Hott and Ready (The Hott Brothers Book 2)

by Leah Sharelle

  “Fenixx you part with seven hundred bucks a week plus pizza, every week? For how long?” I screeched, not believing what I was hearing.

  “About a year, give or take.”

  Speechless, I was without speech. How did a man get to this stage in life and not have a brain?

  “Why haven’t you approached her, you know, ask her out before you go bankrupt,” I fired back at him, completely stunned.

  Fenixx gave me an eyeroll of his own then sobered. “You know why, Blake,” he replied softly, looking briefly down at his shirt, and then all the ducks lined up, and I was on Fenixx’s page, even if it was stupid as hell.

  “Oh, come on, Fenixx, just because of that,” I practically shouted, giving his chest a pointed glare.

  “Yeah, Blake, because of that.”

  I could shout more, call him names the dictionary hadn’t even thought up yet, but he was serious. The shattered look on his face changed my pace and I grew soft and mushy.

  “Fenny, if she sees that as a weakness or a hard no, then she isn’t worth your time or your seven hundred. That,” I said, pointing at his chest, “doesn’t define who you are, it simply shows how strong and resilient you are. Not many people can go through the years you did and come out a successful and rich business owner and one of the best breeding minds in the country. Give her a chance to make up her own mind instead of making it for her, yeah?”

  Fenixx opened his mouth to speak when Eddy yelled out to me, halting Fenixx from annoying me with a dumb refute.

  “Blake, we’ve got trouble,” Eddy yelled, holding up one of the stable’s portable phones. Groaning, I gave Fenixx an apologetic smile.

  “Sorry Nixx, while Hendrixx is at the auctions, I am taking his calls, this is probably something to do with a buyer.”

  “Go, it’s cool. I am fine,” he rushed to brush off any concerns that I had, but it wasn’t going to work.

  “Don’t shit a shitter,” I warned, using one of Lillian’s go-to sayings when she had you backed into a corner. “We will finish this conversation, buddy boy, you can bet on that.”

  “You spend far too much time with Mum, Blake, way too much,” Fenixx grumbled, taking the chance to escape any further lecture from me, for now.

  Spinning on my boot heels, I jogged to the main stable, all the while grumbling about Hott men with hot bodies and no brains.

  ***

  “Blake, maybe we should call Hendrixx, relay the call you got to him and see what he says,” Eddy pleaded again, following me back into Hercules’ stall.

  Since the call fifteen minutes ago, I had not been able to think about anything except saddling up the fastest horse I owned and getting out to the valley. When I heard some idiot was seen shooting at my brumbies, all I saw in my vision was a red haze.

  Forcefully shoving my rifle into the scarab on the side of my saddle, I unwound the reigns from the post and mounted my horse.

  “Someone is shooting at the mob Eddy, on Triple H land, both illegal offences and in my eyes offensively abhorrent.”

  “Blakey please, I know I can’t stop you from going, but for hell’s sake, please use your head. Don’t go putting yourself between a horse and a shotgun,” Eddy fretted, emphasising his plea with a hand on my gun.

  “Beloved animal or not, nothing is worth taking your life from us, from Hendrixx.” At the mention of my man, just for a second, I reconsidered going out on my own but quickly dismissed it when my mind went to the defenceless animals at the mercy of some thoughtless human being with a gun and a thirst for blood. The brumbies were a problem in some areas of the mountains, but not here on the Triple H. Hendrixx and I were going to have to have a conversation about letting them stay on Triple H land, fencing them from roaming onto crown or private land, to keep them safe.

  “If he is still in Mansfield he probably won’t have reception, if he is on the road, remember there is that black spot for about twenty kilometres. Keep calling him until you get him, okay? Let him know I am heading in the direction of Kelly’s track,” I ordered, then clicked my tongue for Hercules to get a move on.

  “Call our closest neighbour to the west, see if he has seen the mob in the past few days. Then pray, I can find them before it is too late.” With the lightest of touches from my heels, something I rarely did, Hercules reared once then took off at a gallop down the long cobbled walkway and out of the building as if he sensed the urgency of our ride.

