Page 35 of Ride or Die

“Cole.” He turns his horse to face the opposite direction, nodding for me to follow.

And just my name. That’s all it takes. I set the hammer down on a post, nodding my chin.

“What’d I tell ya.” Brady snickers.

Wyatt shifts his weight. “You want us too, Boss?”

Austin doesn’t even glance his way. “No.”

The one word drops heavy. Not for them. Just for me.

“Be back,” I throw over my shoulder, like it’s nothing.

I dust my hands off on my jeans as I head to my horse, Soldier, ignoring the way Brady’s watching now, the way Wyatt’s jaw tightens just a little. They know better than to ask—but they know enough to know it ain’t ranch work. Because whatever Austin needs—it’s the kind of thing you don’t say out loud.

CHAPTER 12

COLE

The dust settles the farther the truck drives off down the dirt road. I remove my hat, wiping the sweat from my brow. The loud slam of the metal door closing pulls me back to the now, and I turn, replacing my hat and watching Austin lock up.

“I don’t like this, Aus,” Cruz grunts, pushing off the side of his Bronco where he’s been standing this whole time doing two parts of fuck all.

“Quit your bitchin’,” Austin mutters, grabbing the duffle bag from the dirt. He rifles through it, pulling out a stack of cash and shoving it against Cruz’s chest.

Accepting the money, Cruz looks down at it, chewing on his bottom lip. And I can tell he wants to say something—insert his authority—but one quick glance at Austin and he seems to change his mind. Hell, I almost laugh. Pussy.

Austin shoves a wad of cash at me on his way past. Unlike Cruz, I accept it without any lip, tucking it safely into my saddle bag before hoisting myself up onto Soldier.

“You headed back to the hands?” Austin asks once he’s mounted.

I nod. “Should be done soon.”

“Thanks for your help.”

I throw him a salute before grabbing the reins, and clicking my tongue, turning Soldier back in the direction of the east pasture.

Austin started this… side venture about a year ago, after the ranch hit a rough patch when cattle prices dropped due to the flow-on effects of the war. I don’t know how it came about. Frankly, I don’t want to know. Half the time I don’t even know what we’re doing. I mean, I have a pretty good fuckin’ idea, but I prefer to remain ignorant. Plead the fifth, if I ever had to. What I do know is the guys that Austin started doing business with are not the kind of guys you wanna mess with. But I have to believe that Austin knows what he’s doing. Rattlesnake Ranch has been in his family for generations. The last thing he would ever do is knowingly put this place in jeopardy.

My phone shudders against my thigh and I tug it out of my pocket, pulling on the reins for Soldier to slow when I see Clara’s name illuminated on the screen. I answer the call without hesitation, not missing the way something unfamiliar tugs deep in my chest.

“You okay?”

“Oh,” she stammers, clearly confused by my quick, gruff greeting. “Uh, yeah. Hi. Sorry. I—” She seems to take a breath. “I thought I’d get your voicemail,” she says all rushed with a huff of laughter. I can’t help but grin at how flustered she sounds.

“I just, um… Billie and I were baking some cookies and the oven… it just kinda stopped. Um… and it won’t come back on. I promise I didn’t do anything. And I-I tried to?—”

“It’s okay,” I interrupt her rambling, sensing her nerves with every word, even through the phone. “I’ve been meanin’ to replace it. But I rarely ever cook, so I keep forgettin’.”

“Oh…” She exhales, her relief obvious and that thought alone stirs something in my chest.

“I’ll get it fixed as soon as possible.”

“Oh, it’s… it’s no rush,” Clara says quickly. “We can do without. I-I just wanted you to know.”

I look out over the jagged horizon of the mountains in the distance, squinting through the glare of the unforgiving sun. Dragging a hand over my jaw, I surprise myself as much as I surprise Clara with my unexpected words as I say, “You doin’ okay?”

She’s silent for a beat, but I hear the telltale intake of her breath, so I know she’s still there. “Um… yeah. I’m okay.”