Chapter 21 JR
JR
“So?” Jeff asked as he walked over to me, tossing me my hard hat.
“So, what?”
He waggled his eyebrows at me, leaning in closer. “How was she?”
I knew what he was talking about, but there was no way I was giving him a damn thing. “Not sure what you’re talking about.”
“It’s all over town, man. You and the apothecary girl? You know, for a while, I thought I might hook up with her, but she’s a little too weird for me. All those herbs and shit…it’s just strange.”
I didn’t say anything as I walked over to the site and got started, but Jeff just wouldn’t drop it.
“So?”
I sighed, turning to him. “So, what?”
“Man, you’ve gotta tell me. Was she good?”
“I don’t know you.”
“What do you mean? We’ve been working together every day.”
“And?”
“And so that means something.”
“No,” I said, gripping the frame for the left side of the house, waiting for him to grab his end before lifting it up. “What it means is that we work together.”
“So, if we grabbed a beer, would you tell me then?”
“What the hell is wrong with all of you? Don’t you know what it means to mind your own business? I swear to God, the whole fucking town knows what everyone does every second of the day.”
“Well, in our defense, she walked outside in only your t-shirt.”
“Fucking Remi,” I muttered.
“Oh, no. It wasn’t him,” he chuckled. “Nope, the neighbor across the street saw everything and called a few people, who called a few people.”
“And why would the neighbor across the street give a shit what I do?”
“Well, you live in a house the Parkers own. She’s got her eyes on the neighborhood, so we’ve asked her to keep an eye out for anything suspicious.”
“And a woman being at my house is suspicious?”
“Nope,” he grinned, “but it sure is interesting.”
“Am I going to hold this up all day, or were you planning on getting Liam over here to finish it off?”
But that didn’t stop him. He just kept yammering.
“You could have at least let her stay until she put on clothes. Maybe given her a mug to carry home. Then it might have looked like she was borrowing coffee. Then again, she doesn’t drink coffee, but she could have been borrowing sugar. People still do that, don’t they?”
“I have no idea.”
“Instead, you sent her running home in only your shirt!” he laughed. “I mean, either it was really bad or she was trying to escape something really embarrassing.”
He looked at me expectantly, hoping I would give him the details, but not even gossip that I was bad in bed would make me open my mouth and spill my secrets.
Or lack thereof.
“Well, since you don’t want to tell me, I’m going to have to jump to my own conclusions, and since rumor has it that she spent the whole night at the bar with you, I can only assume she got drunk and then went home with you and did something she regretted.
Maybe she was doing the walk of shame because she was literally ashamed she spent the night with you. ”
He quirked an eyebrow at me.
“I hope you’re a giver. Women like that.”
“Do they,” I deadpanned.
“Well, I know it’s nice to be on the receiving end, but every once in a while, you have to reciprocate. They can’t always be gagging on—”
“Liam!” I shouted, snagging his attention before I let the frame fall on his brother’s face and mar his good looks for the rest of his life.
“You ready?” he asked, making his way over.
“Find a way to shut him up.”
“Hey, I resent that,” Jeff scoffed. “I’m just asking what anyone else around town would.”
“I don’t give a shit. I’m here to do a job, nothing more.”
“I actually need someone to run into town and grab a few things, if you want to escape the inquisition.”
“Gladly,” I muttered, grateful when he called Michael over to take my place so they could finish putting up the frame.
I snagged the list from Liam, along with his instructions. With any luck, I would have an hour of peace from any further remarks from anyone who just had to know what happened between me and Josie last night.
Which was absolutely nothing.
That’s what I told myself on the way into town to grab a cup of coffee from The Daily Grind. I was in desperate need of some caffeine after being awake the whole night with nothing to occupy my mind but the feel of Josie’s body under my fingertips.
And I hadn’t even touched her very much. Just enough to know that there was definitely no fabric underneath that shirt. Of course, I’d seen that this morning, and hell, I really wished I hadn’t.
That ass…fuck, I was getting hard just thinking about it.
Parking outside the coffee shop, I ignored the looks I got and walked straight up to the counter.
“Black coffee. Large.”
“Oh my gosh,” the girl behind the counter whispered. “It’s you.”
I met her eyes, hardening my jaw. “Black coffee. Large.”
Glancing around sheepishly, she leaned in and lowered her voice. “I heard about Josie.”
“Coffee,” I stressed.
Biting her lip, she blinked up at me coquettishly. “You know, if you ever want a date, I might be available.”
Stepping back, I shouted, “Is there anyone in this coffee shop over eighteen who knows how to take an order?”
She giggled as her manager walked over, shooting her a dirty look as she pushed her aside.
“Sorry about that. What can I get you—” And she looked up and smiled at me.
“Coffee. Black. Very large,” I gritted out.
“Right away,” she chuckled. “Casanova.”
I tossed down a few dollars and waited impatiently as she filled my coffee, smiling up at me every few seconds. The whole town had gone crazy. I hadn’t even slept with the damn woman, but somehow, that still made me some mythical creature in their eyes.
