“I can run into town if needed.”
“Let me check with Ethan first. They might need something, too. No reason to make extra trips.”
The kitchen door opened and cast a wide-shouldered shadow across the wood floor. Fresh rain and an earthy aroma made Joss’s mouth water before she clamped down on her runaway desires.
Hunter zeroed in on her. Glowing eyes ate her up from head to toe as the air rushed from the room.
Joss straightened under his intense scrutiny. He’d disappeared during the lunch hour, and her heart galloped in her chest to see him again. Every cell in her body demanded she get close to him, feel his lips on hers and his hand in her hair.
Her inner beast wanted to bite him and stake her claim against all other screeching, conniving, undeserving women.
Tansey glanced over her shoulder. “Kitchen is closed. Don’t you have work to do?”
Hunter dipped his chin, still not breaking their stare. “I wanted to show Joss something.”
“It better not be your dick,” Tansey said flatly.
Yes, please.
No.
Dang it!
Hunter’s lips cocked up into a smirk. “If the lady wants an eyeful, all she has to do is ask.”
If she thought her brain had short-circuited before, she was sure smoke steamed out of her ears. “I think Tansey still needs me.”
Tansey waved a hand and went back to digging through the cabinet. “You’re free for now. Keep an eye out for any early arrivals.”
“In that case.” Hunter flashed her a triumphant smile and gestured for her to step around him. “After you.”
Feeling tricked and more than a little excited, Joss crossed the kitchen and nearly jumped when he laid a hand on the small of her back to usher her through the door.
The summer heat baking the ranch was no match for the fire that burned inside her where his hand rested. Her badger rolled through her with strong urges to latch onto the man and never let go.
As soon as they were outside, he snatched his palm away. A pang of disappointment stabbed Joss with his absence.
He led her across the yard and through the open doors of the unpainted barn. The smell of animal and manure and hay hung heavy in the air, but the one that stood out to her the most was Hunter himself. The briskness of his scent reeled her after him.
“What did you want to show me?” she asked as her eyes adjusted to the lower light.
“I wanted to gauge your level of experience. Tansey said you’ll be out on the trail with the guests. Might as well see how much work we need to do before they arrive. Don’t need them thinking we don’t know what we’re doing.”
“How professional,” she teased.
He took a small bow. “I live to serve.”
“That should be my line. I’m the chef,” she blurted.
His rich laugh startled butterflies in her stomach. Holy macaroni, her badger needed to settle down. Clenching stomach and begging ovaries aside, she was unavailable, with a ten thousand percent chance of a dry spell that not even Hunter’s fresh rain scent would dampen.
Hunter was nice to look at and there would be nothing else between them. She’d already had a taste of his drama. She didn’t want to get into another hair-pulling fight over the man.
She also didn’t want to jump into anything. Vulnerability with someone wasn’t in the cards. Who could say they wouldn’t turn around and grab for some dangled dollars instead of staying loyal? No. She could look, but she wouldn’t touch. She wasn’t ready to get burned again.
Hunter unlatched a stall door and slipped inside, reappearing a moment later with his fingers tucked into the halter of a tan horse. Darker legs, mane, and tail stood out nicely against the lighter coat.
He stroked a hand down the horse’s nose. “This is Jolie. She’s our sweetest mare. We usually put the kids up on her since she’ll just keep plodding forward no matter how much they wiggle around in the saddle.”
“That sounds perfect. I’m not much of a rider.”
“Good to know. I’ll keep an extra eye out for you.” His eyes flared brightly. “Now, hold out your hand. Flat, like you’re balancing a plate.”
When she did, Hunter materialized a carrot from a pocket. Jolie nickered softly and tossed her head, but he was too fast for her. Or maybe she was too polite for him. He broke the carrot into two and placed one on Joss’s hand.
“Hold it out under her nose. Keep your hand flat.”
Stiff whiskers and soft lips tickled her hand. Joss broke into a smile at the sharp cracks of Jolie chowing down on her treat. Human and animal alike, she loved to see happiness over a good meal.
