I stopped adjusting food platters and looked up at him warily.
He eyed me with what he must’ve thought was some understanding of the dilemma. “You don’t have to be shy. We’re all family and friends here, and we’re always happy to have a guest join us.”
I smiled at him. “Thank you. I’m glad to be here.”
Hank was a sweet man, but I still didn’t feel the need to confess the real reasons I was over there with him rather than with the others. Sure, one of those reasons was Cowboy. But the other had to do with something entirely different.
The fire.
Everyone hung out near the burn pit to ward off the swarming mosquitos. It had a stone edge and three thick logs sat in the center, covered with orange flames. Occasionally, the fire spit out embers with a crackle and a pop, but the group barely seemed to notice.
They looked content sitting in the flickering heat while having a quiet fireside chat. But I couldn’t bear the thought of being that close. Especially after Cowboy accused me of starting the pallet fire at the chili cook-off. I preferred to stay right where I was, watching them all from a distance.
Hank stood and headed over to the nearby barrel smoker. Ox and Judd joined him, holding out large steel pans, while Hank filled one with barbecue ribs and the other with a huge chunk of brisket.
Jake lounged in the shade of a tree, holding his sleeping daughter on his chest, while patting her back lightly with his large hands. They looked so comfortable and peaceful.
Actually, everyone did.
Cowboy was the only one making any real noise. He sat on a plastic chair bouncing Austin on his knee in time to the Bonanza theme song, providing all the sounds with his mouth. I couldn’t help but grin as he used the baby’s tiny hand to crack an invisible whip.
When Bobbie Jo took Austin from him—probably to keep him from getting whiplash from the way his head was lolling around—Cowboy stood and walked away from the fire. He passed by Jake and paused long enough to rub the back of his finger lightly against Lily’s cheek. It was sweet, the way he showed so much attention to the babies.
A clinking noise interrupted my thoughts, and I turned to see Emily putting some beer and ice into a cooler. “Hey, Anna. Do me a favor?” She handed me the empty beer box. “Throw this into the burn pit for me, will you?”
My mouth opened, but I froze in place, unable to answer her.
Cowboy stepped in front of me and looked straight into my eyes. He read my expression and gave me a little wink as if to calm my nerves. “I’ve got it,” he said, then took the box from me before moving back toward the burn pit.
Relief washed over me, but it was only a temporary fix, since Emily stepped up beside me a second later and asked, “What was that all about?”
“Well, I…” I closed my eyes, not knowing how to tell her what Cowboy already knew. And it didn’t help that it mortified me.
“Are you okay, Anna?”
“I…um, have this thing…about fire.” I lowered my gaze and cringed. “It scares me.”
“No shit?” Emily said, pausing to contemplate what I told her. “Did Bobbie Jo tell you about last summer when Jake hid me here to keep the mob from finding me?”
I nodded, hoping she wouldn’t be upset with Bobbie Jo for sharing that bit of personal information with me.
“Well, even though Hank taught me to shoot a gun, I still hate the sound of gunfire. It makes me nervous.”
“That’s understandable after what you went through.”
“Well, you must’ve had a bad experience yourself,” Emily said.
I nodded, but didn’t bother to elaborate.
“Don’t worry about it. I know how hard it is to get over something like that. It takes time.”
Bobbie Jo walked over, having left Austin in Ox’s capable hands. “Lord have mercy. Did you see what Cowboy was doing to my child’s head a minute ago?”
“If he does that to Lily, I’m going to sic Jake on him,” Emily said, shaking her head with blatant disapproval. “She can’t even hold her head up on her own yet like Austin can.”
Maybe it was because he’d helped me only moments before, but I felt the need to defend Cowboy, even if I did agree that he was bouncing the baby around a little too much. “I think it’s sweet the way Cowboy is with both of the children.”
“Did I hear my name?” Cowboy hollered from across the yard. I glanced in his direction and he smiled wickedly at me. “Hey there, beautiful. Long time, no see.”
Heat flashed through my entire body, but settled in my cheeks. No one had ever called me that before. Not that it meant much, though, since he called Bobbie Jo the same thing that first night I’d seen him in the library. And probably every other girl he ever crossed paths with.
“God, Cowboy. Do you always have to hit on all of our friends?” Bobbie Jo rolled her eyes. “Ignore him, Anna. He’ll eventually give up.”
“What are you ladies talking about over there?” Cowboy asked.
Emily grinned. “Menstruation.”
A horrified expression crossed his face, then he turned his attention back to the other men, making the three of us laugh.
“Works every time,” Emily said.
“Poor guy’s going to get a complex if you keep doing that to him,” Bobbie Jo told her, still giggling.
“Serves him right,” Emily said, shrugging it off. “We’re never going to have other females to hang out with if he keeps sleeping with all of them and running them off.” She smiled at me. “And I like this one.”
All of them? Blushing, I somehow managed to smile back, though I couldn’t look either of them directly in the eyes. “I, um… Thanks, I like you, too.”
Both girls just stared at me, blinking, until Emily said, “Oh God! Not you, too? Holy hell. Can’t that man keep his dick in his pants for more than two minutes?”
I shook my head, denying the charges. “No, he didn’t… I mean, we didn’t… Oh God.” Embarrassed, I pressed my fist to my lips to stop them from flapping.
Emily huddled closer. “Okay, missy, we want the goods on you and Cowboy.”
“No, we don’t,” Bobbie Jo quickly clarified.
“Okay, she doesn’t. But I do. All the juicy, luscious details about you and the hunky fireman.”
I dropped my hand and shook my head. “There’s nothing to tell, really. He came by my house last Sunday and he sort of…kissed me.” I quickly followed with, “But I haven’t seen him since. Not until today, that is.”
“What? That’s such a jerk move,” Bobbie Jo said. “I should give him a piece of my mind for acting like Jeremy.”
“Oh, no. Please don’t say anything.” My eyes pleaded with her. “I just want to forget the whole thing.”
“Why?”
“Because it was a mistake,” I told her. “One that I won’t be repeating.”
“I’m sorry, Anna. He’s acting like an ass. And I hate to say I told you so, but you can’t say I didn’t warn you. He’s a great guy most of the time, but men like Cowboy and Jeremy are womanizers. Too hot-blooded to commit to a real relationship. It’s that stupid love ’em and leave ’em attitude of theirs.”
“It’s okay,” I said with a shrug. I felt stupid that I even thought for one second Cowboy had been serious about being interested in me. “It’s not like I was expecting anything from him. And to be honest, I’m sure he looks at it the same way I do. We don’t have a thing in common. He’s probably forgotten all about it already,” I said, though Cowboy’s words in the barn still ran through my mind.
Bobbie Jo turned to Emily. “How did you know something happened between them, anyway? You have ESP or something?”
“Beats the shit out of me,” she said with a shrug. “Anna looked guilty so I took a wild guess. After all, it is Cowboy we’re talking about.”