Rugged Cowboy - Elana Johnson Page 0,21
about Martha. She’d asked about his wife—who was really an ex—but Dallas hadn’t wanted to talk about her. He barely knew Jess, and in fact, they barely got along all that well. She had been circling in his mind all day, and he’d be lying if he said he didn’t find her attractive.
Perhaps he’d even staged this meeting tonight, because he knew there’d be less people around. He pushed that thought away, because it would take hours to determine if it was true, and Dallas didn’t have that kind of time.
“Listen,” he said, resigning himself to saying some things he might not otherwise. “I just got out of prison. You know that, right?”
“Yes,” she said, still refusing to look at him.
“I did thirty months for insurance fraud and medical malpractice.” His throat closed, but he swallowed and breathed and forced himself to continue, even when Jess looked up and met his eye. “Thankfully, the wrongful death suit was dropped.” He looked away, but this office had no window to pretend to look out of.
“My wife’s name is Martha. She came like clockwork to the facility, though it was a long drive for her. She brought the kids. Then…one day….” He shrugged, aware his voice had taken on a haunted quality. “She was gone. I got a message from her sister that said Martha had dropped the kids off at her place, and that she wasn’t coming back.”
A beat of silence filled the office before Jess said, “You’re kidding.”
“That was three months ago,” he said. “The divorce is final, because I didn’t contest it, and she didn’t want custody. Very clean.” He hated that with every fiber of his being. But how could he contest a divorce from behind bars? Martha had known he’d have no choice but to give her what she wanted, or he could lose the kids.
He drew in a deep breath and looked at her again. He’d learned to face his issues and problems head-on while in prison. He’d had a counselor work with him to do just that. “I hate to say it, but I’m not sure I’m over her yet. I don’t think it would be fair to you to you know, go to dinner together.”
“Okay,” she said, those lovely eyes crinkling as she smiled. She reached across the desk and covered his hand with hers. “Thanks for telling me.”
Sparks fanned through his fingers and up his arm. He hadn’t been touched in a loving, kind way by a woman in far too long. That was all this chemistry between him and Jess was. His deprivation of affection. Nothing more.
He told himself that again and then again as he nodded. As the sparks caught into flames, he shifted his hand, and she moved hers back. Relief spread through Dallas, as did a heavy weight of disappointment. He wasn’t sure what to make of either emotion, and he looked back at his notepad of questions. They suddenly didn’t seem so important.
“If you can just get me a computer, I can get this all organized and up and running,” he said. “It’ll take a while, though. I want you—and everyone—to know that. I’m basically starting at zero here.” He looked at the mess in the office. “Less than zero.”
“I know,” Jess said.
“You should’ve told me that,” he said, looking back at her. “I feel a little tricked.”
She nodded, her dark hair swinging with the motion. “I can understand that.” She stood up and gave him a sober look. “That wasn’t my intention, Dallas, honestly.”
“I know,” he said, because he believed she was being genuine. He still felt like he’d been presented with this amazing job that wasn’t so amazing.
A smile appeared on her face, and it screamed of flirtatiousness. “When you’re feeling up to it, you’ll have to let me take you to dinner to make up for it.” With that, she walked out of the office, leaving Dallas to wonder why he couldn’t go to dinner with her right then.
Ted had the kids, and he’d told Dallas to take his time at the equipment shed. A quick text, and Dallas could drive into town with Jess and eat something besides a peanut butter sandwich or something that came out of a box.
He looked at his phone, his eye catching on the folder he’d pulled at random from the filing cabinet. By the time he stood up and moved to the doorway, Jess was long gone.
“Another time,” he muttered to himself. He turned back to the office