Now it was A.J. chuckling as he patted crumbs from his mouth with his red-and-white linen napkin. She jumped in her chair when the tip of A.J.’s cowboy boot tapped hers. Footsy?
Buuut, she was wearing the cutest short boots with side fringe Ella claimed needed to be paired with the dress. Lucky they were both a size 8. They were another design of Ella’s. On her tour, A.J.’s father had said he’d created a studio on the ranch for Ella’s sewing and leatherworking hobby.
A.J. also looked sexier than ever in a black tee that highlighted his amazing arms, broad shoulders, and chest. His shirt was matched with a pair of classic stonewashed jeans that showed off another amazing “asset” of his. Brown leather boots and a hat to finish off the sexy cowboy look. The beige hat had a hand distressed finish with a cattleman crease. Well, that’s what Ella explained while Ana stood in a daze, mentally undressing A.J. as he’d strolled onto the patio just before dinner was served.
She’d never known cowboys were her weakness until meeting him. And Ella was trying to turn her into a cowgirl.
“I hope you two are planning on staying a bit longer,” A.J.’s dad said. “I do know your secret, so—”
“And what is that?” A.J. used his playful tone, the one Ana knew well and loved, and positioned his attention on his father, but Ana’s heartbeat suddenly took a wild ride.
His dad waved a hand in the air like he was swatting a fly. Heck, maybe there’d been one. After all, they were in the South where the flies were big enough to ride like a horse, according to McKenna. Plus, the smell of the roasted glazed duck wafting through the air, coupled with the pecan pie, had to be an insect attractor. “That Ana let you win during that little shooting competition down at the range before y’all showered and got cleaned up for dinner.”
A.J.’s focus whirled to Ana, who let out a breath of relief upon hearing that was the secret he knew. A.J. flashed her a sneaky grin. “Or maybe I let her think that she let me win, but really—”
“Sure, Son,” his dad interrupted. “You keep telling yourself that.” Oh, and his dad was a jokester, too.
But also, his dad was right. “I may have taken it easy on him.” Since the cat was out of the bag about her being FBI, she hadn’t felt it necessary to hide her shooting skills, but she was in A.J.’s home, and it would have been impolite to let A.J. lose, right?
“You should come to the wedding,” Ella blurted out before A.J. had a chance to offer a comeback to Ana’s teasing words. “What do you say?” The question had Ana dropping her fork when she realized Ella was speaking to her. “I mean, we have plenty of room.” Ella’s gaze tore across the table to A.J., and the stiff way she held her shoulders back left no doubt she was angry about something. “In fact, A.J., you ought to invite all your friends for the nuptials.” Her accent was thicker than A.J.’s, same with the rest of his family members. “You know, bring back those Teamguys that were here this past weekend. The ones who worked so hard to try and scare my fiancé out of marrying me.”
Ohhhh. Yeah, she was pissed at A.J. Ana could practically see the steam rising from Ella’s ears like a kettle about to blow. And everyone at the table must have felt it.
A.J. set his fork alongside his plate and lowered his gaze to the remaining bites of pie. He’d taken off his hat before dinner, which Ana assumed was a sign of respect down South. “And where is Brian right now? With the wedding so close, why ain’t he here?”
Jesse abruptly stood from the table as if he’d rather be anywhere but there at the moment. “I think I hear an alarm or something beeping inside. I best go check that out.” He positioned his eyes on Ella from where he stood on the other side of A.J. for several heartbeats, and it was then that Ana knew why he wanted out of there.
Jesse had a thing for Ella.
Once he was gone, Ella set her napkin on her plate, and her eyes remained cast down. “Brian will be back the Friday before the wedding.”
“Oh, Ana, it’s gonna be beautiful.” A.J.’s mom waved a dramatic hand toward the backyard. “Church wedding, then the reception will be right here. Fireworks at night while everyone dances. Magical.” She was clearly doing her best to keep the peace between her kids.
“Yeah, maybe it’ll rain.” Caleb reached for the neck of his beer, eyes on his sister, but Ella didn’t look his way. And from the looks of it, Caleb wasn’t a fan of this Brian guy, either.
“Rain on the wedding day is supposed to be good luck for marriage,” McKenna said with a big, innocent smile.
“Then I highly doubt—”
“It’ll be the Fourth of July weekend,” A.J.’s dad spoke up, cutting off whatever A.J. was about to say, which was probably a good thing. “I bet your teammates could use another weekend off.”
“Wow, the Fourth is coming up soon,” Ana chimed in, hoping to help dispel some of the tension. Though it seemed like an issue between siblings, and therefore none of her business, Ana felt compelled to do what little she could to protect A.J. from Ella’s silent fury. But knowing A.J., if he’d done something to try and scare off Ella’s fiancé, he had a good reason. Ana trusted his judgment.
“The Fourth of July down here in Alabama is like Christmas,” A.J.’s mom commented with pride. “You were planning on staying with Grant for the wedding weekend, right?” She fidgeted with her silverware, straightening them beside her plate.
“I’ll offer the invite to the team,” A.J. answered, his tone turning glib. “Wyatt and Natasha are getting married toward the end of July, so I’m not sure they can fit two joyful occasions in one month.” The way he’d said “joyful” had the hairs on Ana’s arms standing.
“Alexander,” Ella hissed in warning.
“What?” A.J. pushed back from the table. Footsies were officially done. “You’re marrying the wrong man, and you know it.” He stood. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I better help Jesse with that beeping.”
“Me, too.” Caleb followed A.J. into the house, leaving Ana at the table with a few awkward throat clears from A.J.’s parents.
“Sorry about the boys,” A.J.’s dad began, eyes moving to Ana from where he sat at the head of the table, “but they get a bit protective of those they love.”
“That’s all it is, Ella.” A.J.’s mom reached across the table and set a hand over Ella’s. “Ignore them.”
“Yeah, sure,” Ella said softly. “Anyway, Ana is our guest, so let’s talk about something happier.”
Happier than your wedding? Hmm. Did she really want to marry Brian?
“A.J. hasn’t brought a woman home in, hell, more than a decade.” A.J.’s dad was similar in height to A.J., about six feet, and had a full head of silver hair, thick beard, and kind blue eyes. His skin was tanner than A.J.’s, probably from all his outside work on the ranch over the years. “So, we’re happy you were able to join us.”
“You know, I reckon A.J. hasn’t had a girlfriend since Brooke, and that was in his twenties,” his mom said. “Brooke is one of Ella’s closest friends. Bridesmaid. Of course, if Rory doesn’t make it home for the wedding, she’ll be the maid of honor.”