Page 34 of Trig
“Think we gotta start over, sugar. I’m Trig Wilder. What’s your name?”
Her eyes widened, then she licked her lips. Lips that I loved to kiss. That I hoped would someday wrap around my dick.
“Ellis Mann.”
“Hi, Ellis,” I said, giving her a small smile.
“I like when you call me Ellie.”
“Okay, Ellie. Tell me. Tell me everything.”
She sighed, then let out a deep breath. “My father’s Lance Mann, as you know. He owns Rocking M Ranch.”
I nodded, because I knew that. I knew of Mann. Everyone in Devil’s Ditch did. He was an asshole through and through. And he was Ellie’s father. FUCK.
“Everything I told you was the truth. I just left some things out. I was born here. Lived on the ranch until my parents divorced. I never came back after.”
“Until now.”
“Yes. Three weeks ago, he called and said he wanted me to visit. Missed me.”
After thirteen years? What the fuck?
I travelled the circuit but I kept up with my family every day. Sometimes several times a day with the group text. I couldn’t imagine not having my parents involved in my life. Interested in me and what I did. Hell, they had so many trophies and awards on their walls from all my wins, their family room looked like a high school gym hallway.
“He doesn’t seem the lovin’ type. Why’d he really want you home?”
“He’s in debt.”
That made sense after his history of stealing money from the city.
“Wagered me in a poker game,” she continued. “Conrad Trout won me and paid off his debt. I was the marker. To be his wife.”
I maneuvered Ellie on my lap so she straddled my waist. I cupped her cheeks, held her head in place so I could look her in the eye.
“That’s why you asked me about playing poker.”
She nodded.
“He was gonna marry you.”
She nodded again. “Yes. The other night, Mr. Trout–I can’t call him by his first name–told me what he had planned for me.” She looked away. “I… I didn’t like any of it. It scared me.”
I could only imagine what that fucker told her. She’d been a virgin. No fucking way was that asshole touching her, let alone breathing near her.
“I took the housekeeper’s car and escaped. You know the rest.”
“You kept saying you couldn’t stay in Devil’s Ditch.”
She nodded. “If I stayed here, they’d find me. I was right. They did.”
“Why didn’t you tell me this right away? Colt’s the sheriff. There are eight Wilder boys and Pops can more than hold his own. We protect what’s ours.”
She gave me a sad smile. “Because Mr. Trout told me if I went to the police, they’d only return me.”
“He was bluffin’. Colt’s the sheriff. No fuckin’ way he’d do that.”
“I didn’t know. This is a small town and I couldn’t trust anyone. What if you took me back?”
