Chapter Seven #3
They waited for a few breathless moments but heard nothing more.
And then, a few houses down where the scrub embraced the dirt road, a horse burst from the bushes—Buttercup, the ancient steed used for beginners, known more for laziness than its current enthusiasm.
Beau clung like a monkey, his arms wrapped around the animal’s neck and his legs pinned to its fat, heaving belly.
Stirrups flailed, egging the horse to a greater speed than it had attempted in more than ten years.
With the stable at the far end of town the obvious goal, Buttercup didn’t slow. Horse and rider passed Mavis and Belle. Beau was too busy trying to stay in the saddle to pay any attention to them on the way by.
Adam emerged from the bushes behind them at a more leisurely pace. He looked as if he might be in pursuit, although he wasn’t putting much effort into it. He waved as if nothing unusual were unfolding.
Then Jayce and his horse sauntered out of the bushes, headed in the same direction as Adam and Beau, but without any sense of urgency at all.
He reined in his ride at the foot of the steps. “Hey, ladies. Beautiful morning, isn’t it?”
His gaze latched on Belle like a homing device and his face brightened. A knot of guilt strangled her stomach. She was going to have to either stock up on antacids or be honest with him.
Mavis had her hands on her hips and a hard glint to her glare. “We have a lot of money invested in that country singer. Do you mind explaining what’s going on?”
“He’s fine.” Jayce adjusted his hat. “He’s managed to stay on for this long so he’s not falling off now. Besides, Buttercup’s too old and fat to keep up that pace.”
Mavis’s finely honed gaze could have stripped the bark off a tree. “Did those shots we heard have anything to do with why Buttercup is in such a hurry?”
Jayce cleared his throat, but he didn’t flinch. “Before you get mad, Beau took to his horse like a natural, so we let him tag along while we spread pepper around the guest cabin.”
Grizzlies were protected in Montana, and some were tagged for tracking.
Shooting them was a last resort, and only ever in self-defense, because when the tags stopped moving, authorities liked to know why.
Benny, who had a greater fear of the tags than the bears, preferred deterrence over bullets for that very reason.
Capsaicin, a chili pepper extract, was the main ingredient in bear spray, and since cayenne pepper contained capsaicin, too, Adam spread liberal amounts of it around campsites when they had guests.
“Go on,” Mavis said, deadly calm.
“Buttercup accidentally got a nose full of pepper and headed for home, but that horse is lazy. He tried to take a shortcut through their campsite, so Adam fired a few shots to redirect him. The guests heard the shots and came out to see what the fuss was about. I stopped long enough to let them know that the local sheriff and I were on the hunt for a horse thief.” Jayce appeared proud of his quick thinking.
“No harm done. They’re happy because they got to see a real Western posse in action.
We gave them an add-on to their package at no extra cost.”
Belle sensed there was much more to his story, because something—a few somethings—didn’t ring true. For starters, Beau taking to a horse like a natural couldn’t be right.
Mavis, who didn’t appear to buy his story, either, stared at him long enough to make a guilty man break. Jayce, however, remained unperturbed, although his horse danced a few fidgety steps. Mavis broke first.
She sighed. “Go make sure he’s okay, please.”
“Sure.” His gaze lingered on Belle. Twin dimples deepened as he tipped his hat to the women. “Good day, ladies.”
Mavis sighed again as he rode off. Louder and deeper.
“Belle,” she said, as if she were somehow to blame.
“There are good decisions and bad decisions in life, and a whole lot of choices in between. That’s where opportunities lie.
Women have needs, too, and right now, you have your pick of two handsome men willing to fulfill them.
Jayce Hanson is a good man, but he’s going to be here forever.
Beau Jones might not be ideal, but he’s only here for a few months.
The bigger decision you need to consider, though, while those two fools pound their chests, is where do you want to be in five years?
How will the opportunity you choose now affect that decision?
Equally important—and here’s where I want you to think—how will what happens five years from now affect other people? ”
Belle understood what Mavis was trying to say. Unless Belle wanted permanence, then Jayce wasn’t an option. But she wasn’t sure she wanted anything temporary, either. She’d tried casual sex a few times in college and could take it or leave it.
“Beau hasn’t done anything to make me think that he’s interested in me.” Far from it.
Mavis gave Belle a look that spoke more than words. “If he isn’t interested, then why is Jayce behaving like such an ass?”
She had no ready answer. She liked Jayce. He was attractive and steady and kind. But where were the physiological changes that were supposed to occur? The release of dopamine and norepinephrine in the brain? Maybe something more would develop between them if she gave it a real chance.
Beau, on the other hand…
Well, he was attractive. She hadn’t figured out the exact chemical response she got from him yet, but there’d be plenty of time to sort it out. He was hers for two months, whether she liked it or not, because Mavis was right—no way was sharing a bunkhouse with Adam going to keep him happy.
Mavis returned to her chair and picked up her eReader.
“Think about it,” she said again. “But don’t take too long, because it would appear Jayce has Adam onside, and we need that singer alive.”