Chapter Eight

How could one of the best days of her life turn into her worst nightmare?

Jovy contemplated that—alone.

In her vacant café.

The one that opened for business over an hour and a half ago. She could almost hear crickets playing “Ode to Loser” in stereo. Poor Leslie sat flipping through a magazine in the small kitchen in back. The knots in Jovy’s stomach tightened with each tick of the clock on the wall. Any hopes of proving her business expertise to her grandfather dwindled with her lack of customers.

What should she have done differently?

She’d taken out ads. Created a Facebook page and tagged as many locals as she could find, only seeming to draw a response from two women whose kids were off at college. Blanche and Cece.

Even they hadn’t shown.

With a sad, pitiful sigh, she leaned against the counter and stared at her newly polished toenails, gleaming a pretty periwinkle that matched the walls. If this kept up, she wasn’t going to have enough money to pay for next week’s rent. And her organic food would spoil.

No. She straightened. That wouldn’t happen. She’d send the food to Vince to use at At-Ease before she allowed that to happen.

Thoughts of the ranch brought her mind immediately to Stone.

God, she hoped he was having a better afternoon than her. His company was on the verge of something great. She could feel it. And with so many deserving people set to benefit, she wanted to help them succeed. Craved it. Hopefully, Stone took her payment advice. He needed to get a little tougher, more rigid when it came to payment terms. Her suggestions were quite normal. Foxtrot had every right to implement a half-and-half schedule. All Stone had to do was try it. Jovy knew in her heart it would work.

The tinkling sound of the newly placed bell on the shop door brought her mind back to her own business. Or lack thereof.

Not anymore.

Stone strode in with Skeeter and several of the men from his ranch.

“Hello, Jovy.” His smile tripped her heart while his presence warmed her soul. “We’d like to try your special of the day.”

She walked around the counter, a little in shock over the unexpected visit. “But you don’t even know what it is.”

“That’s okay,” Skeeter answered. “We’d all like to try it. Besides, Stone’s buying.”

The men nodded as they filled three of the five tables.

Her heart rocked. He was doing it again. Rescuing her. The man always seemed to rescue her. She grabbed his arm and tugged him out of earshot. “Look, I appreciate what you’re doing.” God, it was sweet. So sweet. “But I don’t want you wasting your money on—”

“Hey.” He cut her off, covering her hand with his. “It’s my money, and I can do what I want with it.”

She studied him a moment. As much as Jovy wanted to succeed, she was not going to do it at the expense of At-Ease and its occupants. That wasn’t something she could live with. Her dad and grandfather had instilled the importance of being able to look at your reflection in the mirror and measure success by the amount of integrity in your eyes. She opened her mouth to tell Stone, but he held up a finger and smiled.

“Besides, it’s lunchtime.” He motioned with his head toward the men. “I had to feed them anyway.”

Her lips twitched. “Skeeter, too?”

His smile widened. “Yes. He fixed our tractor and wouldn’t take any money for it.”

“Hey, Jovy, could I get some of your unsweetened raspberry iced tea?” Skeeter asked, glancing at a menu she’d placed on every table.

A few of Stone’s men asked for some, too.

“Sure.”

“And some coffee, too, please,” Stone added, sitting down across from Skeeter.

She hesitated a second. “Okay, but just so you know, you’ll have to drink it black. “There’s no milk or cream on the menu.”

To her surprise, no one grumbled. So she served the drinks before filling six bowls of gluten-free, vegan chili Leslie had warming on the stove in back. Intuition told her this was the deciding point for the men. Stone, no doubt, rounded everyone up and made them come—something he was good at. Heat immediately flushed through her body. Nope. She refused to let her mind go there.

Just set the bowls on the table and step away.

She did, and everyone stared from their vegan chili to Stone, uncertainly and fear clouding their gazes. If she weren’t so stressed, she’d probably find their expressions comical. But nearly two hours with no customers on opening day had rattled her nerves.

