Chapter 18
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
For the first time in his life, Jaxon was enjoying working his ass off at Honky Tonk Heaven. Bringing the dancehall back to life was no longer a means to an end. It had become something else. Something he couldn’t put into words. Or maybe something he wasn’t ready to put into words.
And maybe his enjoyment had nothing to do with Honky Tonk Heaven.
Maybe it had more to do with enjoying being with his siblings after so many years of being apart.
He’d missed his family. He hadn’t realized how much until now.
He’d missed talking with Dawson about anything and everything.
Dawson had always been a good listener who never judged.
He’d missed Huck’s jovial optimism. No matter what setbacks they encountered, Huck never lost his sense of humor or his faith that they could finish on time.
And Jaxon had even missed Poppy’s sarcasm and fire.
Although her sarcasm and fire toward him had burned down to only a few popping sparks. The other day, she had actually complimented him on the old jukebox he’d found online—then fifteen minutes later, called him a jackass for tracking dirt on the oak dance floor she’d just polished.
But that was the Hennessys for you.
They were feisty and strong-willed and determined.
And they were Jaxon’s family.
He never wanted to be without them again.
Which posed a bit of a problem when they all had their own plans after they inherited their money.
Dawson wanted to start his own custom truck shop in Dallas. Huck wanted to invest in some tech company in Austin. And Poppy wanted to bankroll her boyfriend’s band and travel on the road with him.
As for Jaxon, he didn’t know what he wanted to do once he got his money.
He’d thought he wanted to attend culinary school and then open his own restaurant.
Now he wasn’t so sure. The person causing him to feel so uncertain, at that very moment, was sitting at the Hennessys’ kitchen counter arguing with his family.
“Absolutely not!” Tully said to Poppy. “The bar has to be solid mahogany. Not oak. Not pine. Not maple. Mahogany.”
“Do you have cotton in your ears, Princess?” Poppy snapped back. “Huck just explained we don’t have the money for a solid mahogany bar. So no mahogany bar. Got it?”
There was a time when Tully would have backed down. But in the last few weeks, Jaxon had watched his little Bambi grow some horns. She no longer let Poppy intimidate her.
Or any of the Hennessys.
Jaxon included.
He loved seeing her stand up for herself.
“I heard Huck just fine.” Tully glanced around the table. “Now y’all need to listen to me. It won’t be Honky Tonk Heaven without a mahogany bar. I’ll come up with the money somehow.”
Poppy rolled her eyes. “Just like you think you’re going to come up with enough money to buy the dancehall? Wake up, Princess. Unless a deputy makes more than I think, you won’t be able to get enough together to pay us off. And I’m sure not floating you a loan.”
Tully hiked her chin and got a determined look that made Jaxon want to lean over and kiss her.
Of course, it didn’t matter how she looked—determined, happy, angry, desire-drugged—he always wanted to kiss her.
The only thing keeping him from it was their decision to keep their relationship a secret.
Or really, Tully’s decision to keep it a secret.
And she was right. What good would come from telling people about their relationship when it wasn’t going anywhere?
He was leaving. He had never planned to stay in Promise Springs.
Which didn’t explain why every time he thought about leaving, he got a tight feeling in his chest.
Or maybe when he thought about leaving Tully.
“I don’t expect you to float me a loan, Poppy,” she said, pulling him from his thoughts.
“I’ll figure something out. But right now, we need to finish the bar or neither one of us are going to get what we want.
If we have to put in a bar anyway, it should be the right bar. And stop calling me princess.”
Jaxon waited for Poppy to have some snide comment. Instead, she only rolled her eyes before she reached down to scoop up Dumplin’. The cat came to dinner every night with Tully. Dumplin’ had taken to the Hennessys as much as they had taken to her. She even put up with Poppy’s exuberant attention.
“If . . .” Poppy said as she squeezed the cat tighter. “Tully is willing to cover the costs, I vote in favor of a mahogany bar.”
“I second that.” Huck winked at Tully. He and Tully had become the best of friends. Dawson, on the other hand, continued to be suspicious of her. Especially now that he knew she wanted to buy the bar. In fact, he and Jaxon had gotten into it just that morning over Tully buying the dancehall.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to sell the bar. He wanted to sell it, but only with the stipulation that it would never be called Honky Tonk Heaven again. It was Dawson’s way of getting back at their mama. And he knew there was no way Tully would change the name . . . or anything else about the bar.
