Free Unleashed: Volume 1 (Unleashed #1) by Callie Harper

fall flat on my face.
    I’d changed out the
wedges for flip flops, but then the shorts went from Daisy Dukes to
Farmer Teds, so I’d settled on a sundress, simple blue and ending
above the knee. Thin cotton but not tight, it was the kind of thing I
might wear around the house even if Declan weren’t there. Honestly,
I’d probably be in something old and ratty like my 8th grade class
t-shirt and boxers. But still.
    The dress had thin
straps that sometimes slid down my shoulder. You could see my bra
straps when I wore it, and I did have a pretty new pink one. But what
did I know? Maybe guys didn’t like pink bras?
    There was so much I
didn’t know, and I used to not care. That was life before Declan.
Before Declan, I’d been a kid, a little girl who had everything she
wanted. True, it had always been just me and my dad and we didn’t
exactly live like kings, but I’d never wanted for a thing. I had
love and birthday parties and Christmas trees, plenty of friends and
sleepovers. I didn’t exactly knock the ball out of the park in
school, but I could get Bs without too much effort and that suited me
fine.
    Things had coasted
along smoothly, not many ripples in the pond. In 9th grade I sprained
my ankle toward the end of football season and missed cheering at the
final games. I tried out for the school musical in 10th grade and
only made the chorus. Junior prom had been lame. My date had pawed at
me like a drunk circus bear, then spewed vomit all over the side of
the road. But besides that, I’d been happy. Content. It had been
enough, more than enough.
    Then there was after
Declan. AD. He’d shaken up my world like fake white flakes in a
snow globe. I barely knew which end was up. I had a month and a half
left of school before graduation. I should be living it up, all
keggers and bonfires and goofing around in the DQ parking lot.
Instead I felt restless and unsatisfied, wanting something more even
though I didn’t know exactly what that was.
    When I finally got to
the barn, I didn’t see anyone. I ducked inside where it was darker
and cooler. At 11 a.m. I guessed it had to be around 80, so it was
bound to climb even higher that afternoon. My friend Mandy had
already asked if I wanted to go swimming. Crazy person that I was, I
kind of wanted to stay at the ranch, even if just to catch a glimpse
of Declan’s stubble. Even though it seemed like he shaved pretty
regularly, he always had stubble by the end of the day. With his
black hair it made him look so savage, like a wild pirate from a
romance, the kind you really hoped would capture you. I wanted to
bring my hand up to his face, feel him rough against my smooth skin,
press my check against his.
    Shaking the crazy out
of my head, I walked over to the long, wooden table. The guys usually
made their way over there at various points in the day, some even
coming in to eat lunch. Declan, of course, seemed to prefer eating on
his own like a lone wolf. Honestly, the man didn’t seem to want any
company at all. Sun up to sun down and sometimes long after that,
Declan was all work and no play.
    You’d think with us
both living on the same ranch we’d see each other more often. But
Declan kept to himself. Bill lived in a cabin down by the stream,
more remote than Declan’s place, but he still made his way up to
the big house almost every day. He’d amble into the kitchen, help
himself to whatever I’d baked. Say a few words about the weather,
nothing too much but sociable, friendly.
    Declan? He’d never
once come inside the main house. I knew because I’d hoped so badly
he would. He’d stood outside it plenty of times, talking to my dad.
One time he’d even made it up onto the porch, holding his hat in
his hands and twisting the brim like he wished he were anywhere else.
My father had called out to him from an open window and Declan had
continued the conversation from outside. It was almost like he
banished himself.
    I’d see him out
working, of course, but I had