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For some reason, that stung John, but he brushed it away. “I’m sorry.”

“Take your sorry and shove it. I’m going to ride with Jace now.” She pretended she was mad.

“Like hell you are.” John reached for Alyssa, and she quickly pulled away. A small smile tipped her lips, but she quickly hid it.

With sugar coated words, Alyssa asked, “Take me for a ride, Jace?”

“Well, sure, my darlin’,” and he started his four wheeler.

“Jace,” John warned. He reached for Alyssa, but she removed herself from Jace’s knee. “Get over here, Alyssa. You’re with me.”

Because, she was.

Alyssa paused behind Jace, using him as a barrier. “Make me,” she said, and then took off running. She could not believe she was running in mud. Of all things.

“You better get back here,” John yelled from behind, trailing her.

Alyssa looked over her shoulder and her eyes widened. John was catching up to her. She was small and ran fast, but John’s long legs were no match for her. She wasn’t used to running in this kind of dirt, but she picked her knees up and ran as hard and as fast as she could. Splats of mud hit her thighs and back and into her hair, but she didn’t care in that moment. As she zig-zagged, John cursed behind her and she laughed. Just as she gained a little distance between them, Jace swooped up and drove next to her on his ATV. “Get on!” he roared over the engine and held a hand out to her.

Alyssa hopped on the foot rests of Jace’s ATV and held on for dear life. Looking over her shoulder, she grinned when he stopped running. He shook his head, one brow raised and turned around and headed back to his ATV.

But then she and Jace made a U-turn … and headed straight for John.

“What …” she stammered. “What are you doing? Go the other way,” she pleaded.

Jace slowed down. “What are you doing?” She tapped his shoulder furiously. “Keep going!”

“You really didn’t think I’d screw over my boy like that, did you?”

“Well, no, but I didn’t think you’d hand me over either!”

“You thought wrong, sugar plum.” Looking at John, Jace said, “She’s all yours.”

“Gladly,” John said. He stepped off his ATV and grabbed Alyssa by the waist. She looked pissed at Jace, furious even. It was quite comical. Lifting her up, he brought her to the front of his chest.

“Where are you going?” she wrapped her legs around his waist, her arms going around his neck.

“Oh, nowhere,” he trailed. Three long steps, he stopped. Looking over her shoulder, Jace bent over and grabbed a hand full of mud in his hands.

“I’m just going to get you used to the mud before we get going,” he raised an eyebrow, and grinned. She tried to slide her legs down his waist, but John wouldn’t let go. He held her too tight to wiggle out of his hold.

“Let go of me.”

“In a minute …” Just then, Jace slapped mud to her cheeks, rubbing it in. Alyssa gasped loudly, her mouth dropping open and her eyes popping wide. Her legs tightened around John as hard as she could squeeze as Jace ran both hands down her neck, over her shoulders and down her sides.

“We’re just warming you up,” John eyes twinkled with laughter and he lowered to his knees.

“What … what are you doing?” she asked suspiciously as John sunk to his knees. “I swear to God, I will kill you if you do this!”

“I told you—gettin’ you warmed up.” John pressed Alyssa into the mud and lay on top of her. She squealed loud and he just laughed. Jace rubbed some mud in her hair and she decided she was going to kill them both. Those little assholes. If they thought they could get away with this, well, they had another thing coming. Especially John. She could easily torture him.

Pushing John off her, Alyssa stood up and threaded her fingers through her hair, trying to run some of the mud out. As if it would help. “Laugh it up, boys. You’ll get what’s coming to you one day. Mark my words.”

Jace and John both chuckled. As if she could do anything.

“Now that you’re ready,” Ford strolled up, “Would you like a cold one before we get started?”

John shrugged, “You know I would.”