Chapter Four
Ethan put the suit off as long as he could. He’d picked it up Thursday, hung it in the closet, and hadn’t looked at it since. Saturday morning he pulled it out, held it up, and sighed.
Western cut, purple vest, bolo tie, and a white rose pinned to his lapel. Ryan had picked it out and he hadn’t argued because it wasn’t his day. That didn’t mean he had to like it.
It fit well enough. That wasn’t the problem. The problem was he felt like a stranger in his own skin every time he dressed like this.
He dressed, settled the bolo tie, pulled on his black boots, ran a hand through his hair, set his black hat on his head, grabbed his keys, and headed out.
He was halfway to his truck when he heard her.
“Well.”
He stopped and turned. Naomi was leaning against the barn door, arms crossed, a smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.
“Not a word,” he said.
“I wasn’t going to say anything.” She looked him over and that made him wish he’d gone out the back door. “You clean up beautifully, Ethan Harrison.”
“I look like somebody else.”
“You look like somebody who owns a very nice purple vest.” Her eyes were dancing.
“Ryan picked it out.”
“Smart woman.” She grinned. “The bolo tie is a nice touch.”
“Are you finished?”
She laughed. “You really do hate suits.”
“I really do.” He turned back toward the truck.
“Ethan.”
He looked back.
“Seth’s a lucky man to have you up there with him.” Her voice had gone soft, the teasing gone out of it.
He held her gaze for a second. “Thank you, Naomi.”
He climbed in the truck, pulled out of the yard, and he didn’t look in the rearview mirror.
Seth was waiting on the porch when Ethan pulled up, which was a relief. He’d half expected to have to drag him out of the house.
His brother looked good. Same western cut, same purple vest, black hat sitting straight on his head, the white rose in his lapel.
He came down the porch steps and climbed into the passenger seat, and Ethan glanced down at his own matching rose and straightened it before pulling back out onto the road.
They drove in silence for a minute.
“You nervous?” Ethan asked.
“No.” Seth said it without hesitation. “Not even a little.”
Ethan glanced at him. He believed it. Seth had been sure about Ryan from almost the beginning, the kind of sure that didn’t leave room for nerves.
“Good.”
Another mile passed.
“So,” Seth said, in the tone that meant nothing good was coming. “Ryan says your new trainer is something.”
Ethan kept his eyes on the road. “She’s good at her job.”
“That’s not what Ryan was talking about.”
“Ryan should mind her own business.”
Seth grinned and looked out the window. “She said Naomi’s beautiful.”
“I hadn’t noticed.”
Seth turned to look at him. “Really.”
“She works for me.”
“No one can predict who they’ll fall in love with. Look at Cole. Aftyn wasn’t interested in staying in Clifton, but they still managed to fall in love.”
Ethan said nothing.
Seth settled back in his seat, still grinning. “Just don’t wait too long is all I’m saying. Women like that don’t stay single forever.”
“Are you getting married today or not?”
Seth laughed. “Just making conversation.”
“Make a different kind.”
Seth laughed harder as Ethan stared at the road and told himself his brothers were the single most aggravating people he’d ever known.
****
Naomi stood in front of the small mirror in the bedroom and smoothed her dress.
It was a simple sundress, deep blue with small white flowers, fitted through the waist and falling just above the knee.
She’d bought it on a whim two summers ago and barely wore it.
She was glad she’d thrown it in when she packed.
She stepped into her white stilettos, grabbed her small bag, and headed downstairs to wait for Serena.
Serena’s SUV pulled up right on time. Naomi climbed in and Serena looked her over with wide eyes.
“Okay, wow.” Serena put the vehicle in reverse. “You look amazing.”
“Thank you. So do you.” Serena was stunning in a green dress, her red hair down around her shoulders. “I’m glad you offered to pick me up. I’d have had no idea where I was going.”
“Dewey’s is hard to miss once you know the town, but you’re not there yet.” Serena grinned. “Don’t worry, I’ll give you a tour on the way.”
They could hear the music from the parking lot when they arrived, a live band working through a honkytonk number that made Naomi want to dance before she’d even gotten through the door. She pushed inside and stopped to let her eyes adjust.
The place was exactly what a cowboy bar should be. Worn wood floors, string lights strung low over the dance floor, a long bar running the length of the far wall. Tables packed with people she didn’t know yet but felt like she might.
