Page 42 of One Wild Chance

“Wise man.” Larissa nods.

“What brings you two in tonight?” he asks. Sawyer has been tending this bar long enough to know when to change the subject.

“She talked me into it.” I nudge Larissa with my elbow.

“One of those weeks?” he asks.

“One of those months.”

He nods like that explains everything. “Well, it’s good to see you. Been a while.” He picks up a glass and a bar towel. “How long since you stopped in last—two years?”

I frown. “It hasn’t been two years.”

He tosses the towel over his shoulder. “You sure about that?”

“It’s been almost two years,” Larissa corrects.

I flash her a look. “It’s not my fault horses are time-consuming.”

Larissa points at the stage. “You haven’t even come to see me when I’ve played here.”

“Horses are very emotionally needy animals, Larissa!”

It’s an excuse, and we both know it. Colton would cover for me any night I asked.

“By the way,” Sawyer interjects, motioning toward the door. “Looks like your evening just got more fun.”

All four Chance brothers walk in, wearing Lucky Chance ball caps, like they’ve formed their own professional sports team.

Before they’ve even made it to a table, they’re surrounded by townsfolk. Wyatt’s approached by two women who want a photo. Rhett is already beelining toward someone he went to school with. Grady is looking for the table closest to the exit so he can sneak out later, leaving Jaxon cornered by a woman who’s wearing a mini-skirt so short it should be outlawed. He gives her that lazy smile that he probably used on half the women in South Carolina. I can’t seem to stop myself from staring, because dang him, he looks so good in that hat. Without warning, his gaze drifts over her shoulder and lands on me, and I make the tiny error of not looking away fast enough.

His grin falters for a second. Then he gives me a softer smile that’s slightly lopsided, with eyes crinkling at the corners. And I’m suddenly sixteen again.

I whirl around on my stool, but I can still feel him watching. Lightning slides down my spine.

Larissa leans toward me. “Still not looking?”

“It was accidental.”

“Well, that’s interesting,” she says. “Jaxon just ditched Little Miss Mini-Skirt. And he’s staring at you.”

I want to check that she’s right, but that will just give him the satisfaction of thinking I care that he’s here. I pick up my drink and ignore him. “He probably has opinions about who I talk to.”

Sawyer wipes down the bar. “It’s what I call the attention effect.”

“Excuse me?” I ask.

“Once a man pays attention to a woman, every other man around suddenly wants to know what’s over there. I’ve watched it happen ten thousand times.”

“And you use this knowledge for good?”

“Mostly,” he says with a cheerful shrug.

I think about what happened at the farmers market when Blaine was at my booth. Maybe Sawyer is onto something.

“Works like a charm,” he promises with a wink.

Larissa stirs the ice in her cup. “Well, it’s not working for me.”