Falling for a Cowboy

JESSE

Kissing Josie had felt like a dream, a magical feeling that had me electrified, invigorated, refreshed, and satisfied.

Kissing her had also rejuvenated me to where I felt it had given me a new breath of life.

I still thought I shouldn’t have kissed her, but when I held her in my arms with her body pressed against me and felt how she responded to my affection…

…The temptations I’d felt for her since she came to this town increased.

And they’d gotten the best of me.

I don’t know if jealousy had been my reason for kissing her, since I knew she’d been hanging out with Jack, and it could have been me.

…Or if it was the way the sun shone down on her, causing her eyes to sparkle as she looked at me.

…And how the warm breeze caused her hair to flow freely into the air, painting a beautiful sight in my mind.

But I knew that the longer we’d held each other’s gaze, the more curious I’d become about what it would feel like to kiss and taste her.

And instead of my mind doing the thinking, my heart had done that for me.

The moment our mouths had joined and I’d gotten a taste of heaven, with her also melting in my arms, I didn’t want to stop.

However, when she broke the kiss and gasped for air, it hit me about what I’d done, and I immediately thought of Hailey and Maverick.

It felt like I was cheating on her—on them—and I didn’t like the feeling.

Amanda Jean was right. I needed to quit thinking about Hailey. Because if I didn’t, my life would never change for the better.

It would remain how it had been for the last five years: sad, empty, and lonely.

Watching Josie talk to Maverick and seeing how she acted around him melted my heart, showing me that not all women were heartless human beings like Hailey was.

It also made me realize how badly Maverick wanted a mother figure in his life. Whether that meant his birth mother or someone new, I didn’t know.

But I knew if I found out that Hailey left us because of him, I’d make sure all her rights to being his mother got stripped away from her.

I had to laugh after telling my sister about the reasoning behind why I needed her to watch Maverick. She’d never hung up so quick, after telling me she’d be over in a hot second.

And she was.

Natalie and Amanda Jean had tried setting me up on blind dates those past three years, and I never showed.

There had also been times when they’d insisted I go out with them.

They’d trick me, failing to mention that they’d invited a single female to come along, with hopes that we’d click and I’d ask whomever they invited on a date.

They’d tried and tried, but I’d refused to break the sacred oath I’d taken, because I had taken my vows seriously.

There was one major thing keeping me from moving forward, and that was divorce papers.

So far, Hailey had never served me. But if I’d known where she was and the reasoning behind why she left, I’d have had her served.

Josie showing me attention had been an eye-opener. At first, I hadn’t wanted what she was giving me and thought I could push her away, but she’d refused to fall for my wanting her to leave me alone.

And Josie, showing the same stubbornness as me, showed me how much alike we are. She was someone I most likely needed in my life.

But then I had to ask myself why that was. Because I wasn’t a rich guy like most women wished to have in their life, and I had nothing to offer her.

All I had was a child who owned my entire heart. That alone, I’d figured, would have been enough to send her running. But of course, that persistent woman didn’t.

And now Josie was in my ratty old pickup truck, and she didn’t mind it one bit. For her to say that she liked my ugly ole beautified truck had me chuckling on the inside.

Yet something Josie said hit my soul, and it was that what she liked most about my truck was that I was the one driving her around in it.

I glanced over at her, then shook my head as I thought about her comment. Who the hell was this woman, and what did she see in me that my wife didn’t?

“Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked, causing me to look back at the road.

“Like what?”

“Like I’m some sort of crazy person.”

Well, maybe because I think you are crazy. But it also didn’t help that Josie was unlike the other girls I’d ever met. She was different, and I liked it. I liked how she was a lot like me: stubborn.

So I stole another look at her, then said, “Tryin’ to figure out who you are and what it is about you. You’re not like any woman I’ve ever known.”

“That’s a good thing, isn’t it?” she said, grinning ear to ear.

“I reckon so,” I said, shrugging a shoulder.

“So, where are you taking me?”

