Page 50 of Knot Your Problem, Cowboy (Wild Hearts Ranch #1)

CASH

T he front door finally closes behind the Carson family, and I slump against it like I’ve just survived a stampede. Two hours. Two fucking hours of Brittany draped over me like a cheap blanket while her father dropped hints about buying our land for his latest development scheme.

“Well, that was painful to watch,” Walker says, grinning. “How’s it feel being the sacrificial lamb?”

“Like I need a damn shower and a priest,” I mutter, heading for the kitchen and the whiskey I know Ridge keeps hidden behind the flour.

“Brittany did seem extra handsy today,” Walker observes, following me in. “What was that thing she did with your belt buckle?”

“Don’t remind me.” I pour three fingers of whiskey, then think better of it and add another. “The woman has octopus tendencies. I swear she grew extra arms just to grope me better. I feel fucking dirty after that.”

Walker laughs, stealing my glass before I can drink. “Come on, it wasn’t that bad. You maintained business relations with our biggest horse buyers. Carson’s operation in Texas alone accounts for thirty percent of our sales.”

“Doesn’t mean I have to like his daughter climbing me like a tree.

” I pour another glass, guarding it from Walker’s grabby hands as Ridge stalkers closer, so I collect a glass for him as well.

“Besides, you two weren’t exactly helping.

Just stood there chatting about feed prices while she practically marked me with her perfume. ”

I’m leaning against the counter with a glass of whiskey I hand to Ridge, then start to pour my own.

He swirls his glass like he’s got all the time in the world. Then takes a sip before saying, “Sophia’s upstairs.”

Walker glances over his shoulder. “Upstairs… doing what?”

Ridge takes another drink, lets the pause drag. “Sleeping. In my bed.”

I stop mid-pour. “The hell she is.”

“Oh, she is,” Ridge says easily. “But before you get your hearts in a twist, you should know, this morning, she damn near drowned in the river by the goats’ pen.”

That rips my attention clean away from the smug grin. “What? ”

“Fell in the river. Harold knocked her in. Current took her under.” His jaw ticks, and for a moment, that cocky glint is gone. “Scared the hell out of me. Thought I’d lost her before I even had her.”

My heart is thundering to just be hearing about this. “And you didn’t fucking tell us this earlier, why?”

“Didn’t exactly get a chance when we had the Carsons pop over unexpectedly.”

“And you pulled her out?” Walker butts in.

“Dragged her out as she was choking for breath,” Ridge says. “Got her inside, warmed her up. We talked. She was still shaking, still looking at me like I was the only thing holding her here. And then…”

He tips an invisible hat, grin sliding back into place. “She told me what she wanted. She made it real clear. And I’m a cowboy who answers an Omega’s call.”

Walker narrows his eyes. “You telling me you fucked her?”

Ridge leans in. “Not just fucked her. I knotted her. And Christ Almighty, she was perfect. Tight, dripping, screaming my name like she’d been waiting her whole damn life for it.”

My grip tightens on my glass. “Years you’ve been pining, and you go and?—”

“When she bent over in bed—fuck—it took everything I had not to lose it right there. Watching her take me, knowing I was filling her so deep she wouldn’t forget me if she tried…” He shakes his head like he’s reliving it .

I’m grinding my jaw at his bragging, at the hunger inside me to be the one to finally make her mine.

Walker swears under his breath, turning back to the sink like that’ll hide the way his breathing is deepening.

“She’s still upstairs?” I grind out and throw back all the whiskey in my glass before putting it down on the counter.

“Curled up, sleeping like a baby.” Ridge smirks.

“I think her heat’s coming. Within days,” Walker suggests. “And when it hits, she’s gonna need all three of us.”

“Then she needs to move in with us immediately,” Ridge states. “Today. We can’t have her alone in that guesthouse when it hits.”

“Agreed.” I set down my glass, already thinking logistics. “We’ll set up the spare room for her nest. It’s got the best light, and it’s between all our rooms.”

“She’ll need supplies,” Ridge adds.

“We’re really doing this,” Walker interrupts, a grin spreading across his face. “All three of us. Finally finding our Omega.”

“And we’re not letting her go. Ever,” I add.

“Right,” they both confirm simultaneously.

“Then let’s go tell her the good news.” I head for the stairs first, eager to see her, taking them two at a time.

We reach his room, and I knock softly before opening the door. The bed is empty, sheets rumpled, his scent heavy in the air mixed with jasmine and arousal.

“Bathroom?” Walker suggests.

Ridge checks. “Not there. But the clothes I left for her are gone.”

A prickle of unease runs down my spine. “Maybe she’s checking out the house?”