  No harm was going to come to my horses, not if I could help it.

  HENDRIXX

  As soon as the elaborate over the top entrance to the Triple H came into view, my death grip on the steering wheel loosened slightly, but my foot stayed pressed to the accelerator. The drive from Mansfield to Cattle Ridge, then the further ten kilometres to home, was the longest of my life. When Eddy called to tell me that Blake had ridden off on Hercules, taking her rifle with her, every scenario that could happen flashed before my eyes.

  “Jesus Blake, what were you thinking!” I shouted, banging a fist on the dashboard.

  Easing off the power just enough to take the turn into the driveway, I planted my foot back down again, cursing my father’s ego for demanding such a fucking long drive to the house.

  “Another reason for being mad at you, Dad, as if I needed more,” I muttered to myself. My mind didn’t need to go there, Dad’s betrayal was behind me now, after some soul-searching and the love of a good woman. I better still have my woman, I prayed, furious at her on the one hand and on the other proud of her caring nature for the brumbies.

  I understood her outrage that someone was taking pot-shots at the horses, but why did she have to go alone, why not take Fenixx or at least jump in one of the farm utes? Assure herself of some protection from a stray or deliberate bullet.

  If any harm came to Blake, no man, gun or not, would be fucking safe from me. Hunting the prick down and taking my pound of flesh will be a certainty.

  Driving up to the main stable, I quickly turned off the engine and threw myself out, realising belatedly that I forgot to put on my seatbelt when I left the auctions in a frantic rush.

  Damn, get your head into gear Hott.

  I didn’t even get to the door before Eddy was striding out of the stable, leading Lancelot, saddled and ready, with my rifle too.

  “Any word?” I barked, reaching for the reigns.

  “Derek Thompson from Ridge Valley called, he said he saw the mob running across his property like someone lit a fire under their arse earlier this afternoon.”

  “And Blake headed in the direction of Kelly’s Track, right?”

  Eddy nodded. “That’s what she said, yeah,” he affirmed, and I took a small calming breath. Kelly’s Track wasn’t anywhere near Derek’s land, but she was still out there, and the light was rapidly fading into the early evening.

  “But that was a few hours ago, and they could be anywhere by now.”

  “Okay, I will—” I was cut off by the shouting coming from Nixx, running towards where I was standing his mobile phone in his hand, and a thunderous expression on his face.

  Fuck! What now?

  “Drixx, fuck, we have some big shit happening,” Fenixx growled, skidding to a halt on the gravel.

  Putting his phone to his ear, he told the person on the other end he was putting him on speaker, then held it out again.

  “Go Pete, Hendrixx is here too.”

  Pete? Peter Hanson, our closest neighbour to the west of the Triple H.

  “Pete?”

  “Hendrixx, not more than ten minutes ago, I saw five men on horses pushing the mob to the bottom of the valley, heading to Kelly’s Track. All men were armed from what I saw. I have some of my men saddling up to head out now.”

  My head whipped up, my eyes collided with Fenixx, in his I saw the fear that must be in mine. Blake was going that way, for all I knew she was already there and unknowingly putting herself in danger. Grinding my jaw, I flicked the reigns over Lancelot’s neck and shoved my foot in the stirrup.


  “Hey, Hendrixx,” Pete said, as I mounted Lance. “One of my guys told me someone approached him at the pub last week about earning some fast, easy cash doing a job herding up some brumbies.”

  I held Lance still; an uneasy chill raced down my spine.

  “And?”

  “He said the guy was dressed in a suit and silk tie, hair perfectly styled like a … well, I won’t tell you what he described him as, but essentially the offer was to herd the brumbies to the valley, shoot each and every one of them, and leave the carcasses on Triple H land.”

  “Fuck! Fucking Roberts!” An ear-splitting roar left my throat, Lance danced nervously under me, sensing my mood and reacting to it.

  “Call Marty at the station, tell him Roberts is behind this and have that cunt found. I swear to Christ if one strand of hair on her head is hurt, he is going to feel more than my fist in his face.” I didn’t recognise my own voice, the deadly edge not something I ever used, and going by the alarmed look on my brother’s face, he was thinking the same thing.

