by Roma James
“Why are there three men with motorcycles and tents in the pasture?” My grandmother didn’t even turn to look over her shoulder from where she stood at the stove as I walked into the kitchen. “I could barely sleep all night because of their constant coming and going.”
I smirked but did my best to hide it as I moved to pour a cup of coffee. It was entirely too early for the third degree, but I knew better than to try and avoid answering.
“I’m treating their dog, Nana,” I said, wrapping my hands around the steaming mug as I shuffled over to the kitchen table. “He had surgery yesterday. They were probably just back and forth to the clinic to check on him, but I’m sorry if they kept you up.”
She turned and gave me a hard look. “What does their dog being in the clinic have to do with them being in the pasture? That doesn’t even make sense, Gracie.”
No, it didn’t make a lot of sense, not even to me. I’d have to give her that point.
“They needed a place to stay while Rambo—their dog, I mean—recovered.” I sighed and gave her a pleading look. I hoped she wasn’t going to make me defend my decision too much—or think too much about it. “I couldn’t let the dog get on the back of a motorcycle a few hours after surgery, no matter how comfortable his little seat looks.”
And I had to admit, for as rough as Ty and the other guys looked at first glance, there was no denying they had a soft spot for that dog.
Particularly Ty.
But that made sense now that I knew some of their background.
“They used to be Rangers,” I said, remembering the conversation I’d had with Ty the afternoon before. “So I think we can at least trust them to be out in the pasture for a couple of nights.”
“They’re staying longer?” she asked, then shook her head and pinned me with another hard look. “Never mind. I don’t want to know the answer. But don’t let your guard down, Gracie. Just because they used to be law men doesn’t mean they can be trusted. There’s probably a reason they aren’t still Rangers now.”
Of course there was a reason, but I didn’t have the energy to defend Ty and his friends this early in the day. Hopefully this would be the only discussion my grandmother and I would have about them.
Even as I thought it, I doubted that would be the case. The look in her eyes told me she wasn’t finished, but maybe my half-hearted explanations would be enough for now, at least.
“It won’t be for too much longer, Nana,” I said, hoping to ease her mind a little. “I don’t think they want to be here anymore than you want them here. Once their dog is in good enough condition to travel, I’m sure they’ll be moving on.”
“You know I don’t like to tell you what to do,” she began, then paused and narrowed her eyes as I felt the corners of my mouth twitch. She and I both knew very well that she did like to be in charge. But to be fair, she had earned the right to voice her opinion. Life wasn’t easy out here, and she had held my family together through some really tough times. “Gracie, I’m serious. I just want to make sure you’re safe. If anything ever happened to you…”
I felt bad for smirking earlier as her voice trailed off. Of course, she was just concerned. “I know, Nana. I promise that nothing is going to happen to me. I’ve got you here helping me watch over everything, and I’ve got Jenny with me at the clinic.” I took a sip of my coffee and thought about the trio of men across the field. “I don’t know why, but I just… I don’t feel like these guys are going to try anything shady. They might look a little rough, but…”
I shrugged, not knowing what to say, really. It was a difficult feeling to explain, and from the skeptical look she was giving me, I hadn’t done a good job of making it clear to her why I felt that way.
But it was how I felt, at least about Ty, and the other guys seemed to follow his lead. All I could do was hope they didn’t prove me wrong.
“Just be careful,” she said, turning back to the stove. “You’re my whole world, and I’m too old to be up late at night worrying.”
“I understand, Nana,” I said, meaning it. “I just need a little more time to make sure their dog is okay, and then everything will be back to normal.”
She nodded, but didn’t say anything else. I took another sip of coffee and closed my eyes for a moment, glad to have made it through that conversation without too much trouble.
Now I just had to make it through the rest of the day.
The door to my office was open, but Jenny knocked softly anyway as she stepped inside. “Should I start another pot of coffee while I’m back here, or are you okay?”
I looked up at the clock. It was nearly lunchtime, but I was still sorely tempted to go for another cup of coffee. Or three. Or six.
“No,” I said, hating my self-control just a little. “Thank you, though. I should probably eat something soon or I’m going to be bouncing off the walls.”
She gave me a sympathetic smile. We both knew I wasn’t going to be bouncing anywhere today. I was seriously dragging my butt after spending half the night to and from the clinic to check on Rambo.
And even though I had only crossed paths with the guys a couple of times throughout the night, I knew they had spent their night the same way.
I was pretty sure we’d already gone through a couple of gallons of coffee between me, Jenny, and the three of them.
“You’re in luck, Gracie,” my grandmother’s crisp voice called out from the corridor outside my office. “I brought lunch.”
Jenny and I exchanged a glance and grinned. We didn’t even bother to wonder how on earth she had overheard our conversation from out there, or how she had slipped back here without either of us noticing.
Being neither seen nor heard when she didn’t want to be was her grandma-superpower, and her habit of knowing exactly where we were and what we were up to had gotten Jenny and I more than a few stern lectures growing up.
