Page 57 of Saltwater Cowboy

Behind me, Wells let out a low, smug laugh.

Up in my room, I shut the door. I stripped out of my shorts and tank top, swapping them for pajamas before clicking on the television for background noise. Anything to drown out my thoughts.

After Wells showed me to my room earlier, I lost it.

This wasn’t the life I wanted. I should’ve been settling into a beautiful new apartment with Thad, not living in some random guy’s spare bedroom. I should’ve been waking up next to someone who loved me, not feeling like I’d been cast aside. I wanted to feel adored—not be told I was hard to love. But those words stuck to me like a stain I couldn’t scrub away.

I shook the thought off and rummaged through my bag, laying out clothes for the morning. Workout shorts and a tank top—good enough. Blythe swore I wouldn’t have to do much work.

I set my alarm for 5:15 and groaned. It was already close to eleven, which meant I’d be lucky to get six hours of sleep.

Crawling into bed, I rolled onto my side and stared out the window. The pastures stretched endlessly, bathed in the soft glow of the moon. It was beautiful.

This wasn’t my bed.

This wasn’t my room.

I wasn’t even in a house I felt comfortable in. I was a stranger, stuck in the dumbest arrangement I’d ever agreed to.

How the hell was I supposed to live and work with Wells when I hated him for witnessing me at rock bottom? I knew Blythe was right—I had to get over it. But I just couldn’t. Not yet.

I tossed and turned for hours, my mind restless. The last time I glanced at the clock, it was close to three.

When the alarm blared, I groaned, slapping it off and rolling over.

Just another half hour…

A loud knock rattled my door fifteen minutes later.

“Sunshine, you up in there?”

Wells’ voice, first thing in the morning, made me want to stab my eardrums with an icepick.

“No,” I grumbled, tossing the covers over my head.

“Wrong answer.” I could hear the grin in his voice when he answered.

“No one should be awake at this hour.”

“If you’re not dressed and downstairs in ten minutes, I’m sending Granger in to get you moving.”

I threw the covers off my head with a groan. “Ugh!”

From the other side of the door, Wells chuckled. “See you soon.”

I waited until I heard the creak of the stairs before sitting up. The coast was clear.

Dragging myself out of bed, I changed into my first-day-on-the-job outfit, washed up, and headed downstairs twenty minutes later.

The house was quiet. Too quiet.

I checked the living room. Empty. Peered into the office. No sign of him. Even the kitchen was deserted—until my eyes landed on a fresh cup of coffee sitting on the counter with a note.

Morning, Sunshine.

- W

I picked up the cup and took a sip, the warmth spreading through my body like the first real sign of life. Maybe I hated him slightly less now.