Here For You

Sadie

His boots on the wooden porch were the first things I noticed before I ever set eyes on him. The deep timbre of his voice floated through the front windows as I turned my attention from my mother, who was seated in her usual spot in the reclining chair beside the large picture window overlooking the nearby pond and horse pasture. When his knock came, Dad was the first one to reach the door, and I hung back as the two men made their introductions.

“Honor Them sent you here?” My father asked.

“Yes sir,” the man responded.

That voice. I had never heard it before. It wasn’t familiar in any way. So why was I instantly drawn to it?

“Come on in, son. Before we do anything, I need you to sign some employment papers and such,” Dad said, beckoning the guy inside.

The tall man stepped into the foyer and wiped his shoes on the welcome mat. He didn’t glance at me at all, but I couldn’t take my eyes off him, off his square jaw and strong brow, his broad shoulders and muscular arms barely hidden under a grey t-shirt. His worn jeans slung low on his hips, giving me a peek at his defined hips.

Oh my, yes.

He was a little unkempt, with his stubbly jaw and short, dark hair sticking up every which way, but I didn’t care. That made him all the more attractive to me. He trailed after Dad in silence and I willed for him to speak again. He didn’t notice me leering at him from the living room. I supposed I should have been grateful for that. The last thing a new employee needed was his boss’ daughter staring at him like a creeper. So, of course, the creeper would sneak along the hall behind them and eavesdrop on the conversation.

Dad had a habit of keeping the office door open a crack. I usually respected his privacy and stayed well away when he went into a meeting, but today? Well, I wasn’t sure what got into me.

“I was pleased when Honor Them contacted me about you, Sgt O’Hara,” my father said. “As a veteran myself, I want to give back. I know Honor Them is a smaller organisation that does a lot to support veterans in any way they can, which is why I advertised the job with them first. Ranching is hard work. It entails a lot of physical labor, and I thought it would be perfect for an infantryman like yourself, who needs to keep busy. They said you were the guy for the job, so I said I’d be glad to take you on.”

“I appreciate it, sir. I’m willing to do anything at this point. But you can call me Decker. I’m not a sergeant anymore.”

I shivered at the sound of that voice.

“Once a sergeant, always a sergeant, Decker. We may retire, but that training, our experiences, they stay with us.”

Decker’s strong exhalation of breath was all the response he gave, but his silence spoke volumes. Eventually, he asked, “Where did you serve, sir?”

“Afghanistan. Before that, Bosnia, ’93 and before that, Croatia for six months. I was in service right up until two years ago when my wife became ill.”

A lump formed in my throat as Decker offered my father his sympathies. My mom’s condition deteriorated quicker in the last month than it had since she was first diagnosed with early onset dementia.

“Yourself?”

“Iraq. 10th Mountain Division,” the man—Decker—replied. “What got you into ranching?”

“This place has been in my family for a hundred years. It’s been passed down from generation-to-generation,” Dad explained. “North Carolina is in my blood, but reintegrating into civilian life has been no easy task. Like I said, this place is good for keeping you busy, keeping your mind off things.”

“It sounds like this is exactly the thing I need,” Decker replied, a dullness to his tone.

“I’m glad you agree. If you’ll just sign at the bottom of the page there, I’ll find Sadie and she can show you the ropes.”

With a gasp I dashed away from the door as I heard the two men’s footsteps approaching. Desperate not to be caught in a compromising position, I raced back to Mom and fussed over her.

“Sadie.”

“Yeah, Dad?” I lifted my head at Dad’s voice.

“This is our new farmhand, Decker O’Hara.”

“The Honour Them placement?” I managed to keep my tone level, but I felt my voice tremble slightly as Decker’s intense dark eyes travelled over me. He was studying me, assessing me. It was typical of a military man. I had seen Dad do it a million times.

“That’s me,” Decker said in answer to my question.

As much as I wanted to keep my gaze on him, I managed to shift my line of sight to Dad. “You want me to give him the tour?”

“If you don’t mind,” Dad replied.

“Nope, I don’t mind. Let me get my boots on.”

Decker nodded in agreement.

***

I glanced at Decker O’Hara out of the corner of my eye not for the first time since we’d left the house. Sgt. O’Hara was a man of few words and he intrigued me. While he showed an interest in what I had shown him so far, I could see the pain that lay buried in those brown eyes.

