Elliot

Brzzzz! Brzzzz! Brzzzz!

The shrieking of the morning alarm yanked at my senses, drawing me to consciousness with a low groan of displeasure. The last thing I wanted was to drag myself out of bed and deal with the day. At night, my bed wasn't even close to comfortable, and I tossed and turned until I found the perfect position to sleep in. In the wee hours of the morning, when I was rudely pulled from sleep, however, it was the most comfortable slab of rock I'd ever had the luck to curl up on.

Brzzzz! Brzzzz! Brzzzz!

It continued, but I shoved my head under my pillow, refusing to acknowledge the annoying shriek of the persistent monstrosity. I didn't know who'd come up with the idea of using something clearly crafted in the depths of hell as an alarm. Ahh, it was like sleeping on a warm cloud that?—

"Hey!" a sharp voice interrupted, somehow more annoying than the braying alarm. I gave another protesting groan, tried to burrow into the bed further, and was given a shove this time. "E! Get your ass up, I'm not getting bitched out because of you again."

"Go…away," I managed, knowing full well the alarm only went off three times in the morning, and if it wasn't going off now, I had missed the first shrieks, which made this the perfect opportunity to get some more sleep.

"Like hell, we're in this shit together, remember?" came a grunt I recognized as Dom, one of the three guys I shared a cabin with. He must have pulled back the curtain to my bunk after I'd shoved my head under the pillow. Otherwise, I'd be dealing with him and the bright sunlight that inevitably filled the cabin to torment me in the morning. "If Mona finds out we let you sleep in again, we're all in deep shit!"

The name drudged up the uncomfortable feeling of, well, fear. Mona was as liked as she was feared. As second in command of operations, she was effective, dedicated, and not above using whatever tools were at her disposal to get what she wanted. And what she wanted was to make sure everything ran smoothly.

I didn't want her to find out I didn't get out of bed like I was supposed to.

"Alright, fine," Dom grunted, and for a moment, I almost believed he might be willing to leave me alone and let me sleep for another hour. That delusion was quickly corrected when I felt a hand wrap around my arm and give a hard yank.

"Fuck!" I yelped as the solid surface beneath me disappeared, gravity taking its brutal hold on me, sending me crashing to the hard floor of the cabin. My hip stung, and my shoulder was grumpy, but nothing compared to the indignity of being yanked out of my bed when I was so comfy. "Damn it, Dom!"

His thick brows shot up, and he grinned widely as he stood over me. "Oh good, you're up. Maybe you should start getting ready, huh?"

"God," I groaned, rolling over to sit up. "You are the biggest dick."

"Damn, I knew you had a thing for me, E, but I didn't think you were peeking when I was changing," he said with a wicked chuckle.

"Keep dreaming, you absolute bitch," I grunted, swinging the pillow I'd dragged with me at him.

Okay, maybe there was a small chance I had a slight thing for him, but just a slight one. Maybe my couple of years in prison had given me a little more appreciation for the ‘prison look.' Most guys around here tended to drop it because they could, but Dom kept that buzzed hair and wasn't self-conscious about the tattoos. He was, however, slightly annoying and incredibly straight, two factors that made him immediately unattractive to me beyond an appreciative glance or two.

Then again, most people at Isaiah Ranch were like him…and me. Which meant that a bit of on-the-side action between guys happened, just like the prisons they were pulled from. The ones running the ranch might have looked over our information and ‘performance' in prison, deeming us ‘fit for rehabilitation,' but that didn't change some of the habits, considering the ranch was really still a prison with better treatment, food and…well I guess it was kind of different.

We were still tied to the ranch, though, and were not allowed to leave the grounds without permission and a diligent babysitter. Honestly, I didn't mind. It was much better than being behind bars for the rest of my sentence. Instead, I got three fantastic meals a day, and I bunked with guys that, because of the ranch's selection process, I could be reasonably sure wouldn't be a problem. Lastly, most important to everyone in the program, we were treated well, not like prisoners, but like people with jobs.

I wouldn't have dared to let anyone know I was gay behind bars. Guys locked up together might have a piece of action on the down-low, but that was where it stayed, tucked away and out of sight. Being out was…well, it was asking for a lot of trouble, and I'd seen what happened when someone was discovered enjoying themselves a little too much. I liked a bit of fun too, but that guy…those next weeks for him were anything but fun. Being a toy to pass around when you consent is one thing, but?—

I had to shove the thought away before it found root and grew stronger. I wasn't in prison anymore, and so long as I proved to the powers that be at the ranch that I was capable of not breaking the law again, of being a good little citizen, then I didn't have to worry. Plus, at least here, I felt comfortable enough not to have to shy away from being out.

I got dressed and went to the door, glancing back at Dom. "You give me so much shit for not waking up, and we still gotta wait on you. Make it make sense."

"Because the only time you don't move at Speedy Gonzalez speeds is when you have to drag your ass out of bed," he grunted, yanking on his second boot. "And ain't no one waiting."

"I am," I pointed out, rocking from heel to toe in my boots. "C'mon, we gotta check in!"

"You know, I love it when you get up on your own, and it takes you fucking two hours to wake up and be annoying," he said with a roll of his eyes.

I grinned. "Then maybe you shouldn't have rudely dragged me out of bed. You're still a bitch for that."

"And yet you're still bitching."

"I do it really well."

It was true that I was more or less awake, which meant I had no patience for the glacial pace he was moving at to get ready. If he hadn't wanted me to hurry him along, he should have waited until he was dressed and ready to go before waking me up. Still, I was supposed to be a fully grown man, so I should at least try to show some patience.

Which was easier said than done. I knew I had to report to Leon before starting my day. Leon was a Tier One and a mentor, which meant not only was he in charge of wee baby Tier Threes like me, who were basically on a loose form of probation as far as the system was concerned, but it meant he was basically done with his run in the program. Honestly, he was a pretty good guy with a nice smile that made you feel both comfortable and…a certain other kind of warmth.

Well, most didn't get that second tingle. That was mostly a me thing. If other guys around here were into men, I was pretty sure they'd admit there were more than a couple of good-looking guys roaming around the ranch. Not that I was a walking, living, breathing, excessively talking bag of thirst that drooled at the sight of a guy. But either all the hard work and good food at the ranch had made the men here way hotter than usual, or there was some secret criteria that everyone brought here had to be a five at least.

I didn"t think I was the most stunning-looking male specimen ever to walk the earth, but I was pretty cute. I'd managed to pull my fair share of guys before I went to prison, but never in prison. I had standards. I'd buzzed my hair recently, mostly because I lost a bet to Dom, but the sandpaper fuzz was growing back, and the light brown, almost blond, I'd sported my whole life was getting soft as it grew back. I had a few tattoos on my body, with skin that didn't know if it wanted to tan or burn in the intense Texan heat, but those tattoos had come before I'd gone to prison, unlike some of the guys around here.

Still, it made me blend in a bit, making me look tougher than I actually was. Didn't hurt that, like most of the guys here, all the manual labor had bulked me up, something I'd never thought I needed. All in all, I thought I could do pretty well if I needed to, but no way in hell was I going to treat this place like a meat market for my own?—

"Elliot!" Dom barked, and I snapped my head up to find him glaring at me. "Fuck's sake."

"Hi," I said, grinning a little nervously. "I'm here."

"Are you? Because it sure as shit looked like you were on Pluto."

"Mmm, no farther than, like…Jupiter this time."

"How the fuck you bounce all over the place and then get so lost in your stupid thoughts you lose track of everything is…beyond me," he said, giving me a push through the door. "Let's go."

"It's a gift," I told him with a grin.

We emerged into the sunlight, already showing signs of making the day a scorcher. The cabins for the guys in the program were all clustered in the same area, though for those of us in Tier Three, it was four guys to a cabin, something about fostering ‘positive relationships with others.' It was reduced to two per cabin in Tier Two, and guys who made it to Tier One all got their own cabins. All were more or less in the same place, but Tier Three cabins were surrounded by the Tier Two cabins, with Tier One cabins on the outer edge.

My theory was that the setup was so the upper tiers of more responsible and seasoned members were like a living fence to keep the newer, rougher recruits in line.

"It's a curse to anyone who has to deal with you," Dom said, giving me another push. This one was to the side because I was already beginning to outpace him despite him being taller.

"You love me," I told him with a laugh.

"See, this is like the gift thing. You're getting things backward."

"Or I just understand the inner workings of your cold, black, bitter heart."

"Fuck off with that gay shit."

When he went to push me this time, I dodged away, looping behind him to jump on his back. It wasn't like I was short, Dom was just stupidly tall, and I needed a good leap to get up there. His problem was that although he was built like a brick shithouse, he wasn't the most flexible and struggled to reach around to get a good hold.

