POV Ivory

Last night haunted me like a fever dream.

Two cowboys who’d once shattered me, now handling my children like they were made of spun glass.

In the days since, everything had shifted.

They kept it professional—I’d give them that. No more direct questions about fathers or timelines. No cornering me in barns demanding answers or driving me crazy with heat.

But God, the way they watched me now… Like hawks circling prey, cataloguing every interaction with my children, filing away every detail for later examination.

Kameron would appear whenever I was working near the cottage, always with some legitimate reason—fence repairs, equipment checks—but his eyes would track toward the sound of children’s laughter.

Colt scheduled more “livestock consultations” than any ranch could possibly need, his gaze heavy with unspoken questions whenever the triplets ran past.

The worst part? They were good with them. Patient. Gentle.

Everything I’d never expected from the boys who’d left me in that tack room.

Maybe they had changed. Maybe six years had transformed them into men who could be trusted, who could be good for my children.

The traitorous thought kept creeping in whenever I watched Colt explain something about horses to an enraptured Luke, or when Kameron made Lily giggle with his exaggerated stories.

But then one of them would get too close, and those old wounds would throb like they’d never healed.

The memory of waking up alone, hay in my hair, their seed still warm between my thighs. The humiliation. The abandonment. The months of morning sickness with no one to hold my hair back.

And now there was this new complication—the rivalry simmering between them.

When Kameron stood near me during morning meetings, Colt’s jaw would tighten. When Colt helped me with equipment, Kameron’s eyes would darken with something possessive.

They circled each other like territorial wolves, and I was apparently the prize to be won.

Hadn’t I specifically told them no jealousy? No competition? Yet here they were, turning me into some trophy to fight over, and it made my resolve harden like cement.

I was nobody’s prize. Not anymore.

I was examining a skittish mare in the stable when movement caught my eye.

Levi had wandered in through the open doors, his small boots kicking up dust as he approached. His eyes were fixed on the nervous horse with the kind of fascination that made my blood run cold.

“Levi, stay back—”

Before I could finish the warning, Colt was there. His hand settled gently on my son’s shoulder, guiding him away from the mare’s reach with quiet authority.

The horse snorted and stamped, her ears pinned flat against her skull.

“Easy, little man,” Colt said, his voice low and calm. “This one’s feeling jumpy today. Best give her some space while your mama works.”

Levi looked up at him with wide eyes. “She’s pretty, though. I just wanted to see.”

“Pretty things can still be dangerous. That’s something your mama knows better than anyone.” Colt glanced at me, something unreadable in his hazel eyes. “Right, Dr. Hill?”

Something painful twisted in my chest watching them together.

The easy way Colt handled my son. The gentle authority in his touch. The patience that seemed to come naturally to him.

I forced my attention back to the mare, running my hands along her flank while keeping one eye on Levi. “Where are your brother and sister, baby? You’re supposed to be at the house with them.”

Levi scuffed his boot against the stable floor. “They went to town with Kameron.”

“I know. I told him as much.” Colt knew how to pronounce words in such a way that they had a calming effect. “He said he’s sorry for making you worry.”

Relief crashed through me so hard my knees nearly buckled, making me almost completely forget how much scared I got for my children seconds before.

They were safe. They were coming back.

Kameron hadn’t stolen them away or done anything malicious. He’d just been thoughtless. Impulsive. Acting on feeling instead of sense, the way he always did.

I moved without thinking and closed the small distance between us, slightly leaning against Colt’s chest, my hands fisting in the fabric of his shirt.

“He can’t do things like that…” I said against his shoulder, the words spilling out faster than I could control them. “He doesn’t think. He just acts.”

Another thought struck my mind.

Colt would never have taken them without telling me first. He would have asked. He would have been responsible about it instead of just deciding on a whim that it was no big deal.

I felt Colt go still beneath my hands, before his arms came around me, solid and warm. Then I realized what I’d done.

I was pressed against his body. His heart beat steady beneath my cheek. The heat of him seeped through my clothes.

I should pull away. Every rational thought screamed at me to step back, to rebuild the walls, to remember all the reasons this was dangerous.

But I didn’t move.

His hands began to travel across my back. Slow and deliberate. Mapping the curve of my spine through the thin cotton of my work shirt. Each touch sent sparks racing across my skin.

“Ivory.” My name was a rumble in his chest. “Everything’s fine. There’s nothing to worry about. Not anymore. I’m here.”

When I still didn’t pull away, his arms tightened around me. Drew me closer until there was no space left between us. Until I could feel every hard plane of his body pressed against mine.

And God help me, I let him.