AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Shane would be livid if he knew where Wade was right now, but none of that mattered as much as keeping Brielle safe. Wade pounded on the door, slamming his fist against the wood and shifting his weight from one foot to the other nervously. He glanced back at the barn and then brought his focus to the door.
It was taking far too long for her to answer the door. What if she wasn’t here? If Clark had taken her somewhere, Wade didn’t know what he would do. There was a chance that Clark might convince Brielle to go to the courthouse today just to get their marriage legalized.
Brielle should know better than to do that, though. And what would happen if he used a fake name on the documentation? There were so many unknowns at the moment, so all he could focus on was finding Brielle and getting her as far away from Clark as possible.
Still, no one answered the door, and he lifted his hand to knock once more. Just as he did, the door swung open and Zeke Callahan stared at him, his eyes hard.
Wade stumbled back a step, more out of surprise than anything else. He cleared his throat, but nothing came out.
“Mr. Keagan,” Zeke said.
“Mr. Callahan,” he wheezed. “I’m here to see Brielle.”
The older man’s eyes narrowed and he glanced out toward the barn. “I’ve been thinking about a few things today. Would you wager to guess what about?”
Wade didn’t move. This wasn’t where the conversation was supposed to go. Zeke was supposed to call for Brielle to come to the door, and then Wade would be able to tell her what was going on and be the hero she needed him to be. He shook his head and let out a nervous chuckle. “I don’t think it would be wise to make such assumptions, sir.”
Zeke retuned his focus to Wade and appraised him. “You’re a good man, Wade.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“Your cousin, on the other hand—”
“He’s not—” Wade snapped his mouth shut. To admit that Clark wasn’t his cousin was a bad idea. It could put himself in a bad light with the one man who could stand in his way of winning Brielle over. The temptation to keep that secret from Zeke was almost too great, but Wade was done keeping secrets. He was starting over—with Brielle, and with her father. “Tad isn’t who he says he is. He’s not my cousin… and his name isn’t actually Tad.”
Zeke tilted his head, his eyes narrowing. “What are you saying, son?”
Once again, the lump in Wade’s throat formed. It nearly cut off the airflow, making it hard to breathe. “I’m sorry, sir. We haven’t been entirely honest with you. Tad—well, whoever he is was lying about himself. But Shane and I have everything figured out.”
He arched a brow. “Shane? He’s involved in this too?”
Wade grimaced. This confession was getting out of control. “I swear I’ll tell you everything, but you need to tell me where I can find Brielle. It’s very important.” For someone who was so protective over his daughters, Zeke didn’t seem to be terribly concerned over what Wade had said. “Aren’t you worried about her?”
He let out a soft chuckle. “There are a lot of things that have worried me over the years and Brielle was usually right in the middle of all of it. There’s one thing I’ve learned. She’s not helpless… and she will do what she’s going to do no matter how much I disagree with it.”
Wade’s eyes dropped to his feet and he shuffled them a bit. “I believe you’re right, sir.”
“And any man who is willing to take her as she is will have his hands full. But if he loves her like you do, then I think she’ll be okay.”
His head snapped up, at a loss for words.
“You do love her, don’t you?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Well, then, I suppose I should welcome you to the family.” He held out his hand.
Wade stared at his offering but couldn’t bring himself to accept it. “With all due respect, sir, I don’t think Brielle is interested in spending her life with me.”
“I think it would be a mistake to assume anything when it comes to Brielle. She has a tendency to surprise us.” Zeke shoved his hand into his pocket and then nodded toward the barn. “I think she went out for a ride a few hours ago. If she came back, she’s in there. I haven’t seen her since.”
Wade didn’t hesitate. He launched himself over the railing and sprinted toward the barn, calling his thanks to Zeke as he ran. By the time he made it to the building, his hat had flown off his head and he was out of breath. He darted inside, skidding to a stop just before he collided with Brielle.
She gasped and her eyes flew wide. “Wade? What are you doing here?” Tilting to one side, she appeared to look around him as if she expected to find someone else.
Immediately, his defenses went up. If Clark showed up, he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to control himself. Wade glanced over his shoulder, but no one materialized. He spun around to face Brielle again. “I need to tell you about Tad.”
Wade had expected her to react—to tell him he needed to mind his own business. Instead, all he saw on her face was shame.
