Chapter Four
Justice was running on empty.
Figuratively.
All she needed was to put miles on her new cowgirl boots and a few drinks to celebrate the fact that she was putting the whole situation with Kent behind her. She wouldn’t allow him to creep into her mind any longer.
Mav’s was as lively as ever. The honky-tonk was packed with hard-working cowboys and cowgirls wanting to unwind after a hard week. There was a long line for the newly installed mechanical bull, and a cowboy was on stage singing Hank Williams Jr. The crowd cheered and sang along.
On the dance floor, she saw Jinx and Lanah Weaver.
“Looks like she’s trying to nail herself another one,” Hope said with a roll of her eyes. None of the Rose sisters had anything good to say about Lanah. She was about as artificial as the flowers Aunt Rita stuffed into her window boxes every spring.
“Jinx wouldn’t fall for her sugary sweetness, would he?” Justice tried to ignore the heaviness that took up residence in her chest. She wasn't jealous, not of Lanah, who danced so fast that her skirt swished around her knees. Jinx was laughing and seemed to be having a good time.
“No clue. I don’t think so.” Hope craned her neck to look for anyone she was interested in at the bar. “I can’t believe you dragged me out for this. Although that cowboy sure can sing. I haven’t seen him around before, have you?”
“Nope.” Justice narrowed her gaze at her sister. “What else were you going to do tonight? Make yourself a picnic in bed and watch a documentary on catching a fake husband in six months?”
The looming deadline for finding a husband was getting closer.
“Worry about yourself,” Hope muttered. “I’ll find one.”
“Will you?”
“We’re in the same predicament. Where’s your ring?” Hope said sassily.
Justice scanned the busy room “Come on. I see two open stools at the bar.” She grabbed Hope’s hand and dragged her through the crowd. Several cowboys dipped their hats in greeting.
“He’s kind of cute,” Hope said, tilting her chin toward the tallest cowboy of the duo. “Did you see his bulge?” She laughed.
“Apparently someone is going through a dry spell,” Justice said, weaving around the men.
“When Daddy decided to demand we get married, he jinxed me. Are all the men in this town getting uglier or is it just in my head?”
“How about Hank Coulson? Wasn’t there a time you two tested the hay loft for holes? Looks like he’s holding up the jukebox.”
“Hard pass. He wasn’t any fun,” Hope sighed.
They slid upon the stools and Rayne Sims, a petite brunette with tattoo sleeves, a stack of earrings in each ear, and her blue hair shaved on one side, worked the bar and asked, “What can I get you gals this evening?”
“Two shots of tequila,” Justice said, ignoring that Hope was eyeing her with a tapered gaze.
“That seems fitting,” Hope moaned.
“What do you mean?”
“For the last week, you’ve been…well, not quite yourself. I hate to pull a complete Daddy lecture, but drowning your sorrows never worked. Care to share?” She clicked one of her taloned nails on the polished bar top.
Justice paused while Rayne set two shot glasses in front of them and turned the bottle upside down, filling each with tequila. “There’s nothing to share.” She didn’t want to talk about Kent or their daddy’s demands. She just wanted to live one night without so much as a worry. “Cheers.” She picked up her glass, and when Hope didn’t make a move to do the same, Justice swallowed the contents, squinting as the liquid burned its way down her into her stomach. “Drink up, buttercup.”
Reluctantly, Hope finished off her own, coughed and sputtered, then wiped the back of her hand across her mouth. “The things we do for the ones we love.”
“You’ll thank me later when you’ve successfully pulled the stick out of your ass and had some fun.” She laughed, already feeling livelier as she shimmied her shoulders to a popular country song.
"Some of the crew is here," Hope said, pointing at the ranch hands sitting at a table near the mechanical bull. It looked like they were all taking turns on seeing who could stay on the longest. The boys were known to raise the roof on Friday nights.
Justice, however, was focused on Jinx. He’d left the dance floor and sat at the end of the bar.
Jinx Weathersby certainly could turn heads in a crowd. She didn’t know much about the hand except for two things. He looked like Scott Eastwood and moved like John Wayne. And he seemed to always be watching her.
She guessed she didn’t mind the attention because she watched him too. Even now, she leisurely journeyed her attention from his black Stetson sitting slightly cockeyed on his forehead to his wide whiskered jaw enhanced by the deep dimple at each corner of his lips. The black T-shirt seemed to effortlessly stretch over his broad shoulders, and the faded Wranglers fit his lean hips and long legs so well she wondered if the denim had been custom tailored.
Rayne leaned in to ask Jinx something. He smiled and nodded, giving her a thumbs-up. His reserved demeanor made him seem somewhat elusive.
Justice truly thrived on the thrill of a challenge.