Which was probably why he voted against her.
“I don’t think we should spend the money on a mahogany bar,” Dawson said. “Nor do I think a deputy should buy a country bar.”
Jaxon hadn’t told any of his siblings about Tully quitting. Probably because he didn’t think she could do it. Not with how she loved to please her daddy.
Tully lifted her chin. “We’ll just have to wait and see. Now, won’t we?”
“I think you’ll make a great bar owner, Tulls.” Huck picked up the casserole dish of enchiladas Jaxon had made for dinner and scooped the last of them onto his plate before glancing at Jaxon. “Well, don’t keep us in suspense, Jax. Are you for a mahogany bar or not?”
He shrugged. “My vote isn’t going to make a difference. Majority rules. You, Tully, and Poppy have all voted yes.”
Tully turned those big brown eyes on him. “I’d still like to hear your opinion, Jaxon.”
God, he loved the way she said his name. Like it belonged to her and only her. Last night, when he’d brought her to orgasm bent over a table at Honky Tonk Heaven, she’d moaned it over and over again. He’d give her just about anything when she said his name.
“I think Honky Tonk wouldn’t be heaven without a solid mahogany bar.”
The brilliant smile Tully gave him made his heart feel like it had just jumped out of a swing at full arch.
“Then mahogany bar it is!” Huck crowed.
Dawson shoved back from the table and walked out of the room.
After they finished dinner, Jaxon left Poppy and Huck to do the dishes, while he took Tully to see the improvements they’d made to the treeboat.
Whenever he and his brothers—Poppy refused to do any more renovations—had spare time, they worked on stabilizing the different decks and replacing any wood that had rotted.
This past Sunday, they had attached a new rope ladder that was more secure than the last one with a higher weight limit.
Tully still looked skeptical when she saw it. “Are you sure it’s sturdy?”
“Positive. Dawson, Huck, and I got on it at the same time and it was steady as a rock. And I’ll be right behind you every step of the way.”
He didn’t know why his words caused an intense pressure in his chest. Maybe because he knew he wouldn’t always be there for her. Once he got his inheritance, there would be no reason for him to stay.
No reason, but Tully.
And she was becoming more of a reason every day.
They made it to the top without incident.
Once there, he intended to show her all the improvements they’d made.
But when she turned to look at him and the sunset lit up her blond curly hair like a sunset of its own, he couldn’t stop pulling her into his arms and kissing her.
All it took was her body and soft lips melting into him to forget all about showing her anything . . . but how much he wanted her.
And he did want her. He wanted her morning, noon, and night. She had given him a thirst that only being in her arms could quench. With each passing day, the thought of leaving grew less and less appealing.
She drew back from the kiss and smiled up at him. “Thank you for voting for the mahogany bar. I’m so happy you want the dancehall to be exactly as it once was.”
He turned her so she could see the sunset and pulled her back against him, pressing his nose into her curls and taking a deep breath.
“It will never be exactly as it once was, but we’ll get it close.
” He’d make sure of it. It was something he wanted to leave to her.
Something to remember him by. Even if she couldn’t figure out a way to buy it—or her daddy talked her out of it once she was brave enough to tell him—he wanted her to think of him every time she stepped in the door.
The thought of her in Honky Tonk Heaven without him caused his arms to tighten around her. She placed her hands on his forearms, lightly running her fingertips over his tattoos.
“I guess things can’t always stay the same. They need to evolve.”
“Like dancehalls and Tullys?”
He was teasing, but she didn’t seem to get the joke. Her voice was sad when she spoke. “I don’t know how much I’ve evolved. I can’t even tell my daddy I want to quit and buy a dancehall.”
“Or that you’re dating the town bad boy.” The words came out a little sharper than he’d intended. Or maybe just more hurt.
She hesitated. “Dating? Is that what we’re doing? Because you haven’t asked me out on a date once, Jax.”
He turned her to face him. “I’m not the one wanting to keep us a secret. If you want things to be different, you should have said something. Or maybe taken the first step by telling your daddy.”
“And then what? If I tell my daddy and the entire town, then what? Then you stay and we end up living happily ever after?”
He didn’t realize how much that’s what he wanted until it had been put into words. He wanted a happily ever after. He wanted it with Tully. Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible.