Toby stopped Jane outside the door to the barn. “Hold on.” He’d best prepare her for what they were about to walk into. “So, an hour ago I was finishing up the party preparations”—and by that he meant starting the preparations—“and I heard a weird noise.”
Jane’s eyebrows inched higher. “What kind of noise?”
“A squeaking sound.” Damn…there went that shudder down his spine again. He could still hear the sound, like nails on a chalkboard. There was no way to sugarcoat this situation. “There’re bats in there.”
“Bats?” Jane lurched back a step.
“Afraid so.” He wanted to lurch back too. He could handle many things—a black bear, a moose, hell, he’d even face a mountain lion. But a bat? Nothing was creepier than a flying rodent. “So, what’re we going to do?”
“We?” Jane laughed.
“What’s so funny?” This was a huge problem. They couldn’t have a party in a bat-infested barn.
“You came to get me so I could rescue you.” The woman seemed to find that hilarious.
If it had been anyone else ribbing him, he might’ve let pride take over and figured this out himself, but he couldn’t get enough of Jane’s smile. Even if it came at his expense, he’d take it. “I’m okay with being rescued by a pretty lady. Not a problem for me.”
“Oh please.” She laughed again and then gasped in a breath. “No amount of flirting is going to help you here, mister. What am I supposed to do? Run in there and karate chop them or something?” Shoulders still shaking with laughter, she started to walk away. “That’s good, Toby. Thanks, I needed a laugh. But it was your idea to have the party in this barn, so I’m out.”
“Hold on.” He fell in step beside her. “If we don’t clear the bats out, we can’t have the party in there.”
“We?” Jane turned to face him as though trying to decide if he was serious. “We didn’t want the party in the old barn. I distinctly remember you thinking it was a great idea. We could’ve asked my mom to move around the schedule for the reception hall, but you said it would be fine in the barn.”
Energy lit up her eyes, drawing his gaze to hers. Yeah, he’d definitely be fine with Jane rescuing him. “Like it or not, we’re in this together.” And he definitely wasn’t complaining. “Think about Beth. She’s counting on both of us to pull off this party without a hitch. We promised her it would be perfect.”
Jane’s gloating smile tightened into a scowl. She wasn’t laughing now.
“We can’t let this ruin the party,” he went on, seeing he almost had her. “And I can’t get rid of the bats alone.” That was definitely a two-person job. She was the maid of honor so that automatically roped her into all wedding-related responsibilities. That’s why he’d tracked her down. Well, that and he couldn’t stop thinking about her after he’d dropped her off last night. And she may or may not have been the first thing on his mind when he’d woken up this morning too. They might be partners in this whole wedding business, but he’d never minded mixing business with pleasure.
Jane stared at him, and he could see the wheels in her head spinning. She was trying to think of any way out, but she wouldn’t bail on him because loyalty meant something to her. Might as well add that to the list of things he liked about her.
“So, are you going to help me?” he asked again.
“Of course.” Jane paced away a few steps then whirled back to him. “I know! We’ll call someone. A pest person. I’m sure there’s someone around here who knows exactly how to handle bats.”
There was one problem with her plan though. “I called the pest control guy in town and he’s in Denver for the weekend.”
“Well, call another one.”
Like he hadn’t thought of that. “There isn’t another one. I called every pest control company within three hours of Silverado Lake and none of them can make the trip before tonight.”
“Okay.” Jane seemed to swallow extra hard. “Well you’re a big, bad bull rider. You’ll have to go in there and get the bats. You’ll have to capture them and then set them free outside.”
While he appreciated the vote of confidence, solving this problem wouldn’t be that easy. “They’re up in the rafters. So, one of us is going to have to scare them down and one of us is going to have to capture them in a bag.” He’d already searched YouTube for a solution—and had seen many fails in the process. “The best way to do this is by spraying them with the hose. It won’t kill them, but they’ll have to land on the ground, then you can throw the bag over them.”
Jane visibly shuddered. “Me?”
He rested his hand on her shoulder, feeling her warmth beneath his fingertips. “You can totally do this.” Being the gentleman that he was, he figured bagging the bats would be easier than climbing the ladder. Whoever sprayed them might get dive-bombed.
“Getting the bats in the bag is the hard job,” she informed him. “You have to get close to the bats.”
“Fine. You can climb the ladder and spray the water. I already got the ladder set up, so that’s ready to go. Trash bags are right inside the door.”
Jane’s face seemed to have paled, but she nodded. “You’ll owe me for this one though, Garrett.”
“I’m sure I can think of a way to repay you.” He flashed her his rowdiest grin. He couldn’t resist. Sure, she didn’t fit into his long-term plans—and he likely didn’t fit into hers either, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t have any fun while they helped out their friends.
Jane glared back at him, but it was more playful than dangerous. “Unfortunately for you I only accept cash.” Turning away from him, she plowed through the barn door like a woman on a mission.
Smiling to himself, Toby followed her into the dimly lit outbuilding. It only took a few seconds for the squeaks and squawks to start again. Cringing, he edged up against the wall and plugged in the cord for the white globe lights he’d already hung throughout the room. Jane looked above where they stood, her shoulders scrunched with what looked to be disgust. “Do they bite?” she half whispered.
He decided not to answer that. “The hose is right here. It’s already on. You’ll just have to pull the trigger.” He handed her the nozzle and walked her to the ladder. “You don’t have to climb all the way up. Probably about halfway as long as your aim is good.”