Johnny was already at the bar, cleaned up in a pearl snap shirt and dark jeans, and he stood when they approached.
“Well,” he said, looking at Naomi. “Don’t you clean up nice.”
“Thank you, Johnny.” She slid onto the barstool beside him. “You don’t look so bad yourself.”
He grinned and she liked him immediately, just as she’d liked Serena. There was something easy about both of them together, and she understood without having to be told why Serena looked at him the way she did when she thought no one was watching.
Naomi scanned the room without meaning to and found him almost immediately.
He was across the room with two men, who had to be his brothers.
There was a strong resemblance in them. They were laughing at something one said had said.
She’d seen Ethan smile before, small careful ones that came and went.
This was different. This was him relaxed, off the ranch, among people he loved.
As if he felt her looking he turned his head, and their eyes met across the room. He went still.
She watched his gaze move over her, just once, slow, and deliberate, and then come back up to her face. Something shifted in his expression that she couldn’t quite name. Then one of his brothers said something and he looked away and the moment was gone.
She turned back to the bar, her heart doing something inconvenient in her chest.
“What are you drinking?” Serena asked.
“Whatever you’re having,” Naomi said.
The band slowed as Seth led Ryan onto the dance floor for their first dance. The room quieted around them, people setting down their drinks, turning to watch. Naomi watched too, her chin resting in her hand.
They were beautiful together. Seth had eyes for nobody else in the room, and Ryan looked up at him like he’d hung every star she’d ever wished on. Naomi felt a small ache somewhere behind her ribs that she didn’t examine too closely.
When the song ended the room erupted and the band moved smoothly into the next number. Naomi recognized the opening notes immediately and her heart did a little lift.
Your Love Amazes Me, a song by John Berry.
She’d danced to this song once at a rodeo in Billings with a man whose name she couldn’t remember anymore, and she’d thought at the time that she’d never heard anything more beautiful. She still thought so.
She found Ethan without meaning to. He was standing at the edge of the dance floor, a drink in his hand, watching the couples move out onto the floor.
She was off the barstool before she’d made a conscious decision.
She crossed the room and stopped in front of him. He looked at her.
“Dance with me,” she said.
Something moved across his face. For a second she thought he’d say no.
He set his drink down on the nearest table and held out his hand.
She took it, and he led her onto the floor and turned to face her, one hand settling at her waist, the other holding hers against his chest. She rested her free hand on his shoulder and felt the warmth of him through the fabric of his jacket.
They moved together slowly, and she was surprised at how natural it felt. How easy.
Neither of them spoke. The song filled the space between them and she let it, not wanting to break whatever this was with words.
His hand at her waist tightened just slightly, and she looked up at him. He was already looking at her.
She should look away. She knew she should, but it was harder to do than she thought.
****
“You know this isn’t a good idea,” Ethan murmured as he held her closer.
Naomi sighed and nodded. “I know.”
“So, now what?”
“What do you mean?”
“Do we ignore this attraction or do something about it?”
She shook her head. “If we act on it, won’t it complicate things at the ranch?”
“It might.” He didn’t look away. “But we’re adults. I’m not going to push you either way.” His hand shifted slightly at her waist. “I just want to be honest with you. Seeing you every day makes it a little hard to keep pretending it isn’t there.”
She was quiet for a moment, her eyes on his chest, then she looked up at him. “I feel it too. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t. But I’ve been hurt before, Ethan. Badly. And this job means everything to me. I can’t risk losing it.”
“You won’t lose it. Whatever happens between us, that doesn’t change.”
“You say that now.”
“I mean it.” His voice was steady, no hesitation in it. “I’m not that man, Naomi.”
She searched his face for a moment like she was looking for a reason not to believe him and couldn’t find one.
“Then can we just take it slow?” she said quietly. “See where it goes without forcing it into something before we’re ready?”
He nodded. “That’s all I’m asking.”
The song was winding down around them and neither of them moved to step apart.
“Okay,” she said softly.
“Okay.” He looked down at her for one more moment, then the last note faded and the room came back around them, loud and bright and full of people.
He stepped back and offered his arm.
He walked her back to the bar. She slid onto her barstool and reached for her drink. He held her gaze for just a moment, then turned back toward Cole and Aftyn.
Cole was waiting with that look on his face. The one that said he’d seen everything and was going to make Ethan pay for it.
“Don’t,” Ethan said before his brother could open his mouth.
“I didn’t say a word.”