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“Acoupleof days ago?” She slaps me over the shoulder. “And I’m seeing you just now? I swear to you, young man, we’ll have a few choice words.” She shakes her head and scoffs. “He’s been here for days and didn’t even bothersaying hi!”
“It’s not like that, Mrs. S. I was just busy…”
“Oh, I see where this is going.”
I chuckle softly. “Will you forgive me if I help you carry that bucket into the house?” I tip my chin in the direction of her feet, where a bucket almost as big as her is sitting on the floor.
“I guess that wouldn’t hurt.”
Still laughing, I grab the bucket in one hand and start toward the house. I’m pretty sure I heard her mutter something about men and their big hands as she followed after me.
“Where is Mr. Santiago?” I ask as I gently place the bucket on the kitchen counter.
“Oh, he’s somewhere around here doing God knows what.” She waves her hand as she starts sorting through the veggies. “I think he and Emmett talked about going to check on the cattle. You want to drink something?”
“No, I think I’ll just go look for Emmett if that’s okay with you.”
“Sure thing. I have to get this soup going anyway.” She looks up, her eyes meeting mine. “I know you’re busy and probably want to see your friends now that you’re in town, but make sure to stop by for dinner one day, okay?”
“Will do, Mrs. S.”
With a wave, I slip out through the back door. There are a few ranch hands mingling around. One of them spots me, so I start walking toward him. “Hey, have you seen Emmett?”
The guy, probably around my age, if not younger, lifts his cowboy hat, running his fingers through his hair before placing it back on. “Yeah, he just— Oh, he’s coming.”
I turn around, and sure enough, Emmett’s truck is pulling behind the Range Rover, and he gets out, shielding his eyes as he watches me.
“Fernandez? What brings you here?”
I lift my shoulders in a shrug. “You said you needed help?”
“Not enough work over at your place?”
“Not for me,” I mutter dryly, still pissed at my dad for brushing me off so easily.
Emmett must notice my irritation because he slaps me over the shoulders. “C’mon, we’ll find you something to work on, but first, you need some proper clothes. Not this rich city boy bullshit.”
“Oh, fuck off, Santiago.” I jab him with my elbow in the ribs. “What are you doing here anyway? I thought you’d be out in the fields.”
“I was, but then I heard Kate wasn’t feeling well, so I checked in on her.”
He starts walking toward the barn, so I follow after him.
Kate? Sick?My brows shoot up. “What’s wrong with her?”
“A stomach bug. She’s been throwing up since last night. Although I don’t know why, we ate the same damn thing, and I’m feeling fine.”
“Maybe it’s that stomach of yours that’s used to all kinds of bullshit.”
“I just hate seeing her sick and not being able to do anything about it.” Emmett shoots me a death glare as he slips into an office and goes straight for the duffle sitting in the corner. He rummages through it for a moment before he tosses me a pair of jeans and a shirt.
“Seriously?”
“Yes, seriously. Let’s see if you still got what it takes, cowboy. Or did the city pamper your ass for too long, and you forgot what it’s like to work with animals?”
I toss the clothes on the chair and strip my shirt off. “I’ll show you whose ass got pampered these past four years.”
Emmett chuckles. “I don’t want to see your skinny ass, Fernandez. Some of us have fiancé’s waiting for them at home.”
