26. Christian
CHRISTIAN
T wo weeks.
She ignored me for two goddamn weeks.
I was about to lose my fucking mind if I walked into that office one more time to find she had already done whatever I needed to do, just so I didn’t have a reason to be around her.
I wasn’t sure when she had learned how to handle all the administrative tasks I was in charge of, but I sure as hell didn’t like it.
Two weeks of her disappearing between five o’ clock and nine o’clock, then slipping into her room like a thief, taking little pieces of me with each burglary.
I wiped the grease off my hands with a stained shop towel and let out a breath as I laid on my back and stared up at the conglomerate of metal tractor parts.
I shouldn’t have pushed her like that.
I shouldn’t have let my temper get the best of me.
I lost my shit, and I lost her.
But did I really have her to begin with?
It didn’t matter now.
I eased out from under the tractor and sat up, resting my forearms on my knees.
It had been quiet around the front of the property today.
Ray had gone back to Houston and had made it through three rounds of the bull riding competition.
The girls were at school. Cassandra was avoiding me.
CJ and the boys were working to move the herd to the far side of the land so they were out of range of the groundbreaking ceremony.
Of course, construction on the lodge and restaurant wouldn’t start for half a year. But Cassandra insisted that, for it to be a success with the locals, we needed a celebration that brought them in from the start, not just when they had to battle tourists for a table.
So, we were throwing a damn party. The quiet wouldn’t last for long.
I cleaned up my shit and put it away, taking the time to sort the tools back onto the wall hooks, rather than leaving it for tomorrow. Glancing at the time, I realized it was almost five.
Thursdays were always hectic. Mom would pick the girls up from school when the bell rang. She’d take Gracie to dance class and Bree to therapy. Then, they’d swap. She’d pick up Bree from therapy and take her to the studio, where she would get Gracie and take her to the therapist’s office.
I didn’t know what I’d do without my family. Without this ranch.
Heritage meant stability. I had people around me that I knew I could rely on.
I had almost lost Nate, then I had actually lost Gretchen.
This land was my haven. It was where I could keep the people I loved safe.
One day I’d pass it on to my girls, or Nate’s little one, or hell—CJ or Ray’s kids, if they ever found partners.
It was selfish to expect Cassandra to give up her life and take on mine. I knew that as soon as I asked her to make a choice.
But I couldn’t leave, and she was already here.
I pitched the rag into a pile that needed to be washed. Why was this shit so fucking hard?
I tried to date. I’d go out on the off chance that my mom let the girls sleep over at her house. Over the years there had been a few women I went out with more than once, testing the waters to see if it would last.
It never did.
Now, the one woman I actually wanted to stick around was ready to go.
The writing was on the wall.
More like on my desk.
Yesterday she had addressed a letter to the ranch—to me specifically—detailing that groundbreaking celebration would be her last day. After that, she would pack up and return to her life in New York, and be available remotely if needed.
And I couldn’t even get her in a room long enough to talk to me.
I cut the light off and pulled the door behind me.
Everything was silent.
It wasn’t uncommon, but it was unnerving.
Momma’s mini van was parked in front of her house, which meant she was back with the girls.
Mom would have Bree and Gracie taking showers, which left me itching to see what Cassandra was doing.
I trudged past the office, but the lights were off and the door was shut. I headed to my house and slipped in.
Huh. It was empty.
Momma must’ve had them showering up at her place.
But Cassandra wasn’t there either.
I checked the time.
5:30 on the dot—right when she always performed her disappearing act.
It wasn’t until I was nearly done making my rounds—checking the animals, refilling water, and making sure nothing glaring was out of sorts—that I realized Dottie was gone.
Curiosity got the best of me. I lingered in the barn, tinkering around in one of the empty stalls for over an hour. Just when I was about to give up and go home for the night, hooves approached.
But it wasn’t just Dottie.
I peered through a wood slat and watched as CJ rode in on his jet black horse, Anny. Short for Anarchy. He hopped down and, not a second later, Cassandra trotted into the barn on Dottie.
Jealousy bubbled up my veins like acid as I watched her dismount with the ease of a seasoned rider.
“Unsaddle and check her over,” Carson said. “Hang your shit up. Don’t leave it lying around.”
Cassandra came into view through the wood crevice. Blue jeans molded around her ass and thighs like a goddamn painting. She eased up on her toes and boots peeked out.