"What is wrong with you?" he growled, still stumbling forward as he continued to fight to get his hands on me.

"I was a spider monkey in a previous life!"

"And a pain in my ass in this one!"

I cackled until he spun around and sped backward, slamming my back into one of the cabins. There was a brief moment to brace for what was coming, so I only lost half the air in my lungs. My grip weakened enough that Dom wasted no time in grabbing my wrist and yanking me off. Thankfully, I wasn't too stunned and kept my feet even if I had to stumble to stay upright.

Anticipating what came next, I scrambled away before he could lunge forward and get his hands on me. Dom would never intentionally or seriously hurt me, but I was intentionally pestering him, and he wasn't above giving me a good dose of pain to try to deter me from doing it again in the future. Try was the keyword because I considered persistence one of my better qualities…and one of my biggest downfalls.

The actual downfall came when, in my attempt to get away, I tripped over a rock sticking out of the hard-packed ground. I didn't sprawl on my face, thankfully, that ground could break a limb and not notice, but it cost me precious distance between us. Before I could recover, I felt arms wrap around me and take me down to that unforgiving ground.

"Ow! Jesus, you weigh as much as a teenage rhino!" I complained, flailing to get away, but there was no hope. His arm had snuck around my neck and locked behind his other, keeping me firmly in place. "You said no more chokeholds! You promised!"

"Yeah? And you said you weren't going to be annoying, little dick!"

"Oh, I see, you get to have the big dick, but mine's little? Fuck you!"

"That's because mine is! Don't blame me for your pencil dick!"

"I'll show you pencil dick!"

"Yeah, bet you would."

"A-hem."

That rough clearing of a throat was all it took for Dom and me to freeze. Slowly, I tilted my head back as much as I could, now Dom's grip had loosened. It took a moment for the sun to stop blinding me so I could make out the shadowed figure standing over us, arms crossed.

"Oh," I said with a wide grin. "Hiya, Leon. How's the weather up there?"

"Hot, and only getting hotter. How are things down there?" he asked wryly.

"Well, the ground isn't terribly comfortable, so that's a thing," I commented lightly, trying to twist out of Dom's grip. Apparently, he wasn't willing to let go of me just yet. "And it is quite warm now you mention it."

"Uh huh, Dom?"

"Yeah?"

"Let him go."

"But—"

"I'm completely sure this is warranted. Let him go."

"Fine."

I let out a sigh of relief when I was released, massaging my neck as I got to my feet and put distance between Dom and me. It wasn't like I didn't trust that he would listen to Leon, but I also believed I had enough sense not to trust it. "I'm not sure I like the way you saved me, but I appreciate it."

Leon eyed me for a few beats. "Alright, if you two are done flirting?—"

"He wishes," Dom said with a smirk.

"You know if you keep telling that joke over and over, I'm going to start believing you want me to flirt with you," I told him, arching a brow.

"You wish," he shot back because he was the height of wit and cleverness.

"Oooh, yes, Daddy, my big strong man," I said in a high voice, batting my eyelashes at him. "I dream of the day you finally realize the depths of my lust for you and return it in full."

Dom's mouth snapped shut as he stared at me with widening eyes. I glanced around and saw we weren't alone, and everyone Leon was in charge of mentoring was assembled as well, all staring at us with expressions of shock, what might be horror, and discomfort. Leon, however, was watching me with a single brow arched so high I was sorely tempted to tell him he risked getting stuck in that position.

"Are ya done?" Leon asked finally. "As impressively horrifying as that was, are ya done?"

"You guys have no sense of humor," I said with a weary sigh that I hoped encompassed the utter disappointment I had in each and every one of them.

"Can you just fucking stop for five minutes?" a new voice popped up with an irritated growl.

I didn't need to look to know who had spoken, but I looked anyway. It was, as always, Reno whose patience had run thin. In another life…and with a different personality, Reno would have actually been cute. No, scratch that, he would have been downright hot, and I would have been hard-pressed not to drool.

I mean, it didn't help that I was a sucker for red hair, and his was thick and a shade of red rarely seen. And it was real because his thin brows, forever pinched together in varying levels of anger, were a softer red. He was slightly taller than me, and while his shoulders were almost as broad as Dom's, his body was noticeably less stocky. When I'd first laid eyes on him, I wondered just how long his stomach would be when stretched out and what it might be like to follow the trail of red hair I'd spotted on his stomach with my eyes and fingers down to the patch below.

