Page 22 of The Contractor & the Entrepreneur

She shook his hand and regarded him as well. “Josh Francis? The builder?”

He blinked and nodded at her and then he looked to Rhett. Rhett’s jaw was tight, and his lips were set in a thin line as Josh pulled his hand back.

“I’ve spoken with you,” she said. “Emailed, at least. I’m Sloan Jensen.”

“Sloan Jensen?” Josh repeated. He took a step back as if she had a contagious disease.

“TheSloan Jensen?” Sandy’s mouth formed an O. “The one you cuss every other day? That can’t be right. Sloan Jensen is an idiot who’s trying to develop property on White Pine Riverand making it a nightmare for all of you. He’s some jerk from Vegas, not a beautiful young woman that our Rhett would be out to dinner with.” The lady looked from Sloan to Rhett to her husband and back through the rotation again.

Sloan wanted to sink into the floor. Her neck and cheeks burned. She held her shoulders and neck at a proud angle, clutching her hands together in front of her. Apparently all the builders up here cussed her name. She’d gotten in over her head, it was true, but she was here now and she would find a way to make everything work. Maybe she didn’t know developing as well as she thought, and residential was different from commercial, and Montana weather was a nightmare in the spring, but she could learn and work and conquer.

She wanted to fire back, but she held her tongue and was proud of herself for it. These were Rhett’s friends, and he’d told her Josh had given him an apprenticeship fresh out of tech school. There was no good that would come from getting in a verbal battle of who was responsible for the bad weather, the slow as sludge county officials, and the accidents she’d heard had happened on the sites.

Rhett pushed a hand at his hair. “Sloan is a beautiful and impressive lady,” he said in the same voice he’d used on Jaxon and Preston, steel and not to be messed with. “You know how the county is. They’ve been even worse to work with since she isn’t from around here. Sloan can’t control the weather or force the road crews to work, and the accidents on site are definitely not her fault.”

Josh looked from Rhett to Sloan. “So that’s how it is, huh? The developer comes slinking into town and you realize she’s a gorgeous woman and not a weasel of a man, so you take her side just like that? Yesterday afternoon you were belly-aching about her as much as any of us. Never figured the Rhett Coleville I know for a turncoat who’d dump his loyalties for a pretty face.Come on, Sandy.” He took his wife’s hand and, without another glance at Sloan or Rhett, stomped between the tables and out of the restaurant.

Rhett pushed at his hair again and blew out a breath. “I apologize.”

“For running my name through the mud?” she asked, tilting her chin up. The humiliation of Josh Francis saying Rhett had dumped his loyalties for a pretty face stung deep. Was that all Rhett was doing? Was he just drawn in by her face? She’d loved their banter and how he protected her. She hadn’t let anyone protect her since she got out from under her dad’s iron rule. Though she’d be forever grateful for his protection from Jaxon and Preston, she’d made a mistake letting herself flirt and grow closer to him. What had she been thinking? She’d never let down her guard before as she fought her father and then fought to succeed in a man’s world. She couldn’t let down her guard now.

He lifted his hands and looked adorably uncomfortable. No, not adorable. Rhett had stuck up for her multiple times today, but it gouged at her that everyone had been disparaging her before she came here.

“Is it easy just to throw all the blame on the person who’s not around?” she asked.

Rhett grimaced at that. “That’s probably part of it.” He met her gaze. “But Sloan, that was before I met you, before I knew …”

“That I was just another pretty face?”

His blue eyes flashed. “I’m not denying your face is gorgeous, but that isn’t what I was going to say.”

She folded her arms across her chest and gave him a challenging glare. “Really?”

“Really.” He stood straight, as strong and intimidating as any man around, especially as she knew how he could fight. That made her stomach squirm with guilt. He’d fought for her, rescued her from the mud, was sticking out his neck for her withanother builder who he had a great relationship with. She didn’t want to damage relationships; she wanted to strengthen them, rise together. If these builders succeeded, she would succeed as well. But right now, she sorely wanted to fight and stand up for herself.

“I was going to say before I knew how brave and smart you are.”

“Oh.” She didn’t know what to say, what to think. Her dad always told her she would get in over her head without him and it infuriated her. If he ever found out she’d moved up here, he’d be the furious one, but it wasn’t his business. She was a full-grown woman and wanted to succeed on her own. She’d been successful in the commercial industry as an employee. Maybe residential and being independent weren’t something she could handle.

No. She could handle it and she didn’t need her dad’s help. She’d prove them all wrong.

“Can you please unlock your truck so I can retrieve my things and find a hotel?” she asked. How far would she have to drag those heavy suitcases? It was dark outside. Was it safe to walk the streets at night? It wouldn’t be in Vegas or L.A. but maybe in these northern towns it was okay. As long as Jaxon or Preston didn’t find her. A hotel would cut into her scant slush fund, but she didn’t have any choice. She’d try to find a long-term rental. Did they even have condos up here?

“Sloan, please. You’re going to butt your head against walls with the county and the other contractors. I’ve seenyouin the past few hours. The real you. Let me help you.”

Sloan could only stare at him. Did he know the real her? Did anyone? She was so prickly and independent that few got through her shell. She needed to be alone. She needed to talk to Kathy.

The waitress walked up with plates of steaming food, staring between them as they were both still standing.

Rhett pulled out her chair and gave her a beseeching look. He wanted to help her. He thought he knew the real her.

She was in over her head, not just with the construction and development but with her awful cousins too. It was tempting to lean into Rhett and let him help her through the mud.

But that wasn’t how Sloan Jensen operated. She’d let down her guard far too much today. It had been a muddy and terrifying whirlwind and Rhett had swept her off her feet in many ways, but that was over. Tomorrow, she’d be herself again. Full of courage. And alone.

She did settle into the chair, because she was starving and never could focus when she was too hungry. She’d eat the meal, pay for it, and find a hotel. She couldn’t rely on Rhett. Unless she wanted to give up all her independence and be subservient like her mother had been and what she had fought to escape.

She couldn’t rely on anyone but herself.

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