“Yep,” Ethan replied with a wide grin, his gaze sweeping over the group of men. “I emailed y’all with how this works. How many of y’all actually read what I sent?”
Isley was the first to put his hand up, then Lennon, Hollis, Frey, Bowie, and Monty followed.
Monty knew.
He knew we’d be sharing.
Fucking great.
Ziggy looked sheepish, whereas Wilder’s head shake came with a sniff and a puppy dog expression.
Ethan chuckled and shook his head, a gleam of unmistakable interest appearing as he stared at Wilder.
Wilder, the cheekiest of the bunch, had dressed to impress in painted-on skinny jeans and a T-shirt that stated he ‘likes to ride a cowboy’.
“Never mind, although it looks like this is your first lesson. Read shit you’re sent when it pertains to you,” chuckled Ethan.
“Silas, get your fucking ass out here,” snarled Laken, which caught Rue’s attention.
Silas appeared in the doorway looking unconcerned, arms crossed as he leaned against the door frame. “You bellowed, Laken?”
Laken pinned Silas with a hard stare. “Why didn’t you say something about this plan?”
“You think I’ve got time to fucking spoon feed you?” Silas brushed past Ziggy, striding down the steps, his cowboy boots clacking on the wood.
Rue was already over this shit when he’d avoided sharing with Monty after…
Don’t think about it!
“I’m not. I don’t have time for that shit, and neither does Ethan. This is a working ranch.” Silas’s stormy gaze traveled over all of them. “You’re here to work. To learn what the true meaning of being a team is. Here, everyone pulls their weight because it’s the only way to get everything done. Sunup to sundown, there is shit to do, animals to be taken care of. Y’all will learn how to do that, together. That was what was in the emails you failed to read. Sharing a cabin will be the last thing on your minds when your body is aching and all you want is some food, a hot shower, and a bed to sleep on.”
“Now if we’re done with the hissy fit part of the day, drop off your gear and I’ll show you around the ranch.” Ethan sent an arched look at Jupiter, before his gaze swept the group of men.
There were grumbles and mumbles, but no one said anything more about their sleeping arrangements as Rue moved his headfrom side to side to release the tension gathering across his shoulders.
Rue wasn’t sure whose ass he wanted to kick for finding himself in this damn predicament, but it was most definitely one of his brothers’. Silas for sure, except the alphahole group chat everyone used to bitch and moan in meant it could be any of them. Himself included.
Why hadn’t he kept his goddamn thoughts to himself?
Rue dropped his bag onto the single bed nearest to the door in the rustic cabin and did his best to avoid looking at the silent man sharing with him. It wasn’t the basic accommodation that annoyed him. Being in the army, he’d put up with much worse. In fact, the cabin had a bathroom, which was a luxury not afforded to him for five years of slogging through rainforests and deserts.
The issue was the man quickly emptying his things and taking his wash bag into the bathroom. How would he keep the element of professionalism between them when they were fucking sharing breathing space at night?
Monty was too fucking tempting, and after the once he’d given in to his emotions, he’d worked hard to put the professional boundaries that he should never have removed back in place.
By Rue’s estimation, as he looked at the gap between the beds, they were barely three feet apart. Monty’s aftershave was subtle, sweet almost, with a sexy undertone that was all Monty and impossible to avoid in such a confined space.
Could he find a way out of this situation?
Dad had been clear; they all needed a reality check, and Rue got it. But this? Why did it have to be this? Rue wasn’t sure whether he believed Silas hadn’t done this to them. The only upside was that Jupiter—who absolutely had the blame sitting on his doorstep for this crap shoot—had to share with Wilder. Rue hoped the cheeky raccoon tormented Jupiter.
Rue might be the youngest brother, and not aware of Jupiter’s backstory, but he wasn’t blind to the effect Wilder had on Jupiter. As the youngest, he’d been the butt of many a prank, and Jupiter had been the worst. Rue wouldn’t suggest Jupiter was spiteful or after causing hurt, just that he liked to keep shit light by causing mischief.
In the beginning, Rue hadn’t…
“Shake a fucking leg, daylight’s a wastin’.” Ethan’s shout brought groans loud enough Rue heard them through the wooden walls.
He masked his frustration and walked out of the cabin, looking at his surroundings and ignoring Monty. Before Silas became the face of Starling Enterprises, the family fashion business, he had split his time between Darling Ranch, which he owned, and his job in the company. A part of Rue understood why Silas became pissed at having this taken away from him. There was something about the vastness of the land, the rocky mountains reaching skyward to a blueness that didn’t seem real, that spoke to Rue’s restless soul.
