Chapter 7
Bad Things – MGK, Camilla Cabello
Wilder
Some women radiate beauty, no matter the circumstances. Tally Brown was one of them. It was like the world softened around her. Like even the dust spun lower in the air when she walked into a space.
Earlier she’d been ragged at the edges, mascara smudged, hair a wild mess, yet she’d still carried something around her.
Not just beauty, but presence. That sleepy, sensual weight in her tired eyes.
The curve of her body beneath thin cotton that clung in all the right ways.
It had taken every ounce of restraint not to back her into that cabin and make her feel better than any bottle of champagne ever could.
Now, watching her walk toward me, I second-guessed every reason I'd had for leaving her at the door with coffee and donuts.
Those jeans hugged her ass like they’d been stitched on her body.
Her thick sweater was snug beneath a quilted Carhartt jacket, and one long braid hung over her shoulder like an invitation.
She moved with purpose but there was still a sway to her hips that I felt in my teeth.
I swear those jeans were painted on by angels who knew exactly how to ruin a man’s concentration.
“Well, well. Don’t you look better.”
Behind me, the sound of hooves caught my attention.
A couple of the ranch hands returning from the upper pastures, their horses kicking up dust as they rode in, easy and loose.
Work moved on like clockwork here. But for a moment, with Tally closing the distance between us, the whole world felt paused.
The air stilled as her gaze met mine and heat pooled deep in the pit of my belly.
“It was the donuts and the hot shower.”
I gave her a crooked grin. “There was me thinking it was my devastating charm and rugged good looks.”
Images of her in the shower flashed through my head, and I shifted closer to my horse, not trusting my body one damn bit. I was like a moth to her flame; every single time I set eyes on her. No feelings, just pure animal attraction.
“Hey, Tally. How you doing?”
I whipped around, lip curling. Fucking Glenn.
“Aren’t you supposed to be checking the perimeter fences?” My voice came out cold—ice laid over the fire burning hot in my chest. No idea what it was about that guy, but he always managed to piss me off.
“We did.” He lifted his chin like he was throwing down a challenge.
I snorted. “Find that hard to believe.”
He was with Danny, the new kid we’d taken on. Local boy with a wide-eyed kind of hero worship for Nash. I kept my eyes on Glenn.
“Grab some grub, then both of you check the irrigation on the north side of the barn.”
Danny nodded and turned his horse toward the bunkhouse, where Ruby was serving up lunch. Glenn didn’t follow. He shifted in the saddle, shoulders rolling, neck stretching. I knew that move. I’d seen it before, right before a guy tried to ask a woman out.
I felt it in the air, the hesitation, the shallow breath. I could damn near hear the question forming in his mouth.
“Tally,” I growled, loud enough to interrupt. “Grab a horse. If you’re not working for my brother today, you can come with me.”
She smiled, slow and sly and crossed her arms, cocking out one hip in a way that made my self-control scream.
“It’s my day off,” she said, that sultry edge in her voice sliding right down my spine.
Christ. I didn’t dare adjust myself, because the moment I moved, she’d know exactly what she was doing to me.
I turned my glare back to Glenn. “Clock’s ticking, Glenn. Lunch won’t wait forever.”
He muttered a quiet “fuck” and steered his horse after Danny.
As soon as he was out of earshot, Tally gave me a look that could melt steel.
“Want to come over here and piss on my leg while you’re at it?”
Damn it. Why did she have to amuse me so much?
“Go get a horse, Brownie.”
She fluttered her eyelashes, gave me a little curtsy and then skipped off to the stables.
“Where are we going?” Tally asked, her hips rolling with Isabelle’s lazy gait. She’d come back from the stables with all the tack to saddle up Gunner’s latest recruit for the kid’s camp.
“I want to check the development,” I told her, lifting my gaze to the clear blue sky that stretched wide and endless.
Wisps of cotton clouds blew on the cool breeze that swept down from the peaks.
It was dry and clean carrying the scent of pine needles and hay.
A silver glow danced off the mountains in the distance and the air hummed with the quiet fall energy that fell between the fire of summer and the cold hush of winter.
“Why? Is there a problem?” she asked, her gaze whipping to mine.
For a moment my heart forgot how to beat.
She looked beautiful. Cheeks pink from the cold, back straight, regal and elegant.
Her long braid hung down her back, almost touching her perfect heart shaped ass, begging me to grab hold of it and wrap it around my fist while I…
Damn I did not need to think about that while sitting on a horse.
