COWBOY ROMANCE: Justin (Western Contemporary Alpha Male Bride Romance) (The Steele Brothers Book 1) (6 page)

10.

I stopped Bradley Currell on his way into work the next morning. I’d already made my morning stop for coffee and a muffin, and I was leaning against my car, enjoying both, when he pulled in. I felt amazing in a white sundress and a pair of cowboy boots I’d had hidden in the back of my closet.

I was also floating on the interaction I’d had with Justin that morning. He and Avery had been in the coffee shop again when I’d come in. I’d pushed my sunglasses onto the top of my head and looked over to see Justin staring at me with his mouth open, coffee mug paused halfway there. I’d grinned and kept moving to the counter.

My confidence was growing the longer I acted like myself. It was the reason I knew I had to confront Bradley. I had to show him that I thought he was a real asshole so I could forget the whole thing and move on.

Bradley parked his car a few spots down and got out of his car, adjusting his tie. When he looked up and spotted me, red spots appeared on his cheeks. “Um, hi?”

I walked over to him casually. “Hi, Bradley. How are you?”

He looked suspicious, and he had every right to be. “Hi, Sara. Is this about me not calling you? Because I was going to.”

I laughed. “Bradley, shut up. You weren’t going to call me back because my mom didn’t give you any money for that, did she?”

He looked like I’d punched him. He reeled back and shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Sara. Is everything okay with you? You seem a little…on edge.”

“I am on edge, Brad. I paid forty dollars for a water and a salad on our date. That’s after my mom had already paid you for it. How much did she give you, anyway?”

The red dots on his cheeks had grown to cover his entire face. “No-no. She didn’t pay me.”

I stepped closer. “I want it back. I want the money I gave you and I want the money she gave you. You’re not going to profit monetarily from taking me out on one of the worst dates ever. I had to listen to you babble on for what felt like hours about your stupid posters. I deserve the money way more than you.  Pay up, Brad.”

Bradley’s face contorted into rage and he shook his head. “I’m not paying you shit. If your mother is so convinced that you’re disgusting and can’t get a date, that’s your issue. She paid me fair and square. I’ll give you your forty back, but only so you’ll get the hell out of here.”

I wasn’t leaving without the whole amount. There was no way he was going to keep the money. He didn’t deserve to be paid anything for going on a date with me. I wasn’t a monster. “Give me the full amount or I’m going to walk inside your office and tell everyone about how you get paid for dates. It sounds a little like some sort of sex work, doesn’t it?”

His eyes widened and he grabbed my arm. “You wouldn’t do that.”

“Try me. Now, get your hand off me and hand over the money.
Now
, you pig.”

He turned around and slammed his briefcase down on top of his car. He opened it and pulled out a checkbook. “You were a lot nicer on our date.”

I crossed my arms over my chest and smiled. “Yeah, well, you were still a pig. Hurry up. I’ve got one more stop to make before I get to work. And don’t forget my forty dollars.”

I looked at the check when he handed it to me and shook my head. “Three hundred and forty dollars. You should really check your morals, Bradley. Have a good day.”

I tucked the check into my bra and got back in my car with my coffee and muffin. I’d lost my appetite after seeing the amount. My mother was a horrible person. Three hundred dollars to date me? Like I was that awful.

I rolled my neck and turned my car toward my next location. It felt good to be nasty when I needed to be. Not smiling through everyone else’s bullshit was nice.

My next stop was at Walter Williams’s office. He worked in a local insurance office, I’d found out. According to his secretary, he’d just gotten the job as lead agent. He’d transferred in from a branch out of town for it. I’d scheduled an appointment for the start of the business day but told his secretary I wanted to surprise him, so she didn’t tell him it was me.

The office was pretty big. I passed by no less than twenty other people on the way to Walter’s office. His secretary pushed open the door and smiled at her boss.

“Mr. Williams, your eight o’clock is here for you.”

To say Walter looked shocked to see me would be an understatement. He stood up so fast that his chair went flying backward into a bookshelf.

I smiled as a framed photo of Walter toppled to the ground. “Thanks, Sherry. The surprise was worth it.”

Sherry closed the door on her way out, leaving me to watch as Walter tried to regain his calm exterior.

“I don’t have a lot of time to do this. I’ve got to get to work and I also just really don’t like looking at your face. So, here it is. Give me the money my mom paid you or I’m going to scream so loud that everyone in this office building comes running. Then I’m going to tell them exactly what you did the other night, how you took money to go on a date and then verbally abused me before getting into a fist fight in a bar. Do you think your new boss will want to keep you after I promise to start a trash campaign against you and everything you touch, including this office? You remember my mom, right? Lots of clout for some reason. People listen when I talk, Walter.”

It was mostly bullshit. I’d do what I had to do to put him in his place, but mostly I’d just threaten and hope it worked.

Walter sat down in his chair roughly, his face pale. “You wouldn’t.”

I smiled sweetly. “I would. You can wait a little longer and see for yourself, if you want.”

