Page 59 of High Intensity

“Do you guys need to go out for a pee?”

“I can take them,” Wolff offers from the door opening.

“Are you trying to keep me locked in here?” I snap.

I immediately realize that was uncalled for and raise my hand in apology, as I scramble up from the bed.

“Nope,” he replies calmly. “I just thought I’d offer. I was going to go out to check on a few things anyway, but you’re welcome to come. We’re keeping the gate to the ranch closed, and security is tight here. No one will be able to get close unnoticed, so you’re safe as long as you don’t wander off too far.”

I walk up to him and loop my arms around his neck.

“I’m sorry,” I mumble, pressing my mouth to his. “You didn’t deserve that. And yes, I’d love to come with you. I could use some fresh air.”

“Are you saying it smells in here?” he teases.

“No,” I assure him with a smile. “I just need to clear my head.”

Wolff

“Glad to see it, boy.”

I just left the office and step out on the porch when I hear Thomas’s voice.

He’s sitting in his usual spot—the rocking chair—all bundled up with a blanket over his lap and a space heater by his feet. Jonas’s father lived most of his long life in Texas, where he was a rancher, before Jonas coaxed him into coming to Montana. His favorite pastime is watching the ranch’s activities from his perch on the porch, and nothing will deter him. Not even Montana’s much colder winters.

I walk over and lean my hip against the railing.

“See what?”

The old man points his gloved finger at the corral, where I see Jillian playing with her dogs in the snow. She took them off leash, and even though they could easily slip through the fencing, they don’t wander off.

“She’s a pretty one. Dainty-lookin’ but I bet she’s made of stern stuff. Gotta be, doing the kind of work she does. Good with animals, smart, and…she’s sweet on ya, boy.”

Thomas calls everyone boy. He seems to have adopted us all and loves doling out fatherly advice. Whether we ask for it or not. He also has a romantic streak a mile wide and likes to play Cupid, given the chance. But the man truly cares, which is why I don’t blow him off like I might have otherwise.

“I like her,” I volunteer, earning me a bark of laughter.

“Always understated and aloof, aren’t ya? You don’t fool me though. I wasn’t sure about you—thought maybe you’d be the one holdout in the bunch—but all it took was the right gal to come along.”

“Fine,” I concede. “I like her a lot.”

His hoarse chuckle turns into a coughing fit, and I look on with a bit of concern.

“You can blink now,” he finally says, catching his breath. “Ain’t ready to croak yet.”

“Good,” I return. “Things would get boring without you.”

“Yeah, yeah. You can mock an old man, but have a care with that filly; she’s carrying deep hurt.”

I don’t know how he knows these things, whether he just guesses at it or what, but in this case, he is right on the mark. The truth is, if I had known how devastating and deep that hurt ran, I might not have risked getting involved with her.

Ah, who the hell am I kidding? I’d already had second and even third thoughts and still went ahead, because I couldn’t stay away.

It’s that simple.

“I’ll have a care,” I promise him as I push away from the railing.

Jillian looks up when she hears the crunch of my boots in the snow and greets me with a smile. Fuck, I like that. Even the pack seems happy to see me, sidling up to me for pats and ear scratches.

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