Chapter 3
Brando
Driving toward Ravenhart Mountain, my head buzzes from what Joss just told me.
Although Bart was completely wrong for her, I can't help feeling angry that he abandoned her right before this big family wedding she's been dreading for months.
Joss clearly had forgotten she shared a bit of that stress with me in the past when she opened up just now.
And I know shithead Bart knew how important it was to be finally engaged after all these years, to avoid the typical grief from people like her aunt.
As I turn onto the Brooks' road, protective anger bubbles in my gut thinking about what an ass my boss's ex-fiancé is. A voice in the back of my mind reminds me that I'm just her employee and need to cool my temper, but my body doesn't respond.
Pulling into the long, dusty driveway, I park beside the row of awaiting wheelbarrows. I see Wyatt Brooks, the eldest of the family, walking out of the large farmhouse front door as my buddy Amos and his fellow cowpoke, Ford, come around the back of the barn.
After the initial greeting, the four of us throw the feed bags into the wheelbarrows. I grab a loaded one and follow my buddy toward the barn.
"You don't have to do that," he says, looking back at me with a laugh.
"I need the physical exertion," I grumble.
"What's with you?" Amos says as we enter the barn.
While I help him stack the feed bags, I explain what I just experienced back at work. Both Ford and Wyatt give me curious looks as they dump out their wheelbarrows, but head back to the truck without prying.
Once I finish, my friend fixes me with a mischievous look in his eyes.
"What?" I say, furrowing my brow at him.
"Well, first of all, you know I think you're absolutely gaga for the woman, right?"
I wave his words away.
"What does that matter? I work for her."
"Well, did her family even know her fiancé? Because the way you just told it, it sounds like they've never even met him."
I snort.
"I don't even think they knew the guy's name. They don't really give that much of a shit about Joss except when they want to make her feel small."
"Well, then why don't you step in? Play the part. Save her. Be her knight in shining armor for a shitty family wedding," Amos says.
"What do you mean, 'play the part'?"
"Pretend you're her fiancé!"
I'm shocked, but the wheels are already turning in my head.
"She's not going to skip the wedding, right? And having a fiancé would mean she'd be a lot less stressed out. You could step in and play that part. And now that she's single, you will be spending more time with her socially. Maybe it would lead to more," Amos says with a knowing smirk.
I open my mouth to argue, but quickly shut it as Ford and Wyatt push in the final wheelbarrows of feed. Instead, I mull over my friend's suggestion as I help stack the rest of the order.
Joss Gallagher's dark gray hair falls in waves along her shoulders, but what catches my attention is how wide her warm brown eyes are as she stares up at me. Her mouth gapes slightly.
"Are you offering to pretend to be my fiancé?"
Her pale cheeks flame red as her gaze darts around my face, studying me.
"If it would help you, then for sure," I say, smiling down at my boss.
A curious smile falls upon her full lips as a look I can't quite read flashes behind her eyes. I watch Joss stare up at me and square her shoulders, then give a determined nod.
"If you're being serious, then okay. Let's do this. Come to my place tonight for dinner?"
I'm sitting across from my curvy boss at her kitchen table, nursing glasses of wine after dinner.
I've been harboring a crush on her ever since she hired me last year.
Just two minutes earlier, I had her in stitches with a story about Amos and me as teens in the San Fernando Valley.
Now she's watching the flames dance in her living room fireplace with a contented air about her.
Being part of the reason Joss can let go of her massive stress about Bart and the wedding makes me feel damn good. I'm realizing there's a whole host of things I'd do to make this woman feel safe and protected.
Joss releases a contented sigh, interrupting my train of thought. She turns to me, fixing me with her dark brown eyes.
"So, since the wedding is next weekend, I was thinking we should probably do something together besides work before we have to play the part of fiancés."
"Yeah. Sure. Whatever you like."
She smiles at me shyly with a look behind her eyes that I can't quite read.
"There's a free skate tomorrow at the Corvid Valley Ice Complex. I hear sometimes team members of the Beast Mode Blades surprise people by joining them during it," she says with a small laugh.
"Are you an ice hockey fan?" I ask, surprised.
"Just for the Beast Mode Blades. I'm not really big into sports, but ever since they moved their team here, I've gotten kind of obsessed," Joss says, with an embarrassed laugh.
"Well, let's do it then."
And then my stomach involuntarily flips when the curvy beauty grins at me.
Joss and I sit by the freezing rink, silently lacing up our skates.
"Hey, I just wanted to check in," I say, studying her face.
She gives me a curious furrow of the brow.
"For what?"
"Well, I know we're doing this fake thing. It's just that it's been a whirlwind for you, and I assume it's rough that you and Bart broke up. I wanted to make sure you're doing alright."
Sitting up straighter, Joss smiles at me, causing my heart to hammer against my ribs.
"You know, maybe there'll be a point where I feel sad, but honestly, I've only felt relief ever since yesterday. I don't think I was engaged to him for the right reasons."
Her warm eyes lock on mine as she leans forward, squeezing my knee.
"Thank you, though. That was really nice of you to check in," she says.
But my ears fill with buzzing the moment her hand touches my leg. Heated sparks shoot through my entire body, just like when she fell into my arms the other day. I'm sitting in this icy hockey rink feeling as if flames are licking my skin.
A light gasp escapes Joss's mouth as she yanks her hand back, staring at me with what I swear is heated desire behind her dark brown eyes.