AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He’d thought he might be able to get through to her tonight, but she was more stubborn than any mule he’d ever worked with. Wade kept telling himself he’d win her over, no matter how long it took, but even he had to admit how draining it was to come up against the wall she’d continued to put between them.
Wade burst through the front door, causing it to bang against the wall on its old hinges.
Annabel’s head snapped up from where she was reading a book in the study and she scowled at him. “Geez. We’re trying to fix up this place, not make it worse.” Then understanding flooded her blue eyes, and she grinned. “Oh wait, you’re trying to get Bri back out here to help you, huh.”
He shot her a dark look.
Her brows shot up and her eyes widened to almost comedic size. “You saw her tonight.” She snapped her book shut and sat a little straighter on the couch. “How did it go?”
Wade gave her a disbelieving look. “Seriously?”
She made a face. “Right. Okay.” She patted the couch beside her. “Tell me what happened.”
He glanced at the couch and then lifted his gaze to her face. “Pass.” Wade strode down a hall that led to the kitchen, not surprised in the least that his sister was following close behind.
“I told you that she wasn’t ready. You need to give her more time.”
“I’ve given her plenty of time, Belle. She’s just not interested.”
Annabel’s hand grabbed his shoulder, tugging him around with surprising strength considering her five-five frame. “That’s not true. I’ve seen the way she looks at you. There has to be something else going on. I swear on our parents’ graves that she’s into you.”
His pointed look must have been lost on her, so he rolled his eyes. “You care about our parents about as much as I do. You could swear on a cow pie and it would hold the same amount of weight.”
She snickered. “Okay, fine. But I’m telling you the truth. I’m one of the only girls you know. Trust me.”
Wade stared at his sister, unsure as to why he even bothered to listen to her. She was probably one of the biggest reasons he’d stuck with his desire to win Brielle over. Maybe it was the fact that she came from a big family like he did. Or maybe it was how easy it was for her to get close to his family. “You might be right, but I don’t think I can handle another rejection.” He tore away from her and continued into the kitchen. Her pity was the last thing he wanted to deal with.
“What’s going on?”
Wade sighed, not even bothering to give another second of his attention to his brother, who had a nasty habit of eavesdropping.
Unfortunately, Annabel didn’t feel the same. She wandered over to the kitchen table, where Elijah sat with Lucas. The four of them made up the oldest Keagans—and, consequently, the more jaded of their family. They’d been forced to take care of their eight younger siblings.
Annabel perched on the edge of the table and glanced over her shoulder toward Elijah. “Wade tried to ask Brielle out again.”
Wade didn’t have to look over at them to know they were all grinning like idiots. Each and every one of them had pushed him to find someone to date since he’d been twenty-five. Now that he was in his thirties, they pushed even harder.
He grabbed a glass from the cupboard and filled it with water from the tap. The lukewarm water did nothing to quench the desert that his throat had become. If being patient and pushy hadn’t worked with Brielle, then what would? There were only so many ways he could come at this.
“She turned you down again, huh?” Elijah got up from the table and put the plate he’d been using into the sink. “You’ll get her next time.”
“Don’t patronize me,” Wade muttered. “She practically told me that if I planned on waiting for her until she was ready, then I’d live a lonely life.”
Elijah sucked in sharply, making a hissing sound. “Ouch. What do you think, Belle?”
She shrugged. “It’s like I keep saying. She’s interested. She’s just being difficult.”
Lucas shook his head. “Do you guys even hear yourselves? Leave the woman alone. Maybe she just doesn’t want to marry into a crazy family that had to raise themselves. You’re all just a bunch of feral animals anyway.”
“Hey!” Annabel protested. “I resent that!”
“Think about it for a minute. The only times you guys go out in public is when you get a drink or do something for the ranch. Wade’s the only one who goes to town for social events. Oh, and Liam still works for the Callahans to bring in some money. But beyond that, we’re just a bunch of misfits, and no woman in her right mind would want to have to take care of any of us.”
The room went quiet. Lucas had a point. Anytime their last name was mentioned in town, the gossip surrounding their childhood ran rampant. That was the reason everyone agreed that the younger kids would stay out of the public eye.
Family first. That was their creed, and they didn’t need the help of anyone. But that didn’t mean he didn’t want to share his life with someone now that the youngest in their family was nearing the age when she’d want to get out and start dating.
Elijah snapped his fingers. “Wait a minute. Didn’t Liam say something about old man Callahan starting up a new business venture?”
