Page 20 of Chasing the Wild
“But, I couldn’t take your moneyandalso take up space in your home.” It’s too much. What he’s suggesting seems like way more of an imposition on him.
“You said eight weeks, didn’t you?”
I nod. “That’s the minimum time for a placement to count, in order for my supervisor to sign me off.”
“In my book, that’s nothing. I’ve had a busted nose that lasted longer.”
“Just—” God, I don’t know how to explain this to him. I desperately need money, and I need to get certified, but I also usually work extra bar shifts to pay for Evaline’s care.
“Spit it out.” He’s got that impatience flaring again. I suspect this man doesn’t have a very long fuse, and for a moment, the girl from the cafe’s warning comes back to my mind.
You’re a bit young for him, ain’t you?
I hastily swallow a big gulp of coffee.
If the beasts up there don’t eat you, the wildlife might.
Oh, shit. What if Kayce and him don’t have a good relationship because he was abusive? What if this guy is a sadist or likes to prey on women who wander up this mountain all alone?
I already know he can gut a deer and carry a carcass across his shoulders like it weighs nothing.
There are a million places to bury a body up here.
Maybe I’ve made a horrible decision and should take him up on the offer of riding one of the horses down to Crimson Ridge instead. Who knows when Kayce will get back, and in the meantime, it will just be me all alone up here with…
He sets his coffee down with a thud, a suddenness which makes me jump. Spreading both hands wide on the counter, he fixes me with a gaze that could strip paint.
“Do we have a problem here? Because I’ve got no issue leaving you to stumble your way back down the mountain in the snow without my help. I’m busy enough, and ain’t got time to be messed around.”
His dark hair falls in his eyes and I feel about two inches tall beneath the weight of his threat.
“I’m not lying about anything.” I wet my lips. Not technically. Just leaving out vast amounts of information. When you learn the hard way never to trust anyone, it’s a shitty habit to break.
“Then hurry up, because I don’t have all fucking day.”
God. This man is like riding a bronco. Just when you think you’ve got a handle on his mood, he flips on you.
“Where I was heading, Shipton, I was going to have to pick up extra hours bartending on top of my job at the stables. It’s what I do to get by financially, until I’m qualified and I can apply for full-time veterinarian positions after graduation.”
He’s quiet, and between the silence filling this kitchen and the way he’s studying me, I’m feeling wholly unnerved.
“So, like I say, it’s all a lot of bother and a burden on you… and I can’t ask you to give me that amount of work, or pay.” The words rush out of me and I want to sink through the floor.
“There’s work needed to be done here from sun up ’til long after sundown. The way I see it, if you’re here and one of the herd gets into trouble over the next eight weeks, we’ve got a hope of saving them. I won’t have to deal with it by putting a bullet between their eyes like every other year when the snow comes, and the closest vet can’t make it up here because the roads are shut.”
I’m blinking at him like an owl. He moves around to my side of the counter and scoops both our mugs up, tipping the dregs into the sink before sliding them into the dishwasher.
Colt towers over me, folding his arms across his broad chest. “I give you shit to do. You do it without question, and you do it properly.”
All I can do is nod.
“You do that, I’ll pay you full-time wages, bed and board, plus any overtime.”
Holy shit.
“But—”
“You got a better fucking offer lined up?”