She seemed to take the words as a challenge. “My aim is good. Trust me. I never miss.”
“Make sure you don’t, or they’ll start flying around like crazy and we’ll never get them down.” He shuddered again thinking about the bats swooping over their heads.
Seeming to hold her breath, Jane took the hose and started to climb the ladder, slowly moving up one rung and then another.
The bats were hanging out—literally—in the corner where the roofline met the far wall. Calm for now, but he’d seen enough on YouTube to know all hell was about to break loose. “Tell me when you’re going to spray, and I’ll grab the bag.” Even as he said it, he knew there was no way this would all go according to plan.
“How much farther should I go?” Jane hissed.
Toby looked up. That was a mistake. They might be on flying rodent patrol, but he couldn’t not admire her ass in those jeans. What had she asked him again?
“Hello?” She turned to peer down at him and he quickly steered his gaze away from her backside. “Can you stop checking out my butt and focus on the mission please?”
Okay, so he hadn’t looked away fast enough. “Don’t blame me. Blame the jeans.” He grinned up at her. “Let’s go with two more steps up and then spray.”
“Right.” Jane crept up two more rungs and then lifted the hose, aiming it in the direction of the bats. “Count of three.”
Keeping one hand on the ladder, Toby reached for the trash bag with the other.
“Three, two, one.” Jane pulled the trigger, shooting the water directly at the bats. They screeched and flew, swooping right at her.
The woman screamed and tried to duck but lost her balance, pitching backward. Toby dropped the bag on the ground and raised his arms just in time to catch her. They both fell to the ground with a thud, but thankfully he took the brunt of the impact.
Jane’s eyes had opened wider. Somehow, she’d ended up on top of him, her lips hovering near his. He dropped his gaze to her mouth.
“Toby!” she squealed. “The bats!”
Bats? What bats? He looked to where her horrified gaze had frozen. A few feet away, the bats were flopping around on the ground, trying to fly but their soaked wings were keeping them grounded. For the moment. “You got ’em.” He carefully rolled her off him and scrambled to his feet, snatching the bag on the way.
“Okay, no big deal.” He eased closer to the animals. “I’m just gonna wrap you up in this bag and then I’ll set you free. I swear.”
Somewhere nearby Jane started to giggle. “You sound like the bat whisperer.”
Even with the tension pumping through him, he laughed too. “Easy now.” He started to open the bag. Damn, they looked like vermin with wings. With those sharp, pointed teeth.
Toby lunged for the bats with the open bag, covering all of them in one fell swoop. He quickly cinched the bag closed and started for the door. Halfway there though the bats must’ve dried off enough to start flying again. The bag jerked up and to the left. Toby pulled it back down, but those buggers weren’t giving in. The bag jolted this way and that as he struggled to get it to the door.
Jane’s laughter rose above the animals’ creepy noises. Well at least someone was amused. When he’d finally wrangled the bag of bats close enough, he kicked open the door and stumbled into the daylight. Shit, now he had to open the bag and set the flying rodents free. He hadn’t come up with a plan for the best way to do this part…
“Throw it and run,” Jane suggested, still safely tucked inside the doorway.
Judging from the way the bag still jerked around, the bats weren’t going to be happy once he let them out. “It’s okay,” he murmured, not sure if he was soothing them or himself. “On the count of three, I’m going to open the bag and get the hell out of here.” Stretching the bag as far away as his arm would let him, he backed up. “One, two, three.” Letting go of the bag, he dove backward and hit the grass, rolling away just as the creatures swarmed over his head.
“Go on! Get!” Jane came running at them with a broom, shooing them in the direction of the forest.
Still lying on the ground, Toby looked up at the blue sky. Jane appeared, standing over him with a smirk, her long dark hair cascading past her shoulders. “Looks like I saved the day after all.” She reached out a hand to help him up, but Toby pointed over her shoulder.
“Um, they’re not exactly gone.” In fact, the bats were swooping their way back toward the barn.
Jane turned and shrieked, then dove to the ground next to him, crouching with her hands over her head.
“I think they’re turning.” Toby watched the bats make a circle before heading back into the trees. “Yeah. They’re definitely gone this time.” Just to be safe though he didn’t move. Because of the bats, not because Jane was lying on her back next to him. Nope.
“That. Was. Hilarious.” Jane turned on her side to face him. “Oh my God. Watching you try to wrestle that bag outside.” The words dissolved into laughter.
“Some help you were. You laughed at me the whole time,” he said, feigning hurt. In reality he loved the sound of her laugh. Hearing it—earning it—gave him a rush. Having her this close, without her shrinking back away from him made him want more.
“If it makes you feel any better, I tried not to, but it couldn’t be helped.” Amusement danced in her eyes. “That was definitely first-class entertainment.”
“I like entertaining you.” He scooted even closer to her. “I could keep going, if you want.” He could find reasons to make her smile all day.
“What sort of entertainment did you have in mind?” she asked as though she could be open to considering his proposal.
“I have all kinds of things in mind.” Toby took his time, focusing on the details of her face—the small dip above her upper lip, a thin scar right above her left eyebrow. He skimmed his thumb across her cheek and down her neck, brushing back her hair. “You’re so beautiful.”
Her eyes shied away from his. “You probably say that to all the girls.”
That was true. He’d said those same words to plenty of women. But somehow it felt different saying them now. To Jane. “This time I mean it.”