Chapter 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
THORA
Anton is becoming too much of a fixation. The kind I look forward to every single morning, and today is no exception.
I wish we had the kind of relationship where I could call him whenever I wanted. Talk to him. Actually be friends with benefits—and by benefits, I don’t only mean his penis, even though that part is admittedly incredible.
I just want him around. Is that really so bad?
But I don’t even have his number.
Cider nudges my arm with her nose, pulling me out of my thoughts. The sun is already high, warming my skin inside the paddock.
“Okay, okay. I get it.” I stroke her face. “You can tell my mind is somewhere else. But can you blame me? If you met him, you’d understand.”
She shifts her weight and flicks her tail.
“He’s…complicated,” I continue, glancing toward the fence, half expecting him to appear out of nowhere.
“But also annoyingly attractive. Weirdly sweet when he doesn’t mean to be.
And kind of impossible to stop thinking about.
” I let out a dreamy sigh, and even I want to slap myself. “Yeah, yeah. I know. Don’t judge.”
Cider huffs and edges closer, making me laugh.
“Hey, don’t look at me like that. I’m figuring it out as I go.”
A little while later, Greer enters the paddock, her boots sinking into the dirt as she approaches.
“Do you want to grab lunch with me?”
Something about her tense demeanor makes me pause, though I can’t tell what’s bothering her.
“Yeah, sure.” I wipe my hands on my jeans. “Let me wash up first.”
The moment I climb into the passenger seat of her Bentley, she pulls away from the farm. With every glance she sends in my direction, the silence between us becomes more unsettling.
I study her from the corner of my eye, waiting for her to say whatever she’s clearly desperate to get out. But she keeps quiet, her grip locked around the steering wheel and her features too rigid as anxiety knots deeper in my gut.
Something must have happened. Maybe with the family or the business. Maybe even some new danger that has gotten bad enough for them to tell me about it.
Time drags until we arrive at an upscale seafood restaurant overlooking the water, and once we’re inside, the hostess leads us to a table in the corner. Greer sits across from me and opens her menu, her eyes moving over the page, but I know her well enough to know she’s not reading a single word.
The waiter comes by, we order drinks, and the second he strides away, I set my menu down and stare her way.
“Okay, what’s going on?”
Her brows lift. “What do you mean?”
“Come on. I know you better than that. Something’s going on, and you want to tell me, so what is it?”
She scrubs a hand over her face. “Shit. You know me too well.”
“It’s a blessing and a curse.”
She laughs, but it’s short and tension-filled. “Well…Dad called.”
That already tells me everything I need to know.
“He wants us to fly down to Texas in a month for a big fundraiser for the charity.”
“Okay…” I say slowly. “And what’s the problem with that?”
Our family hosts events like this all the time, raising money to help injured horses and struggling families back home.
“Nothing,” she answers quickly. “Nothing at all, except…”
“What?”
She glances around like she’s checking who might hear, then leans in a little. “He’s gonna kill me for saying anything, but I don’t want you walking into it blind.”
“Crap, Greer. Just tell me.”
My fingers tighten around the edge of my napkin as I wait, every worst-case scenario playing in my head.
She sighs. “I heard him talking to Peterson. You know, the oil guy.”
“Yeah.” I frown, already not liking where this is going. “And?”
Greer presses her lips together. “He wants to set you up with his son, Zachary.”
“Oh, fuck.”
“Yeah.”
I lean back in my chair, shaking my head. “Well, he can try all he wants. I’m still saying no. I have zero interest in some buttoned-up suit with too much money and not enough personality.”
She snorts. “I figured. I just wanted you to be prepared.”
“Thanks for the warning.” I reach for my water and take a sip, trying to swallow down the irritation with it. “I’ll be fine. It’s nothing I haven’t dealt with before.”
“At least he’s not trying to marry you off like Jace.”
“Not yet, but this is close.”
Too close…
“Poor Jace,” she says. “Time’s running out for him to find some blushing bride willing to tolerate him.”
I nod. “Daddy’s not letting this go, no matter how hard he tries.”
Unless Jace finds a wife soon, our father won’t hand the businesses over to him.
“Though…” My thoughts drift to my niece. “Having someone around for Rue wouldn’t be the worst thing. God knows Jace could use the help with that little typhoon.”
“That kid runs circles around him.”
I smile and tilt my head. “Do you think he’d ever marry Savannah?”
Greer laughs. “No chance. Those two are like oil and water. She’d chew his head off.”
“He’d like it.” A grin pulls at my mouth. “We’ve all seen how he looks at her.”
“Yeah, but he’s too stubborn.”
“I know.”
My thoughts drift to Savannah Raines, whose family owns the smaller ranch beside ours in Texas.
We all grew up together—me and my siblings, Savannah and her sister, Wren—running around between both properties before everything got complicated.
Before we were old enough to understand exactly what my family does.
Savannah pulled away after that. Hard to blame her. She’s always been a by-the-book kind of girl, and we’re…not. But the heart wants what it wants, and I’ve caught how she gazes at Jace when she thinks no one’s paying attention.
I can’t help wondering if there’s something there after all.
That evening, I head to my place, needing space to think about what my sister told me before I return to the farm.
I don’t know what my father’s thinking. He should know me better by now. I want a man who gets his hands dirty, someone rough around the edges with a sharp jaw and a mouth that does dangerous things to my stomach.
Anton immediately fills my thoughts, watching me with all that restrained hunger, then dragging his tongue across my chin while I wanted him to keep going.
I wish I could break through his walls, but he won’t let me. Instead, he keeps slamming the door shut the second I get too close.
With a sigh, I drag a hand over my face, already dreading the trip to Texas. I haven’t seen my parents in a few weeks, and part of me wants to go home, but the thought of pretending to be interested in some man I have no intention of marrying makes my skin crawl.
Needing somewhere to put everything crowding my head, I push myself off the couch and step into my bedroom. My diary is tucked inside the closet where I left it last, and once I climb onto the bed, I open to a blank page and let the words spill out until my thoughts begin to quiet.
Dear Diary,
I wish I had a crystal ball so I could know where I’ll end up in life. Sometimes it feels like the walls are closing in, like I’m running from something I can’t escape.
I don’t want to end up married to someone my parents chose for me. I’d rather live alone in a cozy house on a big piece of land, taking care of my animals and building a life that actually feels like mine. That’s happiness to me.
If I find someone who loves me, someone I love back, then that’s a bonus.
But I won’t settle for anything less than real love.
The kind that shakes you. The kind that feels like it might ruin you and save you at the same time.
The kind that’s passionate and messy and honest and impossible to ignore.
I want to believe maybe Anton can be that for me, but it feels like he’s always running from the very thing I’m looking for.
And if he can’t even admit he might want something real, where does that leave us?
When I close the diary, a strange feeling creeps over me, like he’s watching from some hidden corner, waiting to see what I’ll do next.
Damn. My imagination has really been running wild lately.
Instead of sitting here feeding into it any longer, I tuck the diary away, slide back into my shoes, and head to my favorite diner for the milkshake I’m suddenly craving.