Chapter Four
As they walked through the front door, he thought about what Bix had said. And he realized that it was probably true.
“Hey, everybody,” he said when they came in. They were all expecting him to come in with someone, so they were crowded around
looking expectantly. “This is Bix. She’s passing through the area and needed work. So, I figured she could stay here on the
ranch for a while and do just that.”
“Hi,” she said, her voice a little bit smaller than it had been before.
He had felt some real pity for her when they had first pulled up to the house and she’d asked to go take a shower first.
The poor little thing was dirty, and he could see that she was embarrassed about it. She was wearing his ill-fitting police academy garb. She was clean now, though. Her blond hair hung down her back, and her skin was bright and clear. He noticed for the first time that her eyes were round, and a particularly interesting shade of robin’s-egg blue. She had freckles sprinkled across her nose, and her top lip was a bit fuller than the bottom one. Which lent her a sort of pouty expression. He still couldn’t quite guess her age. He knew she wasn’t being honest about the one she’d given him. He just still didn’t know why.
He had a feeling it had to do with not wanting somebody in the system to know her. Which was hilarious, because once he actually
got her name, he wasn’t just going to know her age; he was going to know the details of her rap sheet.
Maybe he was being indiscriminate bringing her into his family home. He had searched her backpack while she showered. She
did have a knife in there, just like she’d said. But he hadn’t found a gun. He didn’t think that she was actually dangerous
to him or his family. No. She was just down on her luck.
“Howdy, Bix,” said Denver, taking a step forward, fully assuming his patriarchal role. “Nice to meet you.”
“Yes,” said Arizona. “It’s always nice to have another woman around. This place is a sausage fest.”
That was when Rue came out of the kitchen. “What’s that about sausage fests?” Rue asked.
“I was just saying, there are too many men around here for my comfort.”
“There’s more and more women all the time,” said Rue.
“Yeah,” said Denver. “It’s even now.”
“Maybe the issue is that I just don’t like you .”
Marriage had tempered Arizona some. Only some. She was still a sharp little scoundrel.
“So yeah, this is everybody,” he said. “Let’s eat.”
The kitchen table was becoming increasingly full. He was proud of that. Because they had grown up keeping to themselves. They had grown up without any kind of real connection to their mother, and the connection they had to their father was toxic at best. But then things had changed. And slowly, over time, they’d started to build something between each other.
Rue had befriended Justice when her parents had worked on the ranch and had stuck close ever since. They had connections.
They had people. Landry and Fia had worked out all their issues. They had their daughter. Arizona and Micah had gotten back
together. Yeah. They had built something good. Something warm in place of what had been. And now Bix felt like she was a part
of that. Or emblematic of something they were able to do that was... good.
So, there was that.
She sat down at the table, and he sat beside her, feeling somewhat protective.
She looked over at him, and her expression was unreadable. Dinner was already set out, and when she looked back at the food,
he could read her expression.
“Eat as much as you want,” he said. “We have plenty.”
It was all the invitation he needed to make. She heaped food on her plate. Potato salad, rolls, steak. Baked beans, and a
chicken leg. She tucked into it with relish, and then helped herself to more. Denver looked across the table at him and nodded
once. He could see that his older brother had taken measure of the situation and approved.
It wasn’t often Denver approved of him.
As far as Denver was concerned, their duty was to the ranch. To each other. Daughtry felt much more beholden to the community. To right the wrongs that their father had done.
The wrongs that he had participated in.
Denver didn’t have the same level of atoning to do that Daughtry did.
But when it came to strays who worked on the ranch, Denver took that shit seriously.
And he knew that Denver would be right with him when it came to making sure that Bix got out of here with more than what she
came with.
Denver and Justice talked about ranch business, and Landry gave an update on the barn construction.
“Pretty soon we ought to be able to break ground on cottages too,” he said. “I think it would be good if there were a few
places for guests to stay when we were hosting a destination wedding.”
“Yeah,” said Daughtry, “sounds good to me.”
“You all ranch cattle?” Bix asked, surprising him by speaking.