But, even with a fine body and exemplary hair, the rest of him ruined the picture. Not his face, which was a little broad and his nose a little squashed, but his jaw could have cut diamonds, his chin was just long enough to round his jaw out nicely, and he'd been graced with the green eyes associated with his hair.

All of which was utterly ruined by the fact that he…well, he was a complete dick most of the time. I'd never seen him smile once in the month he'd been here, and he always found a reason to be pissed off about everything. He wasn't combative, so he hadn't yet caused too many problems, but there had been a few scuffles when someone took issue with his sharp tongue.

Honestly, it was a shame his scowling ruined an adorable face.

"As cheerful as ever," I told him with a roll of my eyes. "Surprised they didn't put you with Max instead of the new guy."

"Fuck off," he grunted, refusing even to glance my way and instead glaring at Leon. If I had to guess, I'd think he was trying to telepathically will Leon to get on with the morning introductions.

"Still can't believe they gave Max, of all people, a mentee," someone else muttered. "And Riley? Jesus, do they hate the guy?"

"Max is fine," Leon told everyone at the sounds of assent growing in the group. His tone was light enough, but that subtle shove at the end told us we needed to shut up and focus on him. "If Mona said it's a good idea, then it's a good idea."

The mention of her name was enough to dispel the grumbling, mainly because the alternative was to take it up with Mona. Not that it would completely dispel the idea, Max was…well, he wasn't terribly different from Reno. He had once been a program member like us but had graduated and stuck around to be an employee at the ranch.

Honestly, I still didn't know why he'd chosen to stick around. Max was just as grumpy as Reno but generally less abrasive and forward about it. The guy spent most of his time with animals, and when he was around people, he tended not to talk and just glare. Most people avoided him on principle, and he seemed content that way.

It wasn't hard to see Max wasn't fond of people, and everyone agreed it was weird he'd been given not only a mentee but the newest addition to the ranch, Riley. Who was…well, he was kinda weird, adorable with his flyaway blond hair and boyish face, but still weird. I always thought I was the odd man out among a bunch of felons who'd spent years behind bars, but he was something else entirely. Wasn't sure what he'd done to get locked up, but with his sunshine personality and easygoing attitude, it wasn't hard to see how he'd gotten into the program.

"I mean it," Leon said, with more emphasis. "We aren't a gossip circle. Line up."

Dom waited until Leon turned his back before giving me a good shove toward the group. Neither of us genuinely believed Leon didn't know what was going on behind his back, but that was okay. As far as Leon was concerned, he let people be who they were without too much oversight. So long as everyone obeyed the stricter rules and did their assigned tasks, he was perfectly content to let the chips land wherever they wanted.

"Alright," Leon said, looking over everyone. "Looks like everyone is here and with…relatively little incident."

I smirked as his eyes met mine before flicking away. I wasn't fooled. I knew he was in ‘leader mode' right now and had to appear at least a little stern. But I'd caught him more than once laughing or trying not to laugh at the shit I did or said. I tried to return that favor by behaving when he played the stricter mentor role.

"You guys know where to find your duty roster for the day," he said with a vague gesture toward the Big House. It was the only proper house on the entire ranch, though calling it a house was stretching it. The damn thing was a small mansion and had stood through generations of the Isaiah family. Most of the place was off-limits to those in the program, but the main dining hall was where we all ate most of our meals. "There's been a few switch-ups, so keep an eye out before you head off."

"What kind of switch-ups?" I asked curiously.

"You'll be with different people than normal, that's what," he told me. "Not within your cabins."

That caused a bit of a stir in the group. Leon's entire MO had been around creating a cohesive group with everyone, his way of trying to help our rehabilitation. In his mind, it wasn't just about living together, it was about working together and creating bonds. That was how it had been for weeks, though I'd always felt bad for whoever was forced to live and work beside Reno. I'd been lucky enough to be paired with Dom.

"Look, you're all under my care, alright? I've been working at creating a comfortable space by having you guys work together within your cabin groups, but life isn't about staying in your comfort zone forever. You've all worked together in the past. This time around, I'm just making it more…obvious," he said with a shrug. "I'll rotate everyone for the next week or two, see how things go, and work from there, alright?"

"Does that mean I'm getting a moment of peace?" Dom asked.

"And someone else gets cursed," another guy said with a sigh, glancing at me.

It stung for all of two seconds before I shoved it aside and grinned at him instead. My whole life had been filled with people who couldn't stand to be around me. I had been called everything from annoying to a freak for being the way I was, and that was before people found out I was into guys.

