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Wyatt presses the heels of his palms in his eyes. His voice comes out pained, muffled. “Why’re you fucking breaking my balls, man? I told you I didn’t do it.” On a sigh, Wyatt lifts his face. Weariness burns bright in his eyes. “You know that isn’t me, Davis. Messing with a girl like that ...never. I didn’t touch Sheena. In bed. Or her goddamn hair.”
“I believe him,” I tell Davis.
Wyatt gives me a look of thanks.
“I believe him too,” Davis finally says. “But the town won’t.” He looks at me, then back at our younger brother. “It’s bad. It’s still bad, Wy.”
Davis is right. It’s gone too far now. Even if Wyatt didn’t do it, the Wolfingtons think he did it.
Wyatt swallows, chagrined. “What kind of bad?”
Davis looks grim. “The kind that means we better watch our fucking backs.”
Worry has me turning my gaze to the large front window. Has me whipping my eyes to Ruby as she tends to the sunflowers on the front porch of her cottage. The need to go to her, to call her back into my arms, a raging beast inside of me.
And as the clear blue Montana sky stretches out over the ranch, I hope like hell my brother isn’t right.
July screams its way into Resurrection with celebratory fireworks over Main Street. The Montgomerys host a fourth of July BBQ at the ranch, and it’s packed.
Thanks to me.
Runaway Ranch is up to five thousand followers on Instagram. A video I posted of a shirtless Wyatt roping a bronc went viral. A famous bull rider named Jed Jones stopped by for a photo op. The ranch is booked through the end of the season with a thirty-person influencer group Molly put together. There’s been no more comments from theLassomamav76account, which means I’ve held off on telling Charlie about it. He doesn’t need more stress in his life.
Still, that doesn’t mean I will let it drop. Maybe it’s simply she’s a scorned guest. Maybe she has a grudge to pick. But why the hell would this woman waste her time giving these cowboys grief? Both Charlie and Davis have reached out to her via social media, offering her a free stay and a chance to make it up to her, but their messages have gone unanswered.
It’s a mystery I want to figure out, something that feels important, but I don’t know why.
I don’t know a lot of things.
Like what I’m doing with Charlie.
Where we’ll end up should be obvious. A goodbye at the end of summer. One last kiss before I leave for California. No matter if I want more. No matter that every day I spend at the ranch consists of him and him alone. Every thought, every kiss, is him.
Heaven.
Charlie and I have been using the sunrise as an excuse for me to stay over the last two weeks. Endlessly talking late into the night, then falling asleep, Charlie’s strong arm anchoring me to his side. As for the sunrise, we still haven’t seen it yet.
We’re too busy in bed.
Sex, good sex.
Too good of sex, in fact.
Charlie’s need for me has my heart both stuttering and stopping.
I’ve never felt so alive.
After swallowing down my medication and grabbing a pair of gardening gloves and my phone, I exit my cottage for the front porch.
Between Charlie wearing me out in bed, and my job, I’ve been a neglectful plant mama. I kneel beside a gigantic bag of potting soil. It’s time to replant these beautiful blooms Charlie brought me. They’re outgrowing their space and need a refresh.
My hand sinks into the soft soil. The familiar, silky sensation is as calming as one of Charlie’s hugs. I can’t help checking the sun in the sky. The lower it gets, the more my heart bounces in anticipation of seeing Charlie.
A bright pop from my phone has me smiling.
I prop it up against the pot and accept the FaceTime call from Max.
“Hi!” I sing cheerfully.