“There’s a bar in town where everyone goes dancing. It’s a fun place to hang out that I’m sure you’ll like. Plus, a friend of mine is working that I’d like for you to meet.”

I looked back at her and smiled. “He’s a wonderful man to have on your side. You’ll love him.”

She shifted in her seat to face me. Seeing the wide grin on her face had me asking, “What’s with that smile?”

“Weeks back, I met a bartender I really liked. If I remember right, his name is Willie. Is that who you’re talking about?”

Damn him. Of course Jack had taken her to see the coolest bartender in town.

“Yes, Willie’s his name.” Feeling jealous, I said, “So that’s where Jack brought you that night.”

Even though I had an inkling that that’s where Jack brought her, there was a tiny part of me hoping he’d brought her to Bandera’s other bar.

“He did. And you’re right. I loved Willie.”

One good thing about Jack bringing Josie to meet Willie is that he knew how Jack was. And with him knowing how much of an idiot Jack was, I know he looked out for her that night.

After finding a spot to park at the saloon, and before getting out, I sat in my seat, wondering how Jack had acted in front of her, hoping his true colors hadn’t come out that night.

But then again, knowing how he was in front of women, he’d most likely made an ass out of himself.

“Is something wrong?” Josie asked, sounding concerned.

“No,” I said, looking her way. “I was just thinking about something, that’s all.” I opened the door, saying, “Stay right there. I’ll get the door for you.”

I hurried over to her side, opened the door, offered her my hand, and helped her out.

I don’t know what came over me, but after shutting the door, I pinned her against the truck and gazed into her eyes.

“Jesse?” she whispered, then swallowed before saying, “Are we going inside, or will we stand right here and stare at each other for the rest of the evening?”

Josie’s breathing intensified. I also noticed she had the same look as she did the night I’d met her, causing my ticker to gain speed when I looked down at her lips.

Beneath my eye, I noticed her chest rising and falling faster than it had inside my truck.

I licked my lips, wanting to kiss her. But knowing how long it had been since I was affectionate with a woman, we wouldn’t be going inside the saloon to dance if I were to kiss her.

Instead we’d be doing a different kind of dancing elsewhere. So instead of being inappropriate and allowing my lower unit to do my thinking, I used my brain and said, “We can go in.”

I lowered my hand to the small of Josie’s back and began walking her to the bar. As we walked inside, all eyes focused on us, along with Willie’s, and he was proudly smiling.

As for everyone else inside the bar, they looked surprised. Shocked, to be exact. And I’m sure it was because I wasn’t alone. I was with the new bombshell in town.

“Howdy, stranger,” Willie greeted, smiling widely. “I see you is finally opening those damn doors. And I must say, it’s about damn time,” Willie said before looking at Josie and winking.

“Don’t be thinking you’ll be seeing a lot more of me after tonight. This beautiful gal beside me worked her ass off today over at the ranch. So now I owe her a drink and a dance or two.”

Willie kept his smile when he looked away from me and over at Josie, acting as if he didn’t believe a word I said. “Will you be drinking the same as what you was the last time you was here?”

She contemplated, then nodded. “Yeah, I’ll just stick to beer tonight. Thank you.”

Willie handed us our beers, then walked to the next group of thirsty patrons.

I snuck a quick peek at Josie, then looked at my beer after my nerves kicked into high gear. I was nervous about being at the bar with her, and I was unsure what to say to her.

I feared I’d pull a Jack and say the wrong thing and upset her, since it had been a while since I last had a conversation with a woman.

I’d been having fun with Josie earlier, saying and doing things that would have sent any woman running.

But because that didn’t work, and we were now at the bar enjoying a beer together with a dance coming next, I had no idea how to strike up a normal conversation without her actually running from me.

Finally, I thought of something to talk about, and I spun my chair to face her. “What made you move here from Alaska?”

She took a swig of her beer, then set the bottle on the bar top. “I was tired of it there and wanted a change.”

“Why Texas, and Bandera of all places, to choose from?”

“I don’t know,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. “I guess I wanted to be where there was no snow, where the weather was warmer, and to live in a smaller town.

