Page 69 of Eyes Like a Hurricane

A laugh bubbles up in me. “I think someone is feeding that rooster steroids. It has got to be the biggest rooster I have ever seen. His name should be Arnold or Sylvester. How about Schwartzy or Stallone?”

He nods, throwing one arm up over his face while the other one attempts to place me back on his chest.

“Yeah, he’s a Jersey Giant. Weighed in at about thirteen pounds at his check-up in the Spring. I don’t think Amelia cares what you call him, but to her, he will always be Gibbler. Sleep a bit longer, Aislinn. It’s still early,” he says in a rough timbre.

I lean down and kiss the corner of his mouth. “I’m just going to check on Dewdrop and Sunray. Keep the bed warm for me.”

All that is visible beneath his huge forearm is his mouth, which has tilted to one side in a smirk. “I promise not to move. Come find me once you set your mind at ease. From the sound of it, they are doing just fine. My only concern would be if they opened their stall and started walking back to Whitefish.”

“Ha ha ha, you are so funny. They can’t open the latch. It’s on the outside, and they don’t have opposable thumbs. I’m sure they are fine, but the vet in me just needs to double-check,” I reason. “Now be a good boy and lie here. I will be right back.”

“Sweetheart, I haven’t been a boy for over a decade,” he growls.

Snickering, I roll off the straw and put my boots on my feet. I look over to see Gibbler laying down in my place and proceed to fall asleep next to Lachlan’s hip. I see how it is. He just wanted my warm spot.

When I get over to the pen, both alpacas are still asleep, and little hums like purring are coming from their throats. They are so cute. Ingrid is going to freak out when she sees them. I’m tempted to put a kiddie pool in there to see if I can get them to corral Ingrid and Callum into a dunk.

I look over and find Lachlan has fallen back asleep. His chest rises and falls in a deep and even cadence. His arm has gone limp across his face, and he looks so relaxed.

Walking over to the barn door, I carefully crack it open. The sun is just starting to rise. Pinks, purples, and oranges paintthe sky, making the clouds look like giant scoops of rainbow sherbet. The saying about pink sky in morning causing sailors to take warning plays in my mind, and I wonder if a storm is rolling into the area.

So as not to disturb Lachlan, I close the door behind me as silently as possible. Once I witness the sun coming over the horizon line, I will head back in or see if Noah needs some help. I have always been the type that can’t fall back to sleep once I wake up in the morning.

To my left, I hear something clang. Assuming it must be Noah with the wheelbarrow, I head toward the corner of the barn. May as well see if he could use an extra set of hands. No use kidding myself that I could cuddle and return to dreamland.

Just as I come around the corner, I feel a sharp pain in the back of my head. The silhouette of an unfamiliar man stands above me as my body slumps to the cold, hard ground. All I can think of is Lachlan. I’m screaming his name in my head, but no sound is coming out.

I hear a voice mutter, “I need you out of the way until this land is under my control.”

The world goes dark just as I’m lifted into the air.

Chapter 46

Lachlan

Tuesday, June 20

My eyes flutter open to find soft darkness covering them. Realizing my arm fell asleep across my face, I grab my sleeve cuff and pull my arm down onto my chest. As the pins and needles flow through my arm, acknowledging blood flow is returning to my useless limb, I look around for Aislinn. I don’t immediately see her. Rolling onto my side, I prop myself up on my good arm. Flexing my fingers to return the blood flow faster, I realize her side is cold and her boots are gone.

I swing my legs over the side of the makeshift bed and look up and down the hall of the barn. No Aislinn. Stretching my arms above my head, I release a primal yawn and hear about three pops down my shoulders and spine. I think I may be getting too old to sleep on anything but memory foam.

Standing up, I stride toward the office. At the doorway, Noah is sitting behind the desk.

He smirks when his eyes lift to mine. “Mornin’, Sleeping Beauty. Did you get enough rest?”

I grumble, “My body is too old to sleep on a straw mattress. This was a one-time thing. I wonder if I can even sleep in a tent anymore. Hey, have you seen Aislinn?”

He shakes his head and tilts it to the side. “Was she planning to stop by this morning?”

I look at him, then glance at the clock to see it’s 8 a.m. It has been two hours since I saw Aislinn. Panic builds in my chest, and my breathing becomes a little shallow.

“No, man, she was with me all night. At sunrise, Gibbler woke her up, and she said she wanted to check on the alpacas. We stayed the night with them on a straw bed in the stall beside them. You didn’t see her during your morning chores?” I ask, my voice coming out strained.

He begins to grind his jaw, as he looks at the paperwork on his desk. “By the time I got into the barn, it was about 6:45 a.m. I saw you sleeping and didn’t want to disturb you, so I finished what I needed to do outside first.”

“This doesn’t feel right. Something is wrong,” I mutter, rubbing my fist against my sternum. “Call Axel, see if you can get him down here to look through security feeds. I’m gonna run up to the house and see if I can find her. Maybe she went to get breakfast or take a shower.”

As I exit the barn and head toward the house, the sound of paws and nails pounding down the path behind me has me turning my head. Finn and Chloe come racing out of the trailheads, barking frantically. I look around to see if the cougar was following them.

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