Free Two Wild for Teacher: Lone Star Lovers, Book 6 by Delilah Devlin Page A

need to—she’d directed a similar look his way several times in the last few weeks.
    “Is that a problem?” he asked in a low voice. The RV wasn’t the best place for this conversation, especially with AJ sitting right behind them, but she had the TV turned up loud enough to drown them out.
    Joe rubbed his knuckles on his unshaven cheek. “It might be if you don’t find someplace else for her to bunk.”
    Brent studied the man who’d been his right hand and best friend for over six years. He’d never seen Joe this on edge. His jaw was tense, his blue eyes furtive, and his dark brown hair stood on end as if he’d been shoving his hands through it for the last hour while Brent was absorbed in his bookwork. When had he gone so salt-and-pepper? Even his moustache and beard stubble glinted with a considerable helping of silver.
    Actually, it was kind of surprising that AJ would be so attracted to a man showing as much wear as Joe did. Big, gruff and work-hardened, he looked older than his forty-seven years. Her attraction to Brent made more sense—he was younger, fairly laid-back and had the kind of lean blond looks that had attracted a lot of ladies over the years.
    “You think so?” he asked doubtfully. “She seems more like the type to just lust from afar rather than put the moves on a guy she works with.”
    “It’s not her moves I’m worried about.”
    Brent narrowed his eyes. “Don’t tell me you’re interested.”
    “Maybe.”
    “You’re way out of her league.”
    He hadn’t intended it to be a warning, but that was how it came out. At thirty-four, AJ Pender might not be in the first blush of womanhood, but she was quiet, reserved and obviously still young and innocent in all the ways that counted. She wouldn’t have the least idea what to do if guys like them took her up on the unconscious offer in her eyes, and he’d just as soon it stayed that way.
    “Tell me about it,” Joe said impatiently. After another quick glance at AJ, he said, “Let’s get out of here. I need a drink.”
    Brent shut down his laptop without hesitation. Shoving the receipts back into their file folder, he stood up and unbuckled his belt to take off his pliers holster while Joe did the same. After he’d tucked the tail of his flannel shirt back into his jeans, he turned to look at AJ. The lanky blonde farmhand was curled up on one end of the couch in a baggy sweatshirt and faded jeans, dividing her attention between her own laptop and some medical drama on TV. Judging by the lack of keyboarding sounds, she’d been mostly reading rather than writing.
    If he were polite, he’d ask her to go along with them. Instead he asked, “Whatcha readin’, AJ?”
    Red flags appeared on her cheeks as she looked up, and she put on hand on the laptop’s lid as if she intended to slam it down if anyone came near enough to see what was on the screen. “Um, nothing. I mean, nothing much. Just an e-book. They’re a lot easier to carry around than a stack of paperbacks,” she hurried to explain.
    “An e-book, huh?” He tried not to grin. “We know someone who writes e-books, don’t we, Joe?”
    “We sure do,” Joe drawled, shrugging into his jacket. “Ever read anything by Amanda Garrity?”
    AJ’s blue eyes widened. “You know Amanda Garrity?”
    “Yup,” Brent said. “So you’ve read her books?”
    He wouldn’t have thought it possible, but she turned even redder. “Well, um, I think I, uh—”
    “That’s okay, honey.” Brent winked at her. “We won’t tell anyone if you don’t.”
    Instead of protesting her innocence, AJ just let her eyes slide to the TV and chewed on her lower lip. The confirmation that she read dirty books drew his balls up tight.
    Ignoring the reaction, he said, “So we’re headed to town. Need anything?”
    “Not unless you can get me a new pair of boots at the bar,” she said without looking at him. She was obviously uncomfortable with their knowing about her choice of reading