Front Range Cowboys (5 Book Box Set) Read online

  Olivia Witherspoon wasn’t an unattractive woman. Darren was momentarily distracted by that thought because in the past it would have meant something entirely different than it did right now. In the past, Darren would have considered her open invitation welcome. Olivia was attractive. She took care of herself. She was probably not unintelligent. And at least she was employed and taking care of herself, unlike Carly and those of her ilk who looked for a man to trap into a financial arrangement.

  So, why were the looks Olivia was giving him such an anathema to him? The only thing that Darren could come up with was that Darren had already found a woman he was interested in. He had spoken with Maggie. He had been intrigued by the way her mind worked and by her smiles. He had kissed her. He had experienced that rare and strange chemistry that seemed to sizzle beneath the surface whenever they interacted. And right now that meant Darren was officially off the market. What a strange set of circumstances that was for him.

  “Are you busy this evening?” Olivia Witherspoon asked suddenly.

  Darren scribbled what he hoped was the final signature verifying that he was a US Citizen. “Excuse me?”

  “I wondered if you were busy this evening.” Olivia leaned forward over her desktop. “I was thinking that we could have a celebratory dinner somewhere nearby. We’re just so appreciative of your willingness to step into the gap here at our school that I would love to treat you this evening.”

  Treat him? Well, that was just a little disturbing. There was something in her dark gaze that made him think that she was willing to do a whole lot more than buy him dinner. It was distinctly creepy. She was the principal of the school, however, and he couldn’t just give her the brush-off as he would have in any other situation.

  Interesting. This employment crap was far more complicated than Darren ever would have thought it to be. He totally had the hots for the school counselor, but the principal had the hots for him. His brother didn’t want him to work here even though Laredo’s daughter, Bella, was a student. And secretly Darren was beginning to think that this gym teacher gig was a far better fit for him than being a schmoozer over at the Hernandez Land & Cattle Company even though he had been an employee of that business pretty much his entire life. They all had been. It was sort of a given. Even poor Jesse had been an employee when she should have been her own boss.

  “You know,” Darren told Olivia. “I really appreciate the offer, but I couldn’t impose. And honestly, I have another engagement this evening.”

  “For your family’s company?” Olivia asked eagerly. “You know, I realize you’re new in town, but I want you to know that I would be absolutely fine going along with you to any company functions that you need me to. That way you aren’t taking anyone with you who might have expectations.”

  “Oh, really? Thank you.” Expectations? Like Olivia Witherspoon didn’t have expectations? The woman practically reeked of expectations. She was completely transparent about it too. “I’m sure if I ever find myself in need of an escort for a business function, you’ll be the first person I’ll contact.”

  “Thank you!” Olivia gushed. Her cheeks flushed, and she looked down at her hands before glancing back up at him from beneath her lashes.

  Damn. Darren had just made a major mistake in the negotiating, and now he was likely to pay for it. That wasn’t good. It wasn’t good at all. Olivia was now looking as though he had propositioned her. Why did women do that? Why did they assume that because a man did not give them the smack down, that it meant he was interested? It was a really self-defeating behavior.

  “Thank you for filling these out.” Olivia gently plucked the clipboard from his hands and spoke in a breathy voice. She kept tossing out these glances from under her lashes every few seconds. “It’s really helpful. I think we’ll be paying you just the standard substitute salary. That was detailed on page three. Did you have any questions?”

  “No. None at all.” Of course, that was probably because Darren hadn’t actually read any of that. He’d just signed.

  “If you can just give me a canceled check from your checking account, we’ll arrange direct deposit.” Olivia was looking at him with such expectancy that Darren actually felt at a loss.

  Checking account? He had a bank account. That’s how he paid his bills. Of course, mostly the state plucked the money from his account and then gave it all to Carly to care for Jaeger. So, Darren rarely purchased much for himself. Just the basics. Even his car belonged to the company. They were the ones who had been paying his bills all these years. As Laredo loved to point out to him, even though Darren didn’t lift a finger, the company paid him a salary based on his shares in the company itself. That was when it paid to be a Hernandez. Literally. Unfortunately, the only one who managed to benefit from this was Carly.

  “If you could just pay me in hard copy checks, that would be better,” Darren said uncomfortably. “I don’t carry around a checkbook. I don’t even think I have one.”

  “Right.” Olivia’s expression went from open and excited to speculative. “I suppose trust funds make things easy enough not to have a checking account like a regular person.”

  That was unexpected. Was she being hostile? Darren pursed his lips and tried to decide where to go from here. This was the school principal. Even if she was only pissed off at him, he didn’t want this to reflect badly on Maggie. That meant he needed to be circumspect. Did he even know the meaning of that word?

  “Actually, it’s just complicated,” Darren said, trying to be low-key. “We don’t have trust funds. We have shares in the company. But most of my personal income has come from sports contracts. Like I said, it’s just complicated.”

  “Sports contracts?” Olivia’s eyes gleamed with excitement. “Are you still playing for the Broncos?”

