Finn (The Moore Men #1)

Chapter 1

Finn

“ F uck these goddamn stupid fuckin’ heifers!”

My brother, Hollis, laughs, wiping the sweat off his brow with the back of his hand. “What the hell are you grumblin’ about over there?”

I ignore the question and ask, “If we were to do anything else for a living, what would ya do?” Tugging off my gloves and tossing them on the seat of the truck, I grab my water from the cup holder and down half of it in one go before removing my hat and pouring the rest over my head. It does a decent job of cooling me off for a moment, and I wish I could say it does as good of a job at calming my frayed fuckin’ nerves, but it doesn’t.

Not today.

Not this week.

My brother eyes me as he lights up a cigarette, taking a long drag. “Fuck, I don’t know. Guess I never thought about it. Can’t really picture me doin’ anything else. What would you do?”

“Somethin’ in an air-conditioned office would be nice.”

Hollis barks out a laugh. “You’re a fuckin’ peach to be around today,” he drawls. “More than usual. What’s goin’ on?”

Shaking my head, I kick at the dirt on the ground. “Just haven’t been sleeping well this week. Tuck’s had a low-grade fever for a few days, and he ain’t sleepin’ for shit. He’s been in my bed the last two nights, and he sprawls out like a goddamn frog, kickin’ me in the ribs. And he’s like a furnace when he sleeps, even when he’s not runnin’ a fever.”

“Has Cassie taken him to the doctor yet?”

I nod, taking another drag. “Double ear infection,” I tell him. “She picked up his antibiotics this morning.”

“Fuck, I’m sorry, brother. Hopefully, the meds will help, and he’ll be sleeping better soon.”

“Sure hope so,” I mutter. “I can’t take much more of this broken sleep. It makes for a hellish day out here.”

Hollis and I enjoy the last few minutes of the break we’ve allowed ourselves before getting back to work as I mentally run through the rest of what we have to get done today. Luckily, the list is almost finished. We should only be out here for another hour, at most. Thank god too, because it’s a hot fucking day today, with the Texas summer sun beating down on us.

Living and working on a ranch, there’s never a dull moment. Take today, for example. Hollis and I spent the better part of our afternoon tagging cattle, but it wasn’t uneventful. No way, that’d be too easy. We got an ornery bunch of calves that seemed to find enjoyment in running from us while their mamas bellow and charge in our direction. It took way longer than it should’ve, and with the lack of sleep I’m working with, I don’t have the patience I normally do when dealing with this shit on top of the heatwave.

I’ve been doing this my whole life. I grew up on this farm, and I’ve been helping since I could walk. Not much phases me, but fuck, today isn’t my day. I can’t wait to get home, step into the air-conditioned house, and relax with a glass of bourbon when the sun goes down.

Just like I guessed, it’s about another hour before I’m walking through my front door. Kicking off my boots, I breathe out a sigh of relief as I saunter into the kitchen, wanting to guzzle my body weight in water before I even think about starting dinner.

My son’s nanny, Cassie, lifts her gaze to meet mine from where she’s sitting at the bar, her laptop open in front of her. “Hey, Finn,” she offers with a warm smile.

Grunting out a hello, I grab a glass from the cupboard and fill it up with water, chugging it down as Cassie starts rambling about some news she got today. I’m only half listening as I refill the glass and drink some more, making a mental note that I really need to be better at bringing a canteen with me. The one I had broke recently, and I haven’t replaced it yet. The couple of plastic water bottles in the morning aren’t cutting it.

It’s not until Cassie stops talking that I register what she said. Setting the empty glass beside the sink, I turn and face her. “What do ya mean you’re leaving?”

Taking off my hat, I toss it onto the kitchen counter, raking a hand through the sweaty strands atop my head. I haven’t even been home for a full ten minutes yet, and I can already tell the day from hell that I left out in the pasture will be continuing here.

At some point, Cassie slid off the bar stool and she’s now standing in front of me with her fingers twisted together. “I know it’s short notice,” she starts, voice full of nerves. “But Danny got the offer this morning, and everything is moving so fast.”

“Danny?”

Cassie blinks at me. Then frowns. “My boyfriend?” I know the reason she phrases it like a question is because she’s already given me this information, but most days, I don’t know my own head from my ass, let alone the name of my nanny’s boyfriend. “Anyway, like I said, everything is moving quickly. This weekend, we’re heading to Dallas to look at places, and we’ll be hopefully moving the following week.”

Grabbing the patties I plan to grill for dinner out of the fridge, I pause as what she says fully sinks in. I fix my gaze on her again as I turn around. “Are you telling me your last week is next week?”

Cassie chews on her cheek, unease rolling off her in waves. “Actually, I’m saying this week is my last week. Assuming we find an apartment in Dallas, I’m going to have to help Danny pack up his apartment next week, since he’ll be working until moving day.”

I grind down on my molars, setting the plate down on the counter.

Wonderful. I’m going to have to find a new nanny…like, yesterday.

“Do you hate me?” Cassie squeaks, rounding the counter as she grabs the air fryer out from the pantry. “I’m so sorry, Finn. I know this is short notice, and I feel so crappy about that, but?—”

Holding up a hand, I cut her off. “I don’t hate you, Cassie.”

“Are you sure? I would probably hate me.”

“I’m sure,” I mutter, drying my hands off after washing them. “Where’s Tuck?”

That gets rid of the wrinkle between her brows. “He’s playing with Bubba in the backyard.”

My brows lift as I flick my gaze over to her. “How’d he do today?”

“Your son or the new puppy?” She chuckles.

“Both.”

“They had an alright day,” she says. “I think the antibiotics are already helping.”

Grabbing the seasonings, I place them on the tray beside the patties before heading out back. My four-year-old glances up at the sound of the sliding glass door, a smile spreading on his dirty little face as he spots me.

“Daddy!” Tucker hops to his feet and runs over to me, Bubba, our new pitty puppy, trailing after him, tongue hanging out of his mouth, and his too-big-for-his-body paws stomping around. “You’re home!”

Colliding with my leg, Tucker wraps his arms around my waist as best as he can before I lean down and scoop him up one-handed. Thankfully, Cassie takes the tray from my hand as Bubba jumps up, pawing at my stomach, demanding attention too.

“Feeling any better?” I ask Tuck.

He shrugs. “Yeah, kinda.”

“Did you guys have fun today?”

“Bubba peed in my room,” he says flatly, giving me his best attempt at rolling his eyes, but it’s really just him blinking repeatedly and looking up. He started doing it a few weeks ago out of nowhere, and it’s hilarious.

“He did?” I set Tucker down and place a hand on my hip. “Did you forget to take him potty?”

Shaking his head, he says, “No, I swear!”

After giving Bubba some belly scratches, I heat up the grill and get started on the patties, all while my mind spirals, my to-do list growing longer by the second. It took months to find Cassie. I don’t even want to think about how hard it’ll be to find a replacement for her, and on such short notice.

Not to mention how hard it’ll be on Tucker. After his mom skipped town when he was a baby, I thought I’d never find somebody whom I could trust to watch him while I worked. Cassie has been with us for the last three years, give or take, and she’s been a godsend.

Being a rancher while also being a single dad with sole custody of my child comes with its own set of challenges. Finding somebody who can put up with the long, sometimes unexpected, hours is a must.

So much for my plan to relax and have a drink tonight.