Herd That ARC

by Vale, Lani Lynn

  I sighed and turned, knowing before I had visual confirmation that it was Ace.

  What was his freakin’ deal?

  Why wouldn’t he allow me to go home?

  Seriously, I’d have been home hours ago if it wasn’t for him.

  I narrowed my eyes and crossed my arms, keeping my gaze level on the man who looked highly amused by my anger.

  “You just left?” he accused.

  “I was ready to go home.” I shrugged.

  “You were intimidated by my sister’s kids,” he guessed.

  I grumbled something obscene under my breath.

  “Those kids are awful,” I told him bluntly. “I’m honestly sorry that their parents have to deal with them.”

  “They’re not that bad,” he started to say, but then burst out laughing about halfway through, and was hard-pressed to even finish the sentence. “Okay, they’re just as bad as you’re thinking. But really, when you get on their good side, they’re kind of handy to have around. They’re like those little hellhounds that you always hear about the Devil having around. They’re loyal to a fault, and will do shit that you’d never even dream of one doing… all because they love you.”

  I had no doubt that they’d be like little wrecking balls when it came to their family, taking out anybody who threatened them or who they considered their own.

  “I don’t want any kids,” I blurted.

  Ace blinked. “You don’t?”

  I shook my head. “No.”

  He hummed under his breath. “Why? Is it because of my nieces and nephews?”

  I thought about lying, but truthfully, I didn’t see any reason to hide the truth from him.

  “No,” I admitted. “It’s because of the fact that all kids are awful. I haven’t met a single one that I like yet, your nieces and nephews included.”

  He started laughing. “Nico and Georgia’s kids are an acquired taste. I can only handle them so much before they get on my nerves. I’m sure it’s just them being kids, but I’m hoping it’s different when the kids are your own. I do want ranch hands eventually I don’t have to pay an arm and a leg for. I’m still thinking about stealing their youngest, Heath, away to try to form him into something that I’d want to eventually be around.”

  My lips twitched when he sidled up to me on the horse and offered me a hand.

  I took it, and the next second, I was up on the horse in front of him.

  I felt instantly protected, but also vulnerable as hell.

  “Why is Heath the only one with a ‘H’ name?” I whispered to Ace.

  Ace smirked. “His real name is Beaufort Heath, but he couldn’t pronounce Beaufort so Heath it was,” Ace explained. “And when he finally could pronounce it, he refused to answer to it. Not that I blame him. Georgia is a real piece of work with those names.”

  I nodded in understanding. That made sense.

  “Are they done at five?” I questioned.

  Why I cared, I didn’t know, but it was definitely something that was on my mind. And since I was being forced to stay here against my will, I might as well get my questions answered.

  “I dunno.” He shrugged. “We’re catholic, so birth control isn’t really something used. Though, if they’re not using birth control, they would have had more. But, I’m not really interested in asking my sister those kinds of details, so I’ll just play the wait and see game.”

  I turned to him slowly. “You don’t use birth control?”

  He looked down at me with a playful smirk on his face. One that made my belly flop around and butterflies explode inside of me.

  His eyes were so freakin’ beautiful—and sinful—that I had a hard time forming my next statement after he said, “I do… but for the right woman, I wouldn’t.”

  “That’s kind of stupid. Either you practice it, or you don’t. It being the right woman or not should be irrelevant if you are a true Catholic,” I informed him.

  He chuckled against my back.

  “Is that right?” he teased.

  I nodded once.

  “Let me take you out on a date.”

  I immediately shook my head.

  “No.”

  “Why not?” he challenged me.

  “Because you don’t know me,” I said, then so quiet that it was near impossible for him to hear, “And I’m a piece of trash.”

  Chapter 8

  I’m not a rapper. I just cuss a lot.

  -Coffee Cup

  Ace

  I didn’t realize that she felt that way.

  I was fairly positive that she hadn’t meant for me to hear the words that’d come out of her mouth, but I had.

  On the way back last night, I stewed over what she’d said, and wondered how I would get around what she thought of herself.

  I’d been back in town for a while now, but I’d been a hermit. Though, saying that, I had heard about the town bad girl, Codie Spears. The granddaughter of Jacob Spears. The girl that set the town on fire as she hightailed herself out of it—literally.

  Though, that was just speculation.

  When I’d gotten the call from Jacob Spears asking if I’d be willing to help Codie with a couple of cows, I’d been reluctant.

  I hadn’t wanted anything to do with her. I had enough drama of my own that I didn’t need to add her drama to it.

  Yet, I’d agreed mostly because I wasn’t an asshole.

  Jacob was my neighbor. He was also a good person to have around since he knew everyone and anyone that was within a fifty-mile radius of our hometown of Kilgore, Texas.

  I’d been pissed as hell that she was late—I hadn’t realized at the time that Codie had never driven a trailer before, or I would’ve offered to do that, too—and instead of waiting for her like I’d promised Jacob I’d do, I’d left knowing she’d have to ask someone in the barn to find me.

  What I hadn’t expected was for her to come searching for me herself, or for her to be so goddamn beautiful.