“Not that I’m aware. I just like to check in regularly, make sure Jenkins is still playing nice.”
“Don’t you trust him?” Tally asked, her spine stiffening a little as something flickered across her face, something I didn’t understand, not quite fear, but close.
I shrugged. “He seems genuine.”
Nate Jenkins, the millionaire developer building homes next to our land, had originally pitched apartments and a meatpacking plant. We’d made it crystal clear that wasn’t going to fly. Not for Last Creek Ranch. Not for the land.
After some heavy persuasion, he’d backed down. Scrapped the plant and apartments. Promised to design the development to blend with the landscape—lower impact, more respect. He’d even agreed to rewild a buffer strip between us and the build and add a nature trail.
“Because of the disruption and stress, he’s pledged a hefty donation to Gunner and Cassidy’s kids’ camp,” I explained.
She was quiet for a beat and then said, “That’s good of him.”
“You sound surprised.”
“Just seems like a lot of money to throw around.” She turned away, but not before I caught something guarded in her expression.
“Already dropped the money into the camp account. Cassidy’s buzzing about the cinema room they added because of it.”
Instantly she smiled and visibly relaxed in her saddle. “Those two are like kids in a sweet shop,” she responded.
Something tugging low in my gut. Why had she seemed so uptight about the conversation? The development shouldn’t affect her…unless. “Is the camp putting more work on you? Because if it is, I can talk to Gunner.”
She didn’t need defending, hell, she was more than capable. Gunner said she was thriving juggling online courses, soaking up everything he was teaching her. But running the training program? That was a whole other weight.
Her head snapped toward me. “I don’t need anyone to speak for me,” she said sharply, nudging Isabelle forward. “And for the record, he’s not,” she added. “He’s splitting his time fairly. I’m happy to pick up the slack if that’s what he needs.”
I didn’t want her taken advantage of just because she was good at her job, she deserved the freedom to fly, not be bogged down with work that wasn’t within her remit.
Training horses, that was what she was supposed to be doing. It wasn’t just a job for her; it was the dream. And I knew her last one had gone to hell. Kentucky. Racehorse trainer. The guy she’d stolen Dream Maker from.
The horse had been terrified of the starting gates. The bastard gave up on him, left him to rot in a stall. So, Tally did what Tally did, she took things into her own hands. Showed up here with a broken thoroughbred and a lot of fight.
And my brother, all heart and mush where horses were concerned, didn’t just help Dreamy, he gave Tally a job.
“Just looking out for you, Brownie,” I stated. “That’s all.”
We continued in silence, nothing but the gentle thud of Alice and Isabelle’s hooves on the ground. No birds, no wind, no talking, just horses and our soft breaths in a companionable peace.
Approaching the development, the hum of machinery and the clanking of tools broke the quiet.
As we pulled to a stop, Tally leaned forward and scratched Isabelle between the ears.
Alice nudged Tally’s leg, reminding her that she needed some attention too.
When Tally giggled I knew exactly how my damn horse felt. Brownie’s hands were pure magic.
“Gunner said they’re getting an expert in to plan the nature trail and the rewilding.”
“Yeah, he mentioned it at dinner last night.” A white feather landed on Tally’s shoulder.
Reaching for it, I got a hint of her perfume and mint as she turned to look at me.
“Feather.” I handed it to her. “People say it means an angel’s watching over you.
” I wasn’t sure I was into such things, but I liked the idea of it landing on her.
She took it between her fingers, looking down on it with a frown. “Not sure I believe in angels.” She shoved it into her pocket. “You want to go closer?”
I stood up in my saddle and looked over to the site. Tally didn’t need to know I’d already been and checked it out that morning. All I’d wanted was to get her away from Glenn. Stop him from embarrassing himself.
“I think it’s all okay.” Dropping back into my saddle I flashed her a grin. My boyish, one that usually got me what I wanted. “Fancy coming to see where my house is going to be?”
“Whose is being built first?” When she maneuvered Isabelle around I took that as a yes.
“The future Mr. & Mrs. Miller’s,” I informed her with a laugh. “It’s only fair that they get more privacy.”
She raised a brow. “Yeah because you get all the privacy you need at my cabin, isn’t that right?”
As she rode off ahead of me, her braid flying in the wind, an image of me and her in my house, in my space, made my stomach flip and gave me a feeling I wasn’t sure what to do with.