“For months, I searched for the perfect place to live, and when I read about this town and how loaded it was with cowboys, I became intrigued by this town.

“I felt this was the change I needed to get away from the type of people I was used to being around back in Alaska.”

Cowboys, huh?

Now that’s weird. I thought no one enjoyed being around us cowboys anymore.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what types of people are you used to being around?” I asked, lifting the bottle of beer to my lips.

“Enemies,” she was quick to say, then added, “I’ve been around them my entire life, and I’m sick of being around them.”

She looked at me and sighed. “I knew if I ever wanted to be happy, the best thing for me to do was to move as far away from them as possible.”

Enemies? How could a woman like her have enemies?

I mean, I didn’t know her all that well. But from the little I knew about Josie, she seemed to have a good head on her shoulders. She was nice, beautiful, and from what I’d seen, had a good heart.

“You don’t seem like a person who’d have antagonists. What kind of enemies are you referring to?”

“I did, though. And it’s something I’d like to forget. Since coming here, I’m the happiest I’ve ever felt in my entire life.”

Hmm… Something she wished to forget. I wondered what she meant by that.

Even though I was curious to learn more about her and who she was hiding from, after seeing the look of dread on her face, I figured I’d drop the questioning and give her a night of fun.

Fun was something we both needed.

“Come on now!” I heard Jack yelling behind me.

You’ve got to be kidding me. Can’t I have a day where I don’t have to look at or listen to this buffoon?

The weasel had to show his face on the one night I decided to go out and enjoy myself willingly.

But then again, he did every time I went out. I turned toward the doorway, then turned to Josie, shaking my head.

“Sorry,” I decided to say, in case his face saw my fist. “You didn’t tell that fool we’d be here tonight, did you?”

Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “No. How could I? I didn’t know where you were bringing me.”

I chuckled. “I didn’t think so.”

Then, seeing she looked upset by my sense of humor, I stopped grinning and said, “Just so you’re aware, that was a joke and not me questioning you if you told him where we’d be.”

She smiled, took a drink of her beer, then said, “I know. Jack must have seen your truck parked outside the bar and felt he’d better come in to pester you.”

She giggled, thinking she was being funny.

But on the other hand, she was probably right. As likely as not, he drove around looking to see where I was, and then when he found me, he showed his face to piss me off.

“You think it’s funny, do you?”

She giggled, turned toward the doors, then turned and faced me, smiling and pointing her finger for me to look behind us. “Jack’s on his way over to us.”

“Josie! Jesse!” Jack excitedly greeted us when he approached us.

I looked at Josie, rolling my eyes, then winked before returning the greeting to Jack, and it earned me another giggle from Josie.

“Jackass,” I said, hoping he’d get the hint to leave Josie and me alone.

But he didn’t.

Instead he found an empty chair, carried it over, and then sat beside me like we were best friends.

Then, with a grin I wanted to erase from his face, he asked, “What are you two doing here? Especially you, Jesse. You never go out.”

Why do you care? Nosey bastard.

“I finally had a reason to come out and enjoy myself,” I groaned, then muttered, “And I was until you showed up.”

I know I had no reason to feel that way, but I was still feeling pissed at the prick.

I was doing everything I could to stay seated in my chair without dragging Jack’s scrawny ass outside to beat him silly. Especially right then, with him leaning across me to say something to Josie.

“Josie, I’ve been looking all day for you. Where’ve you been?”

My free hand clenched into a fist, not liking how he used my leg to balance himself. It also didn’t help that I didn’t like Jack questioning Josie’s whereabouts for the day.

So now I was curious about hearing what she would tell him. Because if Josie told him she’d spent the day at my place, I’d never hear the end of it.

…About how I was trying to steal a girl he liked away from him. A woman who’d already clarified that she only wanted to be a friend of his.

“I was busy today.”

“Doing what?”

“Last time I checked, she didn’t have to answer to you,” I growled.

I wanted nothing more than to get away from the loser. So I grabbed my beer off the bar, reached for Josie’s hand, and helped her off her barstool.

