“You mean the sexy little thing with those big green eyes that was in the diner tonight?” Wyatt asked, and both Eric and Max stared at him with daggers in their eyes. Their cousins laughed.
“She’s not the one favored to win against Betsy, is she?” Ben asked.
“Oh shit, I heard about her before I got here tonight. The guys were saying how hot she was and what a sexy body she had on her. When they heard she could cook, they were calling dibs on her,” Wyatt announced.
“What?” both Eric and Max asked in unison as they rose from their seats. Their cousins started laughing.
“You both met the same woman and both are interested in her?” Ben asked.
“Well?” Max asked Eric.
“Well what?” Eric replied.
“How do you want to handle this? I mean she’s from New York, and she looked shocked to the core when she saw Melissa with Frank, Willie, and Paul.”
“Let’s not jump the gun. Let’s see what happens, and if she can cook and is interested, we can give her a whirl with lunch and dinner then take it from there.”
“A whirl, huh? Just be sure you two take your time. You both have made the decision to share one woman and settle down with her. Maybe this Stacy is the one,” Charlie stated.
Eric and Max looked at one another and released heavy sighs.
“We don’t even know her,” Eric stated.
“She’s real sweet. Kinda shy, too. I liked that about her,” Max added then cleared his throat, trying to hide the fact that he just admitted that in a room filled with guys.
“Aww…Ain’t that nice. She a sweet little thang, and the two of ya both want her. Should be interesting to see how this pans out,” Ben stated, teasing them.
“Don’t forget about the competition. If we’ve already heard about the new beauty in town and the reaction from other men, then you two should stake your claim fast. I ain’t seen her yet, but I may just have to take a look myself. If ya ain’t interested,” Charlie stated then tried to hide his chuckle as both Max and Eric grunted.
“I don’t know about the rest of you, but I need a drink,” Wyatt said then walked over to the bar and began filling five shot glasses with whiskey.
Chapter 4
It was a big difference getting up at five o’clock in the morning compared to six. Stacy had always been an early riser, but for some reason, she was both mentally and physically exhausted. Her bed was really comfortable as well, so that added to the lounging around she did. It wasn’t like she was responsible for any farm chores, but she just felt like she shouldn’t be lounging around all day. This was a new beginning. The sounds of the roosters in the morning and the bright sunlight were so different. In fact, Marie had said she needed more secretarial work to organize the camper’s paperwork and make sure everything was in order before the camp started in two weeks. That, Stacy could definitely do.
She took a quick shower and threw on a pair of blue jeans and a short-sleeve shirt. It was soft and from a designer in New York she loved. It was a V-neck that dipped a little low for her, but she thought it didn’t reveal much cleavage, so it would be fine to wear. After Millie’s comments last night, she didn’t want to look like she was advertising. She ate some toast with jelly, had a quick cup of coffee, and admired her little back porch. When she went into town today, she would buy some painting supplies and maybe rent a power washer if Marie didn’t have one. Then she would fix the broken shingles on the roof and paint the cottage. She wanted to work from the outside in. That way she could take advantage of the milder weather this week. She spent a few hours in Marie’s office organizing a mess of papers and disposing of garbage left around the room. It was disgusting, and she was rather surprised since Marie’s house was immaculate. Of course she was reamed out by Marie for organizing her clutter.
“Why don’t you go into town and get the supplies you need for the cottage? My power washer is at the hardware store. It should be ready, and I have an account there. Tell Lewis to bill me for it,” Marie told Stacy.
Twenty minutes later, Stacy had a shopping cart filled with painting supplies and other materials to fix the cottage and had made friends with the young woman, Lisa, who worked behind the counter.
“I’ll need some help getting that power washer into Marie’s pickup truck,” Stacy said to Lisa as she paid her bill.
“No problem, I’ll get Lewis to help you. He’s in the storage room,” Lisa said as she walked toward the back of the store. Stacy thought that everyone in town was really friendly. It was a nice change from the city streets of New York.
As she walked outside to place her bags in the truck, she absorbed the floral smell from all the planters surrounding the hardware store then the numerous other planters that lined the streets of Pearl. It was a gorgeous town, like something out of a fantasy.
“Hey, darling, you need some help with them bags?” someone asked, and when she turned around, she saw some man she didn’t recognize. He looked dirty and scruffy, and her gut instincts kicked in, telling her to be careful.
“No, thank you. I’m fine,” she replied, and he scowled at her before taking an aggressive step closer to her.
Instinctively she clutched the bags tighter a
nd stepped away.
“You’re the new girl staying with Lemorte, aren’t ya? I bet you’re just shy not knowing anyone in town. Why don’t you come for a ride with me, and I can give ya a real nice welcoming sugar,” he stated then reached for her. Automatically Stacy turned to run and smacked into what felt like a solid wall of steel. As she gasped in shock, an arm of muscle went around her waist. The man lifted her then deposited her behind him. All she saw was a dark-brown uniform shirt, and she realized that it was the deputy.
“Are you bothering this woman, Gutry?” Deputy Cantrell asked, and Stacy tried to peek around his large frame to see Gutry’s reaction. As she moved to the side, she felt another set of hands land on her waist, and she froze in place. She was really scared now and didn’t know who the third person could be.