Page 17 of Claiming Bennett (Montgomery Dreams #3)

MAGGIE

“No, Oakley’s back from school for the weekend, so everyone’s fawning over her,” I say, flopping down onto my bed. “Just glad that stupid job is over. Getting up that early was killing me. I’ve got some pocket change now, though. Want to go shopping tomorrow?”

I’ve been putting my paychecks away in my savings, but blowing a little cash won’t hurt.

“I thought you were saving up to move. Did you give up on California?”

“Fuck no, Penny,” I snort, rolling my eyes at the thought. “I’m getting out of here as soon as I can, but I can’t just drown myself in work. We don’t even have to buy anything, just window shop. It’ll take me a while to save up, anyway.”

“You don’t sound as annoyed about that as usual,” Penny says with a chuckle. “Don’t tell me you liked working.”

“Ew, I’m not like you, weirdo.” I glance toward the door before answering the real question there. The last thing I need is someone overhearing me. “I found something else worth staying around for. You know that new guy I told you about?”

“Maggie!” Penny gasps. “Your dad’ll kill you if he finds out you’re dating someone on the ranch.”

My heart twinges at the word, at the reminder that Bennett has no interest in anything more than sex.

“We’re just fucking,” I say with a scoff.

“You lost your virginity and you didn’t tell me ?” she hisses, playfully affronted.

I snicker and check my doorway one more time. “I’m telling you now. You can have all the dirty details you want.” We both know she wants to know everything.

“Spill!”

“He’s fucking huge. Like, everywhere .” She’s probably sitting on the edge of her bed, rapt and drinking down every word.

“He choked me. And spanked me with a set of reins, all macho and in charge and shit. He calls me sweet Magnolia and tells me I’m pretty and then treats me like he fucking owns me and it’s so hot . ”

Penny squeals on the other line, excitement and jealousy threading through her tone.

“I knew you were a closet freak!” she teases. “You actually let him call you Magnolia? How did any of this even happen?”

As if I could let Bennett do anything. He’s the one in charge, even if I’m the one who’s had to start everything.

“I told him not to, but he thinks it’s cute to piss me off.

As for how, well, I wasn’t just about to let him walk off after kissing me in the barn like that.

” I told Penny all about that, but we haven’t had a chance to talk privately since then.

“His trailer door was unlocked, and I just walked in. He was still asleep, so I stripped and got on top of him, and he just couldn’t resist me. ”

My mounting arrogance drains with a snap when I hear the door creak. I shoot up from my lazy sprawl to come face to face with Oakley standing just outside my bedroom, her hair longer than I remember even if her grin is still the same.

Fuck .

“Fuck. Penny, I’ll call you back.” I hang up without waiting for her answer, anxiety swirling viciously in my gut. “Oakley! Didn’t hear you come up.”

Maybe she didn’t hear anything. Or maybe I can play it off as a joke. Anything would be better than her telling Mom and Dad.

I’ll be grounded until I die if they find out.

“Yeah, I figured,” she says, glancing between me and my phone, hazel eyes crinkling in amusement. “You didn’t have to hang up because of me.”

I hop out of bed and bound over to her, wrapping her in a tight hug. “And miss out on spending time with my favorite sister?”

Hopefully, she can’t feel the racing of my heart in my chest. She hugs me back, rubbing her hand down my back, and I cross my fingers that she didn’t hear anything too incriminating.

“I’m your only sister,” she says with a chuckle. “And this whole act isn’t distracting me. Who the hell were you talking about?”

Shit.

So much for hoping.

At least she’s keeping her voice down.

“What do you mean?” I ask, pulling away. It’s impossible to hide the panic on my face, so I turn my back to her and make myself busy smoothing the wrinkles out of my blanket.

“Maggie.” My whole body goes stiff when Oakley steps into my room and closes the door behind her. “Are you seriously sleeping with the new ranch hand?”

Fuck . She heard everything .

I’m so screwed it’s not even funny, dug my own damn grave and everything. I can’t believe I was careless enough to let her overhear.

“Who said anything about some ranch hand?”

I can’t hide the fear in my voice, but I try fruitlessly to mask it with anger anyway as I turn to glare at her. Oakley doesn’t understand what’s been going on. She’s been off living her dream life. All she sees is me refusing to listen to Dad and getting myself in trouble.

All anyone ever sees is what they want to.