  She wasn’t anything like what everyone made her out to be, either.

  I’d heard horror stories, of course.

  Unruly, uncaring, and uninterested in right or wrong.

  She wouldn’t go out of her way to piss on you if you were on fire—friend or not.

  But, what I got when I looked into her eyes wasn’t some pissed off person, but a young woman who was so beautiful it took my breath away.

  From the moment that I’d met her, I’d been so attracted to her that it was hard to function when she was around.

  When I had her in front of me last night, leaning against my chest, I could tell you with utmost certainty that I wanted a chance with her.

  I didn’t care about what reputation she had, nor did I care about whatever preconceived hang-ups she had that were keeping her from saying yes to a date with me.

  I’d get her to say yes. By the end of the week, she’d be sitting in the front seat of my truck on the way to The Back Porch, and I’d show her off to everyone in the damn bar.

  But first, I had to convince her, which was what I was doing today. After I worked out… which happened to be what I was on my way to do.

  Callum was in my front seat, and he kept looking over at me every three seconds gauging my mood.

  “Okay,” he burst out. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

  I glanced over at him with a brow raised. “What do you mean?”

  “You’re listening to the radio,” he said accusingly.

  I tilted my head to the side and cracked my neck, then followed it up with the other side.

  “I don’t see what’s wrong with that,” I admitted.

  “You didn’t used to have a radio,” he murmured.

  Okay, so Codie had mentioned how she liked to listen to the radio.

  This morning, remembering I had an old one in the barn that I’d been given in high school, and assuming it likely still worked, I went out there and opened it. Then I’d in
stalled it.

  Now, I was listening to the goddamn radio.

  So sue me.

  “I am,” I said. “And I put it in today. What’s it to you?”

  “What’s it to me?” he asked. “Well,” he started, “it’s just not like you. It feels like there’s something wrong, and either you’re about to die because you have a brain tumor affecting your temporal lobe, which then affects how you act, or you’ve been abducted by aliens and you’re not my real brother.”

  “That temporal lobe shit real?” I asked.

  “No, I pulled it out of my ass,” he admitted. “It just sounded good. Though, saying that, it might very well be right. I watched a movie about it the other day, and I’m just remembering what the fake doctor said. I think. Why are you changing the subject?”

  I turned my blinker on and then said, “Do you remember Codie from back when you were in high school?”

  Callum and Codie were about the same age, though without actually asking Codie her exact age, I could only speculate.

  “Not really, no,” he admitted. “I remember her being in trouble in school. I also remember hearing that she went to an alternative school by a couple of friends that I met back up with a few weeks ago for drinks. The only reason that even came up was because they heard that she was back in town helping out her grandfather. Nobody really thought all that highly of her, but to be honest, I think she’s a good kid.”

  “She’s older than you.” I laughed. “So not a kid.”

  He shrugged. “Whatever. So why are you asking me about her?”

  “I asked her out, and she flat out told me no because I was who I am, and she’s who she is.” I thought about saying what I said next and then decided to hell with it. “She called herself a piece of trash.”

  Callum looked like he was trying not to puke once I finished.

  “She does realize that we’re not that great of a family, correct?” he asked. “I mean, look at who our dad was. Look at what he did. And she thinks she’s a piece of trash when our father is the one who royally screwed our lives up so bad that we won’t ever be normal again?”

  I sighed. “She doesn’t think highly of herself.” I paused. “But she’s put me on this pedestal that she’s written ‘off limits’ on. It’s going to be tough to get past her walls.”

  “But you will,” Callum said suddenly. “I’ve seen the way she looks at you when you’re not paying attention. She’s enamored, that’s for sure.”

  I found myself grinning. “I like that.”

  He rolled his eyes and then turned forward just in time to see us pull into the gym lot.

  “It doesn’t hurt that you have her all to yourself for this race. I’m sure that if you wanted to help her train, she’d let you,” he murmured. “Do you think Desi will kill me if I offer her the same?”

  I thought about that for a long second. “I think she’s very insecure about her weight. I also think that Mal did a number on her and she’s not quite over what happened. You might want to tread carefully there, but I have no doubt in my mind that if you wanted to help her get over that fear and work with her to get her through that, she’d take the offer.”

  He sighed and bailed out of the truck, but stopped and turned to look at me.

  “I’m not sure what attracts us to the broken ones seeing as we’re broken ourselves, but I’m going to do my best to make sure I at least fix her since I can’t fix myself,” he muttered.

  When he slammed the door, I sat in the truck for a few long minutes thinking about what he’d said.

  And he was right.

  Maybe I should take a step back and think about what I was getting myself into.

  I mean, she was trouble.

  Hell, I had enough trouble on my plate to last me a lifetime.

  I’d just recently heard back from the attorney confirming that we had, indeed, gotten a large life insurance policy payout.

  Granted, the money we would’ve gotten from my dad might or might not pay out—they were trying to dispute it—but the money we got from my mother definitely would since her death wasn’t a suicide.

  I’d had confirmation that morning that the policy was for a million dollars. That meant two hundred thousand dollars of that was to go out to each remaining sibling.

