She began to measure him without preamble, and Rue watched the proceedings closely. Justice gave her a smile and a wink as Sue measured down his inseam.
“Careful,” he said.
“I know what I’m doing,” she responded, brusquely.
Rue liked it when a woman wasn’t flustered by Justice. It was far too easy for him to get a reaction out of women. They shouldn’t reward his bad behavior.
“Where were you?” Rue asked, because suddenly she was suspicious.
“In bed.”
She couldn’t help herself; she let out an exasperated sigh. “You’re a cowboy, Justice. How do you end up sleeping past noon?”
“Easy. I party till the cows come home. Then I feed the cows. Then I go to bed.”
“Lord.” She scrubbed her hand over her forehead.
“Okay,” said Sue. “Go in the next room and put these on.” She pulled some pants, a vest, a shirt and a jacket off her rolling clothes rack. “They’ll be close. Then I’ll put some pins in and make the alterations.”
Justice went into her bedroom without checking with her first. It was clean, thankfully. She knew that.
He emerged a few minutes later and she was stunned speechless. Motionless. Thoughtless.
She knew Justice better than she knew anyone. She knew him after a hard day’s work. She knew him as a third-grade boy who wouldn’t read and who’d had to take lessons from her, a girl a whole grade younger than him. She knew him as a protector, a terrible poker player, a first-rate playboy.
But she’d never known him in a tux.
Good. Lord.
He was too powerful. She was going to have to warn her female family members, and Asher’s, whocame from out of town, to be safe and vigilant where he was concerned because...
In a tux he waslethal.
All the broad, muscular lines of his body were so sharp in that suit. The black bow tie made him look like Cowboy James Bond.
She’d seen him cleaned up, but this was another level.
Justice, the man she’d known since childhood, had actually rendered her speechless.
“Well... well, that’s fantastic,” she said.
“Yes,” Sue agreed. “Just a few alterations to make.”
She was speedy with her pins, and far too quickly, Justice was back and changing out of the tux. “You’re going to make a great decoration at the wedding,” Rue said.
She was only half kidding. Having him on stage looking like that was a boon. She could save on flowers. Who needed them when you had all that cowboy to look at?
“Thanks, Rue, I always wanted to settle down and live a quiet life as something more aesthetic than useful. I’d be a great paperweight.”
In spite of herself, Sue, who was really quite stoic, blushed. Justice was a whole thing and he couldn’t be stopped.
“I’ll have the altered suit back by the end of the week,” Sue said.
“Great,” Rue responded. “I’ll talk to you then.”
Sue hung everything on her rolling rack and collected her supplies, before leaving Justice and Rue alone in the house.
“I bet I could pull her if I wanted to,” he said.
