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Chapter 22
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Cattenach Ranch Chapter 23
The temperature had barely hit the upper forties today and, with dusk an hour off, it promised to drop. A chill laced the breeze and the scent of snow clung to it. Nate had grown up in the Midwest where all he had to do was blink and the weather shifted, but Wyoming was a whole different level of bipolar.With all three barns stripped of shingles and one roof completely redone, he descended the ladder to call it quits. By tomorrow, he should have most of the job finished. He could punch out another thirty minutes, but his arms were jelly and Olivia didn't like him working alone late in the day. Besides, he didn't care for the look of the feud brewing between Olivia and Nakos in the gated pasture.Feet on the ground, he wiped sweat from his brow and headed over as Olivia climbed on a horse. "What's up?""I'm riding over to Dead Man's Pass to bring Kyle and George a coil of barbed wire."Nakos's jaw clenched. "You know I can't go with you and it'll be dark in under an hour. It'll tak
Cattenach Ranch Chapter 24
Nakos drew up short by a scattering of trees and quickly dismounted, taking off somewhere to their right. Nate cut the engine and followed, having no idea what had lit a fire under the foreman. Snow tinged the air. The trickle of running water blended into the background noise of wind and leaves crackling, and he realized it was probably the creek. But he didn't see or hear...His gaze landed on a horse grazing on grass by an oak. The horse she had been riding, in fact. But there was no Olivia.Nakos fumbled with the sack on the horse's flank and pulled out her radio, then her phone. "Crap." His head whipped around, gaze narrowed to slits as he scanned their whereabouts. "She tied Firestorm here, so she's got to be close. Olivia!"Nothing but nature answered and Nate's heart stopped. A strip of barbed wire fencing lined a row of trees and, just beyond that, starlight glimmered off the creek. It didn't look any wider than a hundred feet, nor very deep, but the embankment was rocky.
Cattenach Ranch Chapter 25
With evil trolls drilling into her skull and her tongue plastered to the roof of her mouth, Olivia pried her eyes open. Sunlight scorched her retinas and she winced. Moaned.Clothing rustled. "Hebe. Welcome back, little red."She moaned again and squinted at Nakos. "Hi." Head pounding, she glanced around, trying to focus through the heavy dregs of sleep. Her bedroom. Okay. How'd she get here? Why was she in bed? "What time is it?""Noon." The mattress dipped with his weight. Sitting by her hip, he swept his concerned gaze over her. "You've been out cold for a couple days.""What?" She tried to sit and a wave of nausea churned in her belly.He set a hand on her shoulder, heavy and warm, easing her back. "Relax. You've got eight stitches in your head and finally broke a fever last night. That's not accounting for the concussion."That's right. She'd hit her head by the creek. She had a vague recollection of Hank visiting, plus a steady stream of Aunt Mae, Nakos, and Amy waking her
Cattenach Ranch Chapter 26
Snatching a clean pair of panties, she shut the drawer and turned. The room spun again. "Wow. It's like being drunk, but not as fun."He growled and took the items from her. "Stubborn as shit woman. And you're lucky I'm so relieved you're awake that I'll give you whatever you want." He wrapped his arm around her waist. "Come on."They walked into the bathroom and he set her clothes on the toilet lid. While she grimaced at herself in the mirror, he started filling the tub. He studied the products on the shelf, then dumped in half a bottle of bubble bath.He did a double-take at her grin. "What?""Nothing." Adorable man. She refocused on her image and wished she hadn't. "Lord, I look like crap." A bandage covered a good part of her forehead, her hair was matted and stringy, and she could fill a grocery cart with the bags under her eyes."At the risk of sounding like a sap, having your eyes open and you out of bed is the best thing I've seen in days.""Aw. Be sappy more often." "S
Cattenach Ranch Chapter 27
Olivia's warm, tentative hand slid up Nate's arm and he pinched his eyes tighter, gripped the edge of the sink in her suite's kitchen harder. He tensed at the pleasure/pain combo her touch forever instilled and hunched to defend himself. Or her.For going on three days, he'd watched her lying in bed, pale as a corpse, and sick to his gut with abject fear she wouldn't wake up. Every concussion check by Mae or Amy or Nakos that first night had been goddamn torture until she'd briefly opened her eyes, muttered a few syllables, and drifted off again. And mercy. That fever? The need for an IV? Her drenched in sweat and hotter than the damn desert he'd escaped? He'd thought he'd die. Shit, death would've been preferable. He'd almost redecorated her bedroom by punching holes through the drywall upwards of a thousand times. None of his experiences had prepared him for that. Nearly starved as a child in foster care...subordinate to countless violent acts in that gang as a teen...holding Ju
Cattenach Ranch Chapter 28
Christ, her voice was almost as coaxing as her touch. Sultry and unhurried. The tone made his dick twitch. And she was injured, damn it.With a hand over hers, he ceased her torture before she could hit the waistband of his sweats. He forced a swallow. "How are you feeling?""Great until you stopped me. Or, I should say, you were feeling great.""Not exactly what I meant." He sucked a harsh inhale when her tongue darted across the tendon in his neck and lit a path of fire straight to his balls. "Olivia," he warned."Nate," she mimicked. She eased him onto his back and sprawled over him, resting her chin on his breastbone. "You have a tattoo on your chest. It's not like the patterns on your arms."He grunted, trying to follow her change of topic when his very erect, very throbbing dick was pressed against her belly and she was positioned between his legs.While he was still processing, she inched the shirt up to his chin and glanced at the ink in question. She couldn't possibly se
Cattenach Ranch Chapter 29
While Nate cleaned up in her bathroom, Olivia slowly made her way to her kitchenette to forage for something to eat. After sleeping solid for so long and the extremely pleasant way she'd awoken, she was ready to devour her own hand. Or her own cooking.She found a small platter of fresh fruit in the fridge Aunt Mae had probably put there and a plate of brownies on the counter. Perfect. Chocolate was the most important food group. She took both to the couch as Nate emerged from her room.Lord, he was gorgeous. Sweats low on his hips and nothing else. Bare feet, bare chest. She even loved his bald head without his usual black cap. Before him, she'd not had an opinion one way or the other on tats, but he'd turned her on to them. Big time. Especially with his naturally dark skin and muscles.He took a seat across from her with his version of an amused smile. "Brownies and pineapple?""And strawberries." She popped one in her mouth, chewing as she studied him. "Hungry?" She waved the pl
Cattenach Ranch Chapter 30
He looked down his nose at her, seemingly hesitant but curious."Nope." She ran her fingers over the white silk mask, giving him a minute. "It's the middle of the night, everyone's asleep, we're alone, and nothing bad is going to happen."Up went his brows. "Who are you trying to convince?" He took the mask from her and put the band around his head, then slipped the material over his eyes. "Do your worst, baby."No, she'd do her best, but she grabbed her plate and set it next to them on the cushion in silence. Then, she leaned forward, crushing her chest to his, and kissed him. She ran her fingers across his wide shoulders, down to his biceps, loving the soft skin over hard muscle.He tensed, but eventually participated and set his hands on top of her thighs, thumbs stroking the deeper he sank. His touch was as tender as the kiss, surprising her. They'd had brief moments where passion hadn't kicked in the door, but not like now where he seemed more interested in showing her a part
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