“I know it looks a little strange,” she said, gripping the pen in the pocket of her blue-and-white checkered apron. “Once you get over the fact there’s no chunks of steak, I promise it tastes good.”

And it did. She’d tasted it herself a half hour ago. The rest of the ingredients were fairly traditional, and flavorful.

Stone eyed his spoon a little nervously, but opened his mouth and shoved it in. Everyone—including her—waited with bated breath for his reaction.

He chewed a few times, then swallowed. “You’re right. That’s not as bad as I thought. And it’s got a wicked kick.”

Bless him. She could tell he’d much rather have actual meat in his chili, but he kept his expression neutral as he’d answered as truthfully as possible.

“That would be the jalapeños.” She winked.

Skeeter shoved a spoonful in his mouth next, and she was warmed by the surprise that crossed his weathered face. “You ain’t lying. This is actually good.”

One by one, the men sniffed their bowls before taking a tentative bite, and soon they were eating with gusto. A few even asked for seconds. Thank God. Even though she worked hard to research and test dishes, Jovy was relieved her special pleased more than just her palate.

If she’d had more time to study spices and test what complemented what, she’d have a killer menu.

The bell above the door jangled and a young couple entered, yuppie clothing giving away the fact that they weren’t locals, which meant her ad in the regional papers must’ve drawn them in. Sweet. After chatting with them a few minutes, she left to grab their drinks and glanced over at the other tables. The men were just about done.

She took the yuppies their drinks, then headed to Stone with a carafe of coffee. “You want a refill?”

“No. Thanks, Jovy,” he said, rising to his feet. “We need to get back to work.”

She exchanged good-byes with the men and Skeeter, then headed to the counter, acutely aware of Stone following her to the register. Bugger had his back to the others, so when she faced him across the counter, his gaze was heated and hungry. Her pulse kicked up, along with her temperature.

She rang up his bill with shaky fingers. “W-was everything okay?” Her voice came out breathy and needy. Because she was, big-time.

“Delicious.” He glanced down her body, then back up. “I’m ready for seconds.”

At the hunger in his tone, heat funneled between her legs while her nipples hardened with merciless speed. She was so easy when it came to him. Why? She didn’t know. Didn’t care. She liked it. A lot. Too much.

Holding his gaze, she deliberately stroked his palm while handing him change. “Not till I get to eat first.”

Stone’s indrawn breath did wonders to Jovy’s ego. To know she could affect such a virile man empowered her, made her brazen. If two more tables hadn’t filled up, she would’ve stood there under his smoldering gaze and happily flirted while she turned to a puddle behind the register.

She reached across the counter to grab his right hand. “Thanks, Stone. I appreciate what you did.”

His gaze lingered on her lips for a beat before he blinked away all traces of heat and a serious expression crossed his face. “No, thank you. I took your advice. The McGregors paid me half up front.”

Joy unlike any she’d ever experienced flooded her body. It was as if she’d won a victory for her own business. “That’s great news! You just made my day.”

The devilish gleam entering his eyes told her he’d like to make her night, too. She sucked in a breath and opened her mouth to invite him to drop by after she closed, but he spoke first.

“A bunch of us are going to the Beer and Steer tonight to celebrate.” He trailed his finger over her palm. “Join me when you close? We can celebrate your first day, too.”

The fact that he thought to invite her had Jovy smiling on the outside. He wanted her to share in Foxtrot’s victory. Her heart cracked open a little. The fact that he said join me instead of join us had her smiling on the inside. A blatant show that he craved her company. The feeling was mutual, and the crack widened. But the biggest thing—the best thing—was the fact that he included her first day in the celebration. That was so sweet. Beyond sweet. Her chest hurt. In a good way as the crack split wide open and warmth spread through her body.

“I’d like that,” she replied, her voice sounding as soft and gooey as she felt.

The urge to climb over the counter and haul him close trembled through her, but since they weren’t alone, she refrained. Which was probably good. The last thing she needed was to make tomorrow’s headline with: “Owner Mauls Customer During Grand Opening.” Or “Customer Becomes Daily Special.” Could be good for business, but she wasn’t willing to find out. “It probably won’t be until around eight. Is that okay?”

