Page 7 of The Edge of Intensity

Rourke’s upper lip curls due to anger because it’s loud and clear in his voice when he states, “Oh, he knew alright. I didn’t even have to dig deep to find out that fucker, Erwin Desmond, has had over eight horses die on him. I’m sure Buckey would have been number nine if I hadn’t taken him with me that day.”

I shake my head. “I’ll never understand the reasons why anyone would hurt animals.”

“I’m not even going to start to understand,” Rourke grumbles. “They screw up, they can fuck the hell off and pay the price of hurting one of our own.”

“So, I guess Winfield doesn’t work here anymore?”

Rourke pins me with a fierce stare. “Work here? Fuck, no. He’s out in bad standing. His colors are stripped and he’ll never become a member ever again. If he ever so much as steps foot on our property again I’ll beat his ass to a pulp.”

The anger in his voice along with his fierce words should make me step back, but instead, I find myself inching closer to him. Close contact is something I only do with people who are in my inner circle. However, Rourke somehow makes me feel safe due to the things he just said. How a person treats and behaves around animals says a lot about a person.

It’s for this reason I reach out and touch his hand to give it a firm squeeze before I quickly drop my hand again.

“Thank you, on behalf of Buckey,” I muse and feel my cheeks heat.

Surprise overtakes his face, but he’s unable to say or do anything when there’s a woman’s voice filling the air. “Is this her, Rourke?”

“Fuck,” Rourke rumbles and steps in front of me. “Mom, not now. I’ve told everyone to stay away from the stables and that includes you. Dad, make her leave.”

I take a peek around Rourke to see an older woman along with an older man with the same features and blue eyes as Rourke standing in front of him.

The man shoots me a wink. “Sorry, Eastlynne, but when our son orders the whole MC to stay away all because a woman is coming to visit? Our curiosity shoots through the roof and calls for an investigation to see who the special one is.”

Rourke groans and mutters, “You two are ruining things.” He firms his tone when he adds, “You’ve seen her, now go. And no, I won’t bring her to the main house for lunch or to meet anyone else. She doesn’t do crowds and is here to help me with Buckey. Please leave and make sure everyone else leaves us alone as well.”

“Sure thing, Prez,” his father rumbles.

His mother gives me a finger wave. “I’m Harlene, this here is my husband, Weston, and you are invited to come and have lunch, dinner, or come and chat with me any time. I’m also a veterinarian and we have a clinic in town if you’re looking for a vet. I’ve heard you own the ranch down the road from here. Well, I do have to say that my daughter, Magdalena, is one of the vets now that I’ve retired. She’s also the one who treated Buckey so if you have any questions or need anything, just let me know.”

“Thanks,” I murmur and awkwardly give her a finger wave in return.

They slink away and Rourke takes off his Stetson to slide his fingers through his light blond hair before putting it back on. “Sorry, I didn’t expect them to barge in like that.”

“Because you warned everyone away.” The corner of my mouth twitches. “Thank you for that. I do appreciate it and I also understand how it would make your parents curious.” Without thinking things through, I blurt out the thought that pops in my head. “You could have planned to have sex in here, though. That would have been awkward to have your parents walk in on that.”

Laughter escapes me, but it falls short when my breath catches due to the heat in Rourke’s eyes. Shit. My breathing picks up because now I’m thinking about having sex. Strangely enough, the thought doesn’t scare me; it’s actually very appealing when it involves Rourke.

Double shit. What the hell is wrong with me?

CHAPTER FOUR

A few days later

– ROURKE –

“It’s hard on some and everyone has their own theory about it,” Eastlynne quips and gives me one of her warm, rare smiles.

It makes my heart fucking skip as if I’m a teenager with a huge crush for the first time in my life. I clear my throat and force my mind to keep on track with the discussion at hand. We’ve been talking non-stop during our time together over the past few days.

Weaning horses, that’s what we’re talking about now. “We don’t wean just because an animal is at a certain age. We know each and every horse that’s born here and we assess their development. Either socially, physically, or mentally, we will always observe and act on what’s best for the animal.”

“It shows.” Her gaze slides to the pasture with four fillies.

“Prez? A word, please,” Decker rumbles.

I’m annoyed by the interruption because every single one of my brothers knows to leave me alone when Eastlynne is at the ranch. Decker is still around from the older generation. He used to work for the FBI. He wouldn’t have come to me if it wasn’t important.

“What’s up, Decker?” I question.

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