Total pages in book: 26
Estimated words: 25072 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 84(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 25072 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 84(@300wpm)
His attention turns to Rhys, Clyde, and Patrick as they rush out of the truck, leaving me alone with my heart pounding. Without hesitation, he slams Victor onto the hood of my car, crunching it in. Victor goes limp as the man turns to the three men approaching him.
“You’re here for my mate?” he roars. Every huge muscle in his body is flexed. Bulging veins run down his monstrous biceps. “Did you touch my Willow?”
Willow… Oh no. Logan was talking about a Willow today. She lives on the ranch and is mated to his oldest brother. This must be Logan’s brother Cameron…
I can’t hear what Rhys is saying, but it causes Cameron to rush forward. They circle him and jump on him. Cameron knocks Clyde out easily with a hard punch, but Rhys is a powerful shifter. He’s vicious and fights without mercy.
I can barely watch as Rhys gets the upper hand, slamming one devastating punch into Cameron after another. Patrick tries to hold his arms back, but Cameron shakes him off.
Cameron gets some good hits in that I can hear and feel from inside the truck, but it’s not enough. Rhys shakes them off and unleashes a deadly combination on him that has him staggering. I gasp as Patrick hits him across the back of the head with the metal bumper. Then, Rhys finishes him off. He cracks him in the jaw, sending his eyes rolling back in his head, and then tosses him into the ditch.
If that’s not enough, Rhys walks over to his truck, grabs the bottom of it, and with a few grunts, starts rocking it back and forth until with one last heave, he rolls it over onto the roof.
I stare in disbelief at the spinning tire as Rhys grabs Victor’s limp body and drags him back to the truck. Patrick helps a dazed Clyde to his feet and half helps/half carries him back.
My heart is pounding in my chest as the four of them get in. I can’t believe that just happened. I hope he’s okay. I know that shifters heal faster than humans, but that was a hell of a beating. And his truck… it’s ruined. Cameron will never accept me moving onto his ranch now. Neither will Logan.
My heart is breaking as Rhys starts the truck and drives away. I’m sitting as still as possible, staring straight ahead as I try not to cry.
“How many more are there?” Rhys’ voice is flat now. Serious. There’s no more playing around. The Bowen brothers have officially pissed him off.
I don’t answer. I can’t. I won’t betray Logan or his family. He’s my mate and I have to protect him as much as he protects me.
Rhys slams his fist onto the dashboard making me jump.
“How. Many. More?”
“I don’t know!”
He yanks the truck over to the side of the road and throws it in park. My face is burning hot as he turns and glares at me. I stare forward, hoping I’m brave enough not to crack.
“You like that guy. Don’t you?”
I swallow hard as I focus on the two trees in the distance. Their trunks are joined at the bottom, their fates entwined forever.
“You think you’re in love? Think it’s meant to be?”
I finally crack and turn to face him. His green eyes look crueler than ever. God, I hate this man.
“Let me tell you what’s meant to be. I’m taking over that ranch, just like I took over his father’s.”
I swallow hard as my pulse starts to race.
“I tried to buy it from his father about fifteen years ago, but the stubborn old man wouldn’t sell. It was the perfect location to start a gun-running business. Close to the freeway yet hidden from view. On the border of three states in a town where the Sheriff was eighty-two years old and addicted to golf. I needed that ranch, but he wouldn’t sell. So, let me tell you what I did. It’s hilarious.”
I gulp. Somehow, I don’t think it’s going to be very funny.
“I beat the living shit out of him, threw him into his old rusty tractor, and then I launched that tractor with the old man inside over a cliff.”
The inside of the truck fills with laughter as my skin crawls.
“I made it look like an accident,” Rhys continues. “And when the bank ultimately foreclosed on the property, I got it for pennies on the dollar.”
“You killed… Logan’s father?” My voice is all shaky. I feel like I’m going to suffocate in this truck.
“Oh, don’t act so surprised,” he says with a laugh as he starts driving again. “Welcome to the real world, Brooklyn. It’s not all unicorns and rainbows.”
“And now you want to do the same to the Bowen Ranch?” I ask, feeling like there’s a weight on my chest.
“I’m expanding my crew,” he says proudly. “The gun-running business is booming and I want a tiger presence in Blackcloud Point to help meet the demand. Those boys at home are getting restless and that’s the perfect ranch for our operation.”