I spend far too long picking an outfit. Normally, I could give two shits about what I wear, but Knox has me on edge. He’s lodged himself in my mind, and I can’t shake him loose. Working shirtless today and the way he smiles at me when we’re working with Buck doesn’t help. This is supposed to be a no-pressure, just-for-fun, kind of thing, but I’m starting to feel like I could have feelings for him and it’s scaring the shit out of me.
On the bright side, he’s coming to family dinner, and our family isn’t exactly normal. With Jessie and Carson bickering, they’re bound to scare him off.
It’s not far from my house to Dad’s, so I decide to walk, and Rein jumps off my porch to follow me. The walk gives me a few minutes to think, and of course, I think about Knox. It’s honestly annoying how much I’ve been thinking about him. It’s not just the fact that he’s good looking—like, really good-looking—but he’s one of those people who draws you in. I feel comfortable around him. I’ve never felt like he was judging me or putting me up to some standards I’ll never measure up to.
I’ll admit, when Carson said no to the foreman job—again—I really thought my dad would ask me, but he didn’t. He didn’t even tell me he was looking at hiring someone off the ranch, Chet just pulled in one day with no warning. If I’m being honest with myself, I think a lot of my insecurities come from that. I do a good job on this ranch and wasn’t even given the opportunity for foreman. My trust issues with men, on the other hand, are all Garrett’s fault.
The foreman job isn’t something I’ve ever brought up to my dad. I probably should, but I don’t know how to say it without sounding like the spoiled rancher’s daughter who expects things handed to her. I’ve never wanted anything handed to me—I’m willing to work for it. Maybe there is something I should bedoing that I’m not. Maybe I need to take more responsibility on the ranch, but I just can’t see it.
When I walk in the back door to Dad’s kitchen, Carson and Jessie are standing by the coffeepot and Chet is sitting at the bar.
“What is Chester doing here?” I ask no one in particular.
“Your dad invited me. Is that a problem?” he replies snarkily.
Carson steps in to buffer, as he often does. “Can you two just not for one night? Knox is going to think you’re all feral.”
Oddly enough, he’s never seemed to have any issues with Chet. Hell, they almost act like friends half the time, as much as two grown men who speak in half grunts and cowboy lingo can be.
Just then, we hear someone walking up the back porch steps. When Jessie catches sight of Knox, she immediately grumbles. “Damn. He put a shirt on.”
Carson sighs and rubs his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. “Like I said,feral.”
Knox opens the screen door. “Sorry, I wasn’t sure what door to come to and I heard voices.”
Pushing off the counter, Carson replies. “You’re good, come on in. Just leave the door open in case Jessie needs out. She isn’t quite house broken.”
Chet smothers his laugh behind his hand, but I don’t attempt to smother mine.
“Me?! That’s rich coming from you. I remember your thirty-third birthday when you—”
“Steaks are on,” my dad announces, cutting Jessie off.
Thank god, because I also remember Carson’s thirty-third birthday.
“Knox, how do you want your steak cooked? I know how the rest of you kids like it.”
“Well done, please,” is his quick reply.
The entire kitchen goes silent. I’m pretty sure Rein just whimpered from outside. It is so quiet for so long, I can hear the wind outside in the trees and—yep, that’s a cricket.
“I’m messing with you. Rare to medium rare, please.” Knox finally says with that same shit-eating grin.
Everyone talks at once.
“I was going to throw him out.”
“First the shirt, and now the steak.”
“Who invited him?”
Dad laughs while he grabs two beers out of the fridge, handing one to Carson. “Anyone else want one? We have beer or whiskey.”
“Ooh, pour some whiskey in this coffee,” Jessie says before turning to Knox. “Hi Knox, nice to see you again. I heard you don’t handle the cold well.”
Dear lord. She is about as subtle as a foghorn. Why not just say, 'Hi Knox, Kacey texted me and told me she was drooling all over you today'?
Dad picks up the whiskey to hand it to her, but Carson intercepts him. “Oh no, this is the last thing she needs.”
