Chapter 15
Maggie
Hadley’s late.
Brady, too, since he’s bringing him over. He needs to meet Spencer later today and is dropping Hadley off beforehand, so...
I wait in the lodge parking lot, checking emails while I wait.
Mom and Brad have been wandering past the restaurant windows every few minutes, not even bothering to pretend to be subtle.
Hate to break it to them, but Hadley Jones is not interested in me. Nor I him.
The sun will fail to rise the day I become romantically entangled with a rodeo man. A bull rider, nonetheless.
Something like unease settles in my gut, and I retrain my focus back to the emails. I respond to all the work ones, and then head to LinkedIn to update my profile and hunt for any vacancies next year. A few catch my interest, but nothing that would hold my attention for long. Everything is so pedestrian. Nothing meaningful. A part-time gig here, a short contract there. I sigh, swiping out of the app.
Tires roll over the sealed parking lot grounds, and I look up to see Brady behind the wheel of his white pickup truck. A much,much newer one than Hadley’s. The man I’m waiting on sits in the passenger seat, his aviators on, that square jaw grinding over what I imagine is chewi?—
“Hey, Mags!” Brady pushes out of the door after he kills the engine.
“Hey Brady, how was the drive?”
Hadley steps out, turning back as I divert my attention to Brady who comes to stand by my side as Jones pushes on his hat and tugs his bag from the back of the truck.
Brady feigns seriousness. “Good, yeah, make sure you have him home by midnight, ’kay?”
“Yes, Dad.”
“Hear that, Hads?I’mher daddy now.”
Hadley shakes his head, rolling his eyes as he walks over, bag slung over his shoulder in one hand. “Hey, Maggie.”
“Hadley. Ready for some road-tripping?”
Brady’s gaze bounces between us. He folds his arms over his chest, raising an eyebrow for whatever reason.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Good, I have snacks and so?—”
“My treat this weekend, okay?”
I open my mouth to object. I’m guessing his first paycheck won’t even hit till later in the month. “I really don?—”
He closes in, dropping his bag to the ground. “Nope. It’s my turn.”
“Alright, I leave our provisions in your capable hands.”
Brady clears his throat, shifting on his feet. “Yeah, so I can recognize a third wheel when I run headfirst into one. I’ll take off.”
Hadley picks up his bag and opens the side door of the van, placing it inside.
“I’m heading off, Jonesy?” Brady tries again.
“See you, bud. Thanks for the lift.” Hadley pulls his bedroll and gear bag from the white pickup and shoves it inside Betsy, shutting her side door and double-checking it’s closed tight.
“You two kids have fun, then!” Brady climbs back up into his truck and starts it up before rolling out of the parking lot, shaking his head.
