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“Hey, Cole.” My uncle looks up, his thick mustache twitching in that know-it-all way. With his sun-leathered skin, Vaughn wears the same flannel every day regardless of the weather. “You here for coffee or whiskey or a little of both?”

“A little of both.” I grab up a coffee cup and hold it out for a shot of my favorite whiskey. How it’s been every morning since my parents died. One of the easiest ways to get through my day.

My Aunt Wyoma hustles through the kitchen, her long gray hair wrapped in a bun. “Cole, honey, have some breakfast too.” She waves the spatula in her hand like a threat.

I set my hat on the counter. “Just coffee, Wyoma.”

Her tsk is one of loud disapproval.

“Somethin’ tells me coffee’s not the only thing on your mind.” My uncle arches a bushy brow.

Vaughn Weston, one of the original founders of Weston Whiskey, works alongside Ezra as our master distiller. He and my Aunt Wyoma helped Warren and me raise our younger brothers after we got custody. He’s kept us on the straight and narrow the best he can, but he’s no stranger to a little Weston wild either.

Vaughn’s the polar opposite of my father. Rebellious, wild, he was always telling us tall tales about his past, the best ways to get into trouble. But they were brothers and best friends and trusted in each other, especially when it came to whiskey.

“Anyone want to tell me why there’s a half-naked girl in the Creek House?” I demand, running a hand over a chip in the counter from River slamming a wooden sword into it when he was six.

Brow arched, Ezra lifts his cup of coffee. “Because god felt generous?”

My hackles rise.

“Because River felt like pissing you off?” Wells leans low on the counter and rubs a hand over his smile. He lives over the ridge, closer to the pasture and barn.

The front door slams. I growl when River walks into the house, a squirrelly looking smile on his face. It’s a rare occasion when he’s at the ranch, which means he’s here because of the fucking stunt he pulled.

I point at River, eyes narrowed. “You did it on purpose.”

“Did what?” The edge of his mouth twitches.

I shouldn’t give him a reaction, but I do. “You put that girl in the Creek House knowing I’d find her there.”

Talk about a bad start to a good day.

I had been up for hours this morning feeding the animals, then I went for a ride, heading for the Creek House to see what was up with the electricity. No idea that she was waiting for me. Unable to help it, my mind drifts. To that long, tan leg tossed lazily over the sheets. Her big brown eyes. The curve of her breast beneath the sheet. She had no damn business looking that good. Like a fucking dream you can’t forget.

I expected the girl to cower at my presence, but she surprised me when she squared up with me. A fact that pisses me off. Her flirty sass, her sharp tongue turned me on. I haven’t stared at a woman like that in a long damn time. Haven’t let one affect me like that either.

“She showed up in the middle of the night, lost in the fog and looking for a place to stay. What was I supposed to do?” River shrugs.

I shake my head. I’m not a patient man like my brother. “This is a sanctuary for animals. Not people.”

“Since when?” Wells snorts.

River accepts a cup of coffee from Vaughn. “I thought she’d be good for you.”

My brother must be fucking insane. A relationship’s the last thing I want. Not to mention the girl’s at least fifteen years younger than me.

Ezra chokes on his coffee. “Like what? Cole’s pet project?”

I grind my teeth. “Tell her to go.”

“You do it.” River drops his motorcycle helmet on the counter. “You’re the only one with the issue.”

“She’s trouble. We have enough problems this summer.” We don’t need some strange, half-naked girl who showed up on the ranch without a word of explanation. My mind is still locked on the way she went rigid when I mentioned calling the cops.

A bluff. When it comes to the Tempest PD, I’m about as trusting as a wolf, but the way she reacted tells me she’s hiding from something.

A barking laugh pops out of my uncle’s mouth. “Seems like you boys better figure out a solution, seeing as how she’s getting comfortable.”