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Istare at the empty bottle in my hand, debating if I should get up and get myself another. Then I crush out my smoke on the cabin step when I see one of the trucks from the yard headin’ closer. I made it clear to Mitch that I didn’t wanna be bothered out here tonight, and the fact no one seems to be able to take a fuckin’ order these days is starting to really piss me off.
Whoever’s drivin’ don’t dip the headlights, so they blind me as they pull up in front of the fire. The door opens and when that sassy little redhead, who’s injected herself into our lives, gets out and slams it shut, I don’t think I have the patience to deal with her.
“Mitch told me I’d find you out here, got a little lost along the way though.” She stands in front of me and despite all the anger inside me, I still appreciate those perfect curves of her body as I raise my eyes up to look into hers.
“You got any more of that?” she gestures to the empty bottle in my hand.
“Plenty inside,” I assure her, and she almost crushes my fingers under the hot-as-fuck cowgirl boots she’s wearing, as she steps up onto the porch to go inside the cabin in search of it.
I stay seated, staring into the flames until she comes back and takes a seat beside me. She unscrews the lid of the whiskey bottle and knocks some back before she passes it to me. Then we sit in silence, both of us too stubborn to say anything to the other, and I wonder if she gets that same strange feeling around me that I do her. I can’t compare it to what I had with Aubrey, it’s different and not necessarily good. If anything, it’s an annoyance, like something crawled under my skin and is clawing at me from the inside.
“What ya doin’ here, Red?” I give in and ask, lighting myself another cigarette.
“I was gonna ask you the same question?” She takes the cigarette from between my fingers, shocking me when she drags back on it hard.
That flicker of irritation returns, tugging at something inside me and making me wanna bite. It quickly gets doused away by the way her head tips back and her neck strains when she releases the smoke into the air.
“I came here to be alone,” I tell her, snatching back my cigarette and taking a swig from the bottle.
“That kinda sucks, since I came out here to keep you company.” She leans back, resting her elbows back on the porch floor and lookin’ like she’s getting herself comfortable.
“I’m not in a good place right now, you should probably head back to the ranch.” I try to put it to her politely, but she doesn’t seem to get the hint.
“Wanna talk about it?”
“No, Red, I don’t wanna fuckin’ talk about it.” I look back at her over my shoulder.
“You're kinda hot when you’re agitated,” she tells me, completely dismissing the mood I’m in.
“Yeah, well I ain’t the kinda man you wanna be agitating,” I warn, facing forward and focusing on those flames again. The wood beneath us creaks as she sits herself forward, resting her lips as close to my ear as she can get them without touching it.
“What ya gonna do? Kill me? Chop me up into little pieces? Bury me somewhere that no one will ever find me?” Her breath tickles my skin and makes it shiver.
“Don’t tempt me.” I clench my back teeth and try to keep my calm, but that cute-as-sin giggle that tests my patience, and gets my dick hard at the same fuckin’ time, ain’t making it easy.
If she thinks being playful with me is gonna get me talkin’, she’s wrong. Nobody needs to know what thoughts that are running through my head right now. Learning that Walker not only killed my sister, but Aubrey too and that there’s no vengeance for me left to take, feels like I’ve just been shackled to a life sentence. For so long I figured that killing the men who took them from me would rid me of this constant anger I carry, and now all that hope is just as dead as George fuckin’ Walker. I can’t blame Leia for acting out and killing her father, especially if she thought her and her baby's life was in danger, but it’s real hard not to be mad at her for it when I think about never being able to make him pay.
I’ve been blaming the wrong man for Aubrey’s death, for all this time, and now I’ve got an idea of what really happened to her I wanna go to the mortuary, find that fucker’s body so I can turn it inside out.
“You know, it’s real bad for you to keep stuff in. You do that, and you only got your own opinion on the matter. I don’t know what went down today, but you seem real sad about the fact Leia’s dad’s dead.”
“First off, I ain’t fuckin’ sad, alright?” The girl makes me furious and I’m even madder at myself for feeling like I need to give her an explanation. “Second of all, don’t talk to me about keepin’ shit to yourself. How about you talk a little about what the fuck you’re doin’ here. Because I know for a fact it ain’t Maisie and my niece and nephews. You're runnin’ from something, and ya can fool all the others with your little act, but not me.” I stand up in front of her and scrub my hand through my beard, frustrated at myself for taking the bait, but at the same time, grateful for a place to channel my anger.
The girl doesn’t deny it, or make any attempts to come back at me, she just smiles, like she’s got what she wanted. And that irritates me even more.
“And here was me thinking you hadn’t noticed me,” She picks up the bottle and brings it with her as she comes toward me. I feel like I should step back, but I don’t, I won’t show her any more weakness.
“I’m not running, Cole. I’m searching.” She shoves the bottle into my chest, rubbing her lips together before she struts her hot, round ass back toward the truck.
“Searchin’ for what?” Curiosity has me calling after her, I don’t want her to think I give a shit, but the truth is, I do. Everything about this woman intrigues me, it has since the day she got here and I’m not ready to try and understand why.
“When I find it, I might just let ya know.” She opens the truck door and hangs off it as she smiles at me before getting back behind the wheel. Cranking the truck into reverse, she spins around to head back in the direction she came from.
I spend another hour by myself at the line camp, figuring out that my thoughts aren’t focused on my anger like they're supposed to be. Not the kind of anger that brought me here, anyway. What I’m feeling is a different kind of resentment. And when I figure it’s time, I man up and head back to the ranch where my family needs me. I use my boot to stomp out the fire before I jump on Rebel’s back. It’s a fairly long ride back home, and real late when I trot back through the gates. The house is in darkness, I figure today's events have tired everyone out and they’re getting an early night, until I notice a flicker of light coming from the porch.
Hopping off Rebel, I lead him toward the stable, squinting my eyes and getting a closer look to see who’s still up.
“Had enough alone time?” Savannah calls out across the yard at me when the outside light clicks on, lighting me up like a fuckin’ Christmas tree.