After a certain point, I learned to stop letting it hurt as much when people were outright repulsed or annoyed. Not that it didn't still sting, but I learned to deaden the impact and definitely learned not to let it show. Most people didn't care about others" feelings, especially people they didn't like. No amount of hurt on my face would make someone stop hating me and might even invite worse shit, so I kept my mouth shut and a smile on my face.

"How about you shut your mouth, Cam?" Dom growled at him.

"You say shit like that all the fucking time," Cam grunted, his hands balled into fists.

"Yeah, because I'm the only one allowed. That's how this shit works," Dom said, looking like he was going to take a step forward.

I turned so my back was to everyone and put a hand on Dom's chest, softening my expression. "Dom?—"

For a moment, I thought he was going to ignore me and continue the argument. The thing was, there was no point in the argument when it would just keep happening. I was who I was, and there would always be people who hated that. I didn't need Dom trying to defend what piss poor honor I had left. Otherwise, he would never get any downtime…or work done, for that matter.

Still…it was sweet of him.

I tried not to show my relief when Dom's bunched-up shoulders finally eased, and he took a small step back, turning his attention to Leon. I shot him a grin that he ignored because he was a dick and also turned back to Leon. I wasn't surprised to find Leon was watching us or that he hadn't interfered. It was another one of his methods, to let people sort their problems out without needing an ‘adult' to step in, which made sense. We were supposed to be in this program to prepare us for returning to the regular world, and people had to figure out how to solve their problems without beating each other up…or stabbing them.

"Uh…what?" I asked once I realized Leon was looking at me weirdly.

Leon's expression cleared, and he shrugged. "Nothing. Anyway, that's all there is. You guys know where to find me. Everyone to breakfast. Elliot, stop by the clinic, and Cam? You stop by after breakfast."

"We know the drill," I said, trying not to smirk when I heard Cam make an agreeing noise. "My meds before breakfast and dinner, his after. Kinda have the swing of things now, Lee-Lee."

"Go," he said, waving me away with a shake of his head, but he didn't turn around fast enough to hide his smirk.

"You know, I just thought about this, but," Dom muttered as everyone started walking, "why don't they let Cam do it himself? I mean, it's just insulin. He must have done it before, right?"

"Uhh, I don't know," I said, knowing full well what it was. I'd overheard him talking on the phone to his mom. He'd been a serious addict before he'd been arrested. If the breaking and entering wasn't bad enough, the ‘rock' he'd been found with had been just big enough to get a trumped-up intent to distribute charge. It didn't matter that it probably had been for him and that he'd made sure the house he'd broken into was empty, he'd had a knife and a big rock on him, and that was enough. "Probably a dosage thing. Or like…to prevent lawsuits if he accidentally screws up the dose."

Which was probably exactly what it was, but they were wary of his past drug use and wanted to keep an eye on their needle supply. It wasn't like they tried to hide the fact that there were plenty of drugs in the area with the cartels all over the place. I hadn't heard of anyone getting ahold of anything at the ranch, but caution was the ranch's middle name.

But that wasn't something I would blurt out, especially if we could be overheard. It was a firm rule that no one was required to talk about what they'd done to land in prison in the first place. When Leon had first been assigned as my mentor, he'd been crystal clear that what happened before coming to the ranch was not nearly as important as what we did while here and after we left. People here deserved to leave their past behind them and be known for who they were, not for their mistakes.

It was an approach I appreciated, and I didn't think I was alone. There was something nice about coming to a place and feeling like you could start anew. Everyone in the program had landed themselves behind bars and been picked to join the program. All of us had made serious mistakes that forced us out of normal life, and we were all being given a chance to correct those mistakes and make something better of our lives. It was a pretty slick and effective way to put everyone more or less on the same foot.

I veered away from the group as we approached the Big House, waving Dom off as I cut across the main ‘road' that circled the Big House. A large building stood out, mainly because it looked newer. The original medical clinic had burned down a few years ago, a short in the outdated wiring. I'd heard Mona had been sent into a building inspection frenzy to ensure they were all up to code.

So everything was still pretty shiny and new when I walked through the doors, out of the growing heat outside, and into the cool air conditioning. There wasn't anyone in the waiting room, but the wake-up schedule for the guys in the program was staggered, and we were the late shift, so I wasn't surprised it was quiet.