What did he hide in those depths? What horrors had he seen during his time in the infantry? What unspeakable things did they order him to do?

Instantly, my nurturing side wanted to make him feel better, as if that was possible. You couldn’t heal war scars with a few sweet words from a girl but I hoped small talk could break the ice.

“What do you think?” I asked as we rounded the side of the hay shed.

“It all seems fine. I think I can be useful here,” Decker replied.

“I think so, too.”

Silence descended once again, but I refused to let it settle.

“Where are you from, originally?” When he glanced at me, assessing me again, I added, “If you don’t mind me asking?”

“New York,” He answered.

“Okay.”

“Have you ever been?”

“A couple of times. One of my cousins moved there for work, so I helped her relocate. I visited one more time before…” Before Mom.

Decker seemed to accept my inability to finish my sentence and moved on. “Are there any jobs you need me to do immediately?”

Pursing my lips, I gave his question some thought. “I’m not sure that you’re ready for it.”

This time, when Decker narrowed his eyes at me, there was some humor in them. “Try me.”

With a shrug, I said, “Okay, then.”

***

Decker

Sadie’s body swayed with each step she took as she led me to another outbuilding. I’d been quiet throughout most of her guided tour, too nervous that I’d say the wrong thing to this alluring creature who was a few steps ahead of me. I’d known her all of five minutes and I was enamoured by her like a school boy who was experiencing his first crush on a woman.

The way her lips twisted when she was considering something, how her jeans hugged her hips like a second skin, and the cowgirl boots did things to me. Damn, they were cute. But the best thing was her eyes and the intelligence that burned in them. The whole package made me want to poke her a little, to see what witty comeback she might have. Somehow, I knew she would have one.

Arguing. Shouting. Bon-Bon is crying. The car is rolling. What the fuck is going on? She’s unconscious and Bonnie is still crying.

The flashback hit me like a mortar to the gut. I had to remember why I was here, and it wasn’t to hit on the boss’ daughter.

Shaking myself out of my pointless fantasy, I tried to focus on what Sadie was saying.

“Decker, are you listening?”

Clearly, I wasn’t focused at all. “Sorry. Can you… repeat that?”

“We have to weigh them and give them their medicine. Do you think you can handle that?” Sadie pushed a few strands of her wavy brown hair out of her face and narrowed her large, expressive eyes at me.

Give who their medicine?

Peering into the pen, I saw a whole litter of piglets hanging out in the fresh straw. A dozen of them, and they looked as though they didn’t have a care in the world.

“They’re piglets.”

“Yes, they are,” Sadie confirmed.

“You don’t think I can handle a few mini pork chops?” I’d been in combat in some of the world’s most hellish places for crying out loud.

“Can you?”

Her expression was full of a playful challenge and I smirked. “How hard can it be?”

Sadie began to laugh. It was a devilish, conniving, sexy laugh.

Don’t think like that, I silently chided myself, pulling myself up again.

Sadie made her way into the pen and I followed, being careful not to tread on any of the little tackers.

“Bonnie would love this.” I smiled as one had a nibble on my boot.

“Bonnie?”

I froze as I realised I’d said that out loud.

“Who’s Bonnie?”

Despite the smile on her pretty face, I ignored Sadie and bent down to scoop up a piglet, only to have it scurry off before I could blink. “Well, shit.”

Sadie laughed again. It was the most beautiful thing I had heard in a long time.

Lord, was I in trouble.

***

We emerged from the pen an hour later with straw, dirt, and I didn’t want to know what else stuck to our clothing. “Okay, so piglets aren’t so easy to deal with,” I admitted as I tried to catch my breath.

“I tried to warn you,” Sadie said with a laugh.

“I don’t know, I think you enjoyed throwing me into the deep end,” I teased.

Sadie bit her lip to keep from grinning too broadly. It made me wish I was the one biting it.

Her lips tasted like fresh cherries. The lipstick she always wore was like the deepest, reddest cherry of the bunch.

Sadie caught me looking. “What?”

Shit, why couldn’t I reign in my thoughts today?

“Nothing,” I said quickly. “Is there anything else you’d like to show me?”

Her mouth quirked up at one corner. “I think you’ve had enough for today. I should show you to your cabin.” Sadie paused. “That is… if that’s where you’re staying?”

“It is,” I confirmed.

