Nathaniel
“THE GIRLS ARE saying that the men are from out of town. They have names and everything else we need to pass on to your connect.”
I nodded as I eased back on the sofa inside Terrence’s truck.
He had swung by to cut everyone’s hair on the property and now he, Sampson, Dad, Doc and myself were in his truck going over what he’d found out since he’d made himself the point person to speak to the girls.
He wasn’t in a relationship and didn’t mind hanging around the club.
It would be easier for him to blend in and collect information on who and what were moving.
“So far it’s Scott Walker, Stanley Michaels and the asshole I’m gunning for is James Rossi.”
Daddy sat forward in his seat and leaned over to speak to me. “Why you gunning for him, Buck?”
“He’s the reason why I was even in the bar to meet Charmy. She worked at the bar and didn’t know what was going on. He thought she was one of the girls selling more than drinks and didn’t want to take no for an answer.”
“Welp, get a rope. We not about to leave that kind of man breathing. I appreciate you not acting rash, Bucky, so we could get the information we need for everything.”
My daddy was giving me credit where it wasn’t due because I was more focused on Charisma than I was on ending that man’s life.
I was more than confident I would see him again so I hadn’t pressed to kill him.
I was still going to but winning Charmy and getting ready to ride had been at the top of my priorities.
“It ain’t that deep, daddy. I’m going to see him again. And this time he won’t be walking away from anything.”
Sampson looked up from his phone as he lifted up to tuck it into his pocket. “Sent the names over to Messiah so hopefully he can have the information back to us before too long. You gotta focus on business and training, not this shit.”
“I can multitask. Hell, I need to reach out to his brother for my last order before I have to take a piss test.”
“Well, you know we ain’t gonna test you for our rodeo so that buys you time.” Doc’s ass was only saying that cause he wanted me to add his treats onto my order. That man was always talking about using weed for his glaucoma but his eyesight was damn near as good as mine.
“I already know what you need, Doc, you ain’t gotta butter me up.”
Doc only grinned before sitting upright for Terrence to finish his cut.
“Have they been seen around here lately?”
I could tell that Daddy was trying to formulate plans and backup plans but didn’t want to overstep.
We didn’t know the extent of what he’d gone through while we were growing up with threats to the property but we also knew he wasn’t a punk.
I wouldn’t balk at telling him my plans if it became necessary.
“No, sir. They’ve gone back to their respective areas. I’m not sure why they have but we’re keeping our eyes out.” Terrence finished Doc’s taper after brushing off the excess hair from his nape.
“Wonder what could draw them back out or what they’re waiting on?”
“No idea, but we’re not going to let them stop anything that we’re doing. It’s business as usual until we know everything we’re dealing with. Agreed?”
We all agreed with Daddy because there was nothing else for us to do but listen. We didn’t have any further intel and until we did, we couldn’t make a plan.
“What you doing for the rest of the day, Bucky?”
“Gotta get therapy on my shoulder. I feel like I worked it too hard in the last few days.” My shit had been burning while training but I kept pushing myself since the family rodeo was in the next few weeks.
The event that Charisma had planned for BCL was later this week and would officially kick off rodeo season in Black Gold Valley.
We were going to have a livestock show a few days after our open house and my brother’s birthday was smack in the middle of that.
He wouldn’t want us to make a big deal of it but I would have to talk to Yzzy about what she planned to do.
This was their first birthday together as a married couple and I wouldn’t blame them if they wanted to charter a flight and lie on somebody’s beach.
Sampson’s face clouded with worry as he started looking at my shoulder from across the van like he could diagnose that shit himself. “How you hurt it, Bucky?”
“Bruh, it’s good, I promise.”
“He not trying to embarrass himself in front of Charisma so he’s trying to push himself too hard.
” Doc stood up from the seat and handed Terrence cash despite us having a house account.
They didn’t go through the normal back and forth because Terrence knew that Doc’s older than Moses ass was going to pay his way.