“Let’s go dance.”

“Josie?” he asked, looking at her like he had just lost his best friend.

Thankfully she didn’t respond to him, but she responded to me as I walked her to the dance floor. Leaning into my ear, she reminded me of something I already knew.

“I don’t know how to dance.”

Remembering how she’d danced the last time we footed the floor, I chuckled.

“I know. But don’t worry. I’ll teach you how to Texas two-step. It’s super easy,” I told her as I swung her around to face me.

I explained the steps, instructed her to follow my lead, then aimed my thumb at the couples dancing beside us.

“See how they’re doing it?”

She looked, nodded, then looked at me. “It looks easy enough.”

“If you follow my lead, you’ll do just fine,” I said, giving her a you’ll-be-okay wink.

Josie started sketchily at first, stepping on me and acting like she had two left feet.

But after I instructed her to relax and to have fun, she finally did and danced like she had been doing the Texas two-step for years.

I wasn’t ready to go back to the bar and be annoyed by Jack, so instead of going back and having another beer, I kept Josie on the floor and danced to a few more songs.

When a slow song started, I pulled her closer, then held her tightly against me and looked into her eyes, thinking about the kiss we had shared earlier and how I wished to taste her again.

I wanted to lock my lips with Josie again. Badly. But I wasn’t in the mood to give everyone in the bar something to discuss.

I also didn’t feel like pissing off Jack and having him rub it in my face about how I was still married. So instead of kissing her, I rested her head against my chest.

Then I lowered my chin onto the top of her head, thinking about how great it felt.

I hated to admit it, but this felt nice, having a woman in my arms and dancing, something Hailey and I used to do nightly in the comfort of our own home.

Dancing with a woman was also something I never thought I’d do again.

Just as I lifted my chin and kissed the top of Josie’s head, the person with the most annoying voice ever interrupted us.

“Would you mind if I cut in?”

“Yeah, I do mind,” I said, holding her tighter, not wanting to hand her over to Jack. “Why don’t you return to where you came from and let us be?”

“Come on now. You’ve been dancing with Josie for a while now. Let me have a chance at dancing with her.”

The man just never gets the hint, does he?

“Come on now,” I mocked. “Who cares how long I’ve been dancing with her?

“If you don’t wish to get into a fight here, in front of all these people, I suggest you back off and go back to the bar to leave us alone.”

“But—”

“But nothing,” I said, cutting him off. “You didn’t see me coming and bugging your scrawny ass when you took Josie out a few weeks back. Did you?”

Jack said nothing. He only stood still, staring at us and looking as if he were about to cry.

“Go on now. You’re not welcome by us,” I hissed, feeling guilty for my choice of mean words.

He continued standing beside us, staring at me like he wanted to start a fight with me. So I said fuck it and left Jack where he was while I walked Josie back to the bar to pay our bill.

I finished the last of my beer, slid a twenty-dollar bill underneath my empty bottle, then saluted Willie.

“Sorry, bud. But I’ve gotta get out of here before Jackass pushes my buttons and a fight breaks out inside your bar.”

“It’s all good, Jesse. I would’ve just closed my eyes and acted like I didn’t see a damn thing anyway.

“Because after what he pulled with the beautiful lady the last time she was here, he deserves to be punched.” He smiled.

“But I know you is trying to be respectful in front of the lady, so go on and get her outta here.” He winked before walking away.

Wait a minute, did I just hear him right?

I leaned back over the bar, whistling for Willie to come over.

“Yes, boss?”

“What did the damn fool do or say this time?” I turned and looked at Josie. “I swear if he hurt you somehow, I’m dragging his ass out of the bar right this second and beating him to a pulp.”

Willie chuckled and shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. He acted like the Jack we know, saying stupid shit as he always does.

“Besides, I knew you had your eyes on this one, so I kept a close eye on her that night,” he said, tapping the corner of his eye.

“I never said I had my eye on her,” I mumbled, not wanting Josie to hear me.

The look on Willie’s face quickly changed from happy to serious. I knew him all too well and what that look meant. I was going to get a talking to.

