Page 37 of Stockman's Stowaway

Cap glared at Ryder and his wise words.

‘You’ve always had a soft heart, always the first to help strays.’ Ryder nodded at Sarge, a rescued police dog. ‘Mia isn’t—’

‘I know she’s not part of the pack. I’m not stupid.’

‘Bro, you care for her. We all see that.’ Ash scratched the bristles on his chin, his brow ruffling as if a thought had just emerged. ‘Do you know what a rebound is?’

Cap scoffed. ‘What are you on about now?’

‘It’s when a woman uses a guy to help her get over a relationship. And rebound relationships never last. Trust me on that,’ said the ladies’ man who’d had the reputation of never dating a woman longer than two weeks. ‘Before I met Harper, I loved being the rebound guy, because I knew a woman wasn’t looking for anything long term.’

Dex scowled, crossing his beefy arms over his chest. ‘Women aren’t worth the hassle in my book. Don’t trust them.’

But Mia was worth it in Cap’s eyes. He didn’t know how he knew that—or when, or why he’d come to that conclusion—he just did.

‘After what Mia’s been through, bro, you might want to be careful about getting too attached to her,’ said Ash.

‘Too late, the softie already is. Just look at him.’

‘Lay off.’ Cap wanted to wipe that smirk off Dex’s face.

‘Look, none of us want to see her break your heart when she leaves,’ said the normally heartless man Ryder.

‘Mia’s not going anywhere.’ Not if Cap could help it.

‘That’s if Mia isn’t already packing after Leo’s little visit.’ Dex was such a dick!

‘She won’t. She isn’t. I’m not—’Arseholes. Cap spun around and walked away. He hated how his brothers saw straight through him.

What irked him more was they were right.

If given the opportunity, Mia would leave the first chance she got, especially with Leo’s visit reminding her why she was hiding out here in the first place. Mia had every reason to run.

Fifteen

The dingo’s howl was so close and so clear, Mia woke with a start to Willow’s cold nose pressing against her cheek where she slept on the couch in the caretaker’s cottage.

‘Bree?’ Yellow light spilled from Charlie’s bedroom door as it opened. It highlighted the kitchen. ‘Did you hear them?’

‘I did, Pop.’ On the other side of the room, Bree came out of her bedroom fully dressed in jeans and riding boots, braiding her red hair into a thick rope-like plait.

She scooped up a long, heavy coat from the hat rack, sliding it on as she unlocked a metal cupboard filled with assorted guns. ‘Get dressed, Pop. I want you to take the Razorback and wake Ryder. It’s their herd. You can reach me on the radio.’

‘Where are you going?’ Mia quickly slid into her overalls.

‘To ride out and protect the herd. We don’t need a midnight stampede happening.’ Bree shoved a box of bullets into her coat pocket, snatched up a bottle of water from the fridge, slapped on her wide-brimmed hat, grabbed one of the stockwhips and was out the door.

‘You up for a bit of adventure, girlie?’ Charlie sat on the kitchen chair and slid on his boots.

‘To do what?’

‘You would’ve done some spotlighting on your family farm, eh?’

‘I did. My brother hunted rabbits.’

‘Good. I’ll get you to operate the spotlight.’ Charlie handed her a rifle and a few boxes of bullets before closing their ammunition cupboard. ‘Put your boots on and do a toilet run before we skedaddle. I’ll go first.’ He closed the bathroom door, while Mia slipped on her boots.

‘HEE-YAH!’ Bree’s shout was soon followed by a fierce gallop of horse hooves.

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