“Why you telling my business, Unc?” I was grinning because I ain’t give a damn who knew I wanted to impress Charisma. Shit, Terrence hadn’t met her yet but he’d been privy to how I felt about her. He was scheduled to slide by for the open house and I would introduce them then.
“Just making conversation, Bucky. You ashamed that you trying to look good in front of your girl?” His grin was a challenge. A dare for me to deny that I was trying to show out. I’d gotten all new riding apparel for the rodeo that was more than I normally wore just so I would stand out for her.
And didn’t give a damn about who knew it.
I stood up and the rest of them followed, all of us looking alike in our denims, t-shirts, boots and hats.
“I want the whole world to know she’s mine. And after the rodeo, there won’t be any doubt.”
I felt the tension as soon as I came from the office.
We’d set the room up in one of the empty offices at the back of the reception area.
I didn’t want to get treatment in my home.
Even with me not being emotionally connected to the house, I knew better than to invite just anyone inside. Especially this physical therapist.
I could see the territorial look on Rachel’s face and I had to wonder where that came from.
Looking between the two women I was sure Charmy was caught off guard by the way Rachel looked and Rachel was shocked that there was a woman at the ranch.
She hadn’t been here the last time I had treatment because I’d gone into town since I’d had a doctor’s appointment that day.
The stare off between these two was getting intense and I needed to figure out how to cut the tension.
The easy day I’d had shooting the shit and talking business with the men in my family had evaporated. When I’d gotten back I’d alerted Charmy that the physical therapist was coming by but I could tell I fucked up by not specifying a lot in this situation.
This ain’t gone be pretty.
“I’ll only be about thirty minutes, Charmy. Will you hold my calls until I’m done?” I handed her my wallet, my keys and my phone for safekeeping. I needed her to see that she was the person who could get anything from me, symbolically or in reality, and Rachel’s ass apparently needed to see it too.
Her eyes shifted between Rachel and me once more before she nodded and took the items from my hands.
I let my touch linger on her skin long enough for me to draw her eyes to mine.
I’d just made two steps forward with this woman and it was clear I had taken about fifty back.
She gave me a smile, which was enough while we were in mixed company.
The last thing I wanted her to do was doubt my intentions so I wanted to make my desires clear no matter what was going through her mind.
“Gotcha, Bucky.” That thrilled me because she was being petty and territorial over me. Calling me by my family’s nickname made the connection between us obvious. I hoped Rachel caught the hint before she tried anything stupid.
I licked my lips and winked at her as I drank her in.
The purple was gone from the tips of her hair and she’d rolled her kinks into some type of twisted bun thing.
Shit looked good as hell on her because now I could see her face even better.
After I’d stared long enough I stood up straight and motioned toward Rachel to follow me into the room behind the open reception area.
Our boots were the only sounds as we walked down the hall and into the treatment room.
There wasn’t a lot in here, just an exam table and a sink for now.
I’d planned to fully outfit it since Charmy had me thinking of the guys on the ranch and the guys training here who might need access to a facility if they got injured.
I pulled my shirt off so Rachel could get to work.
“She’s cute.”
I’d been in my head so much I hadn’t even paid attention to what Rachel had been doing.
I glanced at the door and could hear Charisma on the phone speaking to someone.
I knew she wasn’t going to check on the art now that we had company.
Rachel moved my arm feeling the tendons in my shoulder that had been stressed when I dislocated it last year.
With my shirt off, for the first time in my life, I felt exposed.
I’d kept the door open because I didn’t want Charmy to think that anything was going on between Rachel and me.
Unfortunately, my stupid ass hadn’t thought with my big head a few months after I started rehab and slept with her.
She was throwing it at me and my depression had me needing to feel something.
Wasn’t my finest moment to be fucking my rehab therapist but I clearly hadn’t made the greatest decisions when it came to my dick.
At least not back then. I’d made the choice and would be making another one if she didn’t stop trying to shade my girl calling her cute.
But smarter me now was paying for my emotional choice right now. The severity depended on if Rachel could keep her shit together.
“What are you talking about, Rach?”