He ripped open his desk drawer and yanked out his wallet. “Why are you being like this?”

“You mean, why am I demanding that you
not
gain from our date? Because you were an asshole to me. You’re not a good person, Walter. I hope you don’t treat all women like you treated me. I’d feel really terrible for whoever gets stuck with you for the long haul.”

He thrust three crisp hundred dollar bills at me. “There. You’ve got what you came from. Now leave. I don’t need this.”

I tucked the money away and smiled again. “Have a good day, Walter.”

I walked out of his office with a definite pep in my step. I’d made six hundred dollars and hadn’t even gone into work yet. It was a good day.

That night I waited until my parents went out to dinner before shoving all of my clothes and small things into my car. I raced over to my new house and unloaded it before going back and getting more.

By the time I was done for the night I was exhausted, but everything but the big stuff was out of my apartment. I slept on a pallet on the floor that night, and I’d never slept better.

11.

I spent the rest of the week slowly moving the rest of my stuff out of my apartment. I snuck around at all hours, lugging furniture around until I was covered in bruises and so sore I could barely stand up straight. The fact that my new house was all arranged and unpacked made me feel like it was worth it, though.

I knew what I still had to do, however. I had to confront my mom about what she’d done. That was my biggest fear, and I’d put it off until last. It was just too bad I couldn’t avoid it forever.

I’d gotten used to running into Avery and Justin every morning while getting my coffee. I’d seen a sign posted the day before, outside of the post office, so I was excited to run into them that Friday morning and ask about it.

Sure enough, they were sitting at their normal table, only this time Mason was with them. At first I had a moment of panic, thinking that Justin had decided to pull Mason from school. Then I saw his backpack beside him and breathed out a sigh of relief.

He’d been doing so much better in school. He still had a few meltdowns, but Mrs. Hill had been able to calm him down a few times. His anxiety was worlds better, though. It just came up sometimes if the classroom was extra loud or busy. We had our afternoon walks every day and he’d started talking so much more, telling me all about what he was learning.

Mason spotted me and ran over to hug me. His little arms wrapped around my jean-clad legs and squeezed. “Miss Sara! Daddy brought me to get a donut!”

I bent down and gave him a proper hug. “That’s so cool! I bet Mrs. Hill would like a donut, too. Why don’t you pick one out and I’ll get it so you can take it to her?”

He nodded excitedly and hugged me again. I looked over his head at Justin and blushed when I saw how closely he was watching me. His eyes were heated, like they’d been every morning when I came in, but there was something extra in his gaze that morning.

I sucked in a breath and blew it out before letting go of Mason and following him to the counter. Justin joined me and handed over his card when it was time for me to pay.

“You don’t have to do that.”

He stared down at me, his eyes on my mouth. “Has it been three weeks, yet? You’re wearing red lipstick and it’s torture.”

I tried to laugh, but it just came out as an awkward sound. My body couldn’t stop responding to him. I’d been dreaming of him every single night, and the dreams kept getting more and more explicit. Dream Justin and dream me had gone much further than I’d ever gone in real life, and it was messing with my head.

“Not yet.”

He placed a gentle hand on my back and frowned. “Mason talks about you all the time. It’s the only time I’ve ever wanted to tape his mouth closed. I can’t stop thinking of you as it is. I don’t need the help.”

I ducked my head, hoping he wouldn’t see the grin on my face. “Just two more weeks.”

He tucked his finger under my chin and lifted my face to his. “There’s nothing ‘just’ about it. This has been the longest week of my life. We scheduled the rodeo finally.”

“I was going to ask about it. I saw the sign for it down at the post office.”

Justin leaned down and brushed his lips against my ear. “I’ll need you there, cheering for me. I know it’s a couple of days before the end of your two-week period, but do you think you could come for me?”

I nodded. I could definitely do that.

“It’s tradition that the winner’s date gives him a kiss after the ride.”

I leaned back so I could see his face. “Really?”

He grinned, showing me both of his dimples. “No. But I think we should start it.”

A throat cleared behind us. “Think I can get a coffee now?”

I grabbed my coffee and muffin before stepping out of the way. Justin grabbed the donut and I nodded to Mason. “He’s going to give it to Mrs. Hill.”

“Call me if those two weeks start wearing on you.”

I grinned up at Justin and shrugged my shoulders. “You never know. Have a good day, cowboy.”

I said goodbye to Mason and Avery and then sauntered out of the shop, feeling great.

It was short lived, though, because I stepped right in front of my mother. She was red and looked like she was on a mission. When her eyes landed on me and flashed, I knew that
I
was her mission.

“Sara Jane Barrows. You need to come home right this instant and talk with me and your father about your behavior.”

I hadn’t planned on the confrontation happening so soon. I groaned and then took a long drink of my coffee. “I have to go to work.”

Her eyes trailed down my body and then landed on my hair. “Oh, my god! Oh, my god! Sara! What did you do?”