  Two hundred thousand dollars would pay for everything that I wanted to do—including putting a sizable down payment on the property that I’d wanted to buy.

  Needless to say, I really didn’t need any complications in my life right now.

  I was finally heading in the right direction for once.

  But, as I saw Codie walking in with a sweatshirt tied around her waist and a permanent scowl on her face with Desi at her side, I knew that despite my being busy, I wouldn’t be giving up.

  I didn’t want to give up.

  For once in my life, I wasn’t doing something for the greater good of my family. I wasn’t doing something that would affect my brothers or my sister.

  I was doing it for me.

  And I wanted her.

  I wanted her to give us a chance.

  Leaning over the console into the back seat, I tugged my bag out from behind Callum’s seat that was almost leaning all the way back into the back seat, then settled it over my shoulder before bailing out of the truck altogether.

  I jogged lightly toward the front door of the gym, nodding my head at a young woman who came out and stopped halfway in the door and continued to push past her.

  I barely missed whacking her with my bag when she didn’t move.

  “’Scuse me,” I muttered, pissed now that she was taking up so much space and keeping me from getting inside.

  “Hey, aren’t you Ace Valentine?” she asked as I moved past her.

  I ignored her, hoping that she wouldn’t ask again, but she halted my forward progress with a tug on my bag’s strap.

  I reluctantly turned and stared at her.

  “Aren’t you Ace Valentine?” she repeated.

  I nodded once.

  “Oh, hey!” She smiled. “I used to go to school with you.”

  I knew that.

  I also knew that she was one of those popular girls that used to get on my nerves, hence the reason I’d passed her without any niceties on my part.

  Though, that wasn’t fair.

  She might’ve changed over the last couple of years.

  “That’s nice,” I said. “Now, if you’ll excuse me?”

  I tugged on my bag, but she held on tight.

  “Would you like to go get a drink sometime?” she asked sweetly.

  I felt my stomach tighten.

  “Uhhh.” I tugged on my bag again. “No, but thank you.”

  Her eyes went a little narrow as she spied something that I didn’t, and then moved closer to me just as I felt a presence near me.

  Then I felt the hand on my arm and looked over to find Codie standing there looking all protective and slightly jealous.

  “Sorry, Manda,” Codie said. “But Ace is here to help me. Have a good one.”

  “That doesn’t mean that he can’t go out for drinks with me later, though.” She batted her eyes at me. “You’d like to do that, wouldn’t you, sugar?”

  Codie snorted.

  “He’s mine then, too,” she lied. “He can’t stay up late because he’s taking me to go eat breakfast with Santa tomorrow. Then we’re going to feed longhorns and turkeys.”

  I blinked, as did Manda.

  “You’re… what?” she asked.

  “He’s taking me to eat with Santa,” she repeated. “But today, we have things to do and we can’t do them on time if you don’t let us get our workout in. Colt’s gonna be pissed if we’re late. Sorry.”

  Then Codie was tugging me away from Manda and toward Colt, who’d signed up to help the new gym-goers figure out how to plan out their workouts and how to operate the equipment.

  It was a new thing for Colt to help, and
honestly, if I was going to choose anybody, it sure the fuck wasn’t him.

  However, Colt had been put on the spot, and since he was back from the shack out in the back forty acres of my land, I surmised that he was seeking something to keep his mind occupied.

  “Thanks,” I muttered to her when she let my hand go like it was on fire. “Manda’s… Manda.”

  Codie snickered as she looked over at me with a grin on her face. “Manda is Manda is an apt description.”

  And really it was.

  Manda was the prom queen in high school. Manda was also the class slut, as well as the girl who got pregnant and wasn’t sure who the father was. Manda had an abortion after that and then went on to become a stripper.

  She was actually a highly sought-after person at this point, and there wasn’t a day that went by now that I lived here that I didn’t hear Manda’s name mentioned at least once.

  See, Manda was also the mayor of Tyler’s daughter. The mayor who, despite his dislike of her job, loved Manda anyway.

  Surprisingly, Manda didn’t get any bad flack—at least not that could be tracked back to one particular person.

  “Saw you almost got handled in the doorway,” Colt muttered, not bothering to look over at me when we walked up.

  “Fuckin’ Manda,” Callum growled. “I don’t even understand why she’s here. I mean, there’s not a single stripper pole for her to work on.”

  Desi choked on her water.

  Callum grinned widely at her, happy with himself and the reaction he got out of her.

  Codie stayed quiet as she bent over to stretch her legs.

  She was quite flexible and managed to touch her toes without so much as a grimace. She made flexibility look effortless.

  I tried not to make it look like I was watching, but eventually I just gave up and outright stared.

  She’d moved from going straight down to spreading her legs in a V and bending to one side, her nose touching her knee.

  She moved to the other side for a count of ten, and then Colt elbowed me in the ribs.

  “What?” I asked.

  “Are you going to stretch?” he questioned.

  I shrugged. “I hadn’t planned on it.”

  I never stretched. Though I saw the point and realized that it was better for me, I just never did.