A small smile pulled on my lips. It must have been her.
Crazy how easy things had been since she’d come here. I’d expected more of a struggle… I guess there was still time for that. It had only been a few days, but I don’t know, I’d expected more problems by now.
“Oh my God,” Cheyenne finally huffed, a disbelieving chuckle escaping her. “You’re a sociopath, Mooney.”
The whole room laughed, including Cash. Charlie’s eyes glinted with playful mischief as she came up to Cheyenne’s side and smirked. “I don’t think he even knows what that means.”
Cheyenne’s lips pulled up into a matching smirk. “Bless his heart.”
The two of them erupted into a fit of giggles that were drowned out by Cash’s laughter.
As the night woreon, I noticed Cheyenne’s inner light begin to dim. It was gradual, subtle, and unless you were really looking you probably wouldn’t even notice.
But I did.
She still laughed and smiled and interacted, but the glimmer in her eyes had dulled. She was tired and uncomfortable, looking the way I felt most of the time.
I reached out a hand and squeezed her bare thigh—soft beneath my touch. Her gaze snapped to mine, a question brimming in her eyes.
I lifted my brow.You okay?
She offered me a strained smile and nodded.So, not fine.
I scanned the room, my eyes landing on Charlie. She gave me a knowing look, like she could see Cheyenne was done too. Patting Ryder’s leg, she sighed loud enough to halt the chatter in the room. “I think we should probably get a certain little dude to bed.”
“Aw, come on, Auntie Charlotte. I’m not even tired,” Cason groaned from his spot on the floor. Brandy and Dutch were glued to either side of him as he stroked the coats lovingly. A yawn escaped him, as if to contradict his words.
Charlie laughed. “Oh really? Your yawn says otherwise, bud.”
He whined and pouted as Charlie and Ryder rose from their spots on the couch. But it all turned to laughter when Cash scooped him up, tossing him up onto his shoulders like a sack of potatoes.
“Come on, little man,” Cash said with a grin. “Have I ever told you the bed story of Goldicocks and the three whores?”
“Dear God, Cash!” Charlie hissed, before glaring at Ryder—albeit playfully.
Ryder frowned, his shoulders shooting up to his ears in a defensive shrug. “What’dya want me to do about it?”
“He’s your best friend! Control him.”
Ryder and I shared a knowing look, smirks crossing our faces. There was no controlling Cash. We’d tried and failed on many,manyoccasions. “I’d like to seeyoucontrol him, darlin’,” Ryder said, a brow rising in challenge.
Charlie leveled him with another glare that nobody really bought. The smirk on Ryder’s face turned to one of his easy, lopsided grins, accentuating his scar, the look in his eyes saying,you know I’m right.
“Goodnight y’all. Thanks for the games and company,” Cheyenne said, rising from her spot and hugging each of them.
I nodded goodbye as well, holding the door for them all as they filed out and headed for the Polaris to drive back to their houses. I gave a final wave and closed the door, blowing out a deep sigh as I turned the lock.
Cheyenne huffed out a laugh. “You sound exactly how I feel.”
Don’t get me wrong, I loved them all, loved living on the ranch with them and having such a close bond, but there was a certain point in the day where I was just done peopling.
I moved to her, grabbing her hand in mine, and pulled her toward the bedroom. She resisted a moment. “Shouldn’t we clean up first?”
I wasn’t the type to leave a mess usually, but I could see the weight of the day dragging her down. Waving a dismissive hand at the kitchen, I urged her on once more. She didn’t resist this time, but followed along as I led her to the bathroom. I let go of her hand and turned on the water to the tub, glancing back at her.
“You wanna take a bath?” she asked, her eyes sparking with interest.
I pointed to myself and shook my head before pointing at her and nodding.