“Thank you, Nana,” I called as she walked past my office door to the small break room. “I’ll be right there.”
“Something sure does smell amazing, Mrs. Black,” Jenny called, following the scent out the door without another look in my direction. “If Gracie doesn’t hurry, I’ll make sure her share doesn’t go to waste.”
“Not a chance of that happening,” I said, already standing up from my desk and walking toward the door. “I smell fry bread, and it’s the only thing that’s gonna get me through the rest of the day.”
By the time I made it down the hallway to the break room, there was already a line forming at the door. Ty and his two friends were hovering just outside the room, and I couldn’t help but laugh as I walked past them.
“Come on in,” I said, motioning for them to follow me. “There’s not much room, but I’d be willing to bet there’s enough food to go around.”
My grandmother scowled as they filed in behind me, but didn’t object as I grabbed a stack of paper plates and began portioning out the bread.
“We don’t want to impose or anything…” Ty began, his voice trailing off as I handed him a plate and rolled my eyes.
“You’re definitely not imposing, Ty.” I gestured toward the large serving platter my grandmother had brought with her, still piled high with food. “There’s more than enough to go around, and I know you all had a long night, too.”
“Not gonna argue with you there, Doc,” he said, grinning as he took a big bite.
I handed another plate of food to each of his friends and gave them what I hoped was a warm smile, though I was still so tired it might not have been too convincing.
“With everything going on yesterday, I don’t think I had a chance to introduce myself.” I held out my hand to the shorter, stockier man. “My name is Grace Black. This is my Nana, who happens to make the best fry bread in Texas, and my assistant, Jenny.”
He swallowed a large bite of bread and nodded. “Cody Mason. Nice to meet you.” He nodded toward my grandmother and Jenny. “And you two ladies as well.”
Jenny smiled and my gran
dmother gave a quiet grunt—the closest thing to a hello they were likely to get from her today.
“Grace Black,” I said, smiling and shaking the hand of the taller, cockier looking man. “Good to meet you.”
He took a long moment to look me up and down before the corners of his mouth twitched up into what was almost a smile. “Jaeger,” he said, simply.
I could still feel his eyes—all of their eyes, really—on me as I turned back to my grandmother. “Thank you again, Nana. Is this what you were cooking this morning?”
Her lips pressed into a thin line as she handed me a plate. “We have guests, Gracie. They might be… unexpected… but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let them stay out there starving all day and night.”
I had to stifle a laugh. Guests was a bit of a stretch, especially considering the interrogation she’d given me earlier that morning.
“We appreciate it, ma’am,” Ty said. “And we appreciate being able to come in and check on Rambo through the night. That was awfully nice of you, Grace—er, Dr. Black.”
I opened my mouth to tell him he could just call me Grace, but my grandmother’s pointed look stopped me. Her eyes flicked between me and Ty.
“My granddaughter is the best animal doctor in a hundred miles,” she said. “She has a heart of gold, especially when it comes to taking care of others—animals, people, doesn’t matter. Tell me, though—Ty, was it?—what brings you and your friends to Grey Ridge?”
“We have some business to take care of near here,” Ty said, as everyone in the room turned to him and listened. “But we didn’t really plan on staying here in Grey Ridge, to be honest. If it wasn’t for your granddaughter, though, I’m not sure what I would have done. She saved my dog’s life.”
“Your dog is in good hands,” she said. “My Gracie will make sure he’s taken care of. Just know that not everyone else in town is quite as trusting as she is.”
Ty cocked his head to the side like he was going to ask a question, but didn’t speak. The other two men, Cody and Jaeger, exchanged glances behind his back.
And even though I was pretty sure nobody in the room could have mistaken my grandmother’s words for anything other than a thinly veiled warning, I was also pretty sure none of us were going to call her on it.
I sure wasn’t.
Mainly because she was right. There really wasn’t much chance of them finding someone else around here who would trust them the way I had. I still couldn’t explain—not even to myself—what had made me leave the clinic unlocked for them.
They just seemed like good guys. Rough around the edges, sure. But good.
I really, really hoped they were, anyway.
I was the first one to leave the break room after we finished eating. The food was amazing, as always, but the undercurrent of tension in the room was a little too much for me.
And even though I knew my grandmother had the best intentions in the world, her not-so-subtle warning hadn’t helped calm anyone’s nerves.
I loved her for it anyway. I knew I would never have a better advocate than her. She had always been my biggest cheerleader, and I hoped she always would be.
Just… maybe not so much today.
I walked out of the break room and down the hallway to the recovery room where Rambo was resting. The moment I walked in, my eyes fell on the medicine cabinet across the room.
Had I left it open yesterday when I’d given Rambo his pain meds? That wasn’t like me, but I had been tired—was still really tired, in fact.
Normally, I wouldn’t think twice about it, since Jenny and I were usually the only ones who had access to this part of the clinic, but now? With three other people—three strangers, as my grandmother had taken care to remind me—going in and out?
I sighed. Had I really been that careless to leave it open? Granted, there wasn’t anything too strong in there—the controlled medications were kept locked up in another part of the clinic.
