Page 64 of Roping Her In

Jake cleared his throat and stepped to Hailey’s side. She linked her arm through his, claiming him, and smiled at his mother. “Momma,” he said. “This is Hailey Winters. I’m sure you know her family, the Glovers.”

“Yes, of course,” his mother said at the same time his father seemed to step out of nowhere.

“Yeah, the Glovers are good people.” He extended his hand for Hailey to shake. “How’s your daddy gettin’ along?”

“Just fine, sir,” Hailey said.

“I didn’t know you two were dating,” Garth said next, his dark eyes landing solidly on Jake’s face.

“It’s not a crime, Daddy.”

Garth lifted a cup of punch to his lips, and Hailey had no idea how to get out of this conversation.

“Did you see Carson?” Jake asked. “He’s here with a woman too.”

“Is he?” Juliette asked, already scanning the area. “I didn’t even think he was in town this weekend.”

“I’m pretty sure I saw him,” Jake said, almost making his voice sound nonchalant. But Hailey knew better—and Jake hadn’t seen Carson at all. She had.

Juliette ceased in her scanning of the barn. “Do come for lunch tomorrow, baby.” She leaned in and kissed both of her son’s cheeks, smiled widely at Hailey, and then let her husband lead her off the dance floor.

Hailey stepped back into Jake’s arms, an amused smile playing with her lips.

Jake didn’t seem to want to look at her. “What?” he finally asked.

The song ended, and Hailey stepped out of his arms to applaud along with everyone else. “Don’t what me,” she finally said, plenty of teasing in her tone. “You just used your brother to get your parents to leave you alone—leave us alone.”

Jake’s eyes fired back at her too, and he hauled her right back into his arms. “Can you blame me? You’re so beautiful, and I love dancing with you. The last thing I want to do is stand there and answer my mother’s questions.” He grinned at her, and when he said such sweet things, Hailey couldn’t very well argue with him.

“You never said if you’d come to the branding extravaganza with me.” She reached up and toyed with the collar on his shirt, keeping her focus there so she wouldn’t have to look him in the eye. “Or the weddings.”

Rusty started talking about the food they had that night, as well as where to find a restroom, but Jake held Hailey close even when she tried to put a bit of distance between them.

She looked up at him then, finding a fierce expression on his face that faded into something much more vulnerable within half a breath. “Of course I will, sweetheart.”

He leaned in closer, his mouth right at her ear as he whispered, “I would go anywhere to be with you.”

“Dude,” Carson said, pulling Jake away from Hailey. “You told Mom and Dad to come find me?”

Jake stumbled after his brother, leaving Hailey to wander off the dance floor by herself, the ghosts of his words still floating in her ears. Perhaps she’d heard wrong. Perhaps it was just a figment of all the Valentine’s Day magic hanging in the air.

Or perhaps, Jake was falling for her the way she was currently falling for him.

25

Colt Franklin hugged his son tightly and released him to the care of his sister. “You be good for Aunt Birdie,” he said as the little boy skipped away.

“Okay, Daddy,” Jonas called, and Colt straightened with a sigh.

It sure seemed that Three Rivers had finally emerged from the cloud of winter. Though Colt put an extraordinary amount of work into the orchards before the season hit, springtime was definitely the busiest time for him. He’d lost several branches to the ice storm a few weeks ago, and he’d hired a couple of seasonal guys to help him get the orchards ready for the wedding.

Colt had been married before, but that didn’t stop the nerves from parading through him. Elaine Walker wasn’t just any woman, and she had actual sketches of what she wanted her wedding, the reception, the dinner, and all of it to look like.

They’d pushed the date once due to the extreme winter, as Colt didn’t think his trees would blossom as early as they normally did, and Elaine wanted blossoms. But now it had been sunny, and it seemed that there were no traces of snow, ice, or rain to be found anywhere.

“So you’ll talk to her about it before everyone else gets there,” he told himself as he swung his leg over the ATV he’d drive down to the bistro.

Elaine had arranged for a triple-date with her and Colt, Trap and Lila Mae, and Hailey and Jake. Colt knew Jake from the small ranch owners’ meetings, though he was definitely one of the quieter men who attended. Elaine and Hailey had been working together for a while now, as Hailey had gone to Elaine for options regarding her schooling and career, after a false accusation of theft at the restaurant she’d managed in town.