“Yep,” Denver said. “We have fifty head. But additionally, we’ve been expanding the place. Beef is profitable. To an extent.
But when you’re farming and ranching you always have to be nimble. It’s a hard life. But we have the land, and so we’re definitely
obligated to work it and make it do as well as it can. Landry had the idea to renovate one of the barns into a venue for meetings
and weddings and the like. So then I was thinking after that we’d build places for people to stay...”
“Are you going to be providing food?”
“We have a lot of food,” Fia, his sister-in-law, chimed in. “We bake pies and can make basically anything and are set up to do it over at Sullivan’s Point.”
“So, you all work together,” she said.
“More or less,” Justice said. “We try anyway.”
“Everything runs a lot smoother these days,” said Denver. “Back when our parents were in charge of the place the families
had become rivals more than partners. It was Sawyer Garrett over at Garrett’s Watch who came up with the idea to reinstall
the collective that we used to have. We share finances, we help each other through the hard times.”
“Well, aren’t you just the Waltons,” she said. But she smiled, so it didn’t sound quite as edgy or mean as it might have.
“Not quite,” said Denver. “But we do the best we can with what we’ve got. We try to help each other.”
“Even though everybody thinks we’re assholes,” said Arizona.
“That isn’t quite it,” said Rue. “You intimidate people because they don’t understand you.”
“Misunderstood,” said Arizona. “Like the majestic wolf.”
“Or the honey badger in your case,” Justice said to his sister.
Bix was looking back and forth between everybody, apparently amused and clearly trying to follow exactly what was going on.
It was a lot of family dynamic to dump a stranger into, but she seemed entertained if anything.
“Well, I’m happy to get the dishes,” Bix said, standing up from the table and rolling up her sleeves. “You all did all the work. And provided the food.”
“You’re not going to do the dishes by yourself,” said Rue.
“No, you aren’t,” Justice agreed, standing.
“You take up too much space, Justice,” Rue said. “There isn’t that much room at the sink.”
“Are you telling me this is woman’s work?” he asked, lifting a brow.
“No, I’m telling you maybe Bix and I want to hang out.”
“Well... thank you,” Bix said.
They went back into the living room, and Denver took his seat at his favorite armchair, with cattle horns sticking out the
side. It had been their dad’s favorite chair. He sometimes thought Denver sat in it just to enjoy the fact that he had taken
it from their old man. Not because he thought he was like their dad, but because he was relishing all that he had taken from
him.
Daughtry had a feeling he was about to get the third degree so he opted to take a minute to ask Justice about Rue. “What’s
with the rock on Rue’s finger?” he asked.
Daughtry couldn’t for the life of him read the expression on his brother’s face. “Oh, she’s engaged.”
They all swiveled their heads to look back into the kitchen, then stared at Justice. “And you didn’t mention that?” Denver
asked.
Justice shrugged. “She’s been dating Asher for like eight years. It’s not shocking.”
“When’s the wedding?”
“March.” He stared at them. “They’ve actually been engaged for a while. She just got a ring recently. He’s been deployed and all that. But when he was in town a few weeks ago he gave her the ring. And now he’s gone again, which is why she’s been over here so much.”
“You... good with that?” Landry asked. “With her getting married?”
Justice made a dismissive noise. “Yes. She’s happy. She’s the nicest, most organized, most together person I know. She makes
me look like the biggest degenerate on the planet, and I love her for it. I’m glad she found someone who’s like her.”
Daughtry had never fully understood the relationship between Justice and Rue, but if pressed he would have said it had some...
sexual tension there. But maybe not. Maybe he’d been wrong all this time.
“So. Give us the story,” said Denver.
It took Daughtry a minute to realize Denver was no longer talking to Justice.
“Not much to tell. Her van broke down on the outskirts of the ranch. She needs money to fix it. She’s kind of down-and-out.”
“That’s very nice of you, Daughtry,” said Justice.
“He’s a martyr,” said Denver. “He’s not nice.”