  “Call Noxx, tell him where I am heading,” I ordered Fenixx, then turned to look at Eddy, “saddle up a couple of men and send one to the west just in case Blake is still heading that way, and another over to Pete’s. I want to know exactly what went down at the pub.”

  Fenixx still had the phone held out in front of him, which meant Pete could hear everything I said. “That okay with you, Pete?”

  “No worries mate, Dazza turned him down, but others were approached too, a few of them Daz didn’t know,” Pete explained grimly.

  If Pete’s worker didn’t know the other men, then it was quite possible they didn’t have a community connection and didn’t give a shit about the brumbies or the rules of the mountains. Money was a highly motivating prize to men out of work or who didn’t give a fuck, shooting horses to some was an easy thing to do. A frightening conclusion but a very real one.

  Fenixx pocketed his phone and stepped up to me, laying his hand on Lance’s strong neck. “I will arm some of the men and send them out on patrols, you go find Blake, mate, find her before they do.” His voice low and ominous.

  “There is no other option acceptable, Nixx,” I returned, urging Lance into a canter leaving Nixx in charge to keep the Triple H guarded just in case that idiot Roberts had more plans to get his revenge on me.

  Sitting back in the saddle, I held on as Lancelot flew over the gate that led to the first fifty-acre paddock I would have to cover before the mountains and open land and the valley. Somewhere out there, Blake was walking into a situation she had no chance of getting out of uninjured or worse.

  Giving Lance his head, I leaned over his neck and spoke to him. “Don’t stop old mate; our girl needs us. Get me to her, get me to my heart.”

  The shots echoed through the quiet. I counted seven, then eight, then nine, and I prayed that they were just fired in stupidity into the sky, and not aimed at an animal or person.

  Lance reared, his ears flat on his head, his loud snorts alerting me that he knew the danger ahead of us.

  “Fucking idiots,” I muttered, pushing Lance forward in a trot. We galloped most of the way from the Triple H to reach the valley in record time, but Lance’s breathing was heaving, and I needed to take it a bit slower so he could recover, in case speed was required once I reached where the shots were coming from just now. Judging by the loud cracks from the shotguns, I estimated they were just over and down the hill in the belly of the valley. Too close for the safety and comfort of my family and employees.

  My highest priority was finding Blake and getting her in my arms, and the authorities can deal with the lawbreakers for all I cared. As long as Blake didn’t get caught in the crosshairs of their irresponsible behaviour, but if she was in that valley … no cop would be able to hold me back from beating the living suitcase out of each and every guy that had accepted Roberts’ offer.

  The dark was making it hard to see where the ground had any obstacles, but Lance and I rode this route enough for him to know where to keep his feet and where not to go.

  “Good boy, keep going,” I praised the big black stallion, giving his neck an encouraging rub and earning a nicker in response.

  A loud familiar sound came from my right, a metal clicking that chilled me still.

  The sound of someone cocking a shotgun.

  Slowly, I lowered one hand down my leg, to the scarab and the butt of my rifle. I wasn’t afraid to use my gun, I hoped I wouldn’t have to, but if it came down to living or dying, the decision would be easy. Shooting someone to protect the woman of my dreams? An absolute no brainer.

  “Who are you?” I asked, reigning Lancelot firmer, my heels digging into his ribs in a silent command trained into him by Blake.

  “Doesn’t matter who I am,” the voice replied gruffly, “I want to know who you are.”

  “I’m the—”

  “Hendrixx! What the fuck man, that is Hendrixx Hott.” Another and more familiar voice joined in, one I remember hearing from high school.

  “Dustyn? What the hell are you doing here?” I stared at my old school mate through the darkness making out his face, confirming his identity.

  “Drixx, you aren’t supposed to be out here, how did you know—”

  “Blake is out here,” I shouted angrily, “this is my land I have every right to be here, but you don’t. The cops have been called, Marty is probably already at the Triple H now.”

  “Blake is out here! Fuck!” His shocked exclamation gave me hope that she had not been seen yet by the intruders and was still safe.

