Page 37 of Cowboy Daddies

“And I’ll tell you something else. She is going to walk into second grade this fall and show every single one of you just what she’s made of. So you can take your outdated, thick-headed, low-brow opinions and shove them where the sun don’t shine.”

Stunned silence filled the room.

Sage tried to rein her temper in. She put on as dignified an expression as possible after telling someone to shove it. Turning to Mrs. Hargrove, she said, “I believe it’s time for my appointment. I know I caught you in the middle of something, so I’ll give you time to take the trash out.” She threw another look at the battle-ax, still opening and closing her mouth like a goldfish.

The older woman drew herself up, face turning an ugly red. “Well, I never—” she repeated

“Been in polite company before. That fact wasn’t lost on me,” Sage snapped.

“It seems I was wrong,” the older woman said. “It isn’t Rose who needs smacking. It’s you.”

Oh no, she did not!

Just like that, Sage was riled up all over again. “I’ll smack you with a hot poker, you… you stinky old warthog!”

“Wildfire,” a deep voice called from behind her.

Well, great. She had no idea how long Grady had been standing there, but it was certainly long enough for him to hear all he needed to fire her. He could probably get her fired by the Haven Agency, too.

He wasn’t loud or angry, but she could hear the steel underneath.

She whirled on him, cheeks hot, eyes blazing. “That old battle-ax was talking about smacking Rose, Grady! Like she’s some kind of problem to be beaten into shape, or a fly that needed swatting!”

She turned back to the vile woman. “I’ll swat you so hard you won’t ever talk like that again. I ought to… hey!”

Without another word, Grady had bent, scooped her up, and tossed her over his broad shoulder like she weighed nothing. “Grady Kane! You put me down!” Sage yelled, pounding on his back. “I’m not through talking to that dried-up prune of a busybody!” Sage was still waving her finger at the woman when Grady strode out the door and down the hallway while she sputtered and kicked. A few people stared, some laughed, but Grady didn’t seem to notice.

“Behave, Wildfire,” he said. His hand came down in a firm swat on her upturned bottom. “You’re making a scene, little girl. Time to go.”

Great. Just great.

He paused at Fiera’s door long enough to see if she could watch Rose for a few hours. When Fiera agreed, Sage swallowed her sob. He wasn’t even going to let her say goodbye to Rose. She could swear she felt her heart breaking.

Blinking back the tears, she remained quiet. What was the point of arguing now?

He carried her to the truck and put her in her seat. “Do not let me come back and find you not in this truck, Wildfire. I’m not in the mood to chase after you.”

Sage didn’t answer, merely nodded. What was the point of running away now? He could fire her whether she was there or not.

Grady helped Rose out of the truck and took the box from her. Taking Rose by the hand, he led her back into the school without looking back. It took almost no time before he was back at the truck.

Checking to make sure she was buckled in, he pulled out and headed for the ranch. He didn’t speak, but Sage couldn’t take his silence. “How could you just yank me out of the room like that?”

His voice was quiet but edged with warning. “We’ll talk about it when we get home.”

Sage crossed her arms, still fuming. “She deserved it.”

Grady didn’t even look at her. “Probably. But you made a scene in public with a woman you didn’t even know. My job is to keep my Little girl safe—even when she’s her own worst enemy.”

Sage blinked back her tears. “What are you going to do when we get back to the ranch? I know I’m in trouble.”

“Oh, you are,” he agreed. “You most definitely are.”

Chapter Twelve

Grady drove down the dirt road to the ranch house, everything that had happened at the school fresh in his mind. Thankfully, picking up the chicks had gone a lot faster than he’d expected, so he was already in the school parking lot when Fiera had called him in a panic, alerting him to what was going down with his Little girl.

Even as he’d nodded to Joy as she walked past him to keep an eye on Rose, Grady had heard the commotion as soon as he walked through the front doors of the school. It grew louder with each step he took as he raced to her. Standing just inside the doorway of the classroom, he’d stopped, realizing he’d misjudged the situation.