  “Not anymore.” He decided that was the most politic way to answer that question. Ugh. He really wanted to be free of this. Standing quickly, he offered Olivia a smile and a handshake. “It was so wonderful to meet you, Ms. Witherspoon, really. I’m looking forward to working with your students. They’re a great bunch of kids. I’m sure you’ll have no trouble finding a person to permanently hold this teaching position. But until then, I’m glad to be on board.”

  “We’re just so lucky to have you!” Olivia ran around her desk and threw her arms around Darren’s shoulders.

  He stumbled back a step in surprise. What. The. Hell? It was a little bold and extremely forward of the woman to be hugging him. He wasn’t absolutely sure how it worked in an employment situation but was reasonably sure that contact or getting in someone’s personal space was frowned upon.

  “Oh. Hello, Maggie.”

  That was when Darren realized that he had been used by Olivia Witherspoon in one of those petty little feminine games of power. Obviously, Olivia wanted to warn Maggie off of a man that she considered to be hers. Of course, Olivia did not realize that Darren was already more Maggie’s than he would ever be Olivia’s. Wow. This personal relationship/workplace stuff was absolutely nuts to navigate.

  Darren reached up and very gently disentangled Olivia’s arms from his neck. “I appreciate you letting me stay on and fill out that paperwork for you. I’m sure I’ll see you around the school. If you need anything else from me”—Darren decided he needed to be extremely specific here—“regarding the gym classes, of course, then please feel free to contact me or to just come down and meet with me in the gym.”

  Olivia kept staring over Darren’s left shoulder. He knew that Maggie was standing back there. He could feel the heat of her glare, but for now, it didn’t feel as though she were trying to scorch him with it personally. It was more that she was trying to incinerate Olivia. That was good, right? Darren had no idea how these things worked. Olivia was technically Maggie’s boss. That put them at odds already. Was he just making things worse for Maggie?

  Darren sighed and turned around. “Oh, hello, Maggie.” He tried not to sound too exaggerated. “I didn’t realize you were standing there
. I’m glad to see you though. I wanted to speak with you about a few things I noticed with the kids today. I know you were having issues with those third graders and them bullying other students.”

  “Right.” Maggie’s voice did not sound normal to him. It sounded forced. Then she turned and headed down the hallway to her office. “You might as well just come on in and chat for a moment before you go home, then.”

  Okay. That was something. Right? Chatting for a moment instead of being told to send her an email or something else equally impersonal.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Maggie was mad. She didn’t know whom she was mad at. She just knew what emotion was coursing through her veins and making her head throb as though it were about to pop off her neck. She took a seat in her comfy leather chair and began swinging back and forth at her desk. She hooked her foot into the side of the desk frame and used it to propel herself from side to side. For some reason, that was soothing.

  Darren stepped into her office and closed the door quietly behind him. She appreciated the fact that he was not making a bunch of excuses or talking a mile a minute. He seemed to be letting her take the lead. That meant a lot. In fact, it sort of managed to cool her down from boiling to quietly stewing. If that was really an improvement, which it was. She needed to be positive here.

  “It seems like you were getting pretty friendly in there with Ms. Witherspoon,” Maggie finally managed to say once she could get words past her lips.

  His left eyebrow rose, but he showed no other outward reaction. Maggie was at a loss. What had she expected? A big speech? A big rambling monologue of denials and excuses? Honestly, what had she expected from Darren Hernandez? Had he actually done anything wrong?

  “I’m sorry,” Maggie said softly. “That came out a bit on the aggressive side.”

  One corner of Darren’s mouth quirked up into the mockery of a smile. He was such a handsome man. Maggie was struck again by how absolutely masculine he really was. His olive-toned skin contrasted vividly with his blue eyes in the dim afternoon light spilling through her office windows. His hair was tousled, and he looked as though he had been romping around with a bunch of kids all afternoon, which he had been. For some reason, that knowledge made him just that much more attractive to Maggie.

  “I’m not a counselor,” Darren said suddenly. “I don’t have any experience in diagnosing people with personality disorders or dealing with their emotional baggage. But I can tell you that your principal is desperately single. She is pushy. She is extremely aware of the power she wields in her job, and she will not hesitate to use that to her advantage whenever she can.”

  “That’s a pretty accurate summation,” Maggie told him with a chuckle. Then she exhaled and felt a whole bucket load of tension just drain out of her body. “Especially for a guy without a counseling degree and no experience diagnosing personality disorders.”

  “I think, after a certain amount of time, a man gets used to certain types of women and how to handle them.” Darren began to fidget, which seemed out of character for him. He was looking down at his knee where a stray string from his athletic pants was keeping his fingers busy. Then he suddenly looked up and met her gaze with such an expression of confusion that Maggie felt her own heart double thump in response. “What I’m not used to is trying to deal with bullshit behavior like that when the woman is essentially my boss.”

  Maggie bit her lip. She had done Darren a pretty big disservice when she had assumed that he welcomed the attention from Olivia. She was judging him the same way his own brother judged him, and she had no right to do that. With a deep sigh, she decided that there was only one way to proceed.

