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Lunch was interesting, to say the least. Maddox told them to make a splash in Ardmore. Noah asked the waitress to seat them in the center of the room and treated Violet as though she was the only woman alive. He stroked her hair, trailed his fingers over her cheek, kissed her palm several times, nibbled on her fingers, and leaned over to brush his mouth over hers repeatedly. He’d even fed Violet bites of her dessert. Seth wondered if Teagan would allow him the same privilege. A conversation for another time, though. Truthfully, he’d wanted to do that, and much more with Teagan.
“Wish you’d settle down,” Noah said. “You’re driving me nuts with all that pacing.”
“Bite me.”
“No, thanks, partner. Violet is more to my taste.”
“You were laying it on pretty thick in the restaurant.”
“Playing a role, remember? It’s how we’re supposed to act.”
“Violet is Teagan’s friend and teammate. Although we have a role to play, I don’t want you to hurt her.”
Noah turned away from the window and glared at Seth. “Since when have I ever hurt a woman, Dixon?”
He scowled. “You know what I mean. Putting on a show is one thing. Toying with her emotions is going too far.”
“Who says I’m faking how I feel?” his partner muttered.
Seth stopped inches from Noah. “You know what these women do for a living.”
“Yeah, so?”
“Can you handle that?”
“Can you?”
“I’ll deal. To do otherwise means I’ll lose Teagan. I can’t lose her, Noah. She’s everything.” And still he was taking her into the lion’s den. What kind of boyfriend did that make him? Seth wasn’t sure he could keep her safe.
His partner stared at him a moment, then gave a bark of laughter. “Never thought I’d see the day when you fell to the wiles of a beautiful woman. Now, I’ve seen everything.”
“This isn’t about me,” he muttered. “This is about Violet. Do what you have to do for this operation, but know if you hurt her, you’ll deal with me.”
“Noted.”
A moment later, the women laughed as they descended the stairs. When Teagan stepped into view, Seth’s heart skipped a beat. He longed to take her into his arms and steal a dozen kisses, but he was literally frozen in place.
In his eyes, Teagan was always beautiful when they met for runs. Now, though, her beauty was off the scale. She wore a purple sheath with killer heels, and she’d done something to her eyes to make them look smoky and mysterious.
Finally, his muscles unlocked and he met her at the bottom of the stairs, extending his hand to her. When she placed her hand on his, Seth kissed her knuckles. “You look edible, Teagan Paloni. It’s a good thing I always carry a weapon because, baby,the way you look will make you irresistible to every male at The Ranch. I’ll have to beat them off.”
She laughed. “I only have eyes for you, Seth Dixon.”
Thank God. He’d hate to miss out on the next few decades with this woman because he beat down the competition and ended up in jail.
Noah stopped near Violet, who had watched the interaction between Teagan and Seth play out. “You look gorgeous, Violet,” he murmured. “Thank you for agreeing to have dinner with me tonight.” He winked. “Even if we have to put up with two chaperones.”
She smiled. “My pleasure. I’ve always wanted to go to The Ranch. Now, I’ll get to see what the fuss is all about.”
“Although the food is excellent, I’m not comfortable in that setting.”
“Is that why your relationship with the attorney petered out?”
“One reason.” He led her and the others toward the front door. “By the way, the grapevine in town says one or two members of The Brotherhood usually appear at The Ranch.”
Seth frowned. “Are you serious? How did they get memberships?”
“Money talks.”