Page 16 of The Cowboy's Unlikely Love

She chuckled. “Try me.”

He blew out an exaggerated sigh. “Okay, so, I was in the Navy – I was a SEAL.”

She didn’t laugh at that. She seemed to tense, and little lines furrowed her brow.

“Okay, so you don’t find that as impressive as I thought you would.”

“No. I… Sorry. It’s just… I suppose I should say thank you for your service.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “You don’t have to say it – especially if you don’t mean it. It’s not a problem. I get that you might see it differently.”

“No! Sorry. It’s not that. It’s just… You took me by surprise, I guess. That was the last thing I expected you to say.” She frowned. “Was it just you?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean … Did your brothers serve with you? Is there a whole bunch of former SEALs around here – friends, people you know?”

Women were usually impressed when he told them about his former military career. Everly seemed perplexed. It wasn’t a reaction that he was used to.

“Yeah. I served with Kolby, and Ty, and our eldest brother was a SEAL, too. Why?”

She shook her head slowly. “I was just curious. I… So, how long have you been back here?”

“A few years, now.” He wanted to get the conversation back on track – although where he thought that track might lead them, he had no clue. “But that’s enough about me. What about you? You live in Napa, you work in a bar, you used to work in a hotel. That’s all I know about you.” He smiled. “At this rate, it’s going to take a long, long time for me to learn everything about you. How long are you here for?”

She hesitated before she answered.

Tanner got a sinking feeling in his stomach. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I’m not going to keep pestering you if you’re not interested. I know I kind of manipulated you into saying that you’ll come out again tomorrow night, but don’t feel like you have to.”

“It’s not that.” She gave him a reassuring smile. “Don’t look so worried. I hesitated to answer because I’m supposed to be here for a week, but the only reason I planned to stay that long was because I was hoping to catch up with my dad. If he’s not around or if… if he’s changed his mind about wanting to see me, then there’s no point in me staying that long. That’s all.” She laughed. “Don’t worry, don’t think that you’re losing your touch or something. I’m not trying to put you off, I just honestly don’t know the answer.”

Tanner grinned. “Well, that’s a relief. And now I have a mission.”

She raised her eyebrows. “You do?”

“Yeah. I’m going to do my best to persuade you to stay for the whole week no matter what happens with your dad.”

She stared at him for a long moment before asking, “Why?”

“You know why,” he told her with his best charming smile. It usually had the effect of making women more open to whatever he suggested.

It didn’t work that way with Everly, though. She threw back her head and laughed.

“Why is that so funny?” he asked. Part of him wanted to laugh with her, part of him felt slightly offended.

“Oh, come on, Tanner! We both know that I’m not like the girls you go for, you don’t need to treat me like one of them. Or is it just so ingrained with you? Do you lay on the charm automatically and not even know that you’re doing it anymore?”

He gave her a rueful smile. “I dunno. Maybe I’m just so used to doing it that it does come automatically. But you’re right, you’re not… you’re not just another girl. This isn’t just another Friday night. You’re different, Everly.” His heart was pounding. He was desperately searching for the right words. He wanted to explain; needed her to understand.

When she laughed again, it was obvious that he wasn’t getting his point across.

“Is that a standard line, too? Tell them that they’re different – that they’respecial?” She rolled her eyes as she added that last part.

“No! Honestly, I promise you. I might be in the habit of talking girls into spending the night with me, but I don’t feed them bullshit to get them there.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to accuse you of anything. I’m sure you don’t need to lay it on too thick. I bet they go willingly without you having to say much of anything.”

He took his hat off and leaned back against the door of the truck. “Yeah. I guess I go for girls who like to play the game. They’re easy enough to spot, they tend to play by the same rules that I do.” He shrugged. “It keeps things simple. Nobody has any expectations other than a fun night – nobody gets hurt.”

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