“You know, it’s only eighty-seven degrees out here. I think someone got soft out there in Hollywood.” Mike yelled over the hum of the engine of the idle four-wheeler.
“Yeah, what the fuck ever,” Austin yelled back, and just in case Mike couldn’t hear him, he flipped him the bird while resisting the urge to dump the contents of the water bottle directly on top of Mike’s head as he walked by. “Where’s this pond I bought that jacked up the price so much higher than any other land in the area?”
“We’re on our way to it. It’s on the west side of the property. Runs the length of that pasture. You share it with the Kelly’s.” Mike turned off his engine to help be heard as Austin came to stand in front of him.
“That’s right…we bought it from old man Kelly.” A smile tore across Austin’s face as he remembered his father and Kelly had been sale barn buddies. His dad didn’t always like Mr. Kelly, but he sure had loved haggling with him.
“Mr. Kelly died a few years back. His son has the property now. I went to college with Kitt. He’s the one you bought the land from.” Mike set the story straight for Austin.
“Mr. Kelly died? He couldn’t have been that old.” Austin stopped in mid-motion of getting back on the four-wheeler.
“Nah, he wasn’t more than fifty-five, maybe younger. It was a heart attack. It wasn’t that bad, but we’re so far out. No one found him for a while and that’s what killed him.”
“That’s too bad. He owned lots of land if I remember right. They were kind of the top dogs in the area.” Austin secured his water bottle back in place.
“Yeah, they still are. Kitt’s trying to restore things, bring in the new practices these old timers around here reject. It’s been a struggle.”
“And, I’ve been told that’s why I pay you so much to bring these new practices in...to help streamline my ranch or some shit like that.” Austin reached around for his helmet.
“Pretty much. Now, if you’re rested enough let’s get back on it. We’re killin’ daylight,” Mike yelled louder as he started his engine.
“Lead the way!” Austin yelled, already loving the guy. Mike could no more care about his fame than his agent did.
The terrain leading to the pond was tricky and required Austin to navigate closely for fear of flipping his ride. As he drove and jerked over deep ruts, he failed to see how anyone thought this land was worth double the price of the normal acreage in the area. He actually got a little pissed off as he realized he’d been cheated. As the anger built, he tried to talk himself down. It was only money, and he had too much of that to even deal with. But damn, he hated to be taken advantage of. As they drove over the second hill, a half a mile or so from his house, he finally saw a crystal blue spring pond stretched over several acres, sitting in some of the greenest pastures he’d ever seen.
He’d been told it was a natural pond, not man-made, and it stretched through a small valley. It was more like a small hill surrounded three quarters of the pond, but for this flat land, it was considered a valley. His new fence reached across the water separating his part of the pond from the Kelly’s. A log cabin sat just on the other side of the water.
Austin’s men who worked the fence participated in a heated discussion with three other men on the opposite side of the fence. One being a muscular, shirtless cowboy who towered over two other men who stood behind him. It was the tall cowboy who caused Austin’s eyebrows to rise in unexpected speculation.
The guy looked good. Real good.
All of a sudden this land purchase seemed to have turned out to be a far better deal than he’d ever expected. If that was what lived on the other side of the fence, life was getting better by the second.
A cowboy hat angled back on the shirtless guy’s head, and his hands gripped the sides of his hips as he listened to Austin’s security team. Austin watched his facial expressions and body language and finally clued into the conversation. It didn’t seem to be going too well.
“Does the fence separate the property?” Austin asked, bringing the four-wheeler to a stop at Mike’s side. Mike turned off the engine and unbuckled his helmet before speaking.
“Yep. And I think your men have just met the immoveable object named Kitt Kelly.”
“Mr. Kelly’s son?” Austin followed Mike’s move as he stood.
Normally, he’d sit back, stay hidden behind the helmet, but the show going on in front of him was just too good. The hard body across the fence from him needed to be fully surveyed. Austin had been pretty certain he’d given up regular sex by moving out here, but one thing he’d learned over the last few years, you just never knew who was who until you tested the waters.
“Yep. Most people think Mr. Kelly was a hard, unmoving man, but they hadn’t met Kitt. He gets something in his head and that’s how it’s gonna be.” Mike swung his leg off the four-wheeler.
“Huh. So what’s this about?” Austin followed Mike as they walked the distance between them and the men still in battle. All of them completely ignored their arrival.
“Don’t know, but we should probably intervene if you wanna maintain a friendly neighbor relationship. And trust me, you want that. We need him. Shit, Kitt’s brow just lowered, he’s pissed. They’re about to see…” Mike jogged the last few steps to the men, drawing their attention toward him.
Austin followed keeping his set pace as he monitored the situation. His men looked relieved to see him. Forced into the role of an Alpha for too many years, he was known for being a hard-ass himself. Funny how that man inside him had already begun to fade away since he moved back here.