Ahm gave Bryce a soul-stirring smile before he pulled away and headed inside, shaking his head. Bryce gladly followed.
* * * *
Riley sat atop his horse, gazing over the thirty head of cattle. He was ready to get things moving, but he was a man short.
Olaf was late.
The human had been nothing but a pain in the ass for the past week. Riley was trying to give the man a chance, knowing how desperate some folks were for a job. But his patience had just run out. If the guy showed, Riley was sending him packing. He took his job seriously and had warned everyone the first day that he didn’t tolerate tardiness.
On the flip side of things, Charlie and Winter were turning out to be an asset. The two men worked hard as hell. He had been delayed with the drive, but the two had stayed busy helping out around the ranch.
“Think he’s coming?” Charlie asked as he pushed his Stetson back from his eyes.
Riley wrapped a gloved hand around the saddle horn. “We’re going to get started without him.” He steered his horse toward the front of the cattle. Warrior went with ease. They were heading south of Brac Village to the market. Riley didn’t foresee any problems, but they were heading out into open terrain.
“Wait for me!” Sterling shouted as he rode up on Hell Raiser. “Pa sent me since you’re one man short.”
Riley loved his mate to death, but he wasn’t sure Sterling was the right man for the job. The guy was good with animals, but they were taking the cattle in to be sold off. He wondered if Sterling knew this bit of information. He didn’t have it in his heart to tell the guy.
“I thought Pa was extracting Hell Raiser’s sperm,” Riley asked.
Sterling crinkled his nose. “That sounds so gross. He’s finished, anyway.”
Riley chuckled as he steered his horse south and began the drive. About an hour into his day, he spotted Olaf riding hard toward them. He was amazed the man had the nerve to show up.
“You gonna fire him?” Sterling asked as he rode next to Riley. “I don’t really like him. He’s mean looking.”
“Yep,” Riley answered as he listened to the creak of his saddle and enjoyed the fresh air all around. It was days like this that he was glad they had bought a ranch all those years ago. Riley loved the outdoors and working in the wide-open space. He couldn’t imagine himself with a nine-to-five job. It would drive him crazy. “If a man can’t take his responsibilities seriously, then I don’t need him working on the ranch.” Since mating Sterling, Riley had learned to let loose and not be so serious about life. But he still was a hard-nosed man when it came to running his beloved ranch.
“Did I ever tell you that you’re hot as hell when you are being the boss?” Sterling asked with a come-hither bat of his eyes before guiding his horse toward Charlie.
Riley turned, looking at his mate in wonder before turning back around, chuckling to himself. The guy never ceased to amaze him. His lips immediately tilted down when Olaf rode up next to him.
“Sorry I’m late. I overslept.”
Riley clenched his jaw. It was the only way to stop himself from yelling. “The others didn’t seem to have a problem getting here on time.”
“It won’t happen again, boss.” Olaf steered his horse toward the middle of the herd.
For a moment, Riley was too stunned to say a word. Had the man just gotten flippant with Riley? He felt his blood begin to boil as he pulled Warrior to the side, waiting for Olaf to ride by him. His hands clenched the reins, stopping them from reaching out and strangling the man. When Olaf passed, Riley spoke loud enough to make sure the dim-witted human heard him. “Your services are no longer needed.”
Olaf’s eyes turned to smoldering anger as his lips thinned. “You’re firing me for being late?”
“What did I tell you the first day you showed up here?” Riley reminded Olaf.
“It was only an hour,” Olaf protested. “What the hell is your problem?”
“Get the fuck off of my land before I physically remove you!” Riley took a deep breath in, forcing his bear to back down. It wasn’t an easy thing to do. He was five seconds away from teaching the bastard some manners. “You’ll get your pay in the mail.”
“You can’t do that!”
“Winter!” Riley called out to the Siberian tiger shifter. “Can you escort Olaf off of my land?” He would do it himself, but Riley had work to get done. The cattle weren’t going to get to the market by themselves.
“Don’t bother,” Olaf snapped. He turned, racing his horse toward the ranch. Riley didn’t trust the guy. He pulled out his cell phone and called his pa, telling him what had just happened.