Allister, J. Rose - Displaced Cowboys [Lone Wolves of Shay Falls 5] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) by J. Rose Allister

and underwear balled up in her hand, but she sure as hell didn’t feel like sitting on the bed or even over at the table. This seemed more like a general stand-up-and-hear-it-out occasion—from as close to the bathroom door as possible.
    She clenched her laundry in front of her when Nash finally looked up. “I didn’t figure you’d really agree to talk to me,” he said. “Now that you’re here, I ain’t sure where to start.”
    Words wouldn’t come for her, either, so she stayed silent.
    “I can’t go back, you know.”
    She had to work to loosen her tongue. “Huh?”
    “To my job. Ranchin’s the only thing I know. Only thing I ever been good at, outside the sack.” Her eyes narrowed, and his eyes flashed with guilt. “But Connor says it won’t be safe.”
    “Ranching is too dangerous?” she asked, wondering why he was telling her this. Or why he thought she cared.
    “ I’m too dangerous.”
    She swallowed. “Oh.”
    “It can’t work for me anymore, bein’ around the rancher life. The same damn reason I wound up firin’ Connor yesterday is now my own personal cross to bear. Guess that’s my punishment for kickin’ him loose.”
    That pricked her curiosity. “Why did you fire him?”
    “No horse could stand the poor bastard. I didn’t have a single ridin’ animal that wouldn’t completely pop a bolt when he got near ’em. And forget lettin’ Connor anywhere near a cattle herd. They practically stampede to get clear.”
    She frowned at him. “Why did Connor try to be a cowboy if he doesn’t have a good touch with animals?”
    “Oh, it weren’t always that way. Afore he was turned, he was a born and bred cowhand, same as me. But now, animals can sense what he is. A cold, dangerous predator.”
    “Yet he tried anyway.”
    “He was desperate. The pack he was in from the time he got turned got taken over by some hotshot new alpha. The new alpha ordered the pack disbanded and left them to fend for themselves, all to settle an old score.” Terra frowned. “Connor had nowhere to go and tried to turn to the one thing he knew. But I guess he can’t live that life, and now, neither can I.”
    “Because animals will be skittish around you?”
    “Connor says animals will react the same to me as they do him, and that I don’t got the control yet to resist the huntin’ urge when faced with a frightened animal.”
    Oily unease dredged the insides of Terra’s stomach, sliding low in her gut. “That’s for damn sure.”
    Nash raised his head, and with a small start she realized his eyes were glassy with tears. He rose abruptly and lashed out, pounding a fist on top of the night table. The already damaged lamp clattered and almost fell back over, and Terra jerked back against the far wall.
    “I’m sorry,” he said. “My fuckin’ emotions are all over the place. This is bullshit. I am one screwed son of a bitch.” He shook his head and turned to her. “But that ain’t your problem. None of it.”
    She stared at him, willing her body not to tremble. Had Connor heard that little outburst? Maybe not, because she could still hear the shower running.
    He sank back down on the bed. “I know you think I asked you in here because I owe you an apology,” he went on. “I aim to give you one, but that’s not why I want to talk to you.”
    Her brows furrowed. She expected some stammering, perhaps, followed by a lame excuse for his behavior. Groveling would have been nice, too. Certainly not this. “Was it to tell me why you two can’t be cowboys?”
    His eyes glittered. “We’ll always be cowboys. But no. I asked you to come in here to tell you why my apology don’t matter.” He glanced down at his jeans, seeming to notice the grime and blood for the first time. “Sorry ’bout the mess I’m in. Figured the chances of you talkin’ to me would be a lot less if I walked into the bathroom naked.”
    She folded her arms to stop from shaking. “So far I can’t see why you bothered. Your