“There. Now she’ll be your best friend while you’re here,” he drawled. He stroked Jolie’s nose again and offered her the other half of the carrot.
“Just her?”
The words were out of her mouth before she processed them in her head. Hunter said nothing. The slow smile that spread over his face was response enough and heated her from the inside out.
“Joss?”
Joss’s eyes widened as the owner of the voice registered. Panic slicked her palms and sank a heavy stone in her stomach. One was never far from the other, and she had no desire to see Cal, or his friend Tony.
Reluctantly, and still hoping she was wrong, she turned to the man walking through the barn doors.
“Tony.” She braced herself for the uncomfortable hug and kiss on the cheek he insisted on using to greet friends and family. “What are you doing here?”
“My cousin Christopher is getting married. He and his future wife booked up this place for the bridal party.” Tony waved a hand to include the entire ranch. “But what about you? What are you doing so far from home?”
“I’m working, actually. Head chef. So be careful what you eat, it might just be poison!” Joss barked a too-loud laugh.
Son of a biscuit. At least it was just Tony. Just the bridal party. Cal probably wasn’t even invited. She’d managed their social calendar and a ranch wedding in Montana never came up.
The fear of forced interaction and the hissing of her badger lessened only slightly.
“Kidding, just kidding. Mostly,” she laughed again. Her cheeks felt like they were on fire and yep, Tony looked at her with a slightly worried expression.
“Is Cal around? I’m surprised I didn’t hear he’d be coming.”
Joss winced. She drummed her fingers against her thighs and looked for a way out of the conversation. There was none, and Tony peered at her expectantly.
“We, ah, divorced. He didn’t tell you?”
Tony shook his head, forehead wrinkling with confusion. “What? No. Since when? I didn’t even know you two were having trouble.”
“It’s been finalized for a couple months now.”
“Is it because of your, well…” Tony lowered his voice. “Your other side? We couldn’t believe it when Cal told us. You’re one of them?”
Cal could let them know about her ‘nasty little badger’, but he couldn’t spill the beans on the divorce? Well-effing-done.
In the stall, Hunter snorted. Yep, Tony wasn’t quiet enough.
At least Hunter cleared out and made his way through the barn and into a room at the end.
Joss’s ears rang. She shrugged one shoulder. “I’m just me, Tony. Same person you’ve known for years.”
“I’m just—wow. I’m sorry, Joss. I had no idea.”
“Hey, Joss, I really need your help back here. Daylight’s wasting,” Hunter called.
Relief whipped through her along with the red of embarrassment. “Sorry, Tony,” she said to the floor. “Duty calls. We’ll have to catch up later. Hope you enjoy tonight’s menu.”
“Poison and all,” Tony said with a polite smile.
“You won’t even taste it!” Joss called over her shoulder in her haste to get to her hopeful sanctuary.
Inside, Hunter leaned against a wall and crossed his arms over his chest. “That was painful to watch.”
Joss crinkled up her nose. “Didn’t anyone ever tell you it’s rude to eavesdrop?”
“Probably. Hard to miss a train wreck like that, though. You shouldn’t threaten to poison the guests. Tansey will bite you if they leave a bad review.” He waved a hand over the scene for her to picture it. “Poor customer service and potential death from crazed chef. Negative five stars. Would not visit again.”
“Watch it, buddy. I’m cooking your meals, too.”
“The beauty of the clan and guests is I’m never in short supply of food tasters. Try your best, murderess.” He dipped his chin to his chest. “So that’s what you meant about bruised toes and blistered ankles.”
“I was half asleep. Late night insightfulness is not my specialty.” Joss scuffed a foot against the slab concrete floor.
“Was it rough?”
“Hard enough for me to want to get out of town. His family found out what I was, and he sided with them when they told him to pick between the family money and me.” She tongued her teeth and fell back on the positive. “I think coming here was what I needed. I’ve always had to hide my other side. Maybe being here will help me learn more about her.”
