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“Neither could I,” Lavender admitted, rolling his eyes at how soft he’d become.
“We’ll have to find a way to make it work. At least we know Leary believes it was the FBI.”
“I could kill Leary and all of this goes away,” Lavender offered.
“You had your chance to start that war with Speed when you were in Miami. Do that now and everything Speed has done will have been for nothing. Frank Leary might be a monster but he’s all that Speed had. And Speed’s trying to save Leary because he’s got a family.”
“Can you save a man by killing his father and sending him to prison?” Lavender countered. “I still struggle with that, I confess.”
Lane’s expression and his mood became heavier, his gaze stretching far beyond the rural two-lane highway in front of them. “Neither of us has lived through that kind of trauma and abuse.”
“Abuse?” Lavender knew that Speed would have encountered all manner of monsters on the street as a child. But he couldn’t recall Speed ever mentioning anyone beating or molesting him.
“He may have ultimately been the one pulling the strings but Leary and Winterstone controlled Speed and kept him in the closet through fear foryears. Speedhadto stay and put up with that from the man who killed his parents and he’s still afraid of what Leary would say if he told him,” Lane explained. “That monster’s all Speed had but he’s scared Leary will stop loving him if he admits he’s gay.”
“There are hints of Stockholm syndrome to it…” Lavender agreed. He rubbed his brow as his head began to ache.
“He was half out of his mind when he said it, but Speed once told me he’d always wished he’d had brothers.”
“I know and I’m doing my best to welcome him to the family but he lives to stomp on my last nerve.”
“Hmmm… Sort of like a little brother,” Lane observed and beamed at Lavender. He gave Lane a flat look.
“No thank you. All I’m after is peace and some neighborly consideration and cooperation. A measure of respect, if that’s not too much. I think we may be close to achieving that. Especially if I can find some way of being useful with this wedding,” he mused out loud.
“Speed has wisely given Kat carte blanche and I don’t think you want to risk stepping on her toes,” Lane warned and Lavender shook his head.
“Your sister’s taste is impeccable but I always do my best to avoid her. There has to be something more…constructive I can do. He won’t let me kill Leary but there may be some way I can intervene or ensure he stays out of the way,” he said, tapping his chin. Lane made an exploding sound.
“Speed seems to have that under control and you don’t know how you could complicate things by getting involved,” he argued.
“You’re probably right, and if history has shown us anything, it’s that everything Speed does is with calculated intent. But my gut is telling me that Speed isn’t acting with his usual clarity this time. He’s letting his heart lead him so he’s bound to make mistakes.”
“I can’t fault him for that, though,” Lane said, then laughed softly as he took the exit into Lake Cliff. “I think we’ve all been guilty of that at one point or another. And it’s better than helping him break into the FBI or commit murder.”
“True… Have you discussed Blake’s half of the guest list? Just how many of your family and his friends will be there?”
“Too many but there’s not a lot we can do about our grandparents, aunts, uncles, and the cousins. There’s no way we’re going to get my parents to limit how much family can come to the ranch. More will always be the merrier, especially if it’s Blake’s wedding.”
“Can we trust everyone to keep quiet?”
“Yes,” Lane answered immediately. “Dad’s already made it clear that this engagement and the wedding are a private family matter. He gave everyone that line about Speed’s work and not wanting folks to make too much out of his connection with Nate.”
Lavender snorted. “If anything, that connection to Blink will only add to your brother’s political cache. Blink could help your brother quite a bit.”
“Nate’s not interested in Blink’s help, I can promise you that.”
“President West,” Lavender said, testing it out, and raised his brows at Lane. He whistled as he shook his head at the windshield.
“Now, I think my brother is a wise man when it comes to a great many issues and he’s a hell of a lot more honest about his flaws than most. But he isn’t built for kissing asses. He’s built for fighting and proving he’s right and that won’t get you far in politics. Hell, he’s barely hanging on as a democrat in Oklahoma. People just know him and trust him so they vote for him.”
“One word from Blink and Nate’s the party’s next rising star.”
“I can’t see Nate ever wanting that,” Lane said. Lavender shrugged, then braced himself as Lane turned into the strip mall and parked in front of the hardware store.
“Speed should be at brunch this weekend since he’s clearly back on his feet. We’ll talk to him and Blake about the wedding and see if Speed’s had any more contact with Leary.”
“Why do you have to rub it in?”
