Page 28 of Wilder

“That’s not—” He practically choked, stumbling over himself. “Fuck. I didn’t mean to say that you were. I— Wilder... I don’t think that.”

I let him scramble for another second before I waved a hand, cutting him off before he sent himself into a full-blown panic.

“Relax,” I said, my voice dry. “You don’t need to spare my feelings, kid. I can handle it.”

The problem was, that was a lie.

And lying through my teeth?

Not exactly a practiced skill of mine.

Because as much as I told myself I didn’t care, as much as I liked to think I had a thick skin when it came to what people thought of me, something about the idea of Asher seeing me as just another hard-ass boss didn’t sit right.

But I really didn’t have the time, or the want, to unpack why.

His face flushed. “I swear that’s not what I mean. I... okay, so my return ticket isn’t until after New Year’s. The flight out leaves a week before Christmas.”

Oh.

Realization clicked into place, blooming warm in my chest as the pieces of his hesitation finally slotted together.

“Three weeks, huh,” I drawled.

His lips pressed together, his expression twisting into something tight and guilty. “You can say no...”

The words came out quiet, almost reluctant, like he expected me to. To be fair, three weeks was a long time to be away from the ranch. Even with a full staff on deck, we needed each and every one of us to keep this place moving.

There were no weak links, no extras—just a team, all pulling in the same direction, knowing that if one person slacked off or disappeared, the weight fell harder on the rest. No one here was just a body filling space.

Every single person mattered. Everyone had a role, a place, a purpose.

And Asher?

He wasn’t just good—he was one of my best.

Hardworking. Reliable. Losing him for three whole weeks wasn’t a small ask, but it wasn’t like he was leaving for good.

And, hell—if anyone deserved a break, it was him.

I exhaled, rubbing a hand over my jaw as I studied him. He stood there, eyes unwavering as he watched me carefully.

“Of course you can go,” I finally said.

The surprise on his face was instant.

It was both endearing and a little hard to reconcile with, considering the fact that I’d never once given him—or anyone else on this ranch for that matter—any reason to believe I wouldn’t let them go home for the damn holidays.

“You serious?” he asked.

I huffed out another, small laugh. “I just said yes, didn’t I?”

Relief flickered across his face. It was fleeting, just a moment. But then, just as quickly, a wide grin followed, stretching across his face with the kind of unrestrained joy that hit me square in the chest.

And before I could even brace myself, before I could fully process what was happening, Asher flung his arms around me and squeezed.

Every muscle in my body locked up.

Desire rocketed through me so suddenly, so sharply, that for a moment, I forgot how to breathe.