The cat was out of the bag. She rubbed at the empty spot on her hand. Hunter’s eyes followed the motion and she stuffed her fingers into her back pockets.
It was almost relieving, actually. There would be no awkward conversations about her personal life or why a thirty-something packed her bags for a chance to cook on a remote ranch.
Heck, she knew the details of his relationship failures. Tony had just initiated a fair exchange of information.
“He was an idiot,” Hunter said forcefully. “Fuck that guy. No amount of money would see me leaving my mate.”
That word again. Mate. Her badger perked up at it. For a fraction of a second, Joss was certain she saw a full picture in her head of Hunter with a scar on his shoulder. She nearly stumbled with the strength of the urge to put her teeth against his skin.
Bad badger. It wasn’t polite to bite anyone.
“But you’re right. This is a good opportunity. Someone has to teach you how to be a shifter. You’re terrible.”
“Oh yeah?” She cocked her hands on her hips. “And that someone is you?”
“If you’re asking, darlin’,” Hunter drawled with a wink.
Oh, her badger wasn’t asking.
She demanded.
Chapter 7
“First rule about shifter club is you don’t talk about shifter club.” Taking advantage of a lull in demands, Hunter heeled his horse, Trooper, closer to Joss. The black gelding tossed his head and whinnied to Jolie, Joss’s mount.
He’d exchanged only a handful of words with her since their moment in the barn. Tony was only the first guest to arrive, followed by an entire bridal party excited for their plans before the big shindig took place. Joss had been pulled away for her duties in the kitchen while he and the rest of the clan entertained others outside with riding and roping exhibitions, amongst other silly tasks. The morning hadn’t been any less busy and, despite his best efforts, she’d been shuffled into a different vehicle for the trip to the trailhead.
Their current section of trail was easy for everyone, and quickly coming to a close. If he listened hard enough, he could hear the stream up ahead where they would stop to stretch their legs before heading into the final hour of the day’s ride. He looked forward to sitting around the campfire at the end of a long ride.
Joss huffed a laugh and rolled her eyes. “I think that rule has been broken enough to not matter anymore.”
Ahead, a collection of bridesmaids and groomsmen chatted amongst themselves or enjoyed the scenery. The bride and groom themselves mysteriously dropped out of the camping trip in favor of seeing to other concerns on the ranch. Hunter didn’t buy it for a moment. The hungry looks they shot each other made their plans plain as day.
He wouldn’t have minded doing the same with a certain ranch chef.
“On the contrary. It’s even more important now. Don’t go broadcasting what someone is for fear of forcing them on the registration list.” His bear paced in his head. Dangerous, that list. He should rightfully be on it, and expected to be there if his cover ever blew up.
Problems for another day. Those ghosts always lurked just over his shoulder. He’d learned not to feed them.
“That’s just called being polite. Besides, I’m already registered.”
He knew that. He’d gone looking through the rolls after their meeting in the barn. She was the only badger on the list. Not surprising, since she was the only badger he’d ever met. He didn’t know if they were rare or just very secretive. “What happened?”
Joss wrinkled her nose and made a face. “Pass.”
“I can’t be your teacher if I don’t know where you went wrong.”
“Where I went wrong? There’s nothing wrong with me.”
Indignation sifted through her scent, but underneath was a thin thread of sadness. She wanted to believe her words, but someone else’s actions told her otherwise.
“Second and third shifter lesson: we can smell a lie and fuck no, there’s nothing wrong with you. Get that out of your head right now.” His bear twisted through him with the desire to prove how perfect he thought her, starting with treating everyone who made her feel less than to a taste of his fury and ending with her spread out before him. Hunter dipped the brim of his Stetson to hide the naked longing he couldn’t keep out of his voice.
That gave her pause. She peeked out from under her lashes and favored him with a small smile. “My dad was the shifter, but he died when I was young. My mom didn’t know what to do with me. I had to be homeschooled for a while because I kept shifting unexpectedly.”