“That’s mean,” said Landry, feigning shock.
“I’m mean,” Denver said blandly.
“The way I see it,” Daughtry said, ignoring his brothers, “we can find her some odd jobs to do, get her set up and send her
on her way. But she’s going to need a place to stay.”
“Where exactly?”
“I’m not going to farm her out to you. We’ll have to get one of the other houses on the property habitable. Until then... Well, tonight at least I thought I’d sleep on the couch and have her sleep in my bed.”
Denver and Landry exchanged a look.
“Really?” Daughtry said. “Do you honestly think—”
“No,” said Landry. “That’s the thing. I do not think. Not of you. You would never . I’m just wondering if she’s going to think...”
“I already made it clear to her that I’m not expecting payment for this,” he said, his lip curling. “Because you know there’s
plenty of guys that would only help her so that they could take advantage of her.”
And the question swirling around inside of him was why he was helping her.
Because he was a good person? Maybe it was really just because it was the opposite of what his dad would’ve done. That was
what he told himself in the beginning. It was what he’d told her.
His brothers were looking at him with cool speculation. It was his sister who came to his immediate defense. “You’re just
a good one, Daughtry. You have the ability to help and so you do. There’s nothing deeper than that to it. You don’t need to.”
“You’re doing what any of them would do,” said Fia. “Whether they think so or not. You’re all good men. You would never leave
a woman vulnerable.”
That he did believe. His brothers were all good men. They weren’t like their father. They didn’t try to bleed everybody around
them for whatever they could get.
Daughtry had made sure that his entire life was a condemnation of the way that his father had behaved. The way that he had behaved.
That was the problem. His brothers could rest in the fact that they weren’t their father.
Daughtry couldn’t.
He made sure that his life was all about black-and-white. All about laws and rules in order, because he had seen who he was
without it. He didn’t like that person. He was determined to never be that person again.
It was easy for him to decide what to do when he put it in context with his job. What was the point of being a police officer
if he didn’t help? It was the kind of thing that made his day a bit easier to navigate.
And he was all about that. Moral simplicity was his jam.
He looked at the time. “I’m going to go collect her. Take her back and get her to sleep.”
“How old is she?” Denver asked.
“She says she’s twenty-six.”
Denver shook his head. “Well, that’s a lie.”
“I know. I just don’t know how much of one it is. But I’ll find out once I get her full name out of her. I’m going to put
her on payroll legally and officially. But she’s had a long day. She doesn’t need to be in there doing dishes.”
“Maybe she wants to,” Denver said. “Don’t treat her like a half-drowned kitten when she’s a whole woman capable of standing
on her own feet.”
It was a strangely pointed thing for his brother to say.
“I don’t want her feeling like she has to pay us back.”
He moseyed back into the kitchen and leaned in the doorway. Bix was scrubbing dishes as quickly as possible, with Rue putting
them away.
“Sorry,” said Daughtry. “I’m going to take your scrubber.”
“We aren’t done yet,” said Bix. “And I can’t make her finish alone.”
“I’ll help,” said Justice.
“You’ve had a long day,” Daughtry said.
The expression she gave him was one of utter confusion. “What?”
“You’ve had a long day. You’re probably tired.”
“Well. Yes. But... I don’t understand why that... I don’t get why...”
“What?” he asked.
“I don’t understand why that matters. Or why you’re concerned about it.”
“Seems like a normal thing to be concerned about.”
“Okay.”
She moved away from the sink like a little robot and dried her hands on her sweatpants.
“Bye,” she said to Justice and Rue.
“Bye, Bix,” said Rue. “Hopefully we’ll see you for dinner tomorrow.”
“Maybe,” she said.
He led her out of the kitchen to another chorus of goodbyes, and when they were outside, walking to the truck, she stopped.
“That was... It was very nice. I’m not sure that I should stay.”
“Why not?”
“Because. I can’t get used to this. It’s not ever going to be my life. It’s never going to be normal. It’s never going to be... I can’t get used to eating that much food.”