Snagging my coffee, I stormed to the door, only to be stopped by an ogling group of school girls who held the door open for me until I walked out, followed by a round of giggles that set my teeth on edge.
I called Liam as soon as I got in the truck. When he didn’t answer the first time, I called him right back.
“JR—”
“Did you know this would happen?”
“Uh…you’re gonna have to be more specific.”
“Everyone’s staring at me. They’re calling me Casanova!”
A low rumble slipped through the phone that he quickly covered up with a cough. “Uh…yeah, this town can be rough. Not sure what to tell ya. At least they’re not throwing milkshakes at you.”
“That’s a thing?”
“It happened to me. Trust me, it’s better that they’re staring than hitting you with oversized bags.”
“It’s fucking ridiculous,” I said, pulling into the hardware store parking lot. “Do I have to worry about this while I’m getting supplies?”
“Nah, Dick’s a good guy. You’ll be fine.”
“Thank God for that,” I muttered.
“Hey, but I should warn you that there’s a system for going into the hardware store.”
“Of course there is.”
“See, nobody just walks in and gets what they need. You’ll find Dick at the back with his son. And possibly a few others in the family.”
“A few others?”
“It’s a family-run store.”
“Okay, so what’s the procedure?”
“Well, since you’re new in town, they’ll greet you, but then they’ll introduce you to whoever’s in the store. Then, they’ll take you to the seating area in the back for coffee.”
“What if I don’t want coffee?”
“There’s not really a way to say no,” he huffed. “You’ll have to sit around and shoot the shit with them for a while before they’ll take care of you.”
“And if I don’t?” I questioned.
“Well, then you’ll get to experience what it’s like to have a milkshake thrown at you. Keep in mind, it’s still cold out and that shit is hard to get out of your hair.”
“I think I’ll take my chances.”
He chuckled through the phone. “It’s your funeral.”
The whole thing was fucking ridiculous. They couldn’t force me to sit down with them and have coffee.
I was on the clock and people expected me to get back with supplies, and as much as I didn’t want any more pressing questions from Jeff, I also had no desire to sit around with people I didn’t know just to talk.
The bell chimed over the door as I walked in. I immediately pulled out my list and busied myself with finding what I needed, avoiding eye contact with anyone in the store.
But that didn’t last long. It wasn’t two minutes before an older gentleman hobbled over to me with suspenders holding up his pants and a plaid shirt tucked in deep.
“Can I help you, son?”
“I just have a few things to pick up.”
He eyed the paper. “Is that Liam’s list?”
“Yep. I’ll just grab what I need—”
But he turned, waving for me to follow him. “Come on back and meet everyone. Colleen!” he shouted, then glanced over his shoulder. “That’s the wife.”
I nodded and kept my distance. There was no way I was getting sucked into any of this nonsense. I made note of what was in each aisle as I passed, writing down on the paper where I needed to go. But all too soon, I was stopped by an older woman with short silver hair, smiling up at me happily.
“You must be JR. We’ve heard a lot about you in town. Liam certainly raves about you.”
I highly doubted that. The most I’d ever heard out of Liam’s mouth that could be considered even slightly as a word of praise was See you tomorrow.
“I’m just here to grab a few things.”
“Well, sit down. Meet everyone else,” she grinned.
But I knew if I took that step, I would have to sit in that ratty, brown recliner and join in the conversation, probably staying for a good forty-five minutes as they filled me in on the basics of town.
“Actually, I’ll just get what I need.”
“Just a few minutes,” she beamed. “A cup of coffee.”
“No time for that, ma’am.”
I was trying to be nice. I really was.
“But you haven’t met Scott and his wife Linda,” she pressed.
“They’re going to take over the store when Dick retires.
He’s owned this store for over forty years, and he’s been collecting hats just as long,” she said, pointing to the hats hanging from the wall.
There had to be ten rows high and it traveled from the front wall of the hardware store, all the way to the back and around the other side.
Hundreds—maybe thousands of hats—and for what?
“Oh, and you’ll love this!” she beamed, rushing over to the wall and flicking a switch.
I heard a toy train whistle and looked to where she pointed. A train ran across a track just below the hats, across the center of the store on a beam, and every which way.
“Very…cool,” I answered, not knowing what else to say about that.
“Dick put that in about twenty years ago with Scott. When he was just a boy—”
“Yeah, I really have to get back,” I interrupted, then turned and walked away. Christ, the stories she might have told me were endless. How did anyone get anything done in this town when all they did was sit around and talk?
From there, I quickly grabbed the items I needed and brought them to the checkout counter. Colleen was polite but quiet, taking my money and bagging my items.
“Have a nice day.”
“Oh, you too.”
I paused mid-step, sure I heard a hint of humor in her tone. But I kept walking. It was only a short walk to the parking lot. What was the worst that could happen?
Twenty minutes later, I got out at the ranch and slammed the door, stomping over to Liam, who was doing his best not to laugh at me.
“Next time, get your own damn supplies,” I muttered, wiping chocolate milkshake that was dripping from my hair.
“I told you to stay and talk.”