Page 11 of Faking it with the Cowboy

“Yes. I guess, if it’s okay with you, I’ll take you up on the offer of that cabin for tonight.” She linked her arm with mine. “Maybe we can get something to eat, then try to win enough at poker to pay for your trip to Dallas next weekend.”

My trip to Dallas… I hadn’t forgotten that I’d be posing as her boyfriend, but after that kiss I wasn’t sure I’d be able to pull it off without my feelings getting involved. I tugged her toward the door of the barn. The rain had stopped while we’d been visiting the horses.

“I’ll show you where you can wash up for dinner, then I’ll check with Cody and see which cabins are available tonight. Sound good?” I knew exactly which cabin I wanted her to have. The one that sat on the edge of the property with the best view of the hills. It had a tiny back porch where she could sip her coffee in the morning and look out over a vast expanse of nothing but fields. If she was homesick for Broken Bend at all, that kind of view might satisfy that ache until she could make it home again.

Jericho slid her hand down my arm to twine our fingers together. I tried to focus on putting one foot in front of the other and not let myself think it meant anything more than it did. When we reached the bunkhouse where the ranch hands ate, I showed her where she could get cleaned up and left her to find Cody so I could ask about her staying the night.

Ten minutes later, I had the key to the cabin in my back pocket and was leaning against one of the poles in the dining area when Jericho came down the hall. She’d pulled her hair back in a braid and looked like she’d swallowed a shot of sunshine based on the smile stretched across her pretty pink lips.

“What smells so good?” She reached for my arm and let me lead her to the table full of a Saturday night spread.

“We’ve got cowboy fajitas tonight. Steak with peppers and onions. Make sure you get a bunch of guacamole before Brandon comes through. He’d lick the bowl clean if he thought he could get away with it.”

Jericho let out a husky laugh as she let go of my arm. “Tres Marias makes the best guacamole I’ve ever had. Remember in high school when we used to scrape together enough quarters to go there?”

“Yeah, we’d share an order of guac and go through about ten refills of free chips and salsa.” I’d been an idiot back then. I thought those days would last forever. That Jericho and I would always be friends. At least until the day came when I’d saved up enough for my own place and finally had something to offer.

We filled our plates and took a seat at the end of one of the long tables. The other guys stared, but I ignored them. We’d had women join us for meals before. Usually on a Saturday or Sunday morning after they’d spent the night with one of the ranch hands.

It felt good to have her with me. Made me wish we were sitting down to a meal at a restaurant on a fancy date, not just grabbing grub at the bunkhouse. Jericho didn’t seem to mind. She dug into her fajitas like she ate dinner with a bunkhouse full of cowboys every night. She’d always been able to get along with everyone. It was just part of her charm.

We’d just finished eating when Brandon stopped by. “Y’all sticking around for poker night, or do you want to head into town for some live music?”

I looked at Jericho before I responded. “It’s up to you.”

“I think we’ll stick around here tonight. Playing cowboy today wore me out.” She shifted her gaze to me and gave me a smile.

“Okay then, let’s get the game going,” Brandon said. He walked over to the cabinet on the edge of the room that held the poker chips and cards. On his way back to the table, he called out to the guys still finishing their dinner. “If you want to be dealt in, grab a seat.”

“You sure you want to play?” I whispered against Jericho’s ear. Even after spending a day at the ranch, she still smelled good. I risked taking a deep breath and filled my nose with her sweet scent.

“Of course. What’s the buy-in?”

“Twenty bucks. I’ll cover you. It’s the least I can do since you made the trip up here to save me.” I pulled my wallet out of my back pocket and tossed forty bucks into the center of the table.

“Don’t worry. We’ll be even after next weekend. And I’m pretty sure I’m getting the easy part of the deal. Convincing Scott we’re actually dating is going to be a challenge.”

“I’m up for it.” She had no idea how much I was looking forward to it. Getting to hold her in my arms on the dance floor and feel her hand in mine all weekend was more than I could hope for. More than I ever thought I’d deserve. At least until the day I planned to show up on her doorstep with the keys to my own ranch and finally tell her how I’d felt about her all these years.

Brandon got everyone organized. There were so many guys playing tonight that we had to split into three different tables. Once we were all set, he dealt out the first hand and got the game going. One of the old-timers won with a pair of Kings at our table. Jericho took the next hand, and we played for a couple of hours until enough guys got knocked out that we had to combine the remaining players into one table.

I’d been hanging in there, but my stack of chips was disappearing. I finally went all-in and lost to Brandon, who ended up winning the hand with three of a kind. I didn’t mind. Watching Jericho beat all of my co-workers was worth the money I’d spent. Finally, it was down to just Jericho and Brandon. They went back and forth, each of them trying to win the rest of the chips from the other.

I glanced at the clock showing a cowboy on the back of a bucking bronc. Saturday night poker usually wrapped up by ten, but it was almost midnight. It had been a long day for Jericho. Her eyes had started to glaze over and she looked like she’d be able to fall asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. I was about to intervene and suggest they call it even and split the pot when Brandon set his cards down on the table and said he was all in.

Jericho nodded. “Let’s see what you’ve got.”

8

JERICHO

Iheld my breath as Brandon flipped his cards over. He had two diamonds in his hand and there were three more showing on the table. If I wanted to win, I needed the dealer to flip over something that would beat a flush. I already had two pairs. With my fingers crossed, I hoped for another nine or a Queen that would give me a full house.

Birch frowned when the turn revealed another diamond. Brandon’s lips split into a confident grin. I wanted to win, but more than that, I wanted to end poker night. I’d been up for over eighteen hours and was having trouble keeping my eyes open.

With both of our hands resting face up, the only thing to do was wait for the final card. I reached for Birch’s hand and squeezed it tight as the dealer flipped over the last card.

“Bullshit!” Brandon jumped up from his chair, bumping into the table and sending the stacks of chips spilling across the cards.

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