It was probably just me being careless and too tired to notice.
Probably.
Right?
I walked over to where Rambo was sleeping and reached down to scratch behind his ears, but my eyes kept wandering over to that cabinet.
My legs carried me across the room before I could really think about it any further. It didn’t look like anything else had been disturbed, but the bottle of painkillers was sitting out—had I left it off to the side like that?
I took the cap off and emptied the bottle to start counting them when I heard a snort behind me. I looked over to Rambo first, thinking I might have accidentally woken him, but then I saw Jaeger standing in the doorway shaking his head.
“Rambo is sleeping,” I said, nodding in the dog’s direction. “I was just coming back here to check on him.”
“I see that,” Jaeger said, a smirk spreading across his face. “But now I’m more interested in what you’re doing.”
My face flushed hot at his words, and I was more aware than ever of his eyes on me, looking me up and down, taking everything in.
Watching.
Waiting.
“I, um…” I swallowed hard, feeling self-conscious and vulnerable as he continued to look and smirk. “I was j-just… checking some things.”
“I see,” he repeated. “Checking to make sure nothing is missing?”
“What? No, that’s not…” My voice trailed off as I looked from him to the pills in front of me and back again. “That’s not what I meant,” I finished, sounding unconvincing, even to my own ears.
And I didn’t think anything would be missing. Not really, anyway.
But I also realized—now more than ever—that for all my gut instincts and charitable feelings, I didn’t actually know any of these guys.
“Just so you know,” he began, his smirk vanishing as his tone turned serious. “I’ve spent my life putting away druggies, pill heads, thieves, and addicts. I’m not saying I don’t understand why you’re questioning your judgment here, but I am telling you I’m not—we’re not—the guys you need to be worried about.”
“I’m not—” I snapped my mouth shut again as he disappeared from the doorway.
For a moment, I considered following him and making him listen—making him hear me, at least.
But he hadn’t been wrong, had he?
Even though I was almost completely certain I had been the one to leave the cabinet door ajar, and that I had been the one who had left the bottle of pills out of place—a certainty my re-count only helped to confirm—there had still been that little voice in the back of my head that had made me wonder if it hadn’t been me.
That little voice had made me jump to the wrong conclusion, and even though I didn’t know these guys and didn’t owe any of them an explanation—or anything else, for that matter—it still made me feel like a jerk for doubting any of them.
I nibbled at my lip, wondering again if I should go out there and find Jaeger again to apologize—or at least to have a conversation. But then I remembered that smirk, those eyes, that look he had given me.
It had been intense and confusing and hot… and maybe even a little too much. It had been all of those things at the same time.
Was I really prepared to stand there and have him look at me like that again, after what he’d just said?
No, I really wasn’t. Not right now, anyway. Not with this lack of sleep that had clearly been clouding my judgment.
The guy was hot—they all were, if I was being honest—there was no denying it. They were all hot and loyal and clearly protective of what was theirs.
It was overwhelming.
It was a little intoxicating.
And it made me feel like I was in way over my head.
Chapter 4 - Jaeger
I walked away before she could say anything else—or before I could.
She didn’t know me, didn’t know my past.
And sure, I got the fact she and I were strangers was sort of her point. It wasn’t like I could reasonably expect her
to trust me—except that she already had, right?
She had been the one to leave the clinic unlocked for us all night. If she had left those pills out as some kind of test, we definitely passed with flying colors.
I hadn’t even noticed that shit, and I knew the other guys hadn’t, either.
The only thing we were concerned about was Rambo.
But I didn’t owe her that explanation. I didn’t owe her anything.
So why couldn’t I stop thinking about it? Why hadn’t I said more?
Why did I even care what she thought about me—about any of us?
I found myself standing in front of the reception desk, not really realizing how far my legs had carried me in the few seconds since I’d cut off my conversation with Grace.
“Hi.” Grace’s assistant, Jenny, gave me a puzzled look. “Is there, uh… something I can help you with?”
“Yeah, you can tell your boss my guys and I aren’t trying to give her any trouble.” I exhaled loudly and shook my head. I hadn’t meant to say that. Not to her, anyway. “Sorry,” I mumbled, turning to walk away.
“O-kay,” she answered, drawing the word out. Her tone matched the confused look she had given me. “But wait—”
I stopped and looked back over my shoulder, then shook my head again. “I didn’t mean to get you involved. I shouldn’t have even said anything.”
“She doesn’t think you guys are here to cause trouble,” she said, her eyebrows knitting together as she spoke. “Just the opposite, really. If anything, she’s gone above and beyond for you guys.”
I huffed out a short breath. It wasn’t really what I wanted to hear, even though there was a little voice inside my head that told me it was the truth.
“Fine,” I said. “I get that she’s helped us out when she didn’t have to, and that she’s done a really good job with Rambo. I’m thankful for all of that, believe me. But if she’s so happy to help, why doesn’t she trust us? Why was she back there counting pills and giving me a suspicious look when I asked her about it?”