4. Dalton

CHAPTER 4

As I walk out to the barn, I'm telling myself not to look back. There's an ache in my chest after seeing the way Evan and Ethan were with Gianna. It's like she fits in with us perfectly, and even though I was already wondering about my reaction to her, after seeing her with my kids, it's even worse. You would think they've known her forever or something, and they're not usually like that with anyone. Especially not with people they just met.

It seems my boys are drawn to her just like I am but for very different reasons. Too bad I can't do anything about it. I am not in the market for a fling, and I don't have much more to offer than that. The boys and the ranch take up all my time.

I try to look unaffected by it all when I see Miller, my new foreman, standing outside the barn. He points up to the house. "Who's the woman?"

I walk past him, ignoring his question. "How's King doing?"

Miller huffs but follows behind me. "The bull is going to be fine. Dr. Richards gave him a shot and gave me more pills to give him, and his fever has already started to go down."

I open my mouth, but Miller continues, "I've already randomly checked the others. They're all fine. We just need to keep King quarantined for a few days. He's going to be hard to contain, but we can do it."

I let out a sigh of relief. I paid eight thousand dollars for King, but he's proven his worth. "Okay, good."

Miller slaps me on the shoulder. "You need to chill out, boss. It all works out."

I run my hands down the back of the sick bull and then stand up. "All right, well, I better get back up to the house. Call me if you need anything."

I start to leave, and Miller follows behind me. "Are you going to tell me about the woman?"

Fuck, I know if I don't, he'll just follow me up to the house and ask Gianna herself. "Her car broke down between here and Elliott's Ranch."

"Want me to look at it?"

I grunt. "It's the fuel pump."

Miller doesn't seem to notice that I don't want to talk about this. "Fuel pump? Well, if we can get one, I can put it in for her."

I think about the long list of everything I need to be doing. I have the boys home this week, and I should be spending time with them. I could totally turn this over to Miller and let him handle it, and he would even make sure Hank doesn't overcharge her for the fix. But I can't do it. I don't want to. I know it's ridiculous, but I don't want to have Miller take care of this or help Gianna. I want to be the one to do it. "I got it. I'll take care of it."

He keeps following me. "So who is she? What's her story?"

I put my hand to my temples and rub. I have to remind myself that if I hold the information back, he's just going to be more determined to figure it out on his own. "She's traveling for work. Her name is Gianna. She's some kind of book influencer or something."

"Influencer? Like for real?"

I'm so far out of the loop that I don't even understand exactly what that means, but I'm not going to ask Miller. He's already curious enough, and I don't need him anywhere near her. "Hey, while I'm out here, what do you think about us looking at the tractor?"

Miller turns toward the big bay doors. "Yeah, it's making a new sound. I think you were right last week when you said that it was on its last leg."

"Fuck!" I exclaim. It will costs me at least twenty-five thousand to fix the one I have, and if I have to buy a new one, it will be probably fifty thousand or more. Shit is happening left and right, and if I don't stay on top of things, it's all going to crumble around my feet.

"Okay, start getting me some quotes. Let's get proactive with it. Let's make a plan of what we're going to do if the tractor stops."

Miller is nodding his head. "Got it."

I start to leave, and he stops me. "By the way, there were a few fuses that blew in the bunkhouse. I had to do a rewire but—"

I cut him off. "You're not an electrician, Miller."

He just smiles. "I had an electrician come out to double-check my work. It saved you three hundred dollars."

Shit. "Right, well, good job. Thanks for all you're doing around here, man. I really do appreciate it. I owe you one, for sure."

He crosses his arms over his chest. "Introduce me to your houseguest."

I would laugh if I wasn't starting to panic. Why does the thought of Miller talking to Gianna make me crazy? I'm not going to try and figure it out now, but I'm sure as hell not going to stand by and let him try to hook up with her either. "Gianna is off limits."

I stare at him to make sure he gets what I'm saying.

He laughs. "It's like that, is it?"

I give him a nod. "Yeah, it's like that."