Page 59 of Knot Your Problem, Cowboy (Wild Hearts Ranch #1)

I scream, hands flying to cover myself, pressing back against the shower wall in a crouching position.

“Could hear you moaning like a cow from outside,” he says, leaning against the doorframe with casual cruelty.

His eyes roam over my naked form, taking in every detail with a sneer.

“Your cowboys aren’t here to help you. Why would they be?

They’re probably halfway to Mexico by now, leaving you to deal with your mess alone. ”

“Get the fuck out!” I manage to yell, though my voice cracks on another wave of need. “How did you even get in here?”

“Door was unlocked. Very careless for an Omega in heat.” He takes a step into the bathroom, and he’s swaying just a bit like he’s drunk.

“Came to tell you to stop wasting time with this stupid fundraiser. Heard all about it. Your little ‘save the ranch’ campaign? You really think you’ll raise enough?

” He laughs, ugly and sharp. “In your dreams. I’ll make sure no one in this town helps you.

Already talked to the Carsons and they’re pulling their support. ”

“GET OUT!” I scream again, and it turns into a sob as another wave of heat crashes through me. My body betrays me, more slick pooling despite my terror.

He steps closer, into the bathroom properly now, and my stomach revolts. The sight of him makes me gag.

“I mean, if you need an Alpha that badly, I could lower myself,” he says, eyes dark with something that has my skin crawling. “You’re not much to look at, but a hole’s a hole when you’re desperate enough.”

I gag. Actually gag. The thought of him touching me, his scent anywhere near me, his hands on my body, draws bile to rise in my throat .

“You’re disgusting, and I’d never let you touch me,” I manage to spit out, but I’m trapped. Naked, vulnerable, in the worst possible state. The shower is still running, cold water streaming over me, and I can’t even stand properly.

He reaches for the shower door handle, fingers wrapping around the metal.

“Come on, don’t be difficult. I’m trying to help you out here. Your cowboys abandoned you. I’m all you’ve got.”

“I’d rather die,” I snarl, but my voice is weak.

“That can be arranged too,” he says casually, pulling on the door and ripping it open out of my grasp.

I cry out, hoping someone will hear me while recoiling in the corner, shaking, terrified.

That’s when a blur of motion crashes into the room. The next second, Ronan’s flying sideways, his body slamming against the bathroom wall with a sickening thud. Walker is on top of him like a bear, fist connecting with his face, over and over.

“You fucking think you can lay your eyes on her, let alone touch her?” Walker’s voice is unrecognizable, more animal than human.

Another punch, blood spattering across the white tiles.

“I’m going to rip your fucking eyes out so you never see a thing again.

” Another hit, this one to Ronan’s ribs. “Threatening our Omega?”

Ronan tries to protest, but his words are lost in the gurgle of blood from his broken nose. Walker is beyond reason, every hit looking devastating. I cringe each time I glance over at the blood, hear Ronan’s cries.

“Walker’s going to kill him,” I whisper, not sure if I care, but I don’t want him charged for murder.

Then Cash is there, towel in hand, turning off the shower and stepping in with me fully clothed, boots and all. “Hey, sugar, hey, I’m here. We’re here. Don’t look at him. Don’t worry about him. Just look at me.”

He wraps the towel around me with infinite gentleness, a complete contrast to the violence happening three feet away. His hands are shaking too, but from rage, not heat. I can feel it radiating off him.

“You’re safe,” he murmurs, pulling me against his chest. “We’ve got you. He’s never touching you. Never coming near you again.”

Ridge is in the doorway, making way for us, then rushes to Walker. “Enough. Walker, enough. We need him alive.”

It takes physical effort, but Ridge manages to haul Walker off Ronan, who’s groaning and bleeding and possibly missing some teeth.

“You come near Sophia or our farm again, and we’re hauling your sorry ass straight to the cops,” Walker growls. “But if I have to warn you one more time to stay the hell away from her… you won’t survive it.”

“Help me get him out,” Ridge snarls at Walker. “Now. Before I finish what you started.”