“Counterargument,” he said, feeling sympathy for her swelling in his chest. “You’re building up your strength.”
“Nobody has ever... You being afraid that I’m tired... No one has ever cared about that before. It’s never mattered.
And it’s not something that I’m going to be able to keep.”
He wished that weren’t true. And yet, he couldn’t argue with what she was saying. It probably was true. But it sure as hell
sucked.
“Well, someone should have,” he said.
“Not going to argue with you, Sheriff. But nobody ever has. And I have a life to live. So, I can’t sit around getting soft.”
“Sit around for a little bit and get strong then. Food, rest, all that’s helpful.”
“Maybe.”
“If you want to leave the minute that you have enough money to get a new starter, you will be out within a week. You can’t
tell me that you were going to be out of here that fast making moonshine.”
She squinted. “I wasn’t making moonshine.”
“Really?”
“I’m not admitting anything,” she said.
“You’re a difficult little critter. Get in the truck.”
She obeyed him, which surprised him, and then they were off to the house.
“I’m actually staying with you tonight?”
“I don’t have any better options open at the moment. I also don’t have a guest bed.”
The silence that filled the truck was heavy. “I’m sleeping on the couch,” he said. “To be clear.”
“Oh.”
“I’m not waiting to drop another shoe on you.”
She was tense, he realized. She had been from the moment he’d met her. Her shoulders held tight, her whole body tight. Poor
thing.
“That’s unusual.”
“Yeah. I get that. I’m sorry about it.”
“No need to be sorry to me,” she said.
“Fine. Not sorry. Don’t care if you’re tired. But from a practical standpoint, it would be best if you got your rest so that
you can work. I’m going to drive you out to the ranch house tomorrow morning, and Denver will give you your assignment. I
have to go to work.”
“Do the rest of them work on the ranch?”
“Yeah. I do too. Just when I’m not working my shifts for the department.”
“Right.”
He killed the engine and they got out of the truck, walking toward the house. “Come here,” he said.
He led her down the hall and pushed his bedroom door open. “You can sleep in here.”
“I... Well, thanks.”
“No drama.”
He went into the room and opened up his closet, taking out a folded-up blanket and snagging one of the pillows off the bed.
“You... You’re going to sleep on the couch?”
“Yeah. It’ll be fine.”
Not really. His feet were going to be crunched up at the end. But that didn’t matter.
“What?”
“Yeah,” he said. “Fine. Don’t worry about it, Bix.”
“I’m not,” she said. “If you’re uncomfortable, that’s just because you’re a sap. I don’t give a shit.”
“Good. That’s what I like to hear.”
“Great,” she said.
Then he walked out of the room and closed the door behind him, leaving his foundling in there.
He paused at the vacant bedroom two doors down from his own. He could always just get a bed and put it in there. She wouldn’t
be here that long. It was probably more efficient than trying to get another one of the buildings ready.
He would think on that.
Until then, he had a very uncomfortable night to spend on the couch. And if it was penance a little bit... that was just
fine too.
Bix didn’t know what to make of the situation she found herself in. Everybody at the King house had been nice. Very nice.
And the food had been amazing. And then he had noticed that she was tired and...
She rubbed her chest where it felt sore.
She didn’t like feeling emotional. Not like this. It was annoying. She didn’t feel like it was fair. There was no call to
go getting sappy or attached or anything like that.
He was just a guy. He was a guy that was helping her out.
What did it matter? What did he matter? He didn’t. They didn’t.
This was almost a con. When she thought about it. Because she was going to go right back to selling moonshine. She wasn’t
getting on the straight and narrow or anything like that. He wasn’t actually making a difference in her life.
Whatever the hell he thought he was doing.
She went to the bathroom and took a minute to look around that space. He had a tub in there. She was going to use it. Tonight,
or maybe early tomorrow morning. But she realized she needed to get her clothes moved out of the washing machine and into
the dryer.
She walked out of the bedroom and made her way down to where the laundry room was. She dug through the washing machine and
grabbed her clothes. Put them in the dryer and examined the settings. She didn’t know what the hell they meant. She took her
best guess and hit the button. She figured she couldn’t go too wrong with More Dry .
