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Rolling my eyes at my sister, I plop down on the chair beside her. “So who's this guy we're meeting?”
* * *
I don't like him.
He's only been in the house for a half hour and I already don't like him.
Maybe it's the fact he’s yet to crack his smile. And his version of a greeting was grunting his name with a firm nod. And every question I ask, his answer is annoyingly monosyllabic—I didn’t clock his southern accent until at least the ten minute mark.
Or maybe it’s that despite said lilting accent and the fucking cowboy boots on his big ass feet, he’s still intimidating as hell.
Or it has something to do with him shaking my hand and crushing my fingers with what I’m pretty sure was maybe a quarter of his grip strength.
Orit's the fact that Lux's mouth has been watering since the enormous man interviewing to be our newest ranch hand plodded through the door.
I didn't know that brawny and big enough to wrestle a fucking hippo was her type but Lux has stars in her eyes. And a weird high pitch to her voice as she lays out what his duties would be, this odd nervous energy to her that I don't think I've ever seen in my life.
Whatever the reason, I am positive that I don't like him.
But my sister clearly does, and as she so likes to remind me, she's got final say.
I have a feeling that no matter how much I protest, Hunter Whitlock is about to become a permanent fixture on my ranch.
“I like him,” Lux murmurs the moment Hunter's out of earshot. He wanted to check out the barn and the horses, and Lux, obviously, told him to knock himself out. As he jogs towards the paddock where Clyde and the Scooby Gang are hanging out, the earth practically shakes beneath his thunderous strides. “I really like him.”
“I don't.”
Lux's head whips towards me, a completely bewildered expression on her face, like she can't possibly comprehend what I'm saying. “Why not?”
“He seems like a dick.”
“Maybe he's shy,” Lux vehemently defends the man she met less than an hour ago. When I scoff, she rolls her eyes. “Come on, Oscar. You said I needed help. He can help. Look at him.” She gestures towards the mountain of a man. “He could probably bench press Clyde. One of him is, like, four of anyone else you might hire.”
Her eyes drift back over to where Hunter has climbed up the paddock fence and settled astride the thick logs, his gaze trained on the horses eyeing him warily. “Besides, if I'm gonna be a useless human incubator confined to the porch swing for the next few months, I deserve a little eye candy.”
“Gross, Lux.”
“He's got experience. He can clearly carry his weight around here. Clyde likes him and he's an excellent judge of character. He's perfect, Oscar.”
I side-eye Lux, a sigh escaping me as the only acceptable answer becomes clear. It's not like I really had a choice, anyway. She was always going to hire him, whether I agreed or not. But I appreciate her effort at pretending like I'm included in the decision. “Fine.”
My twenty-one-year-old sister squeals like an overexcited child.
Looping her arm around mine, she tugs me towards Hunter, leaning on me as I help her down the porch steps.
She was right, he's got Clyde eating out of the palm of his hand. Literally; the guy must've snatched a bunch of apples from the stash in the barn. Shit, Clyde isn't even this comfortable around me or Lux. Luna's the only person he nuzzles the way he's nuzzling one of Hunter's big ass thighs.
Damn it.
“Hunter!” Lux calls out when we get close enough. He swivels to face us, the same impassive expression on his bearded face that he's been wearing since he got here. “When can you start?”
He doesn't move from his positions atop the paddock fence. “Whenever you want, ma'am.”
Ma'am.
Jesus Christ.
Lux's smile is colossal. She elbows me, shooting me a brief look as if to say'see? Look how polite he is.'“Great. Does Monday work? The cabin you'll be staying in is ready now but I assume you've gotta go get your stuff.”
