Page 52 of The Auction
Like…the boss of him.
I heard the engine of a truck rumbling down the road alongside our property, but I couldn’t take my eyes off Creed.
He was so fucking…himself. In control of everything. Like, why couldn’t I have been saddled with a buffoon who I could entirely dismiss as worthless? Have zero respect for. Someone I would never be remotely attracted to.
“Hey, Juliette.”
I glanced back over my shoulder. “Hey, Jackson.”
Jackson was the Talley’s oldest son and someone I’d seen enough around town to feel like I knew him, though he was a few years older than me. And being homeschooled meant I couldn’t call any of my peers in this town my classmates, or former classmates or whatever.
Jackson Talley, was just Jackson Talley to me. Although I’d heard enough from some of the girls in my church to know he was considered the hottest single guy in the entire town. (Not really a big deal.) The entire county. (Slightly bigger deal.) The entire state. (Way over exaggerating.)
I took another look at him and thought he looked like a younger version of his dad, which, I assumed, was the point of genetics. Good looking, sure, but so far out of my reach, I’d never thought of him as anything other than what he was. A neighbor.
“Mother. Fuck,” he muttered, coming up behind me. “How the fuck he get a rope around Will’s neck? And that horse let him mount him? Bareback?”
I shrugged my shoulders up to my ears. “Don’t know. Just did it.”
Creed got to within ten feet of us, then slid off the horse’s back and took the rope back up in his hand, leading him to where we stood.
“Consider me impressed,” Jackson laughed, and stretched his hand out. “Jackson Talley. Jake and Ellie’s oldest. Heard about you and Juliette.”
Creed shook Jackson’s hand. “Creed O’Mara.”
Heard about us? Hmm, I thought. Not congratulations. Which meant Jackson, probably much like his mom, was skeptical of our sudden marriage despite the rumors we’d tried to spread.
“This paint’s name is Willful. We call him Will for short, but you sure got his number.”
Creed didn’t say anything to that, just handed over the rope. “You run a breeding program over at the ranch?”
Jackson shook his head. “No, cattle is our only business. But my uncle, Cody, and my dad will stud out their horses in an attempt to recreate perfection, as they tell me. Hasn’t worked yet.”
“Horses are like kids that way,” Creed said. “DNA matters, but they come with their own personalities.”
“You looking for a horse?” Jackson asked him.
“No,” I answered.
“Thinking about it,” Creed said, at the same time.
I glared at him. I’d told him about the horse that I’d lost. I didn’t like to say her name out loud. I didn’t even like to think it sometimes because it hurt too much.
Margo. Mags. Margolita when she was being goofy.
For years, she’d been the best and really only company I had that liked me for who I was. Maybe that’s because I liked to feed her apples or maybe because she just understood me, I’ll never know. But I didn’t want to go through that experience of loss again.
Jackson laughed. “Yeah, you two sound married. Well, let me know. Like I said, we only breed a few for ranch use and personal enjoyment, but we’ll keep an ear out.”
“Appreciate it,” Creed said.
Jackson took Will’s lead and got the paint up into the trailer. Creed and I watched to see if he needed a hand, but Jackson was as competent a cowboy as they came. When he drove away, Creed watched the trail of dust that kicked up behind the trailer for longer than seemed normal.
“What?” I asked, knowing something was on his mind.
“How come he didn’t make an offer on this place?”
I huffed. “You mean, how come he didn’tbid on me?Gee, do you think it’s because he’s got scruples?”