“We have to drive there.”

“It’s not on the property?”

“It is, but it’s not within walking distance.” Sadie made her way over to a fancy, gunmetal grey pickup truck.

“I’ll follow you on my bike.”

Sadie’s gaze followed my finger as I pointed to my red and black Yamaha motorcycle. “Okay, see you there.”

She pulled open the drivers’ side door and literally climbed into the mammoth of a pickup. The vehicle appeared to swallow her up as she positioned herself in the driver’s seat. I was amazed she could see over the steering wheel, she was that small.

Here I was gaping at her again and there she was waiting on me. I hastily pulled on my riding gear and threw a leg over the motorcycle.

I spent the ride to the cabin taking in the beauty of the distant hills, covered in lush green trees on one side and the field dotted with cattle on the other. The cabin itself sat under an oak tree and faced out towards the field. I wondered if it was positioned like that on purpose, so you could keep an eye on the stock. With its elevated position and the single window, it made for a good scouting spot. Not much could sneak up on you here, which comforted the soldier in me, the guy who was always looking over his back, who was always looking in every nook and cranny for possible threats.

Sadie led the way once again. She unlocked the door and let me step inside first. The small space was sparsely furnished, but comfortable, with a double bed in one corner, an old timber armchair, a table with two chairs and a kitchen area with basic cooking facilities. It was as though they had hired the army to decorate.

I loved it.

“I know it’s not much—” Sadie said, wrinkling up her nose.

“It’s great,” I interrupted.

She went to the cupboards and inspected them. Finding them bare, quickly snapped them closed again. “I’d better make a trip into town to get you some food.”

“You don’t have to do that,” I told her. “I’m sure you have better things to do.”

“Making sure our new employee eats so he has his strength up for work is an important part of my job, Decker.” Sadie lifted her chin in defiance.

I reached into my jacket pocket and fished a card out of my wallet. “At least use this.”

Sadie peered over at them. “Is that your benefit card?”

“Yeah, one of the things Honour Them gave me. I never thought to go on one before they suggested it.”

“Keep a hold of that. I won’t need it,” Sadie said.

I scowled at her, feeling annoyed by her for the first time. “You don’t have to pay my way.”

“Don’t worry about it. So, are you coming, or what?”

Her dismissive tone riled me, but she was out the door before I could say a word.

***

My silence was oppressive throughout the entire shopping trip. I was certain Sadie could feel my simmering anger, because she didn’t say much to me, barely even looked my way. When we got to the grocery store, we parted ways. I told myself it was to cover more ground in quicker time, but I doubt that was true. Sadie probably wanted to get away from me.

I’d only known her for a couple of hours, and she was already sick of me. I was already stressed about whether she liked me or not, whether she was as attracted to me as I was to her. Fucking hell, I was pathetic. Being so caught up in myself these past few years, I’d ignored women for a long time. I was so out of practice that as soon as a pretty little thing like Sadie Roberts glanced my way, I was going weak at the knees.

As I wandered the aisles aimlessly, I eventually found myself near the liquor. The need for it was so strong, I felt physically ill, and I fought to contain myself as I was drawn to it subconsciously. No matter how much I tried to fight it, tried to deny it, my addiction still controlled me.

She’s unconscious beside me. Bon-Bon is crying.

Squeezing my eyes shut against the pain, I gave my head a small shake. When I opened my eyes again, they fell upon a bottle of Jack. Slowly, I stretched my fingers out, stroking the label with my fingertips. My hand slowly wrapped around its girth and I pulled it from the shelf. Blood rushed through my ears as I gazed down at the bottle.

My weakness.

My nemesis.

My crux.

The Court has awarded custody of Bonnie to her grandparents.

“You need to clean yourself up, Decker.”

I gritted my teeth and pushed the bottle back into its spot.

Robert’s dead. Tamara’s dead. Bonnie’s gone.

I picked up the bottle again.

Fuck this shit. If I was going to fuck up again, I was going to go all out. I swiped two bottles off the shelf and spun on my heel.

When I noticed Sadie watching me I froze mid-step. It took me a moment to remember that Sadie didn’t know a thing about my problems, least of all my battle with the drink. So, with an air of confidence I hope looked more convincing than I felt, I strolled over to her.

“Did you get everything you need?” She asked, eyeing the Jack Daniels in my hands.

“Yep.”