The man had been looking out for me since Hailey left, and every bit of advice he gave went in one ear and out the other.

Not because I didn’t like the advice he provided, but because I knew he was right.

Just as he opened his mouth, I muttered, “Here it comes.”

“You didn’t have to tell me. Jesse, look. You can’t fool an old man like me. I’ve been around the block many times, and I know a thing or two about a thing or two.”

“I know when someone is interested in someone.” He pointed his finger at me. “Especially you.

“You had a look in your eye the night of the town dance, and the look you have in your eye tonight when looking at that same lady is the same look you had then.

“You may try denying it to yourself and me, but you must remember one thing. Eyes never lie.”

Ugh. I didn’t know what to do. If I followed my heart, would that be cheating?

I barely knew the girl, but I liked how she made my ticker beat and how it fluttered every time I looked at her. But unfortunately she also made my unit want to swell. And that made me nervous.

As much as I enjoyed those feelings, I was afraid of making another mistake, the same mistake my heart had made the last time.

Hell, it had been so long. I didn’t even know if I knew how to use it anymore.

Now that was an embarrassing and scary thought to have.

I didn’t want to think about it anymore, so I forced my mind to shift to something else, hoping to veer it into something that would make me smile.

But instead of thinking about something happy, my mind thought about what Willie had said to me. I also couldn’t help but think about Jack taking out Josie.

Willie wanted me to open the doors I’d insisted on keeping locked. The thing was, it had been so long that I wasn’t so sure I even knew where the key to unlocking them was anymore.

But I knew that if I didn’t open the door and allow Josie in, she’d go running into someone else’s arms, and it probably would be to the one man I despise—Jack.

I didn’t want that to happen.

I couldn’t allow that to happen.

Seeing Josie looking at me from out of the corner of my eye, I looked away from the road and over at her.

Since leaving the bar, neither of us had said a word to each other, but because of the quiet ride and Willie’s words running through my mind, I knew I needed to say something.

Only she started first. “I heard what you and Willie were talking about, and if it makes you feel better, Jack didn’t hurt me in any way that night in question.

“He said some things to me that were a little too much and uncool of him to say, but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle.

“I also don’t think he meant anything by what he said and was only trying to be funny or hoping to fit in with the other guys at the bar that night.”

If you only knew him as I do, you’d be singing a different tune, because I’m sure whatever he said, he meant. It’s not like Jack to ever say things he doesn’t mean.

“What did he say, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“He shocked me initially, but then Willie quickly set him straight. So it’s no big deal.”

“It is a big deal. And Jack needs to learn how to behave around a lady,” I looked back at her, asking again, “What did he say?”

Her lips twisted, and then she finally said, “As I said, it’s no big deal. But when Jack asked what I wanted to drink, I told him a beer.

“But it wasn’t something he wanted to buy me, and he offered me other drinks to choose from. Drinks with sexual meanings.”

My hands gripped the steering wheel tighter.

“I did a little bartending when I lived in Alaska and knew a couple of the drinks he listed off, but then there were some I’d never heard of.

“And it surprised me to hear the names of some drinks,” she said, then listed off the drinks he’d mentioned.

“Jack isn’t a bright man. Although, in his defense—and I can’t believe I’m going to defend him on this one—but those drinks are well-known around here by the ladies.

“It still doesn’t make it right, and he should have kept his mouth shut.

“Those aren’t the type of drinks you push on a lady when you bring them out on a first date,” I said as I pulled into her driveway.

“It wasn’t a date,” she responded, defending herself. “It was just a night to enjoy myself and to get to know some people in the town.”

That was a relief, but then again, what she did or who she involved in her life wasn’t up to me. She was a grown woman who could make her own decisions.

And whoever she allowed in her life, that was her choice, not mine. All I could do was give her pointers on who the good and the bad guys were around here.

As I walked her to the door, she stopped, stepped in front of me, then smiled while taking my hands.

“You know, if you repeated what you did earlier, I wouldn’t be upset or think differently about you.”