His smile took her breath. “Perfect. I’ll see you at eight.” After a squeeze to her hand, Stone released her, nodded to the two pretty middle-aged ladies who sat down at the counter, then strode from the café.

“I swear that cowboy strolled off the pages of a romance novel.” The auburn-haired lady wearing a Reading Is Sexy T-shirt stared at Stone through the window. “Mmm…mmm….I’ll never grow tired of watching that man exit a room.”

“Amen.” The blonde nodded, pushing long wavy hair over her shoulder as she leaned around her friend to get a better view. “Jeans were made for a lean body like his. Same goes for his brother and their Ranger buddies.” She sighed and turned back around in her seat. “If only I were ten years younger and ten pounds lighter…”

“Ah, hush.” The redhead straightened in her seat. “There’s nothing wrong with being a few years older than a man. You’re gorgeous. You can have men eating out of the palm of your hand if you wanted. Just remember, there’s something to say for experience.”

“Says you because you have a husband who loves you and your mature body. No macho, thirtysomething guy wants a forty-one-year-old mother of two whose boobs are turning into the eighth dwarf—Droopy.”

Jovy chuckled. “Hello, ladies. Can I start you off with something to drink?”

“Hi, Jovy,” the redhead greeted with a friendly grin. “I’m Cecelia, but everyone calls me Cece. We met online.”

Facebook.

“Yes, Cece, hi! So nice to meet you in person.” Jovy shook the hand of the woman she’d spoken to several times on the V-Spot page. “I thought you looked familiar.”

The pretty blonde held out her hand. “And I’m Blanche, short for Blanche.”

Jovy laughed. “Nice to meet you, too, Blanche. I’m so glad you both came out for my grand opening.”

“Wouldn’t miss it!” Cece waved a hand. “’Bout time this town got some healthy choices.”

Blanche nodded. “I’ll say. We’re looking forward to living dangerously…healthy.”

“And spending time here, because, well, we’re just plain bored. Aren’t we, Blanche?” Cece set a hand on her friend’s back.

“Yes.” Blanche snorted. “Very bored. With our kids in college, her husband working from dawn to dusk, and my ex in Dallas doing Debbie—we have nothing but time.”

A fact the ladies proved by sticking around for over two hours. Jovy laughed so much her face hurt. Smart and funny, the women chatted about life in Joyful, ordered several dishes, including her chocolate raspberry blitz dessert. They raved about the separation of flavors, and after discussing quinoa and tofu and promising to bring some of their tried-and-true recipes the next day, the women went home.

Jovy had a real good feeling about those two.

The rest of the afternoon flew by. Customers trickled in; some she discovered came because of her ads, a few from sheer curiosity, but most from word of mouth.

Thanks to Stone.

The men he brought in must’ve spread the word. She knew in her gut he’d been the catalyst to her profitable day. She was so damn grateful. Her dad and grandfather aside, she’d never met a more selfless man. He didn’t need to come in and spend his hard-earned money in her café. She wasn’t his issue. Wasn’t his problem, or responsibility, and yet, he went above and beyond to help her out. And she knew he hadn’t done it in hopes she’d repay him with sex. That wasn’t the way his mind worked. The guy was practically Captain American Ranger. He did it simply to help.

Would he turn sex down?

Her thoughts immediately went to their horse ride and how he couldn’t seem to keep his hands off her. No, he wouldn’t turn sex down. A few days ago, she would’ve said yes. Hell, a few days ago, she never would’ve allowed him to take the liberties with her body she’d allowed that morning. But each day, she’d discovered things about him, things she liked. Loyalty. Integrity. Compassion. He reminded her of her dad and grandfather. It did her heart good to know there were men like him in the world. Men who put other’s needs before their own.

Their morning ride proved it. The man had been almost as ready to burst as Jovy, but he took care of her and went without. She still felt bad. After what he’d done to her on that horse, she owed him a mind-boggling orgasm. Tonight.