Page 20 of The Untamed

Raegan opens her mouth to argue, but I shoot her a nasty glare that has her stopping short. I’ll throw her over my shoulder and drag her ass home if I have to.

“Ry,” Ronan mutters, a slight plead to his voice. “We don’t have to be rude. Maybe Dad will—”

“No,” I snap, turning my anger on him. “This isn’t up for discussion.”

Ronan flinches at my harsh words, making me feel like a total dick. Then he turns to look back over at Logan, his cheeks burning with embarrassment.

“I’m sorry,” Ronan says to Logan. “I…I’m sorry.”

Logan gives him a knowing smile and nod, accepting his words. Their little exchange lights a fire in my gut, burning hot with a mixture of jealousy and possessiveness.

Ronan is my brother. Some asshole doesn’t get to swoop in and take him away from me.

“Let’s go,” I growl, snagging Ronan by his elbow. “You too, Rae.”

Raegan’s freckled cheeks are also red from humiliation. So sorry to be the voice of reason around here. They’ll both get over it. She gives the guys a little wave before storming back toward the direction of home, Mage in her arms. I don’t let go of Ronan as I swipe my shirt off the rock where I’d left it.

“I’d keep moving if I were you,” I spit out to Logan since he’s the apparent leader of the three. “Our land spans far and wide. Get off of it as quickly as you can.”

Logan ignores me, watching Ronan intently as we pass. When Ronan jerks to a stop, I whip around to find Logan has snagged his wrist in his hand.

“It was a pleasure meeting you, Ronan. An absolute pleasure.”

Ronan smiles—actually fucking grins—at this prick, which infuriates me. A snarl escapes me as I jerk my brother along with me, tugging him from Logan’s poisonous hold. My ears ring with anger as I storm through the woods, weaving our way along the familiar paths. I keep Raegan in my sight and refuse to let go of my brother, not that he’s even attempting to pull away.

The voices from the three guys eventually can no longer be heard. I’m sure we’ve gone at least a mile—putting us halfway home—when Ronan finally speaks.

“Why?” he croaks out. “Why couldn’t you let me make a friend?”

Raegan puts more distance between us, but I know she’ll be fine now that the threat is literally behind us. I halt and turn to glower at Ronan.

“Those people were not friends.”

His nostrils flare and his brown eyes flicker with anger. At me. Ronan never gets angry, especially not at me. Guilt swarms in my gut, making me second-guess my actions.

“They could have been,” Ronan hisses, finally freeing his arm from my grip. “How are we expected to meet people and have families of our own one day if Dad never lets us talk to anyone?”

“They could have been lying about there being girls,” I grumble. “It could have just been the three of them.”

Ronan’s cheeks burn bright red again, confusing me further. “Whatever. You made your point and it’s over now. Opportunity wasted.”

He stalks off toward home, leaving me behind. Why is he so pissed? When it was just CJ and Jace, he was ready to clobber them with a branch. But when Logan showed up, he suddenly liked the trio. Makes no sense.

The walk back is a somber one. Raegan and Ronan go their separate ways once we’re in the safety of our fenced-in yard. I know I should tell Dad about what happened. He’ll be furious and rip my siblings a new one for trusting in them. Furthermore, I’ll get my ass chewed out for leaving my weapons at home. That whole situation could have gone sideways so quickly.

Mom won’t let Raegan ever leave her sight. No more hunting trips. No more swimming or hanging out with us from beyond our yard. If I tattle, she’ll be trapped more so than she already is.

And Ronan?

The whole encounter with him and Logan leaves me feeling uneasy. I don’t know exactly where it went weird, but I could feel it. Dad won’t like what happened at all. Ronan will probably get the belt, despite being nineteen years old. You’re never too old in this family to get an ass whipping for misbehaving.

I can’t tell Dad if I want to keep my two favorite siblings from getting in trouble.

I won’t tell.

I’m jittery as I step into the big house for supper. The house is loud as per usual, the baby howling, the little ones arguing, and Raegan yapping about Mage. Ronan, however, is somber. Guilt creeps up my spine. After our intense afternoon, we all went our separate ways until dinnertime. I’d wanted to make things right with both of them, but quite frankly didn’t have the balls to deal with it.

“The bear is back,” Rowdy states in a quiet voice before shoveling in a heaping forkful of potatoes that miraculously steer clear of his scraggly beard. “Momma grizz. Cub tracks too.”

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