Redeemed Cowboy (Whiskey Valley Bryant Brothers)

Griffin holds his hands up to stop me. “Stop, Ryan. I swear I wonder how you get any women at all.” He puts his hands on his hips. “What do you expect exactly? Mia was raised by her father on probably ten different ranches in Tennessee. She never had a mother around, and hell, I don’t think she has any friends now, except for Nat.”

I had never thought of it like that, but everything he is saying is true. Fuck, I can’t believe I said that. “You’re right. I know you’re right.”

“Damn straight I’m right. Mia’s smart and kind, and she’d do anything for any of us. She puts this ranch first. Hell, any of us would be lucky to be with her. I have half a mind to—"

I step toward him until the toe of my boot is against his. “Don’t you even think about it.”

We’ve fought over women before, but it’s been a long time. This is different, though. I’m not playing with Mia, and I’m definitely not letting my older brother do it either. Griffin leans toward me. “Well, you’d better fix this, Ryan. I’m not going to—hell, none of us are going to stand by and let you mess with her.”

“I know. I know. I didn’t mean to hurt her.”

Griffin puts his hand on my shoulder. “You may not have meant to, but you did... Now fix it.”

Chapter 5

Mia

I get to my room in the main house when my phone rings. When I look at the caller ID, I see that it's my father. I know I need to answer it. I haven't spoken to him in a few weeks.

I take a few, deep calming breaths and answer the phone. "Hey, Dad.”

He immediately responds, "What's wrong?"

I shake my head. Of course, I'm not going to be able to hide how I'm feeling from my father. I was raised by him, and we were pretty close when I was growing up. But regardless, I don’t want to get into it now. "Nothing's wrong," I tell him.

He laughs gruffly. "Something's wrong, girly. Don't tell me that. You might as well tell me. You know I won’t stop until you unload on me."

I sit down on the edge of my bed. "Nothing's wrong. It's just this place," I spit out.

"Come and see me," he says.

I roll my eyes. Of course, he’d tell me to just pick up and come where he’s at. That’s how he’s dealt with a lot in his life: When it gets rough, pick up and go. I can’t really fault him, though. When my mom left us, well, my dad just hasn’t been the same since. "Dad, I can't just pick up and leave. I have a job."

"Well, is it your job that has you upset?"

I lie on my back and stare at the ceiling. "No, it's not my job."

He laughs again, and I'm beginning to get irritated because that's the way he handles things. "Okay, it’s not your job so let me guess, it's Ryan then."

I pull the phone back and look at it, and then put it back to my ear. Sometimes it amazes me how he knows things. "Yeah, Ryan—well, he's an ass, Dad. We all know that. But I'm fine. What are you calling for?"

He's quiet for a minute and then softly, he says, "You should have left when I did, kid."

It was around two years ago that he moved on. I see him a couple times a year, but I don’t know how to tell him that these last three years have been the best of my life. I know this isn’t my home, but most of the time it feels like it is. "I like my job here, Dad."

"Yeah, I know you like your job, but I also know how you feel about Ryan. I know you like him. Hell, everybody does."

I'm surprised at that. I sit back up in my bed. Very slowly, I ask him, "What do you mean everybody knows I like Ryan?"

"Exactly what I said. Honey, everyone knew that you liked Ryan, but back then it was just a silly crush. You were eighteen when you showed up at the ranch, and let's just say it like it is. Ryan is a ladies' man."

I put my head in my hand. "Yeah, Dad, and I’m 21 now. Do you think that maybe you should have told me that before now?”

I can hear people in the background when he answers me. "I would've thought you would've grown out of it by now. You have to know he’s not the settling down type. But I guess not, huh?"

"Well, I'm over him now," I tell him. "Where are you at, anyway?"

"I'm over in Texas right now, but I'm thinking about heading over to New Mexico. Unless you want to come see me, then I'll stay put for a while."