Page 90 of Wilder

“We can’t wait that long,” I argued.

Who knew what that bastard could get up to with an entire week at his disposal?

His gaze softened. “We won’t. We’re going to send this bottle with the feed to get them both tested against each other. If nothing comes back, then it’s safe to say this has all been one big misunderstanding.”

“And if not?”

His jaw clenched. “Then Carter will be dealt with.”

Thank fuck.

That was all I needed to hear.

Sully looked up, finally pulled his focus away from the bottle. “I’m going to call the facility again and get them over here ASAP. Asher, thank you for walking us through everything.”

I flashed him a quick smile. “No problem. Let’s hope I’m wrong, yeah?”

Even as the words left my mouth, though, I could tell both of them were coming to the same grim conclusions I already had: no matter what, Carter was trouble. Had been for a while. This situation was merely a drop in the bucket of the issues he’d caused since coming to the ranch last year, and it seemed things were only growing worse as time went on.

Whether he’d done something or not, for none of us to question if he was capable of doing anything like this spoke volumes in and of itself. If anyone had come to me and accused Laken of doing the same thing, I would’ve preached up and down to the high heavens that it wasn’t possible.

For Carter?

Not so much.

“Once I hear from them on a timeframe, I’ll let you know.” Sully turned to Wilder, waving the bottle.

“Keep me updated.”

The older man nodded, then turned on his heel, boots digging into the dirt as he did so and without another word, headed back toward the main house.

I exhaled out slowly.

I really, really hoped I was wrong. That’d I’d misread the situation and jumped to conclusions because it was easier than believing Carter was simply fooling around. Even if I wanted him gone and out of here for being a pain in the ass, using the horses as collateral damage wasn’t worth it.

And I sure as hell didn’t want Pelly caught up in the crossfire of some sick vendetta.

A firm hand landed on my shoulder.

“Hey…” I turned slightly to Wilder while he gave me a firm squeeze. “You did good.”

The words sank deep into me, unexpectedly melting away whatever residual tension that had been lingering in my body since Sully had pulled me from the arena.

Now that we were alone again, I could finally breathe.

I tipped my head to the side. “Did you talk to Carter yet?”

He shook his head. “I’ve been having Dallas keep a close eye on him while we get this all sorted out. No sense in causing a big fuss if it turns out to be a simple misunderstanding.”

“Right. Makes sense.” I ran a hand through my hair, brushing it back from my forehead.

He watched me for a long moment, his eyes dark and unreadable like always.

Before I could say anything, he let go of my shoulder and stepped forward into the storage shed. His large body blocked the afternoon sun, shrouding me in a dark shadow when I craned my neck to look up at him.

My breath caught in my throat when both of his hands came up to touch my face, hesitating only for a split second before he cupped my jaw with both of his palms.

“I mean it,” he murmured, his voice low. Soft. “You keeping a level head about all of this... it isn’t easy.”