A crowd was gathering because of her hysterics, so I calmly grabbed her hand and pulled her with me toward my car. “I got a haircut, Mom. It’s not a big deal. Why don’t I come for dinner tonight?”

She shook her head. “What are you doing? Walter called me and yelled at me. He said I set him up with a psycho. You went to his office and demanded the money back? What’s wrong with you?”

I looked around and frowned. There were a couple of people still hanging around, and I didn’t exactly want them to hear what I had to say, but she wasn’t giving me much of an option.

“What’s wrong with me is
you
, Mom. You’ve really been giving men money to date me and tell me that I need to lose weight?”

She glanced around and leaned closer to me. “So what? You needed to get out and date. I thought that eventually one of them would see past the extra pounds and attitude and want to be with you. All of my friends’ daughters are married. I’m the only one who hasn’t planned a wedding.”

“Plan your own damn wedding! I don’t want to get married right now, especially not to slimy assholes who take money for dates!”

She whipped her head back like I’d slapped her. “How dare you talk to me like that! What happened to your manners?”

“I got sick of them, Mom. It seemed like I was the only one using any. Why bother? I’m sick of you, too. You comment on my weight like there’s nothing else to me. Maybe
you
wanted to just get married and have a kid. Maybe that was
your
whole goal in life, but it’s not mine. I like my job and I like my new house and—”

“Your new house?!” She was officially screaming at me.

“Yes, Mom. I moved out. I can’t live so close to you anymore.”

If my mom’s head was ever close to exploding, it was in that moment. “Sara Jane! You can’t just do all of this without telling us!”

I threw my hands up. “I’m twenty-five years old! I can do anything I damn well please. I just haven’t because I was so desperate to make you happy. Finding out you’re paying men to date me and telling them I’m trying to lose weight so they starve me during dinner just showed me that it’s impossible. I’m done, Mom. At the end of the day, this is who I am. I’m never going to be a size zero pageant queen. Deal with it.”

She glanced behind me and her face got even brighter. “You! This is all your fault!”

I looked behind me and saw Justin standing there with his arms crossed over his impressive chest. “I’m afraid it’s not. This is
your
fault.”

I held up my hands and stepped in front of Justin so my mom would focus on me. “You can yell at me. Don’t yell at Justin. He had nothing to do with this. Finding out you think I’m so deplorable that you pay men to date me is what pushed me over the edge. Mom… just go to hell. I need some time away from you.”

She shook her head and grabbed my arms. “Honey, no. No, this isn’t you. I know a nice guy that works with your father. I won’t offer him any money. I’ll just show him a picture of how pretty your face is. Don’t go off with this cowboy trash.”

I heard a little cry and looked back to see that Avery had come out with Mason to catch the end of my mom’s rant. I watched as Mason stared at my mom and started crying softly.

“Mom, get out of here.
Now.
You’ve done enough.” I leaned in so no one else would hear what I was about to say. “The only trash I see here is the woman making a little boy cry. Go home and get yourself together. Realize you don’t pull any of my strings anymore. Explain to Dad why I moved out. Tell him it’s your fault. When you find it in yourself to apologize to me, then maybe I’ll invite you over for lunch.”

She dug her nails into my arms before jerking her hands off me. “I’m so disappointed in you. I thought you were going to be someone.”

I watched as she stormed off and rubbed my arms where her nails had dug into me. I turned to face Justin and pulled my mouth to one side to make an awkward face. “I’m so sorry. You didn’t need to hear any of that.”

He looked at my arms and then tugged me against his chest for a hug. “Your mother is the devil.”

I buried my face in his chest. His shirt smelled like him, and I breathed deeply to get more of it. “She is. But, hey, I finally stood up to her.”

He kissed the side of my head and then I heard a little giggle. I looked over and saw that Mason’s tears had dried up. He was watching his dad kiss my head.

He giggled again and pointed up at us. “Daddy’s kissing Miss Sara!”

I extracted myself from Justin and moved away from him. “I’ll see you at school, Mason. And I’ll see the rest of you in a couple of weeks.”

Justin followed me around to the driver’s side of my car with his eyebrows raised. “Why do I get the feeling I’m not going to like what you mean by that? You’re not going to come in to get coffee in the mornings?”

I shook my head. “It’s hard to remember why I need space to get my life together when I see you.”

A quick smile lit his face before he got it in check and frowned instead. “This isn’t what I had in mind, at all.”

I worked my fingers over my keys and watched as the sun glittered off the silver of them. “If you find someone else to take to the rodeo, I wouldn’t blame you. My mother just called you—”

Justin grabbed me and yanked me into him. “Shut up.”

When he kissed me, I couldn’t help the way I sighed and leaned into him. He just brushed his lips over mine and then held me. “I’ll see you at the rodeo.”

I got in my car and drove away while fighting the urge to turn around and go back. I didn’t want time away from him. I wanted to give in to the feelings that erupted in me when I was close to him. What I wanted and needed battled, but I knew I had to take time for myself.