Stop it.
You’re being ridiculous.
James wasn’t interested in her. He probably had his eye on someone else in town. Maybe it was his assistant.
Her steps slowed, her hand tightening on the rope in her hand. The threads of the rope dug into her skin, pinching her sensitive palm as she observed him.
James was staring at Brielle like a fool.
Of course.
How could she be so naive? Everyone loved Brielle. She was the beauty, but she was also the brave one. Everyone who ever dated her was willing to do it behind her father’s back because of who she was.
Constance bit back the emotion in her throat, swallowing the bile of disappointment as it threatened to erupt. James would be disappointed when he found out that Brielle didn’t like him at all. She thought he was too full of himself. What would he say if he heard that?
She snorted.
Guys who liked Brielle didn’t care if she refused to give them a chance. They were willing to get their hearts broken if it meant they could steal one kiss from her. Constance had lost count of all the times her older sister had snuck out in the middle of the night to go dancing or spend time with the newest flavor of the week.
Dr. Pratt deserved better than Brielle. He deserved to find someone who thought the sun and the moon rose and set for him.
Someone like Constance.
Her face flushed hot and probably a deep red color, forcing her to turn around and face the barn. She refused to be caught staring at him. And he would definitely never see her blush over him. James Pratt was just a guy.
A guy she could never call her own no matter how much she wanted to.
She let the cool air brush over her, settling the blood cells that had insisted on making a home just beneath the surface of her skin.
When she climbed through the fence of the corral, he was still staring like an idiot. She sighed as she brushed past him. “She doesn’t like you.”
He jumped, his head snapping around to stare at her so fast that his neck had to be hurting. “What?”
Constance shrugged, placing the rope around Calliope’s face and securing it. “Brielle thinks you’re just full of hot air. She doesn’t like you.” Her back faced James, so he couldn’t see the way Constance grimaced as she probably crushed his spirit. Why did she feel the need to tell him that? He could have just as easily learned it himself if he’d bothered to talk to her in person.
“Why do you say that?” His voice made her jump, the low timber rumbling through her body and vibrating her bones.
Still refusing to meet his gaze, she fingered the rope. “She said so herself the other day.”
“You guys were talking about me?” Now, instead of simple curiosity, his voice held notes of amusement.
Goosebumps rose on her arms and legs, her skin prickling with the sensation. Finally, she turned to face him. “We weren’t talking about you specifically.” Alright, that was a bold-faced lie. But how could she explain why she had brought up how she felt about him? He didn’t need to hear how she practically worshiped him.
And that feeling had only gotten more pronounced after he’d saved Clio. Goodness. She was in so much trouble. She should have seen this coming. The lump in her throat had done exactly what the Grinch’s heart had done—it had grown too many sizes and now was cutting off the air to her lungs.
James was right in front of her—literal inches from her. She could smell the soap he used and that, combined with his closeness, had her stomach knotting up like it had the day before. If humans were so evolved, why couldn’t they control the way their insides went haywire whenever they were near someone they were attracted to?
He tilted his head and her mouth went dry. He seemed to be studying her, delving into her mind to find every last dark secret she held there.
Well, she wasn’t going to let him be successful. James Pratt had no right to her innermost thoughts. Not now, not ever.
Unless she started dating him.
Nope. Not even then, her mind argued.
If he found out how much she liked him, then she would never hear the end of it.
Constance edged away from him but then held out the rope. “What do you want me to do while you exercise them?”