The pair I had gotten her.
She was wearing one of the heavy jackets I kept in the office. It was speckled with dried grass and hay from when I’d worn it this morning to do chores.
CJ supervised Cassandra while she took off the saddle and bridle. Without a word, she picked up the brush and started working Dottie over, cleaning her up and making sure she wasn’t injured or uncomfortable.
When she was done, CJ stood beside her and talked her through safely checking Dottie’s hooves and helped her give them a quick clean.
Cassandra seemed more confident with Dottie. She didn’t shy away from grooming her or rubbing her down.
Their rapport was odd. It was … familiar. Like this wasn’t the first time they had gone riding.
My throat burned and I gritted my teeth as possibilities raced through my head.
“That’s enough,” CJ said. “Go on and turn her out.”
There was some shuffling, and Cassandra disappeared out of view.
“You gonna shower at the bunkhouse again?” he called after her.
“Do you mind?” she asked.
The fuck?
“Nah, just don’t use all the hot water or you’ll cause a riot.”
Cassandra laughed as she disappeared from the barn.
CJ was right behind her, leading Anny out to the fenced paddock for a little free-roaming.
What the ever-loving fuck was going on?
I stewed as I plodded around, doing a whole lot of nothing while looking busy. I couldn’t focus on jack shit.
So, that’s where she disappeared to every day. Riding with my brother, showering off in the bunkhouse, and then waiting for the right moment to slip in my front door and go to her room. I bet she fucking ate over there too.
CJ’s guys were decent, but she was a pretty thing and they lacked general manners, civility, and hygiene.
It wasn’t a fox in a hen house. It was a hen walking into the fox den.
Well… Maybe not so much.
Cassandra could hold her own.
Maybe that’s why I hated it. She didn’t need me.
The house was empty when I went back. I was just going to heat up leftovers for dinner, so there was no prep that needed to happen.
I paced the kitchen long enough to know that if I didn’t do something, I’d start climbing the walls.
So fucking quiet.
Surely someone needed something.
But no one was around.
I hopped in the shower and took my time scrubbing the day away. Thoughts of her filled my mind as I shampooed my hair. I couldn’t help myself. While the conditioner sat in my hair, I fisted my dick and rubbed one out to the thought of Cassandra touching herself on her bed.
By the time I finished and dressed, I was certain the girls would be back.
But they weren’t.
I grabbed the radio and changed the channel, calling up to my parents’ house to make sure Bree and Gracie weren’t getting into trouble. It was a school night after all. They’d need to do homework and get in bed soon.
No answer.
Fine. I’d just go up to the house myself.
But before I set foot over the threshold, the radio chirped. Jackon’s voice crackled over the line. “Hey, boss. Looks like it’s gonna rain and there’s shit outside the cabins.”
“I’ll take care of it,” I said, knowing if I sent Jackson out there, all my tools would get rained on.
We had made progress on the cabins. They were mostly livable now, with four sturdy walls, plumbing and electric, new counters and cabinets.
Appliances would be installed the next week, and Cassandra had been hoping to get at least one of them furnished and decorated so it could be toured as part of the groundbreaking.
I didn’t tell her the furniture had already come in.
I had intercepted the delivery, hoping to corner her in the cabin so she would have to talk to me.
Gray clouds loomed overhead, threatening to pour as I hopped in my truck and rode out to the cabins. I didn’t mind the rain. Whatever made the grass grow, paid the bills, and kept food on the table was fine by me.
“Huh.” I threw the truck in park when I pulled up between the two buildings.
The tools and equipment that had been in the grass earlier today were gone.
I sat back for a moment, wondering why the hell Jackson would call me all the way out here to pick the shit up if someone got to it first.
I knew it wasn’t CJ. Supposedly, he was back in the bunkhouse.
Nate was in full daddy mode as he settled into newborn life with Becks and baby Charlie.
Maybe my dad had been piddling around and picked everything up?
The light was on in the cabin, so I hopped out to go turn it off.
When I slammed the truck door and turned, Cassandra was standing there, looking pretty as a summer day in a long, flowing dress that had flowers stitched all over it. Her hair was damp and tied back in a braid. She looked fresh-faced from the shower.
“What are you doing here?” she snapped.
I scoffed. “I’m supposed to be picking up tools, and this is my ranch. I can go wherever I please. What are you doing here?”