"They got you working desk today?" I asked Reed, a familiar face at the clinic. Like Leon, he was a Tier One but had come to the ranch with medical training already under his belt. I wasn't quite sure how the legality of him being able to work in the clinic worked, but they hadn't wasted much time putting him in the clinic, even as a Tier Three.

"No one's bleeding, has bones sticking out, or is in desperate need of a Band-Aid," he said with a wry smile. "So here I am."

"The exciting life you lead," I told him, leaning on the counter and peering over to see what he was doing. "And paperwork! God, they're asking a lot."

"Paperwork is the best part of the job."

"Seriously? That sounds like my own personal level of hell."

"People are messy, loud, and demanding. Paperwork is a nice break from everything else."

"More power to you, I guess. Personally, I'm good."

Being active was the only thing that gave me any relief from the constant drive in my head. When I was a kid, I liked staying up late and saw things I shouldn't on TV. I'd watched a lot of The Twilight Zone, and one episode had stuck with me involving gremlins on a plane and the poor bastard, who was the only one who could see them. I didn't remember how it ended, though I thought it was a safe bet it ended miserably.

What had stuck with me was the idea of those little creatures running rampant, causing destruction and sabotaging the plane. My mind was like the plane and the gremlins. All too often, it felt like I was just trying to stay in the air. All while parts of my brain refused to get with the flight plan and amused themselves by tearing the plane apart because…well, fuck me, that was why, apparently.

Reed pushed his chair back and reached into a cabinet for a small plastic cup sealed with a lid. He handed it over and then began typing on the computer. "And there's your?—"

"Specially designed, personal dose of meth," I said with a wink. "Do I have to Brokeback Mountain these or what?"

"I…what?" he asked, blinking.

"Yeah, every time those two idiots fucked, they just used spit to get it in," I said, shaking the plastic cup to emphasize my point. "Which is more painful than trying to take pills dry, trust me, but the point is the same."

"I know I'm not supposed to say things like this, but sometimes…you really worry me," Reed said with a shake of his head, bringing out a small bottle of water and setting it on the counter. "There."

"Well, thank you, sir, for your kind gesture," I said with a smile, cracking open the bottle and popping the top for the pills. There was one standard-looking pill and a capsule, both of which I downed at once, followed by a heavy drink of water. "There you are."

"You know the procedure," Reed said, standing up and smirking.

"Normally, I'd be happy to have a guy examine my mouth to see if I swallowed it all," I said with a sigh, opening my mouth.

Reed stopped, his cheeks turning pink. "What?"

I laughed. "Just look, have your proof."

"You took your meds," he said with a sigh and sat down. "I'm having someone else do this next time."

I let out a laugh. "Are you being bashful?"

"Get out of the clinic," he muttered with a wave.

"Can do, will do," I said.

I liked Reed. Honestly, he reminded me a bit of Leon. Mostly in that he really cared about everyone at the ranch and tried to do what was best for them, and he had a certain…quietness about him that was hard to describe. Unlike Leon, though, he was pretty set in his ways and could be an old fuddy-duddy about stuff. He didn't get pissed off about things outside his preferred ‘norm,' like, say, Max or Reno, but he wasn't always comfortable either.

The difference in temperature between the inside and outside came like a wave, washing over me and making me cringe. It wasn't like I hadn't spent my whole life in Texas and wasn't used to the heat, but I had always thought I was better suited for a state that…well, was at least a little more temperate. Or, at the very least, wasn't filled with the same humidity as it had heat, so that tossed out Texas, Florida, and most of the southern states. I either needed to head north or directly west, and maybe I would find the climate that suited me better.

Still, I was used to it, so I pushed on, walking around the Big House to the back entrance. A couple of guys were coming out of the dining hall, and the mouth-watering smell of breakfast followed them. Meals had always been solid at the ranch, but after they'd brought Rip on board to man the cooking ship, the quality had shot through the roof. I hadn't been here long enough to taste the difference, but the thought of his meals had me ready to bolt through the doors.

Yet I still found the presence of mind to stop outside the double doors and peer over at the bulletin board hanging next to it. Everything you'd need to know was posted there, including the yellowed and torn reminder of what the ranch stood for and its aims for us. I was looking for a far newer piece of paper with Leon's name at the top. If I was going to be with someone other than Dom, I probably should consider sitting with them and getting to know them a?—

"Oh fuck," I hissed when I finally spied my name on the roster. "For a week?"

A whole week…with Reno?