She didn’t realize she had been staring so long until he shifted and their eyes locked. She refused to turn away, and they played a game of chicken. His grin warmed her inner thighs, and she squirmed to attention.
“Are you even listening to me?” Hope clicked her fingers in front of Justice’s face. “Earth to Justice. Are you in there?”
With a sigh, Justice removed her gaze from the cowboy and onto her annoying sister. “I was watching the line dancers.”
“I bet you were,” Hope said in an irritated voice.
“What?”
“I don’t think I realized until this very minute that someone has a crush on you. And maybe it’s reciprocated.” Hope pretended to pluck a piece of lint off her shirt.
“What are you talking about?”
“Him.” Hope unashamedly pointed at Jinx.
Justice turned to look subtly in Jinx’s direction, but he wasn’t there any longer.
Where did he go?
She scanned the crowd, but she couldn’t find him.
Hope cleared her throat and tapped Justice on the shoulder. “Two o’clock, Sis, and moving.”
Justice should have been warned sooner that Jinx was headed their way because she almost fell off her stool. As he passed, he touched the brim of his hat and said in the warmest, husky voice she’d ever heard, “Evenin’, ladies.”
“Evening, Jinx,” Hope responded happily.
Justice was too busy checking out the wide, fringed pockets that cupped his firm ass to greet him. She swallowed hard and forced her attention off his bottom.
“Yep, I was right, as always.” Hope beamed.
“Don't go there.”
“Don’t go where? That you two have noticed one another.? You two are hot for each other? No, I won’t point out that you have saliva dripping down your chin either.” Hope held out a napkin which Justice didn’t accept.
"Your imagination is out of control," Justice said, averting her gaze so Hope wouldn't see straight through her.
“He’s a good marriage of convenience material,” Hope said in a sing-song voice.
“Then why don’t you grab him?” Justice ordered a drink and planted her attention on nothing really. The most excitement just strolled toward the table where all the crew sat. She couldn’t stare without Hope seeing. However, through the large mirror behind the bar she could see Jinx clearly. He’d taken his hat off and had hooked it on his bent knee. She wondered if his hair was as thick as it appeared.
As if he felt the draw too, his gaze lifted.
“It’s not me he’s eyeing, honey.” Hope snickered.
Once Rayne placed the cocktail in front of Justice, she slurped up half of it through the straw. She needed to change the subject and asked Hope, “What’s been keeping you busy these days? I haven’t seen much of you in the last few months.” Justice leaned her elbows on the edge of the counter, ignoring the roaring laughter coming from Jinx’s table.
“Just busy. Nothing amazing.”
Using her straw, Justice dunked the slice of lime in her drink and forced her gaze to stay on Hope. “You know you can tell me anything, right?”
Hope’s shoulders collapsed and her lips pursed. “I’d like to, but you have to promise not to tell anyone, not even one of our sisters.”
Concern came over Justice. “Of course. What is it?”
“I’ve written something, and it will be published—”
“Wait a second.” Justice went rigid when she saw Kent Downs. Her heart slammed against her ribcage. “Sorry, Hope…I-I…”
“You look like you saw a ghost.” Hope then saw what had grabbed Justice’s attention. “What is he doing here?” Hope didn’t bother holding her disgust.
Kent Downs never visited Mav’s, because it wasn't his vibe. He preferred to patronize the richer establishments where his lap dogs hung out. “Good question.”
“That man rubs me the wrong way. He is likely here because he has been asked to leave his usual haunts. The snake.” Hope grimaced.
Justice remained silent. When Kent’s beady gaze narrowed in on her, she realized why he’d come to Mav’s. Her stomach twisted. He wouldn’t dare speak to her. Would he?
When he started her direction, she wanted to flee. It took all her inner control to remain rooted on the stool.
“Hello, Justice and Hope.” Kent showed off a row of sparkling white teeth.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Hope said in exasperation.
Justice had a lot to say but her tongue wouldn’t work.
What was he up to?
“What a charming place this is,” he remarked in his slow, smooth drawl. “So delightful and quaint.”
Justice had to remind herself that one slip of irritation could fuel Kent’s fire. She didn’t want to give him the satisfaction.
“I cannot do this,” Hope whispered in Justice’s ear. “I’m going to the restroom and purging myself of the bullshit.”
Once Hope was far enough away that she couldn’t hear, Justice leaned in slightly toward Kent “What are you doing here?” His presence had caught the attention of people sitting nearby.
“I just felt the urge to hear some country music.” He sat on Hope’s abandoned stool.
Justice didn’t want to make a scene or draw more attention than they already had. Townsfolk couldn’t wipe the sweat off their brow on a Monday night without gaining the rumor mill's attention. A few of the crew members, including Jinx, were watching. The temperature rose and she felt sick. With a stillness she was faking, she faced the devil. “You’re not welcome here,” she whispered.
