He heard a partially stifled snicker, and looked over to see two familiar coeds laughing at his expense.
No such luck.
He tipped his hat in awkward acknowledgment, knowing the guests were delighted to see the staff make such an embarrassing misstep. Rubbing his caked sole on the hard ground, he made a vain attempt to wipe the fresh manure from his boot. With any luck, Jess, who was busy tying Shadow’s reins to a post, would never even notice.
“Nice job, Dennison.” Mason’s lip curled in a rather nasty sneer, as if Cord had thrown the excrement at him instead of stepping in it. “It’s not too late to dump him, Jess. I can’t believe you’d go to the dance with a greenhorn.”
“Huh?” Cord frowned and rubbed the back of his neck, his gaze tracking from Mason’s scowl to Jessica’s wide eyes. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m saying you’re as green as a drugstore cowboy,” said Mason, his voice loud enough to draw attention from the guests.
“That’s not what I meant.” Cord disregarded the well-deserved insult. “You said something about the dance. About Jess and me—”
“It’s okay, Cord.” Jess cut him off in mid-sentence to grab his arm and propel him five feet away. She mumbled, “Please help me. Just roll with whatever I say.”
“Uhmm…” Cord had no idea what was going on, but her pleading eyes had already melted his heart. He’d do anything to help her.
Jessica turned to face the glaring ranch manager. “Don’t make a scene, Mason. Cord already asked me to the dance.”
Cord hid his shock. Barely.
“This is bull, Jessica.” Mason growled. “You and I… we had an understanding.”
Cord wrapped his arm around Jessica’s shoulder and pulled her against him. “I believe you had a mis-understanding.”
“When did the two of you start dating?” McCaffrey spat on the ground, eliciting a curled lip from Jessica.
She jerked her chin toward the curious onlookers. “Let’s continue this conversation away from the guests.”
With a glance at the line of involuntary eavesdroppers, McCaffrey huffed his begrudging agreement and clomped across the courtyard, stopping under a shady live oak tree. Cord and Jess followed after him.
When Mason swirled to face them, his tone seethed with suspicion. “You never mentioned him, Jess. I haven’t ever seen you together. Not once.”
“We were keeping it on the down-low,” she said.
Despite her confident voice, Cord sensed her cringing at the lie. But the humor of the situation was beginning to set in. He couldn’t resist taking advantage of her predicament.
“I guess there’s no use hiding it, sweetheart.” Cord slipped his arm around her waist and bent his head to kiss her cheek. His heart picked up speed as his lips slid down to her neck, lingering to breathe in her clean scent.
A stiff-as-plastic smile appeared on her face, and she murmured from the corner of her mouth. “I’m going to kill you.”
He coughed, using a hand to hide his smile.
Mason, evidently, saw no humor in the situation. Hands clenched, the wiry cowboy lifted his chin. “I wouldn’t try to steal another man’s woman, Dennison. You should’ve told me she belonged to you.”
“Hold on a minute.” Jessica shook free from Cord’s grasp and slammed her hands on her hips. “I don’t belong to anyone.”
Cord put a warning finger to his lips. “Shhh. Let me handle this.”
She snapped her mouth closed, her lips pressed together in a tight white line, silent rage bulging behind her eyes.
“You’re gonna have a tough time corralling that little filly.” With a sour chuckle, McCaffrey slapped Cord’s shoulder, then turned away. Bitterness tinged his voice. “Good luck.”
Cord hated to alienate McCaffrey just when the stubborn ranch manager was finally beginning to listen to reason. Somehow, he had to do damage control without blowing Jessica’s cover.
“Hey, Mason. Wait.” Cord paused until the man turned back. “No hard feelings, right? I should’ve said something about Jess, but I was trying to keep her happy. You know how women can be.”
Frozen in place, the muscles flexed along McCaffrey’s jaw and his hands balled into fists. But rather than shouting a string of expletives, as Cord feared, Mason snorted with laughter.