Together, the pair drag Ronan out by his arms, his protests cut short when Ridge’s hand closes around his throat. I hear them in the hallway, their threats low and vicious.

“We mean it. You come near her again, you’re dead,” Ridge snaps.

“This was your last mistake, Ronan. Your very last,” Walker warns. “You think you’ve won with your lawsuit? We’ll bury you.”

Cash lifts me into his arms like I weigh nothing, carrying me away from the bathroom. My room feels safe again with him here, his scent engulfing me.

“I’ve got you,” Cash murmurs, settling me on the bed while keeping me wrapped tightly in the towel like he can hold me together if I start to fall apart. “You’re safe. We’re here now. We’re never leaving you alone again.”

I clutch at his shirt like I could crawl inside his chest and hide there, my face pressed against his throat, breathing him in.

His scent is a lifeline, steadying me against the storm inside, the fear from what just happened, the humiliation of being found like that, and the unbearable heat pulsing low and deep.

“He’s never coming near you again,” Cash says, voice vibrating against my cheek. “Ridge and Walker are making sure of that. And if he tries, if he even thinks about it, we’ll end him.”

The memory of Ronan, his hands on my bathroom door, his voice, the invasive way he looked at me leaves me feeling sick. I whimper, the sound small but needy, because even with the fear still fresh, the heat is crawling back in, dragging every nerve toward desperation.

“Cash, I need… please, I can’t?—”

“I know, sugar.” He cups the back of my head, pressing a kiss to my hair. “We’re going to take care of you. All of us. You’re not alone. Never alone again.”

The slam of the front door is so loud that the bed frame vibrates.

Heavy boots pound up the stairs. Walker and Ridge appear in the doorway, both with bloody knuckles, their chests rising fast. Walker’s shirt is streaked with blood, Ridge’s is clinging to his chest with sweat, and both of them look like they’d happily finish what they started.

“He’s gone,” Walker says flatly. “Thrown off the property with a promise of worse if he comes back. Might have a few broken ribs. Definitely a broken nose.”

“Should’ve killed him,” Ridge mutters darkly, flexing his injured hand. But his gaze flicks to me, to the way I’m pressed into Cash, the Omega scent no doubt heavy in the room. The shift in him is instant. “Should’ve ended him for even looking at you.”

“Later,” Cash says, his voice low but firm. “Sophia needs us right now.”

They don’t come to me immediately. Instead, they head for the bathroom, the sound of the sink running filling the room as they scrub their arms and face.

I see them in there, shirts being pulled over heads, boots hitting the tile.

Broad shoulders rolling, chests bare, muscles shifting under sun-darkened skin.

A faint trail of hair runs down from Ridge’s chest, disappearing into the low waistband of his jeans, and my mouth goes dry.

Walker’s chest is a solid wall of muscle, a small scar bisecting his left pec.

My fingers twitch with the need to touch, to feel that heat under my palms.

They return a moment later, knuckles cleaned, the faint scent of soap clinging to them under the sharper bite of their hypnotic scents.

Ridge kneels beside the bed, his rough hand finding mine and threading our fingers together.

Walker takes the other side, his bloody knuckles now cool against my cheek as he brushes my hair back.

“We’ve got you,” Walker murmurs, pressing a kiss to my forehead.

“Always,” Ridge adds, his thumb stroking across the back of my hand.

“Forever,” Cash promises against my temple, then pulls back and rips off his shirt and kicks off his boots, my gaze locked on that toned chest, the light dusting of hair, and I’m squeezing my thighs.

The heat flares so hard that it’s almost pain, and my eyes sting with everything—the shock, the relief, the want.

My gaze sweeps over their bare chests again before I can stop it, my body moving without thought as I reach out, my fingertips brushing over Ridge’s sternum, then skimming the hard plane of Walker’s ribs.

“Please,” I whimper, my voice wrecked.

“We know, darlin’,” Walker whispers, already leaning in, the promise of what’s coming burning in his eyes. “We’re going to take such good care of you.”