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“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Good. And next time something like this happens, call in the morning. If it’s not an emergency, I don’t need to hear about it this late at night.” He hung up without another word. He owed Shane a lot; he wasn’t too proud to admit that. But that didn’t mean Shane could treat him like he didn’t have worth.
Wade had been treated that way for most of his life. It was time people started seeing him—and his family—as people who mattered.
* * *
Wade coiledthe lasso rope in his hands as he watched Bri with his youngest sister. She was teaching Charlotte where to put the spur on her dressage boot, among other things. Their family didn’t have the money to get the fourteen-year-old a new pair of boots, so Brielle had offered an old pair she’d worn when she was younger.
This was good for Charlotte. She needed more feminine influence in her life. She’d gone most of it dressed in her older brother’s hand-me-downs and going by Charlie. She still refused to acknowledge when anyone used her full name, which suited him just fine. It kept her out of the eye of the red-blooded young men around town who might have other ideas for her.
Charlotte laughed at something Brielle said, which spurred more laughter from the woman he loved. The way she spent time with his family as if they were her own had always been something he’d noticed.
Not once had Brielle treated any of his family like they were somehow less than. It was something of a gift.
“She’s somethin’ else, ain’t she?” Tad walked up to him and leaned against the side of the barn with his arms crossed. His eyes swept over the two women with admiration as they worked. “She’s going to be an excellent mother one day.”
Wade glowered but didn’t offer any insight into the conversation. He still wasn’t sure what Tad was up to, and at this point, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know. If he found out anything truly terrible, he’d be obligated to tell Brielle.
Tad glanced over toward him. “How was your date?”
“None of your business,” Wade said.
“That bad, huh? Well then, I guess I don’t have to be so worried after all. I was thinking of taking her to the city so we could do some shopping. Girls like that, right? Shopping?”
Wade turned away from Tad and headed for the barn, not surprised to find Tad hurrying after him. “I feel like you have the upper hand. Care to share any wisdom?”
“Not on your life,” Wade said.
“Well, now, that’s not very gentlemanly-like.”
He whirled around and glowered at Tad. “You want to know what’s not gentlemanly? Sneaking around the offices of people you don’t even know.”
Tad’s expression was a mask of unreadability. He didn’t flinch—didn’t even blink.
“You want to tell me what you were doing looking through Shane Owen’s office? Word gets around, you know. I’d be careful where you go and who sees you. My reputation is already shot, so being associated with you won’t bother me none. But if the town thinks something’s up…” He shook his head and let out a mirthless chuckle. “Pigs will fly before Zeke Callahan lets you within a hundred yards of his daughter.”
The man tilted his head, staring at Wade in a way that made his skin crawl. It was almost like his eyes had taken on a predatory appearance. “Threaten me all you like, but there’s no way you’re going to get rid of me that easy. I’m here to stay whether you like it or not. You’ve had how long to get Brielle to fall for you? And how is that going? At this rate, I think you might just have to accept that it’s not gonna happen unless you go all cave-man style on her and drag her to that hole you call a home.”
Wade saw red. That was the only way he could describe what came over him. He blacked out or something, and the next thing he realized was that he stood over Tad, who lay crumpled in a ball at his feet. Tad sucked in a deep breath, coughed, then groaned just as Brielle arrived in the doorway to the barn.
Her wide gaze immediately landed on Tad, then swept up to meet Wade’s. Right behind her, Charlotte appeared, breathless, her cheeks flushed. Her expression mirrored Brielle’s but probably not for the same reasons.
She scowled at her older brother and charged into the barn despite Brielle’s attempt to keep her out of it. “You numbskull!”
Wade’s head reared back. “You can’t talk to me like that.”
“I can talk to you however I want. You’re not my dad.” She jutted a finger at Tad, who was acting very much the victim on the ground. “Do you even realize what you’ve done? All it’s gonna take is one call and Donahue will be here to take you away. What were you thinking?”
His own breaths were coming out in angry puffs, and when he glanced at Brielle, he knew he wasn’t going to get out of this one. He wasn’t a snitch, and he had a feeling Tad knew it. So there was no telling Bri that Tad was breaking into offices and making derogatory statements about her.
If he said any of it, there was no guarantee that Brielle would even believe him.
Brielle hurried forward and dropped to her knees beside Tad.
Charlotte continued to scowl at him, then grabbed ahold of his upper arm with both of hers so she could drag him from the barn. Once they were outside, she gave him a push. “You can’t go to jail again. After Anna had to bail you out for what you did at that restaurant, do you think they’re going to think twice before arresting you? You’re going to run out of luck.”
Wade’s jaw tightened. Everything Charlotte was saying was true, no matter how much he hated it. She’d had to mature faster than most girls her age and it was showing as she scolded him for one of his biggest mistakes to-date.