  “I’m sorry,” Maggie told him quietly. “I’m sorry that I automatically assumed that you enjoyed Olivia’s attentions. I’m sorry I didn’t do more to warn you. And I’m sorry that I brought you in here and probably increased your stress instead of giving you a chance to relax and be safe.”

  Darren’s smile made her pulse speed up until she thought she might leap out of her chair. “There’s no need to be sorry as long as we’re both clear that I’m not attracted to Olivia Witherspoon.”

  “I’m honestly kind of glad to hear that.” Maggie felt sheepish. “A lot of guys seem to prefer her brand of—well, I guess you’d call it style.”

  “I’ll admit that there was a time in my life that I would have been flattered by her attention.” Darren sat back in his chair and seemed to zone out a bit. The faraway look in his eyes was introspective more than anything else. Maggie let him think for a moment in peace. “I thought about that this afternoon too. I thought about how even a few weeks ago I might have wanted to take her out because I knew that at the end of the night there would be a physical payoff.”

  “And now?” Maggie forced the words out. She didn’t want to think about Darren with all of those women who had come before. It was bad enough recalling what Olivia looked like hugging him.

  “And now everything is changing.” His eyes refocused—on her. “I met you, and you intrigue me the way that no Olivia has ever done. I don’t really know why either.” He gave a self-deprecating chuckle. “That sounds really unflattering, but I don’t mean it to be that way. I’m just trying to figure out for myself why everything feels so different now.”

  Maggie pursed her lips. She thought about everything Laredo had said regarding Darren and his history. She thought about the things Darren had let unintentionally slip. And most of all, Maggie thought about how comfortable Darren seemed with the kids and in the role of a teacher. “It seems like you’re doing a lot of changing in a very short period of time,” Maggie suggested quietly. “It happens sometimes when there are exterior factors, like the football career changing. Then we realize that the things that made us happy or fulfilled before—our goals even—aren’t the same anymore. We realize that we’re growing and evolving and that there are other things that mean more to us than we ever could have imagined that they would.”

  “You sound like this has happened to you,” he commented wryly.

  Maggie considered that. She’d never really experienced what he was going through. “My life isn’t that exciting. It’s all been a pretty slow evolution for me. I was an only child. My parents were older. I was alone a lot. I spent a lot of time being ignored. And when I chose a career, I chose it with the idea of making sure I could keep other kids from being ignored too. I think everyone who goes into counseling realizes that they did it because they had their own baggage to deal with. Some of us hide behind other people’s stuff to avoid facing our own. I was no different. I am no different.”

  “I think you’re very different.” Darren’s low voice made her belly tighten. Her whole body began to wake up, and her breathing became ragged as she remembered the kiss they had shared earlier.

  She stood up suddenly. This really wasn’t the place to continue what had happened earlier. It wasn’t the place for any of it. Olivia was probably still right down the hall. Hell, she could even be listening at the door!

  Maggie had a sudden mental image of Olivia peering through the keyhole of Maggie’s office to try and see if Maggie was trying to put the moves on a man that Olivia had obviously claimed for her own. It was so Animal Kingdom laughable that Maggie could not help but giggle.

  “What’s happening, sweetheart?” Darren asked gently. “You seem like you’re all over the place. I want you to know that I’m not interested in Olivia. It’s really important to me that you know that. I’m interested in you.”

  She licked her lips. They’d gone suddenly dry. “Me? You’re really interested in me? But why?”

  “Because you’re a really special woman.” Why did he look as though this was a total duh moment? “Do you not have any idea how special you are? Don’t you look in the mirror every single morning and see that you’re a beautiful, talented, and intelligent woman?” He winked at her, and Maggie thought her heart might actually be in her shoes. “Because if you don’t, you need to get a new mirror. Your o
ld one must be horribly broken.”

  “Broken, hmm?” She could not help but flirt back. The man was so engaging, so very charming, that you just wanted to do anything to make him smile at you and make you feel that thing too.

  “Have dinner with me,” he said suddenly. “Go out and dance with me tonight.”

  “Dance?” She gaped a little. She didn’t dance. She was athletic, but that did not imply coordination. Dancing would likely put her in a position to make a total fool of herself. Not a good idea. Ever.

  “Sure,” he encouraged. Why did he have to look so sure of himself all the time? “Dancing. I love to dance. Especially in one of these Western bars where half the place is full of line dancers and nobody is paying any attention to what everyone else is doing.”

  “Sounds like a party,” she said drily. “I especially like the ‘nobody is paying attention to everyone else.’ You know that’s a load of bull. Right?”

  “Nah!” He took her hand and drew her out from behind the desk. When had they both stood up? Did she even remember that? It was like her body kept unconsciously trying to get closer to his every single second. He lifted her arm and did a little twirl that made her need to spin unless she wanted to lose her hand.

  She could not deny the fact that there was a sensation of exhilaration in that one move. Why was it so exciting to twirl around with him there in her office like some idiotic teenager with a crush?

  “Beautiful,” he murmured. Then he drew her closer and tugged her arms up around his neck. He put his hands on her sides and began to sway side to side. “Yes. I want to take you dancing. Tonight. Go with me.”