We tear through the main house, calling her name, checking every damn room—bedrooms, kitchen, pantry, even the mudroom—and nothing. Ridge swears under his breath. Walker’s jaw is tight. And an unease curls under my rib cage.

“Guesthouse,” Walker states, already moving.

We take the steps two at a time to cross our property. My boots thud against the porch boards, and I pull the door open as we push into the guesthouse. The air is stale. Quiet. Too quiet. Then we spread out, searching different rooms.

“Library,” Ridge calls from the hall after barely moments of arriving.

I follow the sound of his voice, Walker close behind, and step into the small room Rose built years back, her own cozy retreat with the built-in shelves and big windows.

I stop dead.

The place looks like a storm tore through it. Books scattered everywhere, spines cracked. Pillows shredded wide open, feathers plastered to everything. Blankets tossed, chocolate and packets of biscuits all over the place.

It’s her nest. Or what’s left of it.

My chest knots tightly. She built this space for comfort, safety. And now? It’s not just a mess; it’s destruction.

“Something set her off,” Walker says, his voice low.

If she walked out of our house… she’d have had to pass through the living room. My stomach drops.

Ice threads through me. She would’ve seen that fucking Brittany was draped across me.

Shit.

And the memory comes back of how Sophia went sharp as a blade at the rodeo when Brittany approached me.

I rake a hand over my face. “I think she saw Brittany all over me. And she must have lost it.”

Walker nods grimly. “If she’s in pre-heat, her hormones are all over the place. Possessive instincts, emotions swinging hard… it wouldn’t take much to push her over.”

“Hell,” Ridge states, scanning the wreckage. “If it were me, I’d have tossed a few things too.”

We don’t waste another second. We split up, scouring the ranch. Walker heads for the stables, Ridge toward the back pastures. I hit the barn, checking every stall, feed room, and tack closet, asking every hand I pass. No one has seen her .

I’m heading back toward the yard when I spot Jarrod climbing out of his truck, carrying a coil of rope.

“Jarrod!” I jog over. “You seen Sophia?”

His expression goes guilty fast. “Yeah, uh… sorry, boss. She flagged me down, asked if I could run her to town for… y’know, girl stuff. She looked upset. Desperate, even. I didn’t think?—”

“When?”

“Maybe half an hour ago. Little less.”

“Where?”

“Dropped her near the drugstore. She barely said two words the whole drive. Just stared out the window like she might cry. Is everything okay?”

“I hope so.” Then I grunt my thanks and already have my phone out, texting Ridge and Walker. Found her. Town. Meet me at the truck.

They come at a run. Ridge’s face is carved from stone, Walker’s eyes hard.

“She got a lift into town,” I tell them. “Let’s move.”

We pile into my truck, the bigger cab, more seats, and I throw it into reverse. Gravel sprays up as we spin around, then I gun it toward the road, not giving a single damn about the speed limit.

“Easy,” Ridge mutters, bracing one hand on the dash and the other gripping the door handle as I take a corner sharp enough to send more gravel skittering. “Won’t help her if we wind up wrapped around a fence post.”

“She’s in pre-heat,” I snap, my knuckles white on the wheel. “Alone. In town. Upset enough to rip her damn nest apart. I’m not going easy.”

Walker shifts in the back seat. “We need to make it up to her. Should’ve told her that Brittany is nothing but a handshake and paperwork.”

“You don’t dip your pen in the company ink,” I mutter.

Ridge makes a face. “You and your sayings.”

“But accurate,” I fire back, swinging us into another turn. The tires protest, squealing. “Brittany’s been sniffing around me for years. If I cut her off too clean, her daddy might take his horse contracts somewhere else. But that’s gonna come to an end now.”

“She’s our Omega,” Ridge says. “And she needs to know she is the only one for us.”

My attention locks on the road. “And we’re fixing this. Today. She’s moving into the blue room. Her nest gets rebuilt from scratch. We’ll prove she belongs with us.”

“If she’ll let us,” Walker says quietly.

“She will.” I yank the wheel to pull into town, my jaw set. “She has to.” I won’t be able to take it if she rejects us.

I nose the truck into a spot in front of the drugstore, parking a little too hard. We pile out fast, boots hitting pavement. Inside, the place smells of antiseptic and old wood.

“Seen a red-haired Omega come through in the last hour or so?” I ask, leaning on the counter .

The pharmacist frowns, thinking. “Nah. Been quiet all morning. Haven’t had many customers in the last couple hours.”

Back outside, we work our way down the street. The general store, empty. The post office has just one customer. The real estate office, closed sign swinging in the window, door locked tight. I was hoping she’d come here to see June, but no luck.

“Where else would she go?” Ridge asks, scanning the storefronts.