Chapter One
âI guess youâre not feeling too good about your girlfriend getting married, huh?â the bartender said to Captain Kane Bullock.
Kane didnât know the bartenderâs first name, but he was one of the Fletcher boys, probably barely old enough to tend bar. But he should be old enough to know that it was a stupid-ass thing to say.
Of course Kane wasnât feeling âtoo goodâ right about now. It felt as if heâd been kicked in the teeth by an eight-legged bull. All because his girlfriend was apparently about to be wed...
And she didnât have plans to say that âI doâ to him.
Not that Kane wanted an âI do.â He didnât. But he darn sure hadnât expected to come home and find Violet Wright, his flame of more than ten years, wearing another manâs engagement ring.
âHeard about you getting out of the Army,â Fletcher went on.
âAir Force. I fly fighter jets. Flew fighter jets,â he corrected.
Kane had to get used to saying that because once his terminal leave was up in a month, he would no longer be a captain, a fighter pilot or on active duty. It was the right thing to do, giving it up, because it was finally time to put down some roots. Also the right thing to move home to the ranch where heâd grown up. The very place where he thought heâd see Violet again. And he had seen her all right. He just hadnât counted on seeing her like this.
âYou know for a fact that Violetâs marrying a good fella,â the bartender went on. âFor what itâs worth.â
Well, it was better than her wedding a bad one, Kane supposed, but hell in a handbasket, it still stung.
Violet could have at least called or emailed to give him a heads-up before heâd gotten back to town. That way he wouldnât have been blindsided ten minutes earlier when heâd literally walked in on her bachelorette party at Calhounâs Pub. All Kane had wanted was a beer after the two-day trip where heâd driven from the base in South Carolina and then here to Spring Hill, Texas.
Heâd gotten a lot more than just the beer, though.
After all that driving, Kane had learned of his girlfriendâs engagement from Sissy Donovan, the senior-citizen cocktail waitress who had blurted out the news before heâd even been able to sit down at the bar. It wouldnât be long before that same waitress pointed out to Violet that Kane was there. In fact, it was a shocker that she hadnât already done it. Maybe Sissy was the sort who liked to watch a train wreck play out in slow motion. Or perhaps she was just too busy calling every single person she knew to come to the bar for a showdown .
âHate to say it, but my cousin, Charlene, is plenty happy about you and Violet breaking up,â the bartender went on. âSheâll be calling you real soon to give you a sweet deal. On some cows,â he added with a knowing wink.
Yeah, Kane was betting Charlene would be calling, and the sale of cows might be involved, but Charlene would have a lot more than that on her mind. Even when Kane had been with Violet, Charlene had made open plays for him, once even offering him sex when Kane had been at a party with Violet. Despite that, Kane might have to deal with Charlene, along with fending her off, because he did need her livestock.
âGuess you gotta have some time to work through this.â The bartender again. Fletcher had been wiping the same spot on the barâthe spot directly in front of Kaneâsince heâd served him his beer.
Kane decided to keep his response simple, and he gave the guy a look that could have frozen the hottest corners of hell. Fletcher was obviously too young or too stupid to pick up on facial cues because he stayed close.
He ignored the bartender, sipped his Lone Star and watched the goings-on in the mirror above the bar. Normally, it was a pretty good place to take in the action in
âI guess youâre not feeling too good about your girlfriend getting married, huh?â the bartender said to Captain Kane Bullock.
Kane didnât know the bartenderâs first name, but he was one of the Fletcher boys, probably barely old enough to tend bar. But he should be old enough to know that it was a stupid-ass thing to say.
Of course Kane wasnât feeling âtoo goodâ right about now. It felt as if heâd been kicked in the teeth by an eight-legged bull. All because his girlfriend was apparently about to be wed...
And she didnât have plans to say that âI doâ to him.
Not that Kane wanted an âI do.â He didnât. But he darn sure hadnât expected to come home and find Violet Wright, his flame of more than ten years, wearing another manâs engagement ring.
âHeard about you getting out of the Army,â Fletcher went on.
âAir Force. I fly fighter jets. Flew fighter jets,â he corrected.
Kane had to get used to saying that because once his terminal leave was up in a month, he would no longer be a captain, a fighter pilot or on active duty. It was the right thing to do, giving it up, because it was finally time to put down some roots. Also the right thing to move home to the ranch where heâd grown up. The very place where he thought heâd see Violet again. And he had seen her all right. He just hadnât counted on seeing her like this.
âYou know for a fact that Violetâs marrying a good fella,â the bartender went on. âFor what itâs worth.â
Well, it was better than her wedding a bad one, Kane supposed, but hell in a handbasket, it still stung.
Violet could have at least called or emailed to give him a heads-up before heâd gotten back to town. That way he wouldnât have been blindsided ten minutes earlier when heâd literally walked in on her bachelorette party at Calhounâs Pub. All Kane had wanted was a beer after the two-day trip where heâd driven from the base in South Carolina and then here to Spring Hill, Texas.
Heâd gotten a lot more than just the beer, though.
After all that driving, Kane had learned of his girlfriendâs engagement from Sissy Donovan, the senior-citizen cocktail waitress who had blurted out the news before heâd even been able to sit down at the bar. It wouldnât be long before that same waitress pointed out to Violet that Kane was there. In fact, it was a shocker that she hadnât already done it. Maybe Sissy was the sort who liked to watch a train wreck play out in slow motion. Or perhaps she was just too busy calling every single person she knew to come to the bar for a showdown .
âHate to say it, but my cousin, Charlene, is plenty happy about you and Violet breaking up,â the bartender went on. âSheâll be calling you real soon to give you a sweet deal. On some cows,â he added with a knowing wink.
Yeah, Kane was betting Charlene would be calling, and the sale of cows might be involved, but Charlene would have a lot more than that on her mind. Even when Kane had been with Violet, Charlene had made open plays for him, once even offering him sex when Kane had been at a party with Violet. Despite that, Kane might have to deal with Charlene, along with fending her off, because he did need her livestock.
âGuess you gotta have some time to work through this.â The bartender again. Fletcher had been wiping the same spot on the barâthe spot directly in front of Kaneâsince heâd served him his beer.
Kane decided to keep his response simple, and he gave the guy a look that could have frozen the hottest corners of hell. Fletcher was obviously too young or too stupid to pick up on facial cues because he stayed close.
He ignored the bartender, sipped his Lone Star and watched the goings-on in the mirror above the bar. Normally, it was a pretty good place to take in the action in
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