Page 28 of The Female Warrior & The Charming Gentleman

“Autumn?” Easton was standing right in front of her, next to his twin brother and Marci. All three of them were staring at her like she’d grown horns.

“I thought you were his bodyguard,” Marci said, her eyes wide.

“Oh,” she managed. “Um. Well, it’s time to go, isn’t it?”

“Go?” Walker asked. Even Marci looked confused.

“It’s time for dinner, my dears,” Millie called. “Everybody come sit and let’s pray. Thank the good Lord for His bounty and family and friends.” Millie beamed at all of them, even at Autumn.

Was that because Autumn was cuddled into Jarom still and Easton was looking upset? Millie had warmed up to her, but she still didn’t want Autumn with her boy.

“Sounds great.” Walker escorted Marci over to the large table. Even with seven of them, they wouldn’t fill it.

Easton gave Autumn an injured and pleading look and followed his brother. She gazed up at Jarom. “Let’s go eat and let your fans gush over you.”

“Ah, thank you very much.”

“I’m sure that’s your favorite thing.”

“No.” He held her close still and he held her gaze, his blue eyes magnetic. “Not even close.”

She should walk away, not engage. “What’s yourfavorite thing?”

He lowered his voice and his head closer to hers. “Being close to you,” he whispered huskily.

Autumn was getting lost, and she couldn’t let herself be found. Marci was right. She was his bodyguard, not his favorite thing.

Terror rushed through her at how easily Jarom had broken down her resistance. His charming lines helped, but it was him that got to her. His confidence, patience, understated toughness. She had to get some distance.

She elbowed him in the gut and was rewarded with a slight grunt. Smiling, she said, “You forget, Mr. Love, I know all the smooth-talking lines. They don’t work on me.”

She whirled away before he could say anything, but the look in his eyes begged her to believe he wasn’t using any lines on her. That he was genuine.

Autumn could never let herself believe that.

Chapter

Ten

Dinner went wellwith the Coleville family. A portion of them, at least—only two of the brothers, one sister-in-law, Mama and Papa.

Six brothers in this ranching family. What a raucous dinner table they must have if they were all home. As an only child, Jarom had wished for siblings, two brothers to tease and fight with and a sister who they all were putty for and would stop fighting each other the moment she begged them to stop.

His parents liked to tease that they’d created the perfect child; why would they mess with that and try again? His dreams of siblings had never come true.

Could the dreams he was now formulating about Autumn come true? Those moments before dinner had been brilliant. The moments after she shot a snake’s head off and flew off a horse to be there for him had been ideal. They’d had some great moments. Until she almost broke his arm or punched him. Thephysical pain didn’t bother him. Her walking away from him every time bothered him.

Throughout dinner they all teased and laughed, but he feared Autumn was looking at Easton too often and flirting with him more. Was Autumn intrigued by the tough cowboy or trying to keep Jarom at arm’s length?

Marci Richards Coleville was hilarious. A bestselling romantic suspense author, the petite brunette said whatever she thought, mostly with lots of Spanish interjections. She and Mama ‘fan-girled’ over Jarom. He hated to say it helped his ego, but with Autumn growing more distant again, it didn’t hurt to have two females think he was ‘incredible’ said with a lilting Spanish accent to make even the recognizable word seem exotic.

After dinner, they all pitched in to clean up and then Jared excused himself to meet with his foreman and Walker and Easton excused themselves to feed the animals and get some roping and bull-riding practice in. Jarom stayed with the women and played card games. He didn’t mind being the only male and didn’t want to be away from Autumn.

“I bought Walker your cologne as a one-month anniversary gift,” Marci informed him as they played Phase 10.

“Confident Man?” Jarom straightened and focused on Autumn. Her golden eyes looked lit up. She liked his cologne. She’d mentioned he didn’t smell like himself after the rattlesnake incident. That meant she liked the way he normally smelled, correct?

“Si.” Marci made a sucking noise. “Ooh, it makes my pulse speed up just thinking about the smell of it onmi vaquero gaupo.”

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