Good Behavior

GOOD BEHAVIOR WILD HEART RANCH BOOK 2 KELLY FOX CONTENTS Also By Kelly Fox Before We Begin 1. Nacho 2. Bram 3. Nacho 4. Bram 5. Nacho 6. Bram 7. Nacho 8. Bram 9. Nacho 10. Bram 11. Nacho 12. Bram 13. Nacho 14. Bram 15. Nacho 16. Bram 17. Nacho 18. Bram 19. Nacho 20. Bram 21. Nacho 22. Bram 23. Nacho 24. Bram Epilogue Savior Complex – Sneak Peek About the Author Also by Kelly Fox Copyright @ 2023 Kelly Fox Cover Design: cateashwooddesigns.com Cover Photograph: cjc-photography.com Developmental Edit by: Charity VanHuss, [email protected] Edited by: Abbie Nicole, [email protected] Proofed by: Lori Parks, [email protected] ALL RIGHTS RESERVED This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. This is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or business establishments, events or locales is coincidental. The Licensed Art material is being used for illustrative purposes only. ALSO BY KELLY FOX SERIES Wrecked Guardians Rebel Sky Ranch Mobsters+Billionaires Wild Heart Ranch Orpheum Avenue STAND-ALONE NOVELLAS Summer Makeover Bee Cave Magic Texas Detour Roots and Sky Liar’s Gambit FREEBIES https://www.authorkellyfox.com/freebies BEFORE WE BEGIN I had a lot of fun writing this book, but I’ll be honest, I had a completely different story arc in mind for these guys when I started. Somewhere along the way, a dynamic cropped up—no whips or chains or humiliation, just a few commands mixed in with some crackling sexual tension—and I was off to the races. Whereas Sworn Enemy was all about the redemption arc, Good Behavior is for the buttoned-up rule-followers who find themselves inexplicably drawn to highly inappropriate things. I can relate. The series ain’t called Wild Heart for nothing. Content notes: First and foremost, this is a forbidden romance between an ex-con and his former prison therapist. No aspect of their relationship—including the way they initially handle their dynamic—would ever be okay in real life. Additionally, these two liberally switch between using each other’s informal and formal names, depending on where they are in their heads. Hint: when Bram starts calling Nacho by his given name, things are about to heat up. The secondary storyline involves saving victims of human trafficking and kidnapping. While I was mostly circumspect about their experiences, the awful things they survived and their impacts are named, including forced surrogacy and varying kinds of assault. Additionally, Ant is really going through it in this book and drops some pretty horrifying details in an effort to get people to take him seriously. Finally, one of the characters is blatantly racist, and while she doesn’t use racial epithets, she says Ant’s and Nacho’s presumed nationality like it is one. Spoiler alert: She’s not getting a redemption arc. To Burns. I made the bad guys hurt a little extra just for you. 1 NACHO The sun’s just coming up over the Central Texas Hill Country, and it’s going to be another glorious blue-sky day. I check the rearview mirror as I hit my blinker and catch the teardrop tattoo just under my left eye. Days like these remind me of how far I’ve come and how lucky I am to have a good job with good people. Turning into Wild Heart Ranch, I pull up in front of the bunkhouse to pick up my buddy, Ant. Everyone here is already up and moving about, so I hit the horn twice. When the front door opens several minutes later, I hang my head out the window, ready to chirp at him to hurry his sleepy ass up. Huh. That’s not Ant. It’s Dr. Barlowe, my prison therapist. He’s just Bram now. I served only one year of a two-year prison sentence, and he’s responsible for my early release. No, Ignacio. You were a good boy and earned that early release all on your own. I imagine his velvet baritone in my ear, and my heart starts pumping a fucking cumbia on speed. I yank my head back into the truck, knocking it against the window frame, hoping the early-morning shadows hide me from his view. His eyes, however, don’t miss a single detail. Some things never change, I suppose. He shoves his hands in his pockets and approaches my window. “Ignacio.” He’s the only person who’s ever called me by my given name. Even my mother calls me Nacho. “Dr. Barlowe,” I respond automatically. I curse at how quickly this…dynamic…slips into place between us. In my head, he’s Bram and I’m Nacho, but the sound of my given name on his lips feels like I’ve broken sobriety. I’m high on the rumbling, perfect sound on his tongue, and I can’t help but call him what I always have. Mostly I’m just hoping I don’t sound like a breathless teenager. That’s probably a lost cause because, even this early, Bram is clean-shaven and perfectly coiffed. He’s wearing pressed slacks with a starched button-down that strains across his brawny muscles. Even his sleeves are precisely rolled, revealing cabled forearms covered in gorgeous tattoos. It’s so unfair—he looks as if someone went and mixed the DNA of Clark Kent and David Beckham in a lab, then added a sprinkle of genius Dom on top for extra spice. I thought I’d cornered the market on stylish and inked, but he’s got me by a cool mile. Also, I’m pretty sure that’s Tom Ford cologne on freshly washed skin wafting into the cab of my work truck. “You hit your head,” he says, reaching through the window. He carefully rakes his blunt fingers through my hair, and his touch sends electricity cascading down my neck and out through my fingertips. Wincing, I grab his wrist when he passes over the spot where my skull made contact with the window frame. “I’m fine, Dr. Barlowe. I promise.” His eyes fall to my