Page 125 of Peaches & Pistols

Reactions are now a mix of shock and wincing away from the pain they know is coming.

“I’m not here to spread rumors. I’ll simply tell you she’s unbothered and unapologetic about how she treated me after Dad died. Her desire to meet Harper is solely based on making her look like the perfect grandma to her friends and family.”

The state of our audience has quickly evolved to indignation and thinly veiled rage.

“As if that wasn’t enough, she sealed her fate when she called Everly a bastard and accused Mia of taking advantage of me.”

Some of the horses start to neigh—snorting and stomping their hooves alongside the outrage pouring out of our family. Greyson whistles so loudly I pull my hand from his to cover my ears, and everyone falls silent.

“Moving forward, there will be no mention of Meredith around me, Mia, or our daughters. There will be no suggesting we work things out. There will be no nudges towards forgiveness. As far as I’m concerned, my mother died with my dad.”

The finality of Greyson’s decision might as well be tangible. An impenetrable wall has been erected that everyone at Lucky Spurs Ranch will unquestionably respect.

It’s Olivia I’m worried about.

42

“Greyson! What are you doing?” As soon as he opened my door, he plucked me from the truck and tossed me over one shoulder like a bag of flour.

“Ouch!” The smack he gives my ass stings like a bitch.

“Quit squirmin’ around. I don’t want to drop you,” Greyson says, with a lighter smack.

I switch tactics and paddle his Wrangler butt as he marches me along a tree-covered part of Lucky Spurs Ranch I haven’t been to yet.

“You’ll see in just a second,” he grunts. Greyson might be unreasonably strong, but I’m a grown woman, and he’s been carrying me so long I’m struggling to keep my head up, and things are starting to go tingly and numb.

He jolts to a stop, well maybe he doesn’t jolt, but I sure do, and he sets me on my feet gentle as can be.

“You alright?” He rights my clothes and checks me over for any pain from our trek.

“Yea, I’m fine. I may not be old, but this has reminded me I’m in fact, not a teenager anymore and my rebound time is much slower.” I feign wooziness, but when panic fills Greyson’s face, I stop and assure him I’m really fine.

“Okay, nooooow do you want to tell me what we’re doing?” I hang from his shoulders, head tilted up accepting and offering kiss after kiss. He peels me off him and holds my hands between us.

“I promised to never keep secrets from you unless it was for you or the girls’ safety, but I forgot to add one other caveat to my promise. Secrets are acceptable if they’re temporary, to surprise the other person with something like a gift,” he says earnestly.

“I agree.” It takes focused control of every tiny muscle in my face to bite back my smile.

Greyson might be an enigma to some, but I know him through and through. If this was a bad secret, he’d be in militaristic protection mode. Instead, he’s nervously shuffling his feet, biting the inside of his lips, and has the faintest flush to his cheeks.

“Remember about a month ago when I had that heart-to-heart with Walter?” His eyes flit to meet mine but don’t linger. My smile’s getting harder to contain, this man…

“Of course. It was the day you accepted your place in their family—and I couldn’t be prouder of you, my love.” I reach up for a kiss.

“Well, something else significant happened during that talk, and I’m finally ready to show it to you.”

“Show me?” My smile bursts through my restraint full force, all teeth on display.

“Walter wasn’t kidding when he said I was their son just as much as James, Reid, and Sam. They saved a plot of land for me to build a life on just like James and Reid did. Like how they ultimately built Sam’s Cabin and guest cabins on Sam’s land with Quincy’s approval.”

His strong voice cuts off in his tightening throat. “A parcel has been waiting for me since my dad died.”

Emotion floods his eyes as gratitude and grief fight an un-winnable battle, because they have to find a way to co-exist. I couldn’t stop my tears if I tried, but they’re the happiest of happy tears.

“That’s incredible, babe! I’m so happy for you.”

He deserves this. He deserves to be loved unconditionally and to be put first.