Page 20 of The Little Things

Connor scoffed. “Not so bad? You kiddin’ me? You got great beer, great music, and more gorgeous ladies than any one town has the right to have.” He looked at the group of women a few tables down from us and winked, sending them into a fit of giggles and whispers. Connor Bennett had a reputation throughout the rodeo circuit as a ladies’ man. He’d been dubbed the bull-riding playboy years ago, and there couldn’t have been a more fitting moniker. I wasn’t sure if the reputation came honestly or if he was doing his best to live up to it, but I couldn’t recall a single time we’d gone out together that he didn’t leave with a woman on his arm. Christ, some nights he had two.

He let out a low whistle, lifting his beer in salute in the women’s direction. “Damn, would you look at them?” He jabbed his elbow into my arm. “Which one’s caught your eye, wingman?”

I shook my head and took another pull of my beer. “None of them. You’re on your own tonight, buddy.”

Connor bugged his eyes out dramatically and sputtered. “What the hell are you talking about? We’re always each other’s wingman. Don’t wimp out on me now.”

“Not wimping out,” I said with a shrug, a long day of ranching finally catching up with me. I was exhausted, it was getting late, and I had to get up early to do it all over again. “I’m just not in the mood.”

His chin jerked back in surprise. “You settle down while I wasn’t lookin’ or something?”

I snorted into my beer, shoving the image of Rae that popped up away as fast as I could. “No, I haven’t settled down. I’m just not feelin’ it. Nothing wrong with that.”

I tried my hardest not to squirm as he studied me like I was a specimen beneath a microscope. “You’re so full of shit.” He barked out a laugh. “Who is she?”

Ah fuck.

“Who’s who?”

And double fuck.

“Well, if it isn’t my girl, Len.” Connor grabbed hold of my sister and pulled her into a tight hug that eventually morphed into a headlock. She batted at him until he released her, then slugged him in the shoulder once she was free.

“Thought I saw my brother sitting over here with an asshole.” She shot Connor a cheeky smile. Despite my earlier warning, I knew I didn’t have anything to worry about when it came to my friend and my sister. Their relationship was a lot like my relationship with her. They gave each other shit, but there wasn’t a single spark to be found. She knew his reputation, and while she held affection for him, she thought his man-whore ways were beyond pathetic.

“It’s good to see you too, sunshine. I’ve missed you. You decide to leave all this behind and run away with me yet?”

Lennix laughed, a deep, rolling belly laugh. “Man, you’re a looker, Con, but I wouldn’t let you near me like that if you bathed in an entire tub of hand sanitizer first.”

I chuckled as he smacked a hand to his chest. “You wound me. I thought we were destined to be soulmates.”

Lennix rolled her eyes before turning back to me, resting one hand on the table and the other on her hip. “What were you guys talking about before I walked up?”

“Nothin’,” I said at the same time Connor answered, “The chick your big bro is sprung on.”

Lennix widened her eyes, gaping at me. “You’re into someone? Who? How did I not know?”

I let out a low growl, scowling at Connor and silently promising payback. Maybe I’d release Gretel in the cabin he was bunking in—a cabin that happened to be nowhere near Rae’s. I could let her take a chunk out of his ass for a change. “Because there’s nothing to know. There’s no woman.”

Connor coughed bullshit into his fist. That did it. I was going to commit murder. “There’s a whole table of lovely ladies right over there, and your brother hasn’t so much as glanced in their direction. That can only mean one thing.” He waggled his brows for dramatic effect. “He’s got his eye on someone else.”

Lennix watched me closely for a second before sucking in a gasp. “Oh my God. It’s Rae, isn’t it? It is! It’s Rae!” She let out a squeal and did a little happy dance as I felt the tips of my ears start to burn red.

“Who’s Rae?”

“Rae’s no one,” I ground out.

“She’s new on the ranch,” my sister continued, not giving a damn about my level of discomfort. “And she’s totally beautiful.”

They both turned to face me, matching asshole grins on their asshole faces. “Well, well, well. Isn’t this an interesting turn of events?”

I was officially done. Standing from my stool, I removed my wallet from my back pocket and pulled out a few bills without counting and tossed them on the table. “I’m out,” I stated gruffly, sending murderous vibes at a laughing Lennix, not that she cared. She’d stopped being scared of me around the age of five when she turned into a little demon who started fighting dirty. She’d rip the hair from my arms or legs, scratch, bite, or pull my hair. I pointed my finger at Connor’s face. “And for being a dick, you can walk back to the ranch.”

He grinned unrepentantly. “I don’t think that’ll be necessary,” he said as he faced the table of women once more, shooting them a wink. “I don’t think I’ll be returning to the ranch tonight either.”

I shook my head as Lennix curled her lip in disgust. “Suit yourself. See you guys tomorrow.”

“Goodnight, big brother,” Lennix called as I started out of the bar. “Tell Rae hi from me.”

---