Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 111(@200wpm)___ 88(@250wpm)___ 74(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 111(@200wpm)___ 88(@250wpm)___ 74(@300wpm)
How dare he kiss me after telling me that I'm a distraction, a problem, a lamb to the slaughter, and everything else? The problem on this ranch isn't me. It isn't the other cowboys, either. It's him.
He is such a hypocrite!
As soon as my feet touch the floor, I stomp to the desk and write out the equivalent of a war declaration before tacking it to my front door.
No Grumps Allowed
(This means you, Walker)
I need the reminder that he's the enemy. Maybe it'll keep me from doing something completely stupid, like inviting him inside so I can climb him.
I spend half my morning cursing his name while I prep breakfast, trying to convince myself that I don't actually want him. I'm convinced I've succeeded…right up until he strolls into my kitchen, looking as wildly perfect as he did last night. My heart flutters, and all my hard work goes right down the drain.
"How long until breakfast?" he asks by way of greeting.
I scowl daggers at him. "It'll be ready when it's ready, Walker Jessup. Do I go into your fields and ask you how long until the cow is milked or the bull is castrated?"
His lips twitch. "Sunshine."
"You know, I'm beginning to think rude is your default setting. Were you a rodeo cowboy before? I bet you probably got bucked off a horse a few too many times and it addled your brains."
"I'm not askin' to be rude, Sunshine. I'm askin' because you've got a mess hall full of eager cowboys out there, and when I walked in, they were all lined up at the kitchen door, fighting over who gets the first place."
"I…What? Are you serious?" I blink at him.
"I'm trying to forestall a riot."
"Jesus Christ." I scrub a hand down my face. "I need like ten more minutes."
"I'll make sure you get it." He saunters toward the door, then pauses, glancing back over at me. "And good morning. You look beautiful. I hope you slept well."
I show him my teeth. "Like a baby."
"I just bet you did." He pulls a piece of paper from his back pocket before unfolding it.
My stomach sinks. Crap.
"No grumps allowed," he reads. "This means you, Walker." One brow arches, his smirk downright deadly. "You tryin' to convince me, or yourself that you don't want me in your space, Sunshine?"
"Put my sign back, Walker."
"Nah, I think I'll keep it."
"You're an asshole."
His laughter is as hot as it is infuriating…which is probably why, once everything is done and on trays, I make his plate for him. And I add extra salt to everything. A lot of it.
If he croaks at the breakfast table, I'm having a party.
Chapter Six
Walker
"Where the fuck is Toby?" Blaze growls, stomping up to me, wiping sweat from his brow. "I've searched this entire goddamn ranch for him today."
"He's gone," I mutter, hammering a fence post into place.
"Gone?" Blaze blinks at me. "What do you mean, he's gone?"
"I mean, he left the ranch last night and won't be returning."
"Well, fuck me," Blaze mumbles. "Would have been nice had he let me know."
"It was a last-minute decision. Bishop." I wait for Bishop to stop pretending he isn't listening to every damn word Blaze and I just said. "This needs more wire."
"Yeah, on it," Bishop mutters, trying to hide a smile. He saunters toward the truck, chuckling.
"You fired him," Blaze says after a moment.
"No. I simply strongly suggested to Tanner that Toby find other employment." I saw the way he was looking at Letty last night. If I'd kept him around, he'd have been right back in that kitchen again today, and then tomorrow. That shit isn't happening. So I let Flint and Tanner know that he was going to be a problem for Letty. To no one's surprise, we found him heading to her place when we walked over to tell him to pack his shit.
Now, the problem is solved.
"Jesus Christ, Walker," Blaze growls before he throws his head back, laughing up at the sky. "You're one possessive asshole, you know that?"
"Why do you need Toby today?"
"We're supposed to be repairing a hole in the roof of the west barn."
"Shit." I pause what I'm doing, quickly trying to run through a list of where everyone is today. Our workload is heavy, and we're running short of bodies. "Take Bishop. I can finish this up by myself."
"You sure?" Blaze glances down the row of fence line that needs repairing. "You'll be out here all goddamn day if you're doing it alone."
"It's fine. I've got it. I can—" I break off when I see Letty stalking toward us across the field with a basket in her hands. She looks like a little kid trooping through the field, tripping on every goddamn hole and root in her path.
"Is she singing?" Blaze asks when he sees her coming.