Until she had walked into his life.
Unbridled fantasies?
They were getting out of control.
Marshall was thankful his friend was taking her off his hands. Then maybe the awkward pining would stop. His hand came down to wrap around the condensation-laden pint glassbefore him. Nope. He would behave like the gentleman that he was. Colette was a free woman, totally single, and if she chose to carry on with Evan, that was her choice. Marshall had never chased after a woman. He could certainly make a play for Colette if he wanted to.
But he absolutely did not.
He shook his head, returning to the conversation, or rather, the reality of watching Evan clearing his throat on stage when his song was announced. Roger began to boo at him, and Marshall joined with his own “Get off the stage!”
Evan laughed and waved a hand at them. A few tables of women near the stage yelled out his name, and Evan placed a dramatic hand on his chest, a celebrity thankful for his audience.
The familiar sounds of “You’ve Lost that Loving Feeling” began to strum over the speakers and the crowd hushed, except for that one lady who was cheering him on with loud hoots and shouting “we love you, Pookie” at repeated intervals. By now, having heard Evan perform this song multiple times, on many a karaoke night, Marshall was familiar with his ability to sing it well. Evan wooed the crowd with his charm.
So what?
Marshall had charm.
Charm that had led him down a road where he never wanted to return.
Playboy Marshall wasn’t someone he wanted to be again.
He studied the back of Colette’s head, wondering what she was thinking. Was she smiling her glossy cherry smile at Evan, completely enraptured? He sighed and swirled his glass on the table. Maybe he should just leave. More beer would not make things more fun.
“He’s really good,” Colette shouted to Simone over the din of the crowd.
“Yeah, it’s good the first time you see it, but the seventh? The fifteenth?” Simone shrugged, leaned back in her chair, and reached a hand to capture Roger’s. “Then it gets tired.”
His eyes tracked the subtle movement, how she rubbed her thumb back and forth. Roger sent her a small smile, one that Marshall knew all too well. The look of love. He wondered for a moment what it would be like to have a woman look at him like that. A glance that would warm his face and make his mouth curve automatically. Completely irresistible.
He turned his head to give the couple privacy and clapped as Evan finished his performance with a flourish and a dramatic bow. He rolled his eyes. Evan’s easy-going and fun nature was what drew him, but Marshall feared it would also draw in another person he was feeling a certain way about. Not that he would ever admit it.
Because Colette was temporary. They could have fun if Marshall could get past the fact that she was a ranch employee. But there was always the risk that she would love him and leave him.
His new accountant had been clear about the temporary nature of the job.
Her future was in the city, where she belonged.
He’d had enough women use him, and he had enjoyed his fair share of using them.
When he escaped to the ranch, he told himself no more. The occasional relationship with a woman to slake his lust, yes. Those were fun but never seemed to last.
Marshall was at the point where he wanted more. Or nothing.
So, he would tough it out. Keep his hands off Colette, just as his brother asked.
Stay away.
Regardless of how good she looked in that tight denim skirt and how that adorable scoop neck shirt offered him a tantalizingglimpse of the curve of her bosom. Was that a hint of lace peeking from under there? His curiosity had been engaged the moment she entered the bar.
Then quickly suppressed.
His eyes caught on Evan as he strolled back to the table, his friend delighted at the results of his romantic wooing of all the women in the bar.
“Marshall, you’re next,” Evan said, dropping into a chair next to him and wiping his brow with his sleeve. “I set up your song for you.”
Marshall’s jaw dropped as Colette turned back to the table, her mouth opening in a happy gasp. If he could have murdered Evan with a scowl, his friend would be dead.
