Total pages in book: 55
Estimated words: 51624 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 258(@200wpm)___ 206(@250wpm)___ 172(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 51624 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 258(@200wpm)___ 206(@250wpm)___ 172(@300wpm)
“I said no,” I answer, and then turn and walk into the back. I grab my cellphone and dial Coop’s number. I heard the bell over the door ring, letting me know someone had come in, but I’m going to make a call first.
I know Carson is with Lisa and Claire this morning. Colt is overseeing the upcoming training and dinner. Coop is in the main house doing paperwork—which the other two brothers hate. I know them well in the six months I’ve been accepted into their family. They’re as close to me as if they were my own blood. It’s part of the reason I’ve gotten so much stronger. Well, that and something unlocked inside of me when I got revenge against Ayita for Bear. Taking care of her somehow gave me a piece of myself back.
“Hey, Livy. Is everything okay?” Coop answers at once.
“Not really. I’m having some issues with the new hire you made a while back, Ray Morton.”
“Shit, what did the asshole do?”
“It was here at the campground office. You can pull it up.”
“It doesn’t matter, Livy. We made you a promise. You want him gone, he’s gone,” he responds at once, his voice cold and serious.
“I’d rather you look at the footage, so you can judge for yourself. This makes the fourth time I’ve had to deal with him. Today was the one where it felt like he wasn’t going to stop.”
“I’m pulling it up now. Is he there?”
“Yeah,” I answer. Just as I say that however, I hear the bell again. “Nix that. The door just opened. I’d say he just left.”
“I’ll have the men detain him and head that way as soon as I see this. You stay in the back. I don’t want you dealing with this.”
“I’m not that delicate, Coop. I just don’t want to deal with him every day. If he does a good job for you, it’s fine if you keep him. I just want it made clear that he’s not allowed to approach me again,” I murmur, feeling embarrassed having to explain.
“Don’t worry about it, Livy. I’ll deal with everything,” he vows before hanging up.
I’m not sure how long I stand there. As time keeps passing, I’m starting to second-guess myself. Maybe I’m overreacting. That little voice inside my head keeps telling me I’m letting my past color my present. I fight it, but I’m full of doubt. Coop told me to wait in the office, but I’m panicking. What if I get Ray fired and, in the end, I just overreacted? Shit. I walk back toward the front. I should go outside and see if I can talk Coop down.
4
PRETTY LITTLE BITCH
LAKE
“Where’s the woman?” I ask when I walk in and find Ray still by himself. “Can’t she be bothered to come in and do her job?”
Ray keeps staring at the door across from the counter. His jaw is tight. He’s pissed. It’s written all over him. Hell, it’s radiating from him.
“Turned me down. Said she was too good to tie herself to a simple ranch hand,” he mutters, his face red with fury. “Bitch probably has her eyes set on one of the Wells brothers.”
“Then you dodged a bullet. Let’s get. We both have shit we need to be doing,” I tell Ray, slapping him on the back to pull his gaze away from the direction the woman must be hiding out in. I know Ray’s temper. If I don’t step in, he’s liable to do something to get himself fired. I’m not sure I care that much, but no man should lose his job over a bitch—no matter how good she looks.
“Yeah,” he says, giving one final look at the door. Then he turns and stomps out. I follow, about done with all this. We walk back the way we came, but don’t even get out of the campground before we’re face to face with three of the elite guard that watch over the ranch. The elite guard works directly under the Wells brothers. They have absolute power here. Their word is law—the same as if it’s given by our bosses.
“What’s up, boys?” I ask, feeling the tension in the air.
“Coop wants to talk to Ray,” Tim, one of the elite guards, says.
“What about?” Ray asks, his anger clearly replaced with confusion, and I’m pretty sure I detect a hint of fear, too.
“He didn’t tell us,” one of the other guys says. I can’t remember his name, and it’s not exactly important. I need to concentrate on what’s going on in front of me. Whatever it is, it’s clear Coop is upset. I wonder what in the fuck Ray’s done. For Coop to send men after him, it can’t be good.
We all just stand there looking at one another for a bit. There’s a small crowd gathering a few feet away. This is going from bad to worse by the second.