Kent laughed. “So the Roses own Mav’s now?”
“You know why you’re here and it’s unacceptable.”
“Would you like to dance?” No sign in his expression said that he was joking.
“No, thank you.”
“Just one itty bitty dance. If I remember correctly, you like to swing your hips.”
“Not if your life depended on it.”
“Excuse me,” came the familiar voice behind her.
Kent’s gaze tapered. Curious, Justice turned on the stool and her knee struck Jinx’s thigh.
"Justice." Throughout all the months that Jinx had worked at the ranch, he had never once approached her or said her name. Yet, she knew he was coming to her rescue. While she didn’t need anyone to save her, he couldn’t have arrived at a better moment.
“Jinx.” She didn’t even bother introducing him to Kent. She didn’t know if the men knew each other, and she didn’t care.
“Care to dance?” Jinx asked.
“I’d love to.” She slid off the stool, feeling Kent’s heated gaze on her.
Jinx waited for her then laid his hand on the small of her back, sending anticipation dancing along her skin.
They chose a spot on the floor as far away from the other dancers as possible.
Jinx stood tall above her, a wall of olive skin and broad, lean muscles. He looked down at her, his gaze warm. “I thought you might need some help or a shotgun.”
“Was it the look of torment on my face or my death grip on my glass that tipped you off?” She laid her hands on his shoulders and felt the strong muscles flex under her fingers.
“I’d say it was more of Downs’ shit-eating grin.”
She nodded. “That’s a staple expression for him.” She inhaled deeply, dragging in Jinx’s scent. A perfect combination of leather and sage wood. His hands pressed against her waist and surrounded her with his powerful arms, making her feel something she hadn’t felt in a long time. Comfort.
“He seems fixated on you,” Jinx said next to her ear.
She didn’t dare look. “He seems to have an obsession for all the Roses, and our land, of course.” She tilted her chin and looked up at Jinx. The neon light above them caught his eyes, turning them into twinkling orbs.
His hold tightened at her waist. She thought she should put distance between them, but she craved closeness. She liked the way he moved smoothly and deftly.
She shook her head slightly. Was she thinking clearly? These thoughts were as prohibited as her interactions with Kent. Her posture straightened involuntarily.
“I didn’t need to be rescued,” she said. She needed to put her walls back into place.
“I didn’t rescue you. I found the perfect time to ask you to dance,” Jinx said easily. “If anyone was being saved, it definitely was Downs because I saw that look in your eye.”
“A look?”
“That look that said you were ready to take him down like a calf fit for branding.”
“Oh? You talk like you’ve been witness to that ‘look’ a few times.”
“I think I might be both turned on and amused if it were directed at me.”
Those words targeted her inner thighs. He was remarkably charming. She pressed her fingers into the soft fabric of his faded shirt, feeling more relaxed as a second song started. “What’s your story, Jinx?” They might as well get to know each other better while they were arm in arm.
“What’s there to say? You know the hand’s life. Working sunrise to sunset. There’s no room for anything else in between.”
She pulled her head back slightly. “There must be something or someone who occupies the other five percent of your time.”
He gave a casual shrug, and the T-shirt clung to his broad chest. “I guess you could say there is. She’s a fiery jalape?o and seems to enjoy turning my hair gray.
Something bugged Justice. So he had someone special? He'd been dancing with Lanah earlier. Was she his girl? If he had a girlfriend, then why was he always watching Justice? She didn't want to deal with anyone's mind games. "Where is she?"
“In Catskills. This wouldn’t be the life for her. I’m a workhorse and would never see her.” His jaw tightened.
“And she finds that acceptable? You know, never seeing you?”
He chuckled. “I think she likes it to a certain extent. I try to get back home a few weekends a month to see her. We occasionally talk on the phone, but she’s busy, at least that’s what she says. She has a large circle of friends.”
“That sounds like a very…open relationship.” She let her hands slip, feeling like she should put more space between them.
“It hasn’t been a good one, especially here lately. It seems everything I say turns out to be a battle cry. I’m not cut out for this. What I know about women I could fit into a thimble. Aunt Ness suggested I read books, and I did, but no book can teach you to communicate better with a female.”
“Does Aunt Ness get along with her?” Justice was very curious.
“Ness has a lot more patience than I do with Ilene. She has an open mindset. She thinks I need to relax and stop being so damn uptight. I love Ilene, I do,” he gritted out. “Sorry. I guess I got carried away.”
“I get it. Maybe time will fix what’s broken.” She cleared her throat. She had totally misread their attraction.
“How about you? Who occupies your time?”
The question seemed to needle under her skin. She couldn’t tell him that she’d been involved in a forbidden romance with her daddy’s worst enemy. What would Jinx think of her? She couldn’t trust anyone with the information.
“I’m happily in love with being single,” she said sharply.