond curly hair like a sunset of its own, he couldn’t stop pulling her into his arms and kissing her. All it took was her body and soft lips melting into him to forget all about showing her anything . . . but how much he wanted her.