“Don’t act like I’m stupid,” Oakley says with a roll of her eyes. “New guy who’s totally your type shows up, and all of a sudden you’re sneaking around at night and talking to Penny about hooking up with someone? Tell me I’m wrong.”

It sounds like both a dare and a plea, and Oakley searches my face for any crack in the indifference there. Annoyance flares in me again at the realization that she and Mom have been gossiping about me.

Why can’t they just confront me face to face if they have something to say?

“We were talking about a book,” I lie shamelessly. “I was just quoting a passage. You got a problem with my hobbies now too?”

It doesn’t matter that I’m lying through my teeth, I can’t stand any more judgement from the people who are supposed to love and support me. Furious tears prick at the corners of my eyes when Oakley scoffs and makes a show of looking around my room.

“Avid reader these days?” she asks drily. “Your shelves are just overflowing.”

I don’t have any shelves in my room. Don’t have the space for them, even if I wanted them. As the youngest, I got the smallest room, and I didn’t take over Oakley’s when she moved out. I want my own things, not pity laced hand-me-downs, even if it means I get the bare minimum.

“I read on Kindle.” I haven’t read anything since graduating. “What? Can’t accept that I do things without you these days? I picked up something new. Get over it.”

Oakley’s annoyance fades into something closer to exhaustion, and she reaches up to pinch the bridge of her nose as she sighs.

“I’m not trying to fight with you, Maggie.

I’m just worried,” she says, painfully sincere.

“From what I heard, you climbed into bed while the guy was sleeping. How is that any different from what Savannah did to Bo?”

I gape at her, my blood freezing. How fucking dare she compare me to that bitch? This is completely different—Bennett consented , for starters, and I’m not trying to use him for anything more than a good fuck.

“ Fuck you ,” I snap, hurt and hate in my eyes.

Oakley’s face flushes with guilt and frustration, but Mom’s voice cuts her off before she has the chance to say anything.

“Girls! Dinner’s ready, come eat!”

I break our tense staring contest off and shoulder my way past Oakley to fling the door open. Before I step out of the room, I glance back at her in warning.

“I don’t care what you have to say about it,” I say quietly. “Butt out. My love life is nobody’s business.”

I storm down the stairs, forcefully clearing my head with every step.

I don’t want to think about the hurt in Oakley’s eyes or how many times she stood up for me, both to my bullies and to our parents.

There’s nothing I want from any of my family except my goddamn trust fund and a ride to the airport.

Short of that, I’m getting my fucking revenge.

I’ll prove that there’s not a single one of them that can stop me from doing whatever I want to, and then I’ll let them beg for my forgiveness after they watch me leave.

Time to put things into motion.

I bounce into the kitchen, the brightest smile I can muster plastered across my face.

Mom’s finishing up the gravy while Dad cuts the meat, and Bo is busy setting the table, all of them wrapped up in easy conversation with each other.

Dishes clink against each other, relaxed laughter floating in the air. None of them look up when I enter.

My smile wavers.

“Dad!” I take the silverware out of Bo’s hands and take over setting the table myself, just to keep myself busy as I talk. “Yesterday was my last day at Dr. Mulaney’s.”

“I know.”

“I want to help out on the ranch now that I’m unemployed again.”

The whole room goes silent, the shuffle of Oakley’s boots as she joins us almost loud enough to be grating in the sudden tension. Dad glares at me like he’s expecting this to be the setup of some joke.

“Oh, so now you’re willing to get your fancy little jeans dirty?” Dad asks with a scathing arch of his brow. “I expect you to actually work, Magnolia.”

I meet his narrowed eyes with an innocent smile. None of his comments can hurt me, not right now.

“I know. I liked the structure that working at the clinic gave me, and this is way easier than trying to find a real job,” I say with a lazy shrug.

“Still taking the easy road, aren’t you?” he says under his breath. “Fine. Bo can put you to work.”

Perfect .

I’ll have to figure out exactly how to make this blow up in his face, but either way, Bennett is just going to have to take the fall for me. It’s a shame, really, he seems nice enough, but I have to take care of myself first.

Oakley’s hand wraps around my elbow before I have time to gloat too much, and she leans in to whisper in my ear while everyone is distracted with plating food.

“I tried to warn you, Maggie,” she hisses. “You can’t blame anyone but yourself when this all goes sideways.”

I yank my arm out of her hold with a scoff and sneer at her, not even bothering to answer her. It’s too late to back out of this, and I’m just going to have to ride the wave.