Page 108 of Scent to the Feral Cowboys
"She took some food," Cooper announced, a hint of pride in his voice.
Relief spread across their faces, a mirror of what I felt myself. Wade's shoulders relaxed visibly. "At least she's going to eat something," he murmured, hand reaching for the percolator for a fresh pour. His hand shook a little as he tilted the carafe.
"What's next?" Boone asked, his dark eyes serious as he leaned against the counter. "Will we need to watch her door again tonight?"
Wyatt, expression caught between resignation and resolve, ran a hand through his hair.
“Let’s just make that decision when the time comes,” he breathed out, not bothering to sugar his coffee like normal, and immediately taking a long sip that made him wince from the lava-like temperature.
"We should show her the property today," I suggested, thinking aloud, working out the risk factors and the safest approach. "Let her see what she's dealing with. The terrain, the distance to town, the potential dangers. Maybe then she’ll be willing to find a better solution.”
"Better solution?" Cooper asked, his brow furrowed. "What does that mean?"
I hesitated, aware that I was treading into sensitive territory. None of us wanted to think about her leaving. “If she’s determined to leave…”
I didn’t finish the statement. We all could fill in the missing parts.
The silence that followed was heavy.
What would happen if she never accepted us? What if the millions we'd invested resulted only in a woman who hated us? Was it a choice between betraying our moral code to keep her, or experiencing the agony of having her vanish from our lives?
Shit, she’d only just gotten here.
How could the thought of her leaving cause such stabbing pain in my heart?
It wasn’t logical.
Wasn’t rational.
Nelly had scrambled our good senses.
And was now an unpredictable variable in our carefully constructed world.
25
NELLY
I ate everything on the tray, which made me feel a bit ashamed.
But if I was going to make a run for it tonight, I needed fuel.
At first, I was determined to stay in the room the entire day. I didn’t want to see any of the men, and Idefinitelydidn’t want to smell them. It turned out to be an impossible task. Eventually, I needed to pee. I waited for a torturous length of time, clamping my legs together and pressing my ear against the door, until the hallway was perfectly quiet. Then I wrenched open the door, raced to the bathroom, and relieved myself in record time. After washing my hands, I padded quickly back to the bedroom and shut the door. Miracle of miracles, I didn’t get caught.
Soon after I was back in the room, though, a voice called out to me.
“Nelly, we were thinking we could show you around Sagebrush. It’s beautiful outside.” The voice was steady, tone casual.
“I’m staying right where I am,” I responded icily.
“Seeing the lay of the land might be useful.” This from a different voice.
“I don’t fucking see how,” I barked back.
They didn’t try to justify. Footsteps retreated. No one checked on me for a long time after that.
The day moved at a glacial pace.
Time. Ticking. Away.
