Diamond in the Rough (Diamond J #2) Read Online Free PDF Page A

driver’s seat and scooped the t-posts up. He tossed them back onto the bed of the XRT with a grunt, then grabbed the fencing pliers and the fence post driver. Without a word, he worked loose the two fence posts that were leaning crazily, placed new t-posts and drove them into the hard ground with ringing ferocity. Joe sat in the XRT and watched, a grin playing the corners of his mouth, arms crossed over his sweat streaked chest.
    Aidan returned to the bed of the ATV and pulled a couple of tensioners out of the bed, affixed them and tightened the stretched woven wire. He gave it a few test tugs, wiggled the fence posts and, satisfied the fence was secure, hopped back into the driver’s seat of the XRT.
    He pulled away, watching his path more carefully this time. Joe held his tongue for nearly a minute. Judging from the muscles twitching in his jaw, that was all he could handle. “OK. Enough. What the hell is going on with you?”
    “Nothing,” Aidan snapped.
    Joe fired back, “Bullshit.”
    Aidan sighed. He could try to avoid it, but that wouldn’t work forever. It’s hard to hide something from someone you work and live with. His chest rose and fell again with another sigh. Jeez, he’d been sighing a lot lately. “Okay, here’s the deal. I tell you, but you tell nobody, got it?”
    Joe nodded.
    “I’m serious man. Just between you and me.” He punctuated his demand by pointing at Joe, then himself.
    Joe looked sideways at Aidan. One thick eyebrow rose. “Yeah, sure, cross my heart and all that stuff. What gives?”
    “I met a woman.”
    Joe hooted and slapped his knee, but Aidan held up his hand in the classic symbol for stop. He said, “When I say I met her, I mean just that. We just met. No date. No nothing. Just met.”
    Joe rolled his eyes. “Couldn’t close the deal, huh?”
    Aidan frowned and the ATV sped up. “It’s not like that. She’s a really nice lady.”
    “Then why would she go out with you?”
    Aidan started to sigh yet again, caught himself, and frowned. He gripped the wheel tighter, his knuckles turning white.
    Joe pressed on. “Who is she?”
    “Owns the scrapbook store in town.” And she has the most amazing blue-green eyes.
    Joe’s eyes widened at this, and he gave a low whistle. “She is hot.” He drew out the last word.
    Aidan smacked his buddy in the arm. “Don’t talk about her like that." She was good-looking, but there was more to her than that. She was different than the rodeo bunnies he'd dated. "Say, do you know if she’s seeing anybody?”
    Joe shook his head. “Ain’t never seen her with nobody. Ask Charlotte, she’d know.”
    Aidan nodded, not willing to admit that he’d already talked to Charlotte. “Anyway, that’s it. She’s on my mind ‘cause I met her today. Guess I got a little distracted.”
    Joe hooked his thumb over his shoulder at the freshly repaired fence behind them and snorted, “I’ll say.”
    They reached the barn and Aidan nodded toward the bed, anxious to change the subject. "Make sure all the wire gets back to the barn? There's been a lot of thefts in these parts lately."
    As Joe hopped out of the XRT, he nodded. "Meth heads, probably. Taking scrap to the recycling depot for quick cash."
    There was more to it than that. Aidan could feel it in his bones. This area used to be safe, but now anything metal had to be locked up and whole herds of cattle had been taken. Druggies wouldn’t be organized enough to pull off the thefts. Aidan left Joe to put the fencing supplies up while he headed for the barn to clean stalls.
    Maybe one of the boys playing poker tonight would know something. If the Sheriff had found any leads, somebody at the game tonight would know about it. Word traveled fast in a small town like Wilder.
    He pushed away thoughts of rustlers and turned to the task at hand. For once, he was glad that work didn’t stop at the Diamond J Ranch just because the calendar said it was the weekend. Beau, the ranch foreman, and Beth,