Page 2 of Brand Me, Cowboy's Second Chance

"I know. I needed a break. Not all of us can blend in over there the way you do." I let out a humorless chuckle, but there's no bite behind my words.

The truth is, I'm the only one of the original Kingridge brothers who doesn't mind Danner. The dude's odd as hell. He talks like a yoga instructor and thinks goats have souls, but I'm not worried about that. I'm not exactly reentering life at the ranch seamlessly myself.

"Ha, me too. Bowen, Geoffrey, and Holden only have one, maybe two drinks in them before they're ready to fight me. Thought I'd give myself the night off from that chaos and find out what Findlay Farms is all about. This is a nice place. Not as nice as Kingridge, but still."

"You bet your ass it's not," I smirk. "Question for you... Do you think it's the dumbass trucker hat that makes our brothers want to swing on you or the Cheshire cat grin you insist on?"

Danner shrugs. "Probably a bit of both." He lets out a chuckle.

He launches into a ramble about installing solar panels behind the chicken coops. All of a sudden, it's clear to me thatthisis the reason our brothers want to swing on him. But I let him talk anyway. I don't mind the company and it's easy enough to tune him out.

My brain is on a loop with thoughts of her. It has been from the moment my plane went wheels up in Europe.Why haven't I seen her? Where is she hiding? What, or god forbid, who is keeping her from me?It's been loud in my head for a long while. But the moment I stepped foot back in Sagebrush Creek, it got worse. That town screams Anny.

Stepping into a position as head of security should have been like muscle memory.Watch the screens. Monitor the property. Deal with people who step out of line. Protect the livestock. Repeat.Honestly, it's not that different from playing on the offensive line. But everything feels off. It's like I'm walking through a house that used to be mine, only someone rearranged all the furniture while I was gone.

Since I’ve been home I've seen all my brothers. I've met Bowen and Callum's new wives. Said hi again to Cassidy and my new nephew, Connor. Even Patty June and the rest of the Kingridge Ranch crew have flocked around me. But Anny is a ghost.

She's worked at the ranch long enough to know where all the cameras are. The woman is an expert at avoiding them and it’s killing me. Anny isn't just my first love. She's my first heartbreak.

I never meant for things with us to be like this… One contract in Europe turned into two. She hasn't returned a call since I left. I was sick about it for years. Now a part of me wonders if it's for the best.

She deserves better than a man who would leave her the way I did. I thought I had a contract with the Southern Knights football team in South Carolina. When they cut me, everything turned upside down. I let Anny become a casualty of the chaos.

At the time she wanted to be left alone, so I did what she told me to do and left. But after all this time, I've never been able to shake her memory from my world. If I didn't still love her this much, I'd hate her. My thoughts jerk back and forth between regret and pride. But nothing is going to be resolved until I see her again and she can't hide forever.

There's a pause in Danner's constant chatter. I glance up to find him staring at me expectantly. It pulls me back to reality. He's waiting for a response.Shit.I can't read his face. But it's clear he isn't going to move on until I give him something.

I take a shot in the dark. "Yeah, I know that's right." I top my statement with what I hope is a convincing head nod.

Danner hesitates for a moment before his eyebrows furrow together in response.Damn. That wasn't the right answer.

"Right." He bites back a laugh. "I get it. You're preoccupied. Why don't you tell me what you're actually doing way out here? You had to have something that triggered that feeling of wanting to escape the ranch for the night."

I let his question linger for a moment too long. "Now you want to talk about my feelings?" I chuckle, but he stares back at me with all the sincerity in the world.

Leave it to Danner to cross a line none of my other brothers would.

Crash.

The sound of glass shattering cuts through the bar's lazy hum and saves me from a conversation I don’t want to have. A metal barstool cascades onto the hardwood floors. The music quiets and voices rise.

"A fight that ain't my problem. This is a nice change,” I chuckle and take another sip of my beer.

But my head snaps up and my body moves to full attention when I hear her unmistakable voice.

It’s Anny.

CHAPTER3

FALLON

"Don'tyou dare talk about my family like that," Anny shouts.

I'm on my feet before Danner can blink. I turn in time to see a dude in a brown cowboy hat squaring up to my girl. Every muscle in my body tenses. The walking bag of garbage looms over her five-seven frame like he forgot that real men don't mess with women. I take it upon myself to remind him. I've got a right hook that can drop a grown man, and I'm looking for a reason to use it.

"Calm down Sugar and let me buy you a drink. I said they're crooked," he slurs, pointing a wobbly finger at Anny's chest. "Kingridge ain't nothing but backroom deals and daddy money.”

“Why don’t you fuck off?” Anny tries to step around him, but he moves in front of her.

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