Fractured Sky (Tattered & Torn #5)(21)

That one sentence had my gut twisting in a way that wasn’t entirely painful.

Hadley Easton climbed out of her SUV, her gaze firmly affixed to the scene in front of her. “Is that a wolf?”

“Half wolf,” I said, my voice tight.

Her focus lifted to me. “Is he going to eat her?”

I scowled at Hadley. “No, but he might eat you.”

Hadley’s brows lifted but there wasn’t fear there. Instead, amusement laced her expression. “Then I guess I should keep my distance.” She turned back to her sister. “Where do you want Sky?”

Shiloh pushed to her feet and looked at me. “Is it okay that I brought her?”

“I assumed you would. I’ve got a stall ready.”

Shiloh nodded and climbed into the trailer. She and Hadley worked together in a way that told me they’d done it countless times before—a silent rhythm that spoke of comfort and ease. I was glad she had that, at least one family member who didn’t seem to push her into a mold she didn’t want to fit into.

I motioned them into the barn, showing Shiloh the stall for Sky. While they settled the mare, I grabbed the trunk and tack from the trailer.

“You don’t have to do that,” Shiloh said.

I simply shrugged and placed the saddle and bridle in the tack room. When I stepped back out into the barn, I froze. Shiloh had her head bent to Sky’s. They were forehead to forehead as she whispered something that no one but the two of them could hear.

“She has a way with them. She always did, but it became more after the kidnapping.”

I was never unaware of my surroundings, but I’d been so focused on Shiloh that I hadn’t heard Hadley approaching.

She looked up at me. “I think this is going to be really good for her. She could learn a lot from what you do here.”

I shot her a sidelong look. “You’re not trying to convince her that it’s a horrible idea?”

Hadley’s lips twitched. “Nope. She knows what she needs.” All humor fled her expression. “You might want to watch out for Hayes and my mom, though. They’re less keen on the move.”

My back teeth ground together. “I don’t give a damn about what they think.”

“That’ll come in handy. And maybe some of it will rub off on Shy.” She turned to her sister. “Show me your new place.”

Hadley’s voice broke the trance between Shiloh and Sky, and I fought the urge to growl at the younger woman. I wanted her gone. She might be Shiloh’s younger sister but having her in my space made me twitchy.

Shiloh glanced up at me as she stepped out of the stall. “That okay?”

I grunted and jerked my head, moving in the direction of the guest cabin.

“He’s a real Chatty Cathy, that one,” Hadley muttered to her sister.

“Enough, Hads.”

I moved to the bed of Shiloh’s truck but found it empty. “Where’s all your stuff?”

She stepped around the passenger side and pulled out a duffel and one box. “Right here.”

I took the box from her hands and didn’t miss the hitch in her breath as I got close. “This is it?”

She shrugged. “I’m not really a stuff person.”

I wanted to ask why but shoved that down, heading for the door instead.

Humor danced in Hadley’s eyes. “Between the two of you, it’ll be a miracle if twenty words get spoken all day around here.”

I looked down at Shiloh. “Is it time for your sister to leave yet?”

A small laugh escaped her lips. “As soon as she makes sure you’re not sticking me in a hovel. She’ll report back to my family, and that’ll help.”

A foreign feeling slid through me—one I hadn’t felt in decades. “Was it bad this morning?”

Shiloh’s lips thinned. “It’ll be fine.”

What she didn’t say was that it wasn’t now.

Kai moved in beside Shiloh, keeping pace beside her. The damn traitor. I headed up the steps of the front porch to the guest cabin and unlocked the door. Pushing it open, I stepped inside.

I could see that the box contained mostly food, so I moved into the kitchen and set it on the island. Hadley let out a low whistle as she entered. “Definitely not a hovel.”

I scanned the space, trying to see it through their eyes. When I’d bought the place, I’d almost had the furnished guest cabin torn down because I knew it would get zero use. But I’d kept it in case I ever found a ranch hand that I trusted enough to live here. That had never happened. I hadn’t even found someone I trusted enough to hire.

My gaze moved around the open living and dining spaces that transitioned to the kitchen. It was luxury rustic—lots of stone and exposed wood beams. Dark, thick-planked floors. A massive fireplace stood at the opposite end of the room with a television above it. A large sectional made the area welcoming.

Two bedrooms with a bathroom in between were down the hall. The bathroom had a large soaking tub and a walk-in shower. I didn’t know what kind of accommodations Shiloh had had back at her parents’ ranch, but this had to hold a candle to it, at least.

Shiloh’s gaze jumped from one thing to the next. “It’s really nice. Thank you.”

Hadley focused on her sister. “You need help getting settled? Or for me to go and pick up anything?”