Page 66 of Fated to the Wolf Cowboy

We spent the evening walking around: first the farm where I learned he was overseeing this new project; then the dairy which Ruby managed; and finally, the ranch.

“This is where my heart lies,” he informed me. “I’m a cowboy through and through. I appreciate the opportunity for management with the new farm. But my passion is ranching.”

“I love animals,” I confessed.

“Me too. See, another thing we have in common.”

His dimpled grin was definitely something I could get used to.

“You know the mate of a cowboy doesn’t always have it easy. I should be honest with you about that. I’ll be on thefarm project for the next few years, but given the opportunity I eventually want to move back to cattle wrangling. I love being out on that range.”

“Why?” I blurted out. “It’s terrifying out there.”

“What? No, it’s not.”

“Yes, it is. How do you think I got stuck here?”

“I don’t know, actually.”

“Well I was passing through using the bus stations and staying as lowkey as possible. You know, only staying in motels that accept cash and no questions asked. That sort of thing. But money was running low and cities were becoming fewer and farther apart. So I decided to take to my fur. I didn’t even realize I was in a Pack’s territory until it was too late. And then it was so dark and there were these weird noises and so many stars in the sky. It was nothing I had ever experienced before. I really am a city girl and there were no buildings, cars, or unnatural light of any kind for as far as I could see, even with my enhanced wolf vision. And it was so dark. I could barely see my hand in front of my face. I was terrified. Then an animal made a noise. I think now it was a cow, but I had no idea what sort of beast was out there at the time. I got spooked and ended up breaking my leg in the process.”

“What did you do?”

I shrugged. “What could I do? I was injured, in my fur, and stuck out on the range. No one knew where I was to even look for me.”

At one point I’d even prayed that maybe the trackers would find me just so I wouldn’t die out there all alone. I didn’t confess that to Brady, but it was the truth.

I also didn’t tell him about how the animals had helped me, because I would have had to tell him about my powers. That was not a conversation I was ready for.

“And then they just stumbled across you out there?”

“Yup.”

“How many days were you alone out there?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. A few.”

“Weren’t you starving?”

“Mm-hmm.”

I had definitely been hungry, but not exactly starving. The animals had helped me as best as they could and I was so certain Clementine was coming back with everything I needed. I’d never intended to come into town. That had been a necessity when a group of cowboys stumbled across me and took control of the situation.

Brady didn’t need to know any of that.

It was hard to imagine how close we’d come to missing each other. What if we’d never met at all?

I was surprised to realize how sick that thought made me feel. And suddenly I was terrified that him opening up to me today had just put the nail in the coffin on my fate.

That left me with two options.

I considered these as we walked into the barn.

I could live my life in secrecy and pray no one here ever discovered what I am.

I could come clean and tell.

Neither option seemed all that appealing.