Page 27 of The Outlaw and the Heir

"That one is far too smart for what he's being put to do," he said, leaning back in his seat. "You are better than that."

"Than him? I should hope so," I shot out before thinking and then clenched my jaw before I followed up, knowing my father wasn't done speaking.

"None of us are better or worse under His eyes," my father said before clearing his throat. "You're being wasteful. Whether you know what I mean or not, you're being wasteful."

Of what? Was the question at the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed it back, dipping my head and taking the criticism for what it was rather than questioning it. Clearly, my father had seen value in whatever Samuel had offered, but how could I explain? How could I explain that a clever man wasn't always smart? That good ideas weren't always the same as good execution? Or that his good ideas had led to good execution the few times he'd offered them, but at the same time, Samuel was a man who couldn't be trusted no matter how smart he sounded?

It wasn't my job to offer criticisms after all, and I swallowed them down, no matter how bitter they tasted.

"We need an idea of what we're working with before we move forward," my father said, clearly done with the conversation and moving on to business again. "Facts are more important thananything else, so you will do that. You'll take him as well since you clearly think he can't be controlled without you around. I suppose we'll find out if he's trustworthy once you're both out there together."

"Or smart enough to know that killing me or leaving me just puts him at a higher risk of dying," I said suddenly, a little surprised at my continued daring.

"Do you think he's willing to die for the sake of his pride?" my father asked, sounding curious.

I thought about it for a moment and then answered honestly. “No. He's always going to choose to do whatever will make sure he comes out alive but on top. He's a survivor, but I think deep down, he's a constant winner too."

His brow rose slightly before he rapped his knuckles on the table. “Learn and see more, and deal with him accordingly. For now, he'll be the companion you've treated him as, and I hope your call will be enough. You know what I expect, and see to it."

"Yes, sir," I said as confidently as I could despite feeling as confused by his orders as usual. I turned to leave and let him do whatever it was he needed to do for the rest of the day.

And if I left the house and saw Samuel watching me from a distance with a knowing look, I pretended not to notice, just like I did whenever I felt his eyes on me for too long.

SAMUEL

The heat bore down on us, casting my entire back and neck with a burning ache. I had to keep adjusting my hat to make sure the sun didn't scorch my exposed skin and wondered how it could be so much more brutal away from the ranch. It wasn't like there were buildings or amenities to take the edge off the desert heat, or it hadn't seemed that way anyway. Apparently, there was a significant difference, enough that I could feel myself wilting despite it still being a couple of hours away from the hottest part of the day.

My comfort wasn’t helped by the company I was forced to keep. The heat had done nothing to improve Ambrose's attitude, but it hadn't done much to worsen it, either. In fact, despite how miserable the day had been so far, he was completely unaffected as far as I could tell. Clearly, he was better suited for trudging through the desert than I was, which put him level with the horses that were bred for it.

Though I’d still attest that his stubbornness was more closely related to an ass than a horse.

"Doing okay over there?" he asked in what was probably meant to be a calm, laid-back manner, but I could sense a note of smugness.

"Yes, I'm doing fantastic," I said, knowing full well my face was red and my hair was stuck to my forehead. Although it could be dry, this part of the desert was apparently humid enough to make moisture stick to me in an incredibly uncomfortable way. "I'll survive just fine."

I had survived many things, though I wouldn't call them pleasant. There was a vast difference between living and surviving, and I’d grown used to doing the latter while keeping an eye out for the former. Not that I’d found a long-term way to live, but I was determined to find it eventually, no matter how long it took.

"You're not looking great," he said, and I now had confirmation that he was enjoying my discomfort. Try as he might to act otherwise, I knew the man had a less than honorable amount of spite inside him. Now, if only I could find a sense of humor and enjoyment of the nice things in life, I might actually like him.

He looked damn good atop a horse, confident andsmugas we rode, tracking animals I knew about but didn't know how to deal with.

"Well, I can't say the same about you," I said, looking at him with a smirk.Hemight be awkward and embarrassed about his inclination that went against the norm, but I most definitely did not. And if that just happened to be a convenient way for me to take the wind out of his sails when he was trying to get the better of me, then all the better. The only way it would possibly be better was if he gave up those stupid morals of his and took off his clothes to enact the things he wanted to do to me.

It's not like I ever claimed to have dignity, and a good-looking man, no matter how infuriating, irritating, or even a little respect-worthy, was going to make me less willing to have sex after the dry spell I'd been having.

One even drier than this accursed place.

As sure as the day was hot and dry, I watched the first patch of color rise to his cheeks as he curled his lip and snapped his face away. As if that was enough for me not to have seen the way his eyes widened in surprise while the dilating of his pupils gave away his interest. As if I hadn't seen the way he'd stared far too long at my body that first time I'd bathed in weeks and then, oh so casually, was forced to look away from me. As if I couldn't feel the energy vibrating off him as he tried to restrain himself from choking me because I got on his nerves and pinning me to the wall because he wanted me on something else.

"Do you have a comment for everything?" he asked annoyedly.

"Most of the time, and a plan for most things."

"Really now?"

"Really."

"And if I were to kick you out of your saddle?"

---