Page 11 of Stirring Up Trouble
“And he’s also dating my business partner,” Robin added. “He and Griffin have been together for a while now, which means the perks of sharing a vet clinic with him includes getting his extras from his homemade lunches.”
I learned quite a bit in those few sentences. The first being that I didn’t need to track down this Harlan person and convince him to give up Robin. They weren’t together. Then there was the fact that Robin was the vet Leslie had mentioned. Not only was he attractive in a way that clearly made me stupid, but he was also smart too. And to top it all off, he had an appreciation for food.
Wait… attractive to me? Since when did I find men attractive?
My dating history was purely of the female variety. While I could say when a man was objectively good looking, I didn’t feel a pull for anything more.
Or rather, Ihadn’t.
Robin intrigued me for some reason. His soft features and contemplative gaze made me want to sit with him asking questions for hours on end. I needed to know all his favorites so I could provide him with everything he ever wanted.
What. The. Hell.
My cook had never drugged me, yet I was wondering if the food was filled with some kind of potion to fuck my head up. It made no sense for me to be going through all these emotions about ten seconds after meeting the man.
I rejoined the conversation to escape my own wayward thoughts. “It’s always good to have someone who knows their way around the kitchen. I’m blessed with Ms. Connie on my team. She’s a lifesaver.”
“Oh, you hush now, Blaze. I’m merely doing what I love. No need to get all sappy on me.” She waved her napkin at me.
Leslie chuckled. “He doesn’t do sappy. You’re just his favorite, and he knows not to piss you off.”
“Girl, I done told you about that filthy mouth of yours. How are you ever gonna get you a nice, sweet girl to settle down with?”
“The sweet girls like my filthy mouth too, Ms. Connie,” Leslie replied with a sweet tone. She batted her lashes a ridiculous amount to show she was teasing, which of course sent us all into a laughing fit.
I could admit having a full table was nice. Most of the men on the ranch didn’t do dinner up here with me and Ms. Connie. They had families of their own to get home to. And Leslie was hit or miss on whether she’d come by.
“Girl, you need to hush. None of that with me at the table.” Ms. Connie blushed, which made Leslie laugh hysterically. She loved riling the other woman up. It was basically one of her daily goals at this point.
Ignoring them, I thought about how to best to avoid Robin moving forward. Getting into anything with him would be a disaster. Not only because I didn’t know what the fuck it was like to be with another man, but also because my focus needed to be on keeping Anders Ranch and the upcoming rodeo a success.
How would I be able to do any of that if I were having an identity crisis? Or even more so if I were involved with someone romantically?
There was a reason I hadn’t dated in years. I’d been celibate even before my stepfather left. It was too much work trying to build a relationship and manage everything around here. In the time since the blow up, I didn’t even give companionship a thought.
Fix the ranch.
Save the rodeo.
Anything else was a distraction.
With that in mind, I changed tactics. Being nice wouldn’t work. I couldn’t risk my friendly nature for being an open invitation for anything. My irrational brain didn’t even stop to think if Robin were open to dating men. I just knew I had to go on defense.
Dropping my brows and letting a scowl come over my face, I looked around the table. “I’ve got to head on up to bed. Big day tomorrow. I suggest you do the same if you know what’s smart.”
Avoiding eye contact with Robin, I took off for the stairs. I could hear Leslie and Ms. Connie saying something behind me. They were probably making excuses for me. It wasn’t often that I was an asshole.
I reached my bedroom in no time thanks to my rushed state. Shutting the door behind me proved impossible when a familiar hand shot to grab it before it closed.
“What the hell was that?” Leslie asked as she pushed her way inside. At least she had the thought to close the door. I didn’t need what I said next to get to the others.
Shaking my head, I dropped to my bed. While I wasn’t having a sexual identity crisis, I was definitely in a panic. The extra help was meant to make things easier. Now I felt like I had a permanent semi because I was—wait for it—attracted to Robin. This was not at all a part of the plan.
There was supposed to only be two men from the Coleman Ranch. They were supposed to show up, help us, and then leave. I wasn’t supposed to long for what Bobby Allen and Elton have. I wasn’t supposed to find Robin so sexy I could barely contain the desire to pull him into my arms and claim him.
It was so fucking unfair.
Why couldn’t this happen a year from now when shit was more stable? Why did I have to be fighting other battles instead of being ready for this huge change in my life?