She wanted her clothes to be more dry , after all.
When she got them started, she walked out of the laundry room, and then stopped. There he was, at the end of the hallway,
backlit. Shirtless. He just sort of stood there. And her mouth went dry. Because he was...
He was built .
She had known that. She had been able to tell that, seeing him in his uniform. That he had broad shoulders and a muscular chest. That his waist was narrow. He was tall. Exceptionally tall.
But that hint of his physique in the uniform hadn’t fully prepared her for this.
For the sight of his well-defined pectoral muscles dusted with dark hair, the firmly ridged abs on his stomach.
She did not get foolish about men. Because she couldn’t afford it.
Her personal economy was always such that sexy men were just way too expensive.
But right now, she was immobilized by it. By him.
“Sorry,” she said, suddenly realizing that she was standing there ogling him.
She turned around and went back to her bedroom.
She closed the door firmly behind her and locked it.
Lord Almighty. She had not needed that. She didn’t need her head filled up with images of his chest. His stomach.
He should warn people about that.
That he was a snack and a half.
Good thing she was immune to men. Really. Because she was.
Also, a good thing she’d stuffed herself at dinner because she needed no snacks.
“Can’t afford it,” she repeated to herself over and over again as she went into the bathroom and started to run some water
in the bathtub. She’d just had a shower a few hours ago, but access to warm water was a luxury. And being this close to a
bath meant she simply couldn’t resist.
And taking further advantage of her hospitality seemed like it might make her feel better.
So, she started running the water, and took her clothes off, but then tried to ignore the way that the fabric brushed against
her body. While that image of him half-naked still lingered in her mind. What the hell was wrong with her?
She grimaced and stood outside the tub, tapping her foot. Waiting. She got in and sighed when the water closed in over her
shoulders. It was an amazing tub. A deep one. Probably special order because he was so tall.
And big and broad.
She felt an arrow of desire lance her. Unexpectedly . Weirdly . It was such a foreign experience for her.
Always theoretical.
She squeezed her legs together and did her best to ignore it. She had to keep herself safe. Nobody else cared as much about
her own safety as she did. He might be helping her, but it would only be to a point. What she’d said to him earlier was true.
She couldn’t afford to go getting sentimental. She couldn’t afford to get comfortable.
She soaked in the tub until she turned into a prune, then got out and dried herself off. She put the sweats back on and looked
at the bed.
He slept in this bed normally. It was also big. She felt slightly like Goldilocks in that moment. But the bed was definitely
Papa Bear’s. And it was big. Not just right. It was disconcerting. And his.
She pulled back the blankets and slipped between the sheets. She was immediately enveloped by that scent she’d noticed earlier. It made her heart jump. It was weird. She didn’t like it.
She shifted, and rolled over onto her stomach, but that didn’t help, because that just put her face in his pillow. Which also
smelled like him.
She huffed and moved closer to his nightstand. There was nothing on it. Nothing but an alarm clock. There was no art in the
room. The bedspread was plain. If she had a house, she would actually put nice things in it. She opened up the nightstand
drawer, feeling nosy.
It was empty.
Except for a box of condoms.
That hit her strangely in the chest.
She took the box out and saw that it was open. She pulled a strip of condoms out and ran her finger along the packets. “Who
do you use these with, Sheriff?”
It was incredibly invasive and nosy, and she knew it. But... it was interesting. These windows into him as a human. As
a man. Not just this strange kind of savior-like figure.
She shoved the condoms back into the drawer and decided she didn’t need to know about it.
And she sure as hell didn’t need to think about it.
It was... it was crazy. And it was dumb. So there. She didn’t care about his condoms. She just wanted some sleep. And this
was the first bed that she had actually been in in a while. Other than the cramped little mattress in her van. So, this was
nice for a while. It was a stopover. She refused to think of it as anything else. She was too smart to believe that this would
last. That was a good thing. It was a damned good thing.