Fierce (Wolf Ranch 5)

“Where are we going?” I asked.

Levi pointed up to a ridge. “There's a beautiful lookout up there.”

I tipped my chin to look in the direction he indicated. “Sounds great.”

We walked side by side in silence for about fifteen minutes until we arrived at the top of a hill. A small plateau with a stunning view of the entire ranch.

“Up here.” Levi beckoned me over to a giant boulder, which he helped me climb. I gasped when I reached the top. The valley was laid out below us like a green carpet.

“It’s incredible,” I breathed.

“I like to come up here when I need some perspective on things,” he said. “Sometimes just getting outside, away from buildings and people and structure, makes all the difference.”

“I can see that.”

I could. My problems didn’t feel quite so big anymore. Not when I could feel how much bigger nature was.

“So what had you worked up back there?” he asked, his voice calm and almost soothing. There was no playful tone to it. He was serious. He really wanted to know.

I sighed. There was so much I wanted to share, to tell him. I picked one. One I thought he might understand the most. “It’s hard to be away from my grandfather. I have the next door neighbor looking in on him while I’m gone, but I guess that wasn’t enough. She called a little while ago to tell me the fire alarms had gone off at the house because he’d forgotten about heating leftovers on the stove. It burned.”

“Oh shit.” His hand settled low on my back.

“I know.” I blinked rapidly, fighting back the tears I’d never allowed myself to cry. “It’s hard to watch people you love deteriorate mentally.”

“I’ll bet.” He tugged me in against his chest, and I allowed his strength to envelop me.

I loved the way it felt to be with him. So safe. Cared for. Admired. No one had made me feel this way before. And here we were alone, as if we were in this bubble. And yet, I was talking about my life problems, something that was happening elsewhere.

“You have a lot of responsibility on your shoulders,” he said. “And you take it all so seriously.”

“I have to.” I pulled back far enough to look up at him. His blue gaze was so deep, as if bottomless, as if I could see into him. As if he knew me. Understood. But could he? I held so much back. Had such a big, awful secret.

“Of course, you do.”

He kissed my temple. “How about you let me help you forget it all for one night?”

I frowned. “What do you mean?” My problems weren’t going away, and I thought about everything.

He stroked my hair back. “Is there anything you need to do for your grandfather tonight?”

I thought about it. “No. Mrs. Vasquez said she’d keep extra careful watch. He’s probably watching his shows or reading now. I don’t want to stir up anything now.”

“What about for Seraphina or Shadow?”

“Seraphina’s set, and Shadow just needs to go out to do her business. I’ll need to give her some water. Clint fed her a little while ago.”

“Other than that?” he asked, helping me off the boulder. He held out a hand as I hopped down.

God, he was so calm, so patient. So… nice.

“That’s it,” I said.

His arm curled around my waist, and he led me back to the path down to the ranch. “Good, then you’re going to be tied up with me.”

I paused in the middle of the trail. “What do you mean?”

“Just that.” He smiled, crossed his arms over his broad chest. He had on his usual jeans and T-shirt for the ranch although I liked him just as much in his sheriff’s uniform. I had to admit, it got me hot. Women always said a man in uniform was hot, and I couldn’t argue. “You’re going to be tied up. There will be nothing you have to do or can do because you’ll be my prisoner. And I’m going to have my wicked way with you.”

Oh my.

20

LEVI

The one thing I’d learned about Charlie was that she was ridiculously smart. That brain of hers worked all the time. Even when she was sitting still, she was thinking about something. There was a saying about a brain being like tabs on a computer browser. Well, Charlie had about fifty open at once.

I couldn’t blame her. Being sheriff made me juggle all kinds of complaints and issues at once. Thankfully, the county was pretty peaceful, and we had more issues with natural disasters than human ones. Charlie, though, had lots on her plate. Between her work and her grandfather, that was plenty.

I wanted to help her, to shoulder some of that load, but really, I couldn’t. I wasn’t a vet. I had barely any knowledge in animal husbandry, and her boss was expecting an impregnated mare upon her return. As for her grandfather, I couldn’t make the old guy any better. I couldn’t visit with him and ensure he was safe, that he didn’t burn any more food. He lived five hundred miles away.