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“No,” I reply honestly. “But you know he won’t give up until he gets what he wants. He’s like a dog with a bone.”
He’s quiet for the rest of the short ride to my parents’ house, and when he stops, he grips my hand. “I know you love him, but don’t let him stop you from leaving this place behind and starting over. You deserve so much better.”
My throat constricts with the verity of his statement. “Thanks, Ry. For driving all the way here to surprise me. It means a lot.”
I give him a kiss on the cheek, and climb out. He doesn’t leave until I’m safely inside, and I’m left wondering why I couldn’t have fallen for the older Decker brother. It would have been so much easier because he’s never done a damn thing to hurt me, hasn’t ever let me down, and has never looked at me differently just because I don’t look like a cheerleader.
***
Ryan’s words are still fresh in my head, even as I’m walking down the dirt road towards his parent’s ranch the following night. I huddle into the warmth of my jacket, and can’t help the stirring of butterflies in my belly. As soon as I step onto their driveway though, I know I should turn around and leave—but not before kicking myself in the damn teeth. The music is so loud, I’m sure the neighboring ranches can hear it. In spite of myself, I keep walking, and head towards the barn anyway. My curiosity outweighs my self-preservation by a damn mile at this point, so why stop now? I round the corner, and come face-to-face with what looks like a rager of a party. For a split second, I wonder if throwing me a party was Thorin’s idea of making it up to me, even after saying it would be just the two of us, but everyone is way past shitfaced by the time I have a chance to take it all in. It’s the entire senior class, with a few juniors, along with the football team, and cheerleading squad. Sure as hell isn’t for me because Thorin knows how much I hate everyone in attendance. I stand in the shadows, just outside the barn doors, and search for him through the crowd. Eventually, I spot him in the middle of everyone, perched on a log with his guitar in hand. It isn’t uncommon for him to sing at parties, least of all with his friends Fletch, Carson and Benji, but it’s the song he’s belting out at the top of his lungs that has me clenching my fists. When I realize he’s serenading Jessica with the last song we wrote together, I feel my eyes start to burn. He looks down, and I see the lyric book lying at his feet. It’s not like it belongs to me, but writing songs in that book was always our thing, until it wasn’t anymore, and now it feels like he’s spilling all my secrets. The crowd sways, and Jessica looks love-struck. She should, because I wrote the song for Thorin, even if he didn’t know it. The way I see it, I have two choices. I can either storm up to him, grab the book and make a scene, or I can wait until he’s distracted, and take the book without being noticed. Everyone is drunk, it’s not like they’d pay attention to me. I go with option two, and after waiting for him to finish the song, and disappear with Jessica, I sneak in and take the lyric book. I bump into a few people, but keep my head down until I’m out the door, and walking back down his gravel driveway. I should have known it was too good to be true. Everything with Thorin always is, and maybe they always were. I stuff the notebook in my jacket, and decide to keep it. It’s not long until I leave anyway, and I have no doubt Thorin would have no recollection of this night come morning. Suits me just fine, because as soon as I’m done with high school, I’ll be leaving Thorin behind for good.
Rather than place the worn out notebook back in the box, I put it next to my bed. I don’t know if I’ll have the courage to write again, but I don’t see any harm in trying if Mya thinks it will help. I’d buried my feelings for Thorin a long time ago, and doubted writing in what was once our notebook would suddenly revive them. It was just an object, and they were just words, after all.
Chapter Eight
Thorin
I’m standing in the kitchen drinking coffee, watching Mom love on Eli, when Reese knocks on the front door, and walks in. “You ready to go?” She asks. I take in what she’s wearing—tight, white-washed jeans, brown leather boots, a grey knee-length sweater, and a coat. She frowns, and I realize I’m not just staring, but actually checking her out. I clear my throat.
“Yeah.” I dump my mug into the dishwasher and turn to Mom. “We’ll be back in a bit.”
“Take your time, sweetheart. I’m quite happy to spend the morning with the most handsome little man in the world.”
“What about me?” I tease. “Have I already been replaced by my nephew?”
