Hope shut down, her face going blank. “What you do about Serena is none of my business. Could you get rid of that thing, please?”
She opened the door of the truck and got inside without another word.
“Fuck.” James tossed the flower aside.
“Don’t beat yourself up. I don’t think she’s upset about Serena. She freaked out when she saw that flower. Why would she be afraid of a flower?” Noah was certain of it. Her skin had turned pale, and he’d worried for a moment that she was going to pass out again. Hope was deathly afraid of something or someone, and that flower was a clue.
“Are you sure?” James tossed the flower into the garbage bin against the side of the building. “I haven’t always treated her right. I don’t have the best reputation.”
Noah shook his head. “I’m sure.”
“Why would a little flower put that look on her face?” James asked.
Noah had no idea. But he was going to find out.
Christian Grady watched from across the way. He could see Hope’s face plainly, though she could not see him from behind the tinted windows of the beauty parlor. His new friend, Lucy, had been extremely talkative on their little date the night before. He’d kept his hands to himself and focused on her. He was a perfect gentleman. He knew exactly how to deal with someone like Lucy. She was looking for some combination of boyfriend and father figure.
Rather like his Hope.
“I’ll have a place for you in just a minute, sir.” The woman who had introduced herself as Polly winked at him. She was pure small town with her helmet of bleached-blonde hair and a face that bore far too much makeup. Still, all women could prove useful, and small-town women lived to gossip.
He thanked Polly but kept his eyes firmly on Hope. Her eyes widened as she walked toward the truck and caught sight of the flower. He knew that look. He’d seen it before on many faces.
Fear.
He’d hoped there would be a bit of nostalgia in her eyes when she saw his gift, but he was willing to settle for fear. He’d covered their marital bed with gardenias the first night of their honeymoon. The very smell of gardenias made him think of Hope.
“I’m ready for you. Just come this way. Oh my god, is that Noah Bennett?” Polly asked.
“Who is he?” It was good to have a name. Lucy had mentioned someone named James Glen, who apparently spent an enormous amount of time with cattle, but she hadn’t mentioned a second man. He wondered briefly which one had walked out with his arm around Hope. Christian meant to cut that arm off.
Polly took off on a wave of gossip. “Noah Bennett is the prodigal son. He left Bliss over five years ago. Took off for the big city. I never thought I would see him in these parts again. Hell, I’m sure surprised he had the guts to go in there and talk to Long-Haired Roger. He blames Noah for the death of his dog, and let me tell you, Long-Haired Roger takes that very seriously. Now not regular Roger. He has a dog or two, but he mostly trains them to protect him when the feds come after him. He thinks he’s going to secede from the US and set up his own little kingdom, so he’s probably right about the feds coming in one day. Although I don’t think they should take him too serious now. The man can’t boil water. I seriously doubt he can run his own government, even if it’s only him and his wife and possibly a Sasquatch. He claims he sees one all the time and that he’s real friendly-like.”
Christian took a deep breath. She was going to prove tiresome, but necessary. She was obviously a talker, and he could use some information before he finally made his intentions very plain to Hope. He had to know what he was getting into and just how much he could plan on getting away with.
The truck that Hope was in started to pull away.
Years he’d waited, and his patience was starting to wear thin. She thought she could bring other men into their little game? “Perhaps he’s come back for that woman.”
“Hope?” Polly laughed. “Oh, that girl never dates. She’s practically a nun. I’m surprised she’s staying out at the G. James is a bit of a ladies’ man. Maybe he’s thinking about settling down now that his brother is back. He’s not getting any younger and that ranch needs a mistress. They could do worse than Hope. She’s a sweet little thing. I wish she’d let me do something about that hair. I would love to put some highlights in it.”
Christian remembered the way her hair would hang in waves down her back. He liked the fact that she was living like a nun. She’d been so pure and innocent. It was the thing he’d loved most about her. She’d been a virgin when she’d come to him. She’d been his sweet child bride and the best cover of his life. No one would suspect the quiet preacher with the soft, submissive wife was doing anything criminal. He needed that again. Everything had gone right when Hope had been at his side.
As for her nearly killing him, what marriage didn’t have a few problems? He took a deep breath and smiled at Polly. “Lead on, ma’am. I’m just happy to find such a nice salon in a small town.”
“And I find it nice to have such a gentleman for a customer. What is it you do?”
Christian sat down. “I’m a preacher, ma’am.”
And he wasn’t going to let any man come between him and his god-given wife.
Chapter Eight
Hope stared at the menu, but her mind was somewhere else. Back in Georgia. She could smell gardenias, and it was starting to upset her stomach.
How could that one flower ruin her whole day? She’d felt better than she had in weeks. She’d felt so close to James after seeing how talking about his dads had made him feel. When he’d put his arms around her, she’d seriously thought about whether something could work between them.
And Noah. Noah with his sad eyes and gorgeous face just called to her. If he’d handled Roger differently, she might have been able to keep her distance, but he’d been gentle and kind to the man. And he’d been kind to her.
So why did Christian have to invade her brain and ruin everything?
When she smelled gardenias, she could feel his soft hands on her. She could hear him telling her how sweet and pure she was. She could hear him apologize for what he had to do, but it was a husband’s duty, after all.
Christian had been very gentle when he’d had sex with her—the few times he’d done it. She’d been a virgin and completely ignorant, but she’d known something was wrong. She’d just thought her love could conquer all.
She’d been an idiot.
“Do you know what you want, hon?” Stella asked, her eyes looking down from under a very gaudy pair of rhinestone colored glasses. Stella must have seen some question in her eyes. “Sebastian made me get glasses. That old man is going to drive me crazy. He’s on me like honey on a bear, I tell you.”
“He’s making up for lost time, Miss Stella,” James said, handing her his menu. “You know that man loves you. And the glasses make you look very intellectual.”
Stella beamed. “I think they do, too. Maybe the men of this town will see me as more than just a beauty queen now. Hope?”
If she didn’t eat, her two self-appointed keepers were going to throw a hissy fit. “I’ll have the soup and salad. Thank you.”
“I would like a burger, medium with all the fixings, please. And some fries. Definitely fries.” Noah sighed as though he could already taste the burger.
Stella frowned his way. “I’d like to not have to drive fifty miles to get my cat vaccinated. I suppose we can’t all get what we want now, can we?”
James laughed, but Noah seemed to understand this was serious.
“I will make house calls, Miss Stella,” Noah offered, tripping over the words.