Page 55 of Wilder

While I hadn’t lied when I told Asher I’d had a healthy teenage and young adult life back in the day, I’d always been responsible regardless of what I got up to in my free time. I never let things spiral out of control or to the point where someone needed to step in and come snap me back to reality.

I knew what mattered. How the responsibilities of running this ranch fell on my shoulders. Things around here wouldn’t get done if I started slacking.

Asher’s offhand, straight-laced comment bothered me, but in reality, he wasn’t actually as far off as I wanted him to be.

I traced my fingers absently along the raised design on the side of the glass. “Why do you assume it went bad?”

Sully crossed his arms over his chest. “I didn’t. But now that you mention it... did it?”

I really hated how easily he could see through me. It was like trying to hide from someone who’d already memorized every tell, noticed all the cracks in my armor I didn’t realize I had to begin with.

This felt all too much like talking to my father.

I exhaled slowly. “It wasn’t anything bad. Just Asher checking in.”

Sully raised a single brow. “Why would he be calling you on Christmas? Isn’t he supposed to be with his family?”

“I’m not sure.” I wished I knew, though.

He’d been looking forward to his trip home; had talked about it endlessly to the other ranch hands right up until the day his cab came by and whisked him away to the airport. He’d wanted to be home with his brothers. Had said time and time again how much he missed them and was looking forward to their reunion after spending almost an entire year apart.

But something had changed.

Something had gone wrong in the time from when he left here until tonight.

Whatever it was, it had drained the excitement right out of him.

“It’s nothing.” Those words... clipped and dismissive.

I tightened my hand around the glass.

It didn’t sound like ‘nothing’. It sounded a whole lot like something, actually. The barely there hint of misery was unmistakable, setting off alarm bells in my head instantly.

He’d held it back valiantly, I’d give him that much. Smoothed out the edge to his tone just enough to make it easy for anyone else who didn’t know him to gloss over it without a second thought.

“He just... Something felt off when we were texting so I wanted to call and check on him.” I didn’t mean for my voice to dip on that last part, but it did. Just enough for Sully’s eyes to narrow.

“Wilder,” he said slowly. “Since when are we concerning ourselves with our employees’ personal lives?”

I clenched my jaw. “They work for us. We should care.”

Sully snorted. “That’s not what this is.”

I turned toward him fully, irritation boiling hot in my chest. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“It means you don’t get like this over just anybody.” He shook his head, his expression shifting to something I didn’t like. “You’re worried about him in a way that’s got nothing to do with him being one of our employees. Let’s not forget the fact that he’s also nineteen.”

My face burned. “Jesus Christ, Sully. It’s not like that.”

“No?” He lifted a brow. “Then what is it?”

I opened my mouth to defend myself, my tongue becoming tied in the process. The words were stuck, lodged somewhere in my throat while I fumbled for something—anything—to say to turn this conversation around.

The ugly truth was that I didn’t have any fucking answers to give.

Because what the hell was I supposed to say to that?

Admit I cared about Asher more than I should?