Page 16 of Cowboy SEAL Homecoming

She stomped up the front porch and crossed her arms over her chest, feeling oddly self-conscious even now.

It wasn’t necessarily a bad feeling, which was the weird part. There’d been a jittery sort of excitement shivering through her when she’d realized that a guy might be interested in what she looked like.

She didn’t exactly hate the idea of any of them finding her attractive. She just hadn’t been around enough men to know if she was that kind of attractive.

You are one sick puppy.

She pulled her boots over the scraper and then swore under her breath as a car appeared on the rise.

No time to clean herself up then. She took a deep breath to settle her nerves. If she thought of Jack’s and Gabe’s obvious disapproval, she could focus on proving them wrong instead of being nervous. Maybe it was messed up that she needed someone’s disapproval to calm her and offer some confidence, but if that’s what she needed, she’d take it.

The shiny sedan that stopped next to her truck appeared to be a rental of some kind. She needed to remember to give Alex and the guys keys to Burt’s truck. If they wanted more than one vehicle between the three of them, they’d have to work that out themselves. But they could certainly have Burt’s.

Even if it might kill her to see someone else behind the wheel of the old Ford.

She ignored that unwelcome thought and smiled as a blond woman got out of the car. Becca pulled off her gloves and shoved them into her back pocket as she walked toward the woman. “Afternoon. You must be Ms. Finley.”

“Monica.” The woman smiled and held out a hand for Becca to shake. “And you must be Becca. You have a beautiful place here.”

“Thank you,” Becca returned, shaking the woman’s hand quickly. “We like it. I didn’t have a chance to clean up, but if you’d like to come inside, we can sit down and discuss the position.” Becca was so impressed with herself at how adult and in control she sounded.

She turned to the house and walked inside, ushering Monica with her. As she was gesturing her into the living room, Alex appeared at the bottom of the stairs.

Becca frowned at him. He was wearing nice clothes. Khaki pants and a button-down shirt. His hair was a little wet, like he’d just taken a shower.

“Where are you off to?” she asked before she could think better of it.

He cocked his head. “The meeting with the therapist is now, correct?”

“Yes. This is Monica Finley. Monica, this is one of my business partners, Alex Maguire.”

Alex held out a hand and shook Monica’s with an easy, charming smile. “It’s good to meet you. What can I get you to drink? A pop? Water? Coffee?”

“I’ll take some coffee, if you’re offering.”

“Absolutely. Why don’t you take a seat on the couch? Becca, would you help me with the drinks?”

Becca trailed after Alex trying to figure out what the hell he thought he was doing. This was her deal. They’d agreed on that.

She followed him into the kitchen, lowering her voice. “Why are you here?”

“The meeting with the therapist,” he said as though her question were a stupid one. “Why are you dressed like that?”

She didn’t want to admit to her lack of time management, especially when she was already nervous. “It’s called work. I still have to do it, even if I have to also do this. Which is my arm of the business. We agreed on that.”

“Just because it’s your arm and it’s your decision whether you hire her doesn’t mean I’m not going to be part of the meeting.”

“I can’t believe you’re trying to take this over,” she muttered while he made the coffee. She should have seen it coming. He wasn’t all that different from her mother.

“I’m not taking anything over. I’m just participating,” he replied calmly.

She wanted to pinch him. Instead, she would match his calm with a serenity of her own. She strode over to the cabinet and got out three mugs and then went to the cabinet where her mother kept all sorts of decorative serving ware. Even though they’d never served much of anyone, her mom had loved to collect the stuff.

Going through the array of trays and large bowls calmed her down though. It reminded her of all the things her mother had sacrificed in trying to keep Becca healthy. It was a good reminder when her head was about to explode. Sometimes people did obnoxious things from a really good place.

Alex was trying to do the right thing. He just wasn’t very good at knowing how to let someone else lead. Still, he was sacrificing things for other people and she had to appreciate that.

“Do you have questions prepared? Do you have—”