Page 7 of Protected

“Sounds like you have a plan all figured out. Is that what you did? Is that why you need security? Is your ex the big, bad, milk man?”

“I wish! He wouldn’t be my ex then. You should play that out with Hank and see how it goes. I can’t wait to hear the details.”

“I don’t think Hank and I are getting a milk man moment, but thank you for the advice, professor. I have to leave now and search for a job I don’t want.”

“Ugh. I know you don’t have the same opportunities here, but I’m glad you’re back in town. This baby needs an auntie and you’re going to be the best of the best. I love you.”

“Love you, too. Let’s catch up this weekend.”

“Sure thing.” The line disconnects and I spoon into my bowl of cereal before pulling up the town website. Being that we’re such a small community, jobs aren’t usually listed on the usual job-hunting sites. Instead, there’s a running list on a local trade site that keeps people up to date with the latest news and information regarding the mountain, including Mrs. Robinson’s gossip column. Aside from my parents, she’s the one person in town I missed the most, and she’s always got the greatest advice. I should go see her when I get my life back in order. Then again, maybe I should see her before that. She’d probably point me in the right direction.

I click toward the employment page and scroll down the list. There are few things here that weren’t listed yesterday that I’m qualified to do, only a couple of them take advantage of the four years I spent in college, and none of them pay enough to reduce the size of the student loan bills that are piling up.

That said, I have to start somewhere, and who knows, maybe a job at the diner will open up to something more. I never dreamt of being the manager, but I’d take it if it means paying my own bills and leaving this house of constant surveillance.

I glance back down at the screen. I need to focus. Job hunting will get Hank off my mind. I don’t know what I was thinking last night. I’ve never thought about anyone in real life the way I thought about him while I was masturbating. Maybe other people do this all the time. Maybe it’s common and I’ve been overthinking it. Maybe everyone has fantasies abouteveryone and I’m the last to know. Maybe it’s perfectly normal to Google a man you just met and read everything you can find about him.

My clit throbs again at the thought of him wrapping me up and bending me over. Maybe Sky is right. Maybe a rebound isn’t such a bad thing. People do it all the time, and clearly, I need to work something out of my system before I lose it.

That said, I know Hank isn’t looking at me for anything. No matter which way I slice it, he’s way out of my league.

Chapter Four

Hank

The ranch is quiet this morning, except for the sound of horse gates squeaking and the clop of hooves. I’ve been out here since dawn. There’s something about watching the sun rise over the barn that sets me in the right frame of mind for the day. I need to make more time for shit like this.

Lord knows I need a recentering after the bullshit I pulled last night. I’ve never done something so fucking awful. And though no one ever has to know what happened, I’ve never felt worse in my life. No one deserves to have their privacy invaded like that, especially not that sweet, little Dot.

Trouble is, now that I’ve seen what I’ve seen, I can’t get her out of my head.

The sounds she made. The way she moved. She’s like a ghost haunting my every thought.

My cock goes hard again just thinking about it.

Fucking hell.

I stand from the hay bale and make my way toward the hose, turning the nob to fill the water bins. There are a few prairie dogs poking up out of holes in the distance and my one and only pig, Big Boy, is making his way toward me. He’ll wait until his trough is filled, then slop around in the water until he’s sufficiently knocked it over and he’s rolling around in mud. I used to let it get to me, but now I see it’s his process.

When I finally get out to spend time in the barn, I wonder why I ever leave. This is where I belong. In the quiet of blowing wind, while the radio hums out a country song they’ve already played twelve hundred times today, I’m at peace. It’s where I’m meant to be. It’s not that I dislike the security firm. I like it well enough, but there’s an element of business there that I don’t care for. I prefer to work with my hands and stay busy outside. The firm was Ox’s idea, and it seemed like a good enough reason to get all us brothers together again, but I gotta say, I regret the decision most days.

Dust kicks up with manure as Moonshine the quarter horse clops around the stall. He knows it’s feeding time, and he isn’t afraid to tell me. I nuzzle the soft fuzz of his nose and balance on the top rail of the fence until I’ve scooped a few cups of feed into his bucket. He pushes against the door and munches up the food straight away. This creates a domino effect where every other animal in the barn becomes ornery until they’re fed as well.

For a while, I feed and pet the farm stock, focusing on the tasks at hand. Simple work like this is rewarding, and every chore becomes its own accomplishment. That said, Dot never really leaves my mind. I think it’s the cat jumping from the rafters and mewling at my ankles that brings her back to the forefront.

The trouble is, I’m not sure what I can do about any of it. Her father hired me to secure the place, not date his daughter. And if Dot has had this much trouble with men in her past, the last thing she needs is an asshole like me stumbling into her and making a big deal out of whatever it is I’m feeling.

I scratch the cat between the ears and toss a few carrots out to the goats that are grazing in the nearby field. They’re extra loving today, ramming their little heads into my shins forattention. People don’t think goats are affectionate, but a lot of them can be just as affectionate as dogs.

My phone buzzes in my back pocket and I pull off my heavy leather glove and check the screen. There’s a chance it could be Dot having issues with her system, though that chance is low. That’s affirmed when I see it’s my brother Carson calling.

“Hey, man,” I say, setting the phone on speaker so I can shovel and talk at the same time.

“Hey,” he clears his throat, “you coming in today?”

“Nope. I think I’m going to work from home. I’ll probably jump on later and do some admin work after I finish the outside chores. What’s up?”

“Oh, nothing. I’m fixing to take off on a little road trip this week. Buddy of mine’s sister needs some security.”

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