“That must have been hard on the both of you,” he murmured.
“I was always afraid of hurting her, you know? I worked hard to keep everything quiet and under wraps. Control was the name of the game, not understanding.” She frowned, regret lining her face.
He wanted to kiss it away.
“I came close a couple times. Those were the scariest moments. It’s hard to forget that look of fear on someone’s face and know you were the one that put it there.”
Hunter tightened his hands on his reins. Fuck. He’d done the exact thing she worried about doing. He’d lost control, lashed out, and hurt someone in the process. That night haunted his dreams and his reality. His perfectly crafted world turned on end and spilled him sideways.
He cleared his throat. “There’s more control when you have that understanding. Try this. Close your eyes.” At her skeptical look, he flashed a smile. “Trust me. You’ll be safe.”
She pressed her lips together, but her lids fell closed. Mostly. She squinted at him from the smallest crack possible.
“Sink into the sway. Jolie is just plodding along. You’re not going to fall.”
“Okay,” she huffed. “This is so weird. You’re not trying to align my chakras or something like that, are you?”
“Not unless that’s what you call your badger. Now, hush, and take a deep breath. Feel the beating of your heart. Let the outside push in on you.” Hunter stared as her face slowly relaxed. She was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. “Tell me what you smell.”
“Outside and horses.” Her lips twitched at the corners.
“Smart ass,” he chuckled.
“I am smart, thank you for recognizing my obvious good qualities.” She cracked open one eye, then closed it again, smelling amused.
Hunter clicked his tongue and shook his head. The woman would be the death of him even before he got a chance to know her.
“I smell… Dirt and grass and flowers. Leather. Water. Different fruits, but those are tiny compared to everything else. Soaps and shampoos, I guess? Something that tickles my nose, but I don’t know how exactly to describe it.” Her voice dropped to a near whisper. “My badger likes it, though.”
A pleased growl rumbled in his throat. That
she trusted him enough to listen, and that she let her inner animal do the sniffing. So he pushed. “Maybe if you ask me nicely, I’ll pick you some flowers to figure it out.”
Her eyes snapped open. Fluster brought her eyebrows together and turned her cheeks a lovely shade of pink.
The trail opened up on a stream running through an open valley. With a break in the trees, he saw tiny puffs of white dotting the gorgeous blue of the skies above. Wildflowers stretched away from the banks and toward the rugged inclines of the surrounding mountains.
Jesse pulled his horse to a stop first, then motioned the others down to the ground. Groans of stretches and teasing laughter were met with an indulgent smile.
“Take a few minutes to walk around. Let your mounts get a drink. They deserve a moment of rest for carrying you lot all day,” Jesse said.
Joss turned from side to side, eyes never staying still for long as she took in all the details. Hunter watched. His bear watched with him. This moment felt big and important. These sights called to something inside him, maybe even more than his home state. He wanted her approval.
“This is beautiful,” Joss said. “Do you ride out here often?”
“Only when we do overnights. The half-day or shorter rides are always in the enclave.” He spotted her as she pushed up and out of the saddle. Jolie threw her head high and pawed at the ground, then settled in to drink at the stream.
Hunter pointed upstream. “The lodge will be that way. We go downstream for real camping. Tomorrow after breakfast, we’ll meet some of the guys and head back to the ranch.”
“Wait, so you’re saying I could have just driven on up here? No need for sore muscles?”
“But who would have fed us lunch?”
“No one. You’d have starved. Too bad for you. Now, who’s the one earning negative star ratings?” She frowned and jammed her thumb down.
“No chance. That once again falls on the chef who didn’t adequately prepare the guests. You didn’t even throw us a breakfast bar.”
“No water, either. Better hope you can catch some in your hat.”
She worked hard to keep the smile off her face, but Hunter wouldn’t be the first to break. He added to the increasingly ridiculous scenario.
Spurred Fate: Book Two: Black Claw Ranch Page 5
