Marshall snorted at the memory.
Marriage had been the furthest thing from his mind, but her words stuck with him. It was time to build a life he could be proud of. His own life. It was time to take the challenges he had been given and use them to make him stronger. More resilient. He needed to create a life that suited him, instead of satisfying ambitions and expectations that had been placed on him in the past.
Yes, he may have hooked up with a woman like Colette in the past. There was no way he would be able to resist her. And sure, they would have had a good time. But he wasn’t that man anymore. Sticking to his new rules kept him from falling into old, destructive habits.
When he left the city behind, he desperately tried to escape that man. It wasn’t the man Marshall had been raised to be, and he was damned if he would go down that road again. He would rather be single than chase skirts again. Or ruffled pajama bottoms, for that matter. He swept a nervous hand through his hair and stepped up to the door. Part of being a better man wasn’t standing and watching a beautiful woman in the window.
It was reminding her, gently of course, to close the damn curtains.
The patter of her footsteps toward the door after he knocked had an alarming effect on his crotch, a jolt of excitement shooting through him that instantly needed to be suppressed. He was a professional, he was a rancher, and he was a reformed fuckboy. Reformed. Marshall reminded himself sternly.
Colette opened the door, her gaze warm and welcoming. A small smile teased her glossy lips. “Hey, Marshall. Thanks for coming,” she said. Her eyes darted to the beers he clutched in his hand. He sighed and shrugged his shoulders, lifting the beers.
“My mother always taught me to never show up empty-handed at someone’s home. Sorry, I wasn’t there when the cows got out. We had to visit some in a few different locations with the vet,” he said, waiting for her to invite him in.
She padded toward the kitchen, leaving the door open for him to follow. Marshall was instantly hit with the most intoxicating scent of her fresh-baked cookies. He slammed into a wall of delicious aroma and his mouth watered. This was too much.
“I won’t stay long, you’re obviously busy,” he said, kicking his boots off and placing the beer bottles on the kitchen island. Her dark curls bobbed as she returned to sliding cookies off the pan and humming along to the music.
“I’m almost done, just have to bake one more pan of cookies.”
He peered over her shoulder at the perfect mounds of warm cookie sliding onto the cooling rack and suppressed a groan. They looked so delicious.
“Oatmeal?”
“And chocolate chip, obviously. I had an urge to stress bake today, as you can imagine,” she explained.
Marshall gritted his teeth together, nodding.
Once the tray was cleared, she finished scooping the final cookies and placed them into the oven. The oven beeped as she set the timer. She pulled a glass for her beer and poured it perfectly once again, then stood across from him. Her eyes widened as though she had an idea, and she plated a few cookies for them to share.
“Not sure if these go well with beer, but who cares?” she said with a shrug, bringing the plate close to Marshall, offering him more temptation. “Give them a minute, or you might get burned.”
He lifted his gaze to meet hers, the words sending a ripple of electricity dancing across his skin. She smiled and pushed the plate toward him.
“Worth it, I bet,” he choked out.
“Up to you, I guess. If you wait, it’ll be pure pleasure, I promise.”
Marshall wiped his chin, worried that drool was starting to come out of his gaping mouth. Was she aware that everything she said had a sexual meaning? She looked so innocent and sweet in those cute pajamas, and her words were basically a hand rubbing against his crotch. Marshall jammed a cookie in his mouth, hoping a burn might change his overly sexual thought pattern. He was lusting after his new co-worker way too much. His father and grandfather would be appalled. There. The image of those two men helped cool the fever. But only a little.
Marshall cleared his throat. “Thanks for all your hard work, with the finances and with keeping our cattle from escaping. I hear you had a crazy day.” He pushed her to share how the situation with Hank and the cattle evolved earlier in the day. She recounted each moment in detail. When she finished, Marshall got the impression there was something she was holding back.
Colette tilted her head and scrunched up her mouth to one side. “That was insane,” she said, eyes wide. She cleared herthroat. “I made a lot of unsettling discoveries today. You’re going to have to be more careful with your office. I had another strange encounter today.”
He frowned, taken aback by her words.
He took a swig of his beer. She was the best means of fixing the ranch finances. He took what she said seriously, valuing her expertise.
“Alright, hit me with it.”
“Your data and information are too easy for anyone to access, for one,” she said, reaching for a cookie and taking a bite. Watching her chew was oddly satisfying, as was watching her swallow. His mouth dropped open slightly as he stared.
“Marshall?”
“Yes, data. Perfect. Tell me what to do, and I’ll do it,” he replied, gazing away from Colette to try to regain his focus.
“I’ve reset the passwords and added two-factor authentication to make sure you and I are the only ones going into the system,” she explained, taking a sip of her beer to chase the last bite of the cookie. “I’d like you to finalize that process. And I’d like a list of everyone who is allowed to access your computer and office.” Her nose scrunched up as she swallowed.