Mom grins, smiling at Eli. “Yes, you have, and I’m not even sorry.”
Reese snorts, and all I can do is grin. “I’m still your favorite, and you know it.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Mom sing-songs. Eli lights up at the sound of her voice, and I can’t even be mad that I’ve been sidelined for my nephew. I round the island, and kiss Mom on the top of her head. “See you later.”
I follow Reese out, and stop short when she unlocks the driver’s side door to the big, red truck parked outside. “That’s yours?”
“Sure is. Why do you sound so shocked?”
“It’s just…big. And red.”
“Which is why I like it,” Reese laughs.
I make my way towards the passenger side, and hop in. “I thought you’d opt for something easier to drive, considering your lack of coordination behind a steering wheel.”
She slaps my arm. “I’ll have you know, my driving skills improved drastically when I was in college, and when Ryan gave me this truck, he taught me how to drive it properly, thank you very much.” She scoots closer to the steering wheel, and when the engine starts, it roars. The interior is completely decked out with black leather seats, a tiptronic transmission, and a killer audio system. It’s a damn nice truck.
When Reese takes off down the road, heading into town, we’re both quiet. We have a meeting with my brother’s and Mel’s attorney, and I’d be lying if I said I’m not nervous about it. The guys are staying at the rental house Alex found down the road from the ranch, and this is the last bit of business Reese and I have to take care of as far as Ryan and Mel’s estate is concerned. Reese already had a meeting with the lawyer after Ryan and Mel died, but she wanted me to meet with him too so he could give me all the same information. She gave me a run-down of the last will and testament, but insisted I hear it from the lawyer in case I have questions, which I don’t. But if it’ll put Reese’s mind at ease, I’ll do it. We stop outside a nondescript building in the center of town, and I follow Reese inside. She tells the receptionist we have a meeting with Mr. Idris, and we’re ushered into his office. He’s a tall, well-built, gray-haired African-American, dressed casually in a pair of chinos and a black button-up shirt, sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Guy looks like he might have played in the NFL at some point. “Thank you for seeing us, Mr. Idris.” Reese shakes his hand. “This is Thorin Decker, Ryan’s younger brother.” I shake his hand, and he gives me a sad, but welcoming smile.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Decker, but I’m almost embarrassed to say I know exactly who you are. I have three teenage daughters.”
I give him a brief smile of acknowledgment and take a seat. “I know we went over everything the week Ryan and Mel died,” Reese starts, “but I thought it would be best for Thorin to have the same information I do.”
“I understand, it’s no trouble at all.” He looks at me from behind his large, mahogany desk. “I’m sorry for your loss. Ryan and Mel were two of the best people I’ve ever met.”
“Thank you,” I reply gruffly. “And thank you for helping Reese, I know you made things easier for her while I couldn’t be here.”
It still grates me that I only found out about Ryan and Mel a week after they died, but there’s nothing I can do about it now. I shift uncomfortably in my seat, wanting to get this over with.
“Let’s get down to business, shall we?” Mr. Idris shuffles a few papers around. “Your brother had some very specific instructions in his will, pertaining to the ranch, and what will happen in the event of his death. It was amended when he married Mel, and when they found out they were expecting.” He looks down. “The ranch staff have been relocated to other facilities, which has already been arranged, and the horses your brother was training have already been moved to other training ranches. Your brother had a list of facilities who would be prepared to take the horses if anything should happen to him, so we had no hiccups there. Your brother had three horses of his own, which will stay on the ranch. As for the ranch itself, it has been put in a trust for his child, and is not allowed to be sold at any time. However, Miss. Hayes is permitted to live on the property for as long as she chooses, and is the custodian of the trust until your nephew turns twenty-one. She has also been given sole guardianship of your nephew.” He meets my gaze, and folds his arms on the desk. “As you can see, Ryan had everything well-planned, as did Mel. Now, is there anything you want to dispute?”
It takes me a moment to process just how well thought-out my brother’s will is. Almost too well, like he knew it would be necessary. Reese touches my hand, and I flinch.
