Jenna held Yvonne's gaze. "And you should, because he likes you."
"I'm not getting in the way of true lust, girlfriend." Yvonne held out her hand palm up. "You go for it."
"I'm not going to do anything. We get along fine now, but our relationship is purely professional," Jenna said. "He doesn't think of me like that, anyway. I'm just the annoying new vet."
"You see, there's your problem. You need to make him think of you like that," Yvonne said, and January nodded.
"She's right."
"How? By accidentally falling out of the hayloft into his arms? I'd probably break my neck."
"He'd catch you." January and Yvonne spoke in unison. "You know he would."
"If he was around, maybe, but knowing my luck I'd fall on Roy and kill him."
"You've got to get rid of the negative attitude, and there's no need to be so dramatic." Yvonne pointed one long finger at Jenna. "All you have to do is pay him some genuine attention. You know, really listen to him when he talks, make eye contact, touch him in little ways, you know, like owning him, right?"
Jenna stared at Yvonne. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I don't do that stuff and Blue's not stupid. He'd know that something was up."
"He'd know that you were interested in him." Yvonne sipped her coffee. "And if you really are interested, then you'll do those things naturally."
Jenna sat back, her arms folded across her chest. "Which makes no sense because I'm not doing them, so I'm obviously not that keen on him after all."
"Stop." Yvonne rubbed her forehead. "You're giving me frown lines. Sometimes a man needs a little nudge to stop seeing you as one thing and see you as another, okay? So maybe Blue sees you as the veterinarian, so if you want to change that dynamic you need to help him see you as a woman."
"A woman who wants him," January added helpfully.
"I don't-" Jenna sighed. "Okay, maybe I do, but he's not interested in me. I get nothing back from him at all."
"That's not true," January said. "He definitely notices you, and he always says very positive things about you when you're not there."
"He does?" For a moment Jenna perked up. "I mean, he did offer to teach me self-defense techniques, one-on-one, which was super nice of him . . ."
"Nice?" Yvonne sighed dramatically. "I would've demanded my first lesson immediately, and preferably naked." Yvonne's cell buzzed and she put down her cup. "I've got to get back to work. Think about what I said, Jenna, and try and use some of those feminine wiles God gifted you with."
January stood up, too, brushing crumbs off her boobs. "Do you want me to put a good word in for you?"
"God no. This isn't high school." Jenna buried her face in her hands. "I wish I'd just kept my big mouth shut about those abs."
"From the sound of it, they are a thing of awe and beauty that should be shared with the female population." January winked at her. "Maybe I'll just slip Blue a note under the table at dinner tonight saying 'do you like Jenna, check box yes or box no.'"
"I need to get back to work," Jenna muttered. "And stop thinking about abs."
* * *
Blue finished his turkey sandwich and took a long slug of iced tea.
"Thanks for lunch, Ruth."
"You're welcome. No Jenna today, then?"
"She had other stuff to do."
Ruth was peeling apples, which probably meant pie, which made Blue very happy.
"You seem to be getting on great with her now."
"She's good at her job. I like that." Blue took another sip of tea and tasted the mint Ruth liked to infuse in it. "I like her. She's good company."
"Pretty, too."
Blue eyed his grandmother over the top of his glass. "I hadn't noticed."
"Hard to miss." Ruth cut an apple into quarters and placed it in the bowl.
"You matchmaking here?"
"I wouldn't dare." Ruth started peeling another apple. "Just pointing out the obvious."
Blue thought about Jenna's big brown eyes and the way her hair glinted red in the sunlight. Her smile was nice, too. They'd been getting on great for the past few weeks. If he'd been in the market for a real long-term relationship, she was just the sort of woman he'd want. Smart, hardworking, and able to stand toe to toe with him and argue her point.
But he wasn't ready to settle down yet, and she wasn't the sort of woman who would be happy with the short-term sexual relationships he specialized in when both parties knew what they were getting into and how to get out. She deserved the whole package, the white picket fence, two kids, and all that implied. He wasn't sure if he'd ever be the man to deliver that little fantasy.
"Anyone home?"
Ruth looked up. "Is that you, Chase?"
"Yup." Blue's older brother came through the kitchen door and enveloped his grandmother in a hug. "How are you doing?"
"I'm good." Ruth kissed his cheek. "Come and sit down and have something to eat."
Chase obediently sat and nodded at Blue. "You still here?"
"I'm due back on base in two days." Blue grimaced. "I can't wait to see how much more paperwork I've got to complete to finally be free."
Chase took some iced tea. "Any idea about the actual end date yet?"
"Not quite. There are all kinds of algorithms to be worked through before we can arrive at anything that straightforward. But I'm hoping it's less than a month away now."
"Good. I'd like you to be here as we move forward."
"Trust me, I'm working on it, bro."
Ruth placed a grilled cheese sandwich in front of Chase and patted his shoulder. "Eat it while it's hot."
Chase sank his teeth into the golden bread, and strands of cheese dripped down from his chin onto the plate. "Damn, that's good."
Before Blue could even articulate the thought, Ruth put another sandwich in front of him.
He grinned at her. "How did you know?"
"Because you've always wanted what your older brother had."
"Apart from his stressful tech job and his fiancée?" Blue added. "I'd like his millions, though."
"Wouldn't we all?" Ruth agreed.
Chase finished his sandwich and wiped his chin. "Where's January?"
"She's in town with Yvonne and Jenna." Blue answered him through a mouthful of cheese. "They're having lunch and talking shit about you. She said she'd be back around three."
"Cool. That gives us time to go over a few things." Chase retrieved his laptop from his bag and fired it up. "I've done a new cost analysis on the overall financial upkeep of the barn and other elements involved in the wear and tear of running a string of horses for guests."
"Great," Blue groaned. "Just how I wanted to spend my afternoon, being lectured by you."
"I bet you'd rather be out with Jenna, wouldn't you, Blue?" Ruth put two mugs on the table and filled them with coffee.
"Jenna McDonald?" Chase looked up from his spreadsheet. "You're seeing her?"
"We're working together on the horses." Blue gave Ruth a "quit meddling" look. "She's doing a great job."
"I know January speaks very highly of her." Chase's interest returned to the financials. "I'm thinking we might need a vet permanently on staff if we do this thing right. Do you think Jenna would be interested?"
"I have no idea." Blue considered the notion of Jenna being at the ranch all the time, and it didn't scare him one bit. "But I wouldn't mind if she took the job."
Then maybe in ten or twenty years' time, when he'd matured into the kind of man who was ready to settle down, she'd be ready to settle down with him. Blue snorted. Like she'd still be around. She was way too cute and intelligent to be without a man if she wanted one. But he'd started to enjoy her company and looked forward to spending time with her, which was a first for him.
"BB?"
He looked up to find Chase staring at him. "What?"
"You're not concentrating." His brother shut his laptop. "How about we take a ride into town, pick up the mail, and meet up with January for lunch?"
"Sounds way better than looking at spreadsheets with you." Blue stood up and gathered up the plates and mugs. Thank God for Chase's all-consuming interest in his fiancée. "I wanted to talk to Yvonne about an idea I had anyway."
* * *
Jenna finished her cappuccino and surreptitiously ate the remains of January's second chocolate muffin before finally standing up to leave. To her surprise, January was walking back toward her, a huge smile on her face and a tall, dark, and handsome cowboy behind her.
"Hey. Don't go just yet! Chase is here."
"I'm sure he'd much rather see you than me," Jenna said even as Chase Morgan, who had the same bright blue eyes as his brother, took her hand in a firm grasp and shook it.