Chapter 3
POV: Cole?
The next day…
It was 4:00 am and I was staring at the ceiling, when in reality I should be getting to work.
But the cracks in the white paint brought me little encouragement.
Because all I could think of was her—her eyes—the surprise in them—the interest—the way they widened when she learned my age and when she noticed I was interested in her.
Abby.
Too young. Too naive. Too….fresh.
The young ones always expected something, but then again, so did the older ones. Though, they were spunky—they could fuck for hours if they wanted too. Then again, the young ones were easier to tame, easier to mold, more willing to…obey.
The same went with ranch stock—horses, cows, even pigs.
And that was the only thing I knew how to do…to tame, to mold, to assert dominance over people and animals.
Five generations of men in my family did the same thing. Molded. Tamed. Dominated.
For five generations in what was farm-ranch-generational land, now is anything but. It’s tourist land.
So, after my father passed away 2 years ago, I moved from good ol’ Bozeman Montana, out to Cody, Wyoming to start the ranch over. Cody still wasn’t over saturated by tourists, so here is where I decided to lay my hat and my ranch and farm.
Wolf, one of my herding dogs, nudged the door open with his nose and let out a soft bark, bringing me from my thoughts.
Work.
“Yes, time for work Wolf,” I bent down and patted his head.
It was mid May now, and with the warmer weather came the work. So like I did everyday as the weather warmed, I had a cup of coffee and walked through the horse barn, checking on my stock. Then I proceeded to check on the cows, pigs, chickens, all before my ranch hands even left their bunks.
The dark sky lightened, changing from hues of black and gray to gentler hues of orange and yellows.
Footsteps sounded from behind me as my foreman, Duke, approached. “Mornin’.”
I nodded, sipping my coffee.
“Sleep well?” he asked.
“Like a baby.”
Duke grunted in understanding before walking away.
“Hey Duke,” I started.
Duke was like me, a through and through cowboy, and also my cousin. He hadn’t quite found a knack in settling down, and neither had I. This was our life, and we were both happy with it.
I lived in the main ranch house while he lived in the smaller house on property, while the other ranch hands lived in a bunkhouse on the property.
“After we finish, drinks are on me at The Saddle tonight.”
Duke laughed, as if he knew what I was really interested in having. A woman.
“Drinks,” I reminded him with a steady face.
“Drinks,” he countered. “As long as you’re buying, we’ll all be there.”
I nodded and finished watching the sun change slowly into a bright morning sky.
I should’ve known Duke would know. I wasn’t big on conversation, let alone group activities.
By midafternoon, my body was aching, but ranch life was difficult, there were no breaks, no sugarcoating bullshit. If you didn’t want to work hard then this life wasn’t for you.
I had developed a tan from the morning sun, my t-shirt was soaked from a mixture of cow shit and sweat, and I was dying for a hot shower.
After a shower, a good scrub, and a hearty lunch, I slumped into the chair of my office to go through some paperwork.
By the time 6 pm rolled around, my eyes were tired from looking at bills, completing the accounting ledger, and ordering farm feed.
It took me about 5 minutes to get dressed then slick back my hair.
I could use a haircut, but this would have to do for now.
Duke and the other guys were already inside drinking and laughing when I made it to the kitchen area.
“The Saddle, huh?” Cody asked, raising his drink high.
“I wonder what’s got the boss in such a good mood today,” Tanner laughed.
“What else?” Cody laughed.
I stepped into the doorframe eyeing the group.
“Speak of the devil,” Cody raised his beer to me. “Boss.”
“Are you degenerates ready?” I asked.
They all got to their feet quickly and headed towards the door.
Duke stopped me just before exiting. “I can’t wait to see what this one looks like.”
“Better than any of your lays,” I joked.
“Touche, Cole. Touche.” He patted me on the back then walked towards the truck with the rest of the men.
The radio drowned out most of my thoughts and before I knew it I shifted my truck into park, as Duke parked his truck right next to mine. The guys piled out almost immediately, eager to get inside and get to drinking, but I just stared at the light up sign for a moment, thinking.
The sound of Duke pounding on my window brought me back to reality.
The moment the door swung open, I saw her, almost immediately. Blonde hair loose along her backside in soft waves, she was wearing a jean jacket and a yellow sundress that barely covered her ass and a pair of brown leather cowboy boots.
She looked like a cowboy’s wet dream and that made me fucking angry, because I knew I wasn’t the only guy staring at her and hoping to get a glance at her ass.
Duke’s burly laugh caused me to turn to face him. “Careful, Cole, that one’s barely legal.” Referring to Abby.
“22,” I mumbled.
“A little young for you, ain’t she?”
She was on her tip toes now, reaching for a body of whiskey from the top shelf, and her ass—-that tight ass of hers, that I was just dying to see, was dangerously close to being exposed.
And my entire body was on fire now. With jealousy.
I hadn’t even fucked the girl and I was treating her like she belonged to me.
“Careful, before you go animal on us,” Duke warned, seeing my preoccupation.
I tore my gaze away from her reluctantly and followed the guys off to the table in the center of the room.
But as I took my seat and slumped my arm around the back of the chair, my gaze found its way back to her.
She was smiling, serving a whiskey on the rocks to a man who was ogling her ass just a minute before.
An older man, behind the bar began speaking to her then pointing at our table, motioning her towards us.
She grabbed a paper notepad, a pen, then began towards us.
Just as she turned and glanced at the table, our gazes connected and I knew she could feel the intensity of my gaze upon hers, tracking her face before tracking her body before settling up on her face again. Slow. Methodical. Intentional.
I wanted her body to react.
And just as I hoped, she took a misstep, not noticeable, except to my eyes, as she straightened her shoulders, and walked towards us.
At that moment, I knew that I wanted her to belong to me.