“Time to get up, little missy.”
I squinted, rolling over on the small cot I was lying on and opening my eyes.
I froze.
Grinning down at me was Mr. Pike.
I sat up, quickly waking up as the events of the night before came trickling into my head. The two men who’d come to collect me at my aunt and uncle’s farm werenotthe two handsome cowboys from the first visit. These two had been swarthy and scowling — scary-looking, and not in a sexy way, in a legitimately mean way. They’d had me ride in the back of their pickup truck, along with the one suitcase I’d packed, for the entire drive out to Mr. Pike’s ranch. At one point, one of them had given me something for “car sickness,” even when I’d told him I was fine.
“It gets bumpy later,” he’d said, pushing the pill into my hand. “Take it.”
It hadn’t seemed much like a request at that point, so I had.
I didn’t remember now if ithadbeen bumpy, I just remembered how damn sleepy I’d gotten — probably the anxiety of the new job finally catching up with me. But in any case, when we’d arrived, I’d been so tired after the long drive that the two men had basically carried me into this place.
The room had a small cot and a window that looked out at the hills, but it was bare besides that. Just a few bits of straw on the ground, as if this had been used more as a barn than a guest room.
For some reason, I felt like I remembered the sound of a lock being clicked after they’d laid me on this small bed, but I knew that had to be something from a dream.
“Time to get up,” Mr. Pike said with that same cold, uncomfortable smile from before. “Your first day is important here.”
I blinked, suddenly remembering the whole point of me being here.
“My goodness, I’m so sorry! Of course!”
God, my first day and I was sleeping in.
I started to throw back the blankets and stand when I gasped and let out a small shriek.
“My clothes!”
I gasped as I yanked the blankets tight to my chin, my whole body going rigid and my cheeks burning. I wascompletelynaked underneath it.
Mr. Pike chuckled.
“Yup, must have forgot to mention that. You were pretty zonked out last night, so I had some of thestaffstrip you down.”
My jaw dropped, but Mr. Pike just smiled at me, as if it wasn’tinsanethat he’d had someonetake my damn clothes offwhile I was sleeping!
“Besides, we’ve got a — well,” he chuckled. “Auniformfor you while you’re here.”
I nodded and shivered, feeling so exposed with only a blanket between me and this frightening man.
Mr. Pike seemed to grin at my uncomfortableness though, and suddenly tossed a small parcel.
“I want you to put that on and follow me. We need to get you checked out before you begin.”
I frowned. “Checked out?”
“Examined. Now put it on.”
I paused, still feeling strange about having woken up naked in what was clearly an old hay stall. “I— I’m not sure about this.”
“Now youlistento me, missy!” Mr. Pike’s voice suddenly went darker. “I offered your family a fair price for your services. Now you can get on home right now if you want, but it’ll mean giving that moneyback, understand? And I’m pretty sure your uncle was clear about that meaning you alllose your damn farm.You want that on you? Your family, all those little cousins of yours, without a home ‘causeyoudidn’t want to do a little work?”
I blushed crimson as he chastised me. “N-no, sir. I’ll work. Of course. I’m great with cows and livestock, I can operate most field machinery, and—”
Mr. Pike started laughing, as if at a joke I wasn’t quite getting.