a step toward her,
and she felt her throat close and her mouth go dry.
Oh my fucking lord.
No,
she was not standing in front of this man, one of the men she’d seen at the bar
with Travis the previous night, and who she just knew was related to Travis
someway because they looked so similar.
“Pearl, right?” The man asked again and took
another step toward her. His blue eyes and dark hair were exactly the same
shade as Travis’s, and even the masculine, square jaw, shape of his nose, and
the way his hair lay on his head was almost identical.
Of course this guy looked younger, and the way he smiled at her was different,
too.
“Yes,
I’m Pearl. Are you Jace ?” she asked, remembering the
man’s name she’d spoken with on the phone.
He
grinned, a dimple flashing on his cheek. “Nah, I’m Colton, one of the Sterling
brothers.”
She
swallowed. “One of the Sterling brothers?”
He
looked at her a little funny, but she felt awkward right now, and he probably
could sense that. “Yeah, there are three of us you’d be cleaning after, which I
apologize for ahead of time. It can get messy, especially if we’ve been out in
the fields all day and tending to the animals.” He ran a hand over his worn
jeans.
He
spoke like she’d already got and accepted the position. “Um.” She looked around, not knowing how to react right now. She expected to see
Travis walking out of the house any minute now, and how awkward would that be,
seeing a man that she’d had a one-night stand with and who had snuck out in the
middle of the night. Of course she couldn’t blame him, because she would have
hauled ass out of there, too, if it had been the other way around. She’d never
had a one-night stand before, but she wouldn’t have wanted to deal with the
awkwardness after the fact.
Colton
lifted an eyebrow as he watched her, probably thinking she was a fool because
she couldn’t even form a coherent sentence. The front door opened again, and
the other Sterling brother, who she assumed to be Jace ,
stepped out. He wore a plaid button down shirt, a white t-shirt clearly seen
underneath, and a pair of worn jeans encasing his muscular thighs. His cowboy
boots, just like Colton’s, were worn and faded brown, showing the hard work
they clearly did.
“You
must be the woman I spoke with on the phone, the one that is here for the job?”
he asked, his voice deep, slightly raspy. Both men were tall, muscular, with an
air of masculinity coming from them.
She
swallowed and nodded. “I am.” She looked between the two men.
“I
see you’ve met my brother, Colton,” Jace said, and
glanced at the other man. “Well, how about we take this inside?” Jace held the door open for her. She smiled and lowered her
head as she moved into the house. The smell of cologne filled her head as soon
as she stepped inside, as well as the scent of old burning wood, grease, and a
hint of what she thought may have been grilled steak. It was the weirdest
combination.
When
she looked at the living room that was to her right, she saw the horror of the
clothes over the couch and chairs, newspaper lining the coffee table, beer cans
tipped over, fortunately empty, but in a basket by the side of one of the
chairs. There were family pictures hanging on the walls, but they were too far
away for her to make them out clearly.
“Wow,”
she said under her breath. There was a worn, rustic pine looking staircase in
front of her, a deer antler chandelier that hung above her, although
“chandelier” might have made it sound more elegant than it was. This whole
place was very woodsy and masculine, but then again the house sat in the center
of acres upon acres of rural land and woods.
The
kitchen was to her left, and she held back her horror at seeing the sink full
of dishes crusted with food, the trashcan by the counter that was overflowing
with trash, and the counters that looked like they may be gorgeous white marble
under all that grime.
“Pretty, ain’t
and she felt her throat close and her mouth go dry.
Oh my fucking lord.
No,
she was not standing in front of this man, one of the men she’d seen at the bar
with Travis the previous night, and who she just knew was related to Travis
someway because they looked so similar.
“Pearl, right?” The man asked again and took
another step toward her. His blue eyes and dark hair were exactly the same
shade as Travis’s, and even the masculine, square jaw, shape of his nose, and
the way his hair lay on his head was almost identical.
Of course this guy looked younger, and the way he smiled at her was different,
too.
“Yes,
I’m Pearl. Are you Jace ?” she asked, remembering the
man’s name she’d spoken with on the phone.
He
grinned, a dimple flashing on his cheek. “Nah, I’m Colton, one of the Sterling
brothers.”
She
swallowed. “One of the Sterling brothers?”
He
looked at her a little funny, but she felt awkward right now, and he probably
could sense that. “Yeah, there are three of us you’d be cleaning after, which I
apologize for ahead of time. It can get messy, especially if we’ve been out in
the fields all day and tending to the animals.” He ran a hand over his worn
jeans.
He
spoke like she’d already got and accepted the position. “Um.” She looked around, not knowing how to react right now. She expected to see
Travis walking out of the house any minute now, and how awkward would that be,
seeing a man that she’d had a one-night stand with and who had snuck out in the
middle of the night. Of course she couldn’t blame him, because she would have
hauled ass out of there, too, if it had been the other way around. She’d never
had a one-night stand before, but she wouldn’t have wanted to deal with the
awkwardness after the fact.
Colton
lifted an eyebrow as he watched her, probably thinking she was a fool because
she couldn’t even form a coherent sentence. The front door opened again, and
the other Sterling brother, who she assumed to be Jace ,
stepped out. He wore a plaid button down shirt, a white t-shirt clearly seen
underneath, and a pair of worn jeans encasing his muscular thighs. His cowboy
boots, just like Colton’s, were worn and faded brown, showing the hard work
they clearly did.
“You
must be the woman I spoke with on the phone, the one that is here for the job?”
he asked, his voice deep, slightly raspy. Both men were tall, muscular, with an
air of masculinity coming from them.
She
swallowed and nodded. “I am.” She looked between the two men.
“I
see you’ve met my brother, Colton,” Jace said, and
glanced at the other man. “Well, how about we take this inside?” Jace held the door open for her. She smiled and lowered her
head as she moved into the house. The smell of cologne filled her head as soon
as she stepped inside, as well as the scent of old burning wood, grease, and a
hint of what she thought may have been grilled steak. It was the weirdest
combination.
When
she looked at the living room that was to her right, she saw the horror of the
clothes over the couch and chairs, newspaper lining the coffee table, beer cans
tipped over, fortunately empty, but in a basket by the side of one of the
chairs. There were family pictures hanging on the walls, but they were too far
away for her to make them out clearly.
“Wow,”
she said under her breath. There was a worn, rustic pine looking staircase in
front of her, a deer antler chandelier that hung above her, although
“chandelier” might have made it sound more elegant than it was. This whole
place was very woodsy and masculine, but then again the house sat in the center
of acres upon acres of rural land and woods.
The
kitchen was to her left, and she held back her horror at seeing the sink full
of dishes crusted with food, the trashcan by the counter that was overflowing
with trash, and the counters that looked like they may be gorgeous white marble
under all that grime.
“Pretty, ain’t
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