“Take her into the new cabin we finished building last month,” Colt says. “I don’t want her staying in a cabin this remote and if you’re close to the clubhouse it will give the tight security we need right now. I have no clue if the VP saw he had a witness when he started shooting, but I won’t take any chances either.”
Ledger nods. “You got it.”
“Do you think they’ll come after me? I don’t think he saw me, though.”
“You turned your back and went inside. It takes a fucking second to see your back or hear a door slam behind you if you went inside. You suddenly leaving, her brother killing someone and hearing you left without a word…it raises suspicions. Better safe than someone coming for my sister.”
“Agreed,” Ledger growls through clenched teeth.
Colt’s phone indicates he has an incoming text message. I reach out to see if it’s Kay but Colt snatches up the phone before I can. “My phone, May.”
I jump to my feet, knowing exactly what he’s doing. “You leave her alone.”
“Relax, sis. I’m not going to do anything. She knows you’re here with me. But what I am going to do is get into the background of that MC and see what’s going on with those guys. With their Prez dead, the VP killing someone on club grounds, I’d say shit has hit the fan. But you’re going to relax and leave it to us. Now, with Ledger here claiming you…it gives you food for thought. Food. Hey, this means I finally get you close and you’re going to make delicious things for me every day, right? And before you start to protest, think shit through. And seeing you’ll have time on your hands, how about you and I train the horse you were handling when you got here?”
His ramblings throw a storm of thoughts lose in my head. Old Lady. Moving here. Work. Horse. Crap. One moment in time and my life has turned upside down.
“Come on,” Ledger says and places his hand on the small of my back. “Let’s get you settled first. You don’t have to think about anything but a shower, some food in your belly, and a bed to sleep in.”
Colt is engrossed in his phone. That’s a first. We leave him to it and I let Ledger lead me out the door and to his bike. They are right. I came here for help, knowing I couldn’t go back. I don’t know if Kay’s brother saw me or not but when I left without letting Kay know, it made it obvious something was wrong. I wrap my arms around Ledger and hold tight as we head back to the ranch.
When he’s parked the bike and we stroll past the stables, I can’t help but be concerned. “Mind if we check on Coffee first?”
“Toby?” Ledger chuckles. “Sure.”
The horse is clearly dozing but when I grab the bars, he quickly steps aside in an effort to move away from me.
“Are you guys training to sell him?” I question, sliding my hand through the bars and just keeping it out to let Toby see I’m not forcing anything.
“Most of the horses we have here we’ve either bought or bred ourselves. We train them and when they’re ready they’re sold. Though some stay or when one of us likes a certain horse they can claim one.”
I tilt my head toward Ledger. “How many have you claimed?”
A sly smile spreads his face. “Besides you?”
I roll my eyes in an effort to play it off as a joke. But my cheeks heat with the realization he actually meant it. Shit. How could I forget the fact this man claimed me as his old lady? A relationship. Though it might be insane, any woman with a good pair of eyes in her head only has to glance at him and they would beg to have his cowboy boots underneath their bed every night.
I direct my eyes at the horse in front of me, who is now stretching his neck in an effort to sniff my fingers, when I softly rephrase my question. “How many horses have you claimed?”
“One. I don’t have the time or need to have more. Roper, my VP, who you’ve met when you came here, he has several. Weston has a few but only because he likes to have an older one for easy and slow rides, one with spunk, and one he knows can handle the livestock if we need to herd them to change pastures. But we sometimes use our bikes to move them too.”
“What?” I gasp. “You’re not serious, are you?”
A grin slides on his face. “Dead serious. Our cattle are used to our bikes.”
Toby’s nose is so freaking soft. “I’ve missed riding. I miss having horses around.”
Ledger steps away and I watch how he grabs something from a shelf and comes back. He squats down and starts to write on Toby’s stall. Curious to see what he’s doing, I come up behind him and feel a smile spread my face.
“Are you serious?” I repeat, but on the inside my heart is filling with joy.
“That’s twice now you questioned my words,” he murmurs and stands to cup the side of my face. “I’m always serious, Mayven. You and I are serious. Me giving you this horse is serious. And everything else I say or do will always be
