RANCH OF TRUTH

The Bet

By the end of the first week, Damien and Ethan had established a routine.

Wake up.

Argue.

Work.

Argue.

Eat.

Argue.

Sleep.

Repeat.

Neither seemed capable of spending more than ten minutes together without irritating the other.

The ranch hands had started placing bets.

Not on whether they'd become friends.

That seemed impossible.

The bets were on who would finally throw the first punch.

---

It happened during breakfast.

Damien was reading emails on his phone.

A miracle considering the terrible signal.

Ethan walked into the kitchen.

Looked at the phone.

And frowned.

"You're not working."

Damien looked up.

"I literally am."

"No."

Ethan poured coffee.

"You're sitting."

Damien blinked.

"That's how phones work."

Ethan ignored him.

"You've got fencing to repair."

"It's seven in the morning."

"It's a ranch."

"It's a prison."

Ethan smirked.

The first smile Damien had seen all morning.

Unfortunately it vanished immediately.

---

Later that day, Ethan assigned Damien to help move a stubborn bull into another pasture.

The bull weighed roughly the same as a small truck.

Damien looked at the animal.

The animal looked at Damien.

Neither seemed impressed.

"I quit."

Ethan folded his arms.

"No."

"I wasn't asking."

"Too bad."

Damien glared.

The bull snorted.

Ethan's mouth twitched.

The jerk was enjoying this.

---

The situation got worse.

Much worse.

Because the bull refused to move.

For nearly an hour.

Nothing worked.

Not food.

Not shouting.

Not encouragement.

Not bribery.

Finally Damien lost patience.

"Move."

The bull stared.

"Move."

Nothing.

Damien pointed.

"I am your superior."

The bull continued chewing grass.

Several ranch hands burst out laughing.

Even Ethan looked entertained.

Damien was never going to recover from this.

---

Eventually the bull escaped entirely.

Straight through an open gate.

Running across a field.

Chaos immediately followed.

Ranch hands chased after it.

Dogs barked.

People shouted.

Ethan swore loudly.

Damien stood there.

Watching.

Then pointed.

"I feel partially responsible."

"Partially?"

Ethan asked.

"Fine."

Damien sighed.

"Mostly."

---

Two hours later the bull was finally recovered.

Everyone was exhausted.

Especially Ethan.

The cowboy removed his hat and wiped sweat from his forehead.

Damien had to look away.

Immediately.

For some reason.

Very annoying.

---

That evening, the tension returned.

As usual.

The two men were repairing equipment inside the barn when Damien finally asked the question that had been bothering him.

"Why did you really make the deal?"

Ethan didn't look up.

"What deal?"

"The one month."

Silence.

The cowboy tightened a bolt.

Then another.

Finally he spoke.

"Because I wanted you to quit."

Damien frowned.

"You could've just said no."

"I did."

"Repeatedly."

"You kept coming back."

Fair point.

Ethan set the wrench down.

"For people like you, quitting is worse than losing."

The words hit a little too close to home.

Damien hated that.

"You don't know anything about people like me."

Ethan laughed.

A humorless sound.

"I know enough."

There it was again.

That assumption.

That judgment.

As if Ethan had already decided who Damien was.

And nothing could change it.

The irritation returned instantly.

"You're unbelievable."

"So I've been told."

"No, seriously."

Damien stood.

"You act like you're better than everyone."

Ethan's expression darkened.

"And you act like money solves everything."

The argument exploded.

Again.

Louder this time.

Sharper.

Months of frustration pouring out.

"You judge me without knowing me."

"You came here to buy my home!"

"You think that's all there is to me?"

Ethan stepped forward.

"Isn't it?"

The barn fell silent.

Neither man looked away.

Neither backed down.

Finally Ethan shook his head.

"You'll be gone in a few weeks anyway."

The words were meant to dismiss him.

To end the conversation.

But something about them irritated Damien.

A lot.

Slowly, a dangerous smile appeared on his face.

Ethan immediately looked suspicious.

"What?"

Damien pointed toward the horse paddock.

"I bet you."

"No."

"You don't even know the bet."

"I don't care."

Damien continued anyway.

"If I can learn to ride a horse before the month ends..."

Ethan rolled his eyes.

"Impossible."

"...you have to admit I lasted."

The cowboy crossed his arms.

"And if you fail?"

Damien smiled.

"I leave."

That got Ethan's attention.

Finally.

Silence stretched between them.

Then Ethan smirked.

A rare sight.

"You're serious."

"Very."

The cowboy considered it.

Then nodded once.

"Fine."

Damien held out his hand.

Ethan looked at it.

Then reluctantly shook it.

The grip was firm.

Brief.

Tense.

Neither trusted the other.

Neither liked the other.

But now there was a bet.

And Damien Black never backed down from a challenge.

Unfortunately for him...

Ethan Hayes had every intention of making sure he lost.