15
Caleb shut the front door of the building behind them and gave her time to just soak up the view from the front porch.
“How could anyone not be happy to see this every single day?”
He hummed in agreement. The view of the mountains, like those spread out in front of them, was epic. He loved it. This was the view that told him he was home. There was something about it that called to his soul.
“Which mountains are those?”
“Foothills of the Crazies.” It looked to him at least like she was enjoying the view. It remained to be seen if her love of that view would last or if it would turn into something she came to hate. He knew so many people who moved out of the city into the mountains and couldn’t handle it for more than a year or two.
It would suck if she hated it here after a while.
The other women don’t… yet.
He heard the sound of an engine just as she was about to step out into the path that led to the barn, and he tugged her back. The four-wheeler barely missed her toes.
“Shit.”
“This is a ranch, baby girl. You have to be aware of your surroundings. There are way too many things that can hurt you here, like a four-wheeler driven by a six-year-old. RJ, where’s your dad?”
The tow-haired boy climbed off the four-wheeler, which was bigger than him. “He’s coming. He stopped to close the gate from Uncle D’s.” His eyes widened when he spotted Rose, and just like Rexar had taught him, he shucked his hat and twisted it in his hands. “Ma’am.”
Caleb bit back a laugh. He recognized the move as belonging to another member of Nemesis Ranch. The kid had been hanging around the barn with Jack way too much.
“He’s adorable.”
“Mr. Adorable nearly rolled over your toes.”
“I did?” RJ’s eyes filled with tears. “I—I’m sorry…”
Of course, Rexar Mitchell chose that moment to roar up on his own four-wheeler. Why wouldn’t he? The man had a freaking nose for something being wrong in his word, especially when it came to the son he hadn’t known for the first four years of his life. “Why the fuck is my kid crying?”
“I almost rolled over the lady’s toes.”
Caleb winced. He understood why Rexar was a touch overprotective of the boy. But sometimes, that over-protection went a little far. He tugged Rose closer to him, not that he thought Rexar would take it out on her, but there was a saying: better safe than sorry for a reason, and in his opinion, Rexar and Drax Mitchell were the reason that saying existed at all. “No harm done. Almost, but not quite.”
Rexar scowled in his and Rose’s direction and dropped to his knees in front of his son, talking softly to him.
“Should we go?”
“Nope,” he whispered back. “Just wait here a second.” He knew better than to draw the attention of a predator who was protecting its young. “Just give them a sec.” What she didn’t know, but he did, was that while Rexar was protective of his kid, he was also brought up with more than a little southern charm. “Just watch.”
Rexar got to his feet and moved behind his son. He kept his hand on RJ’s shoulder as the boy stepped forward.
“I’m sorry for almost running you over, Ma’am.” RJ looked directly at them. “Caleb, you should have stood in front of your lady. Your job is to protect her like Daddy does Momma.” He glanced up at his father. “Did I do it right?”
“You sure did,” Rexar smirked at Caleb, winked at Rose, and hugged his kid into his side. “Your mom will be back in about fifteen minutes; we better get cleaned up before she turns the hose on us both.”
RJ shuddered. “Yeah. I don’t want to be sparkly green.”
“Rex.”
“Don’t use the hose on the training ground,” Rexar advised as he followed his son around the side of Bravo block. He tipped his hat. “Ma’am, don’t touch any hose, especially if anyone tells you to. You never know what’s going to come out of it.”
“Umm, does he mean a snake or something? I don’t understand.”
Caleb scrubbed his hand down his face. “Remember us mentioning glitter war on the plane?”