  The other man, who was sitting astride an average-sized horse, had moved closer to me so I could see that his saddle tack had seen better days as had his clothing—a man in need of money.

  “So, you are Hendrixx Hott, one of the lord and masters of the biggest cattle outfits in Australia. So you are the one that gave Roberts’ pretty face that broken nose and fractured jaw,” he jeered, spitting a dirty stream of chewing tobacco out of his mouth in my direction.

  “Yeah, I did, and I will do the same to you if you don’t get the fuck off my land,” I threatened, my hand wrapping around the wood butt at my leg, ready to do whatever was necessary to protect myself.

  “You know he offered me a lot of money to kill those brumbies, I nearly got them, but someone drove them away. Some rider came blazing in and herded them out of the valley. Any idea who that was, Hott? I owe this guy Blake for making my job harder than it has to be.”

  Relief poured through me like a tidal wave. She was alive, acting recklessly like always but blessedly alive, and the man Roberts hired thought she was a man going by her name, and that worked in her favour too. If he believed the rider to be a man, then maybe he might think twice before going after her.

  Dustyn kicked his horse to move forward, his expression scared. My old mate was out of his element that was clear; my question was why he took the offer in the first place? Dustyn’s family wasn’t wealthy like mine, but they had a decent property with a good rep, he had no need to take this illegal path.

  “Mate, I am sorry, I didn’t realise Blake would be out here, she—”

  “Dustyn! No!” I interjected, yelling at him to not say anything more, but it was too late. The unknown rider let out a maniacal laugh.

  “Blake is a girl? Well, what do you know, I don’t suppose this is the chick Roberts has a hard-on for? The way I hear it, she has a luscious set of tits and an arse made for doggy style.”

  I didn’t wait to hear any more vile crap spilled about my girl, letting out an angry bellow, I aimed Lancelot at the horse and rider, dug in my heels and pulled on the reigns. The stallion followed my commands by rearing up on his hind legs bringing his front ones down on the man’s upper body, knocking him off his mount, his gun falling to the ground with him.

  “Dustyn, do you have your phone on you?” I demanded, remembering mine was still in the mobile phone cradle in my car. Keeping my eyes on the man rolling in pain on the cold ground. His colla
r bone had to be broken from the fall, and likely some internal bruising at the very least from the impact of the hooves, but the prick would live, unfortunately.

  “Yeah.”

  “Ring Fenixx, tell him to get Marty out here with some other officers, tell him there are three more men out here somewhere. I’m going to look for Blake, you stay here, and I warn you Dusty, you move from this spot, and it won’t be just me kicking your arse, your old man will want a piece once he finds out what you have been doing.” Pulling on Lance, we headed past Dustyn, who was white as a sheet.

  “Drixx, I am sorry, I never meant for any of this,” he implored, looking contrite, but I was beyond giving a shit. He came onto my land to shoot innocent animals for money, in my book, he was no different from the filthy arsehole moaning and whining on the ground behind me.

  “Whatever,” I clipped, my anger too far gone to be reminded that I grew up with this guy. He willingly betrayed his family and his community; he could take his punishment.

  “Hott!” My name came out in a feral scream from the wannabe horse rustler, desperate and pained.

  Turning in the saddle, I glared at the guy who was on his knees; the shotgun that had landed beside him when he fell was now pointed at my chest.

  “I am gonna enjoy fucking her from behind like the dog she is, then I am going to make sure a few of my mates get a go too, ripping that sweet young pussy apart,” he sneered, then pulled the trigger sending sparks of pellets my way.

  The last sound I heard was my stallion whining and snorting. My last thought was of Blake as I crumpled to the ground, blackness taking me.

  BLAKE

  The brumbies were safe. My whole body ached from the hard riding I had done over the last few hours, but every twitch of my sore muscles was worth their safety.

  It had been touch and go there for a time or two, I managed to track the band of riders after the brumbies, stayed out of sight behind them and at one point even circled around them and got in front of them. They obviously didn’t have much knowledge of the mountains, and when I found the horses in the valley hiding in a gully, I thought luck was on my side until one rider happened upon them from another direction. Then my riding skills and Hercules’ speed became a real advantage.