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Mom: Don’t worry. Call on your way to work. I kept hitting the same button over and over. I swear this new phone hates me.
A laugh escapes me, one that was well needed. Mom runs all of the computer and networking at the clinic back home. Her phone, though, that’s a whole other story. I don’t bother replying. I’ll be on the phone within a few minutes as it is. My eyes are on the screen as Iwalk into the kitchen. I stop in my tracks when I see Dean’s name.
Dean: Good morning, sunshine. Are you on call tonight?
Are we keeping this under wraps? Yes.
Is it my idea? Yes.
Am I also giddy and trying to stop myself from jumping up and down? Yes.
Me: Good morning. I’m not, thankfully.
Dean: Fucking perfect. I’m coming over and cooking dinner.
My insides tingle in delight. Time with Dean is always a good thing, and not only when we’re naked. My stomach flip-flops, dropping to my feet. I want that so bad, but I’m scared to death word will get out. The last thing I need is more ranchers like yesterday. Jesus, take the freaking wheel.
Dean: I can hear you thinking from here. I’ll be discreet. Leave the key under the mat. I’ll drop the food off on my way into town and then walk over later tonight.
He puts my mind at ease, except I know one day, it won’t be enough. Dean will want more, and I’m going to have to face facts before I’m well and truly ready.
Me: I don’t deserve you, but I’m going to keep you anyways.
Dean: Ditto, sunshine, ditto.
Guilt eats at my gut, and I’d stand here and work through me being a shitty human being if it weren’t for the fact that I have to get this show on the road. I’ll deal with my conscience later. Right now, I’ve got shit to do.
2
DEAN
“How long youthink the two of you can attempt to keep this shit under wraps?” Ryland, my younger brother, says over my shoulder as I’m closing out my text with Tully.
“Goddamn it. Warn someone, will you.” Fucking hell, Tallulah is going to lose her damn mind. Any hope of eventually letting the cat out of the bag is now shot to shit.
“Just sayin’.” My younger brother must need or want something. I’m going to be paying for this, and it’s going to either be in the form of babysitting or working my ass off on his house. I love my nephew, Case. I’d do anything for the little guy; until it comes time to change shitty diapers. Hard fucking pass. No one tells you how bad a blowout is with a baby until it happens while you’re holding them in your arms.
“Yeah, yeah. What is this going to cost me?” Iknow how this works. We’ve all gotten through the years with some kind of bartering in one form or the other. Especially the older brothers. It seemed like every time we turned around, someone had to pay up to keep their mouth shut.
“The baseboards need to be caulked. It’s the final step before painting, and then I can move in,” Ry states.
“Figures. That’s grunt work and breaks your damn back. I do this for you, your mouth better stay zipped up like your damn jeans.” Ryland said he was keeping his dick in his pants after Case was born and his baby mamma left town. My mom always said she was one Friday night away from becoming a grandma, and she wasn’t wrong. Ry had a one-night stand, she came up to the ranch ten months later, put Case in his hands, and left him with a shit ton of papers. It took a lot of work to get his name changed frombaby boyto Case Johnson. Luckily, a paternity test, a few signatures, and some money made things to where Case would always be with Ryland, especially considering his mom signed over her rights. It put a hiccup in Ry’s house being built. We’ve all helped as much as we can, but it’s tricky when you only have weekends to work on it.
“You wanna watch Case with your woman instead?”
“Keep your voice down, will you?” I look around. Luckily, we’re not surrounded by anything but horses and cattle. We were movingthem from one area to another when I took a break to text Tully.
“Jesus. Paranoid much?” Maybe so, but already owing one brother a favor that’s going to suck the life out of me is more than enough.
“Fuck, yeah, I am. I’ll take caulking the baseboards. No offense, but your boy could clear a room with what comes out of his tiny rear end.” I shake my head. Ain’t no way. One time is more than enough.
“Well, then consider this my loyalty. The sooner the painting is done, the sooner Case and I can move in. I swear to all that is fucking holy a man can only handle walking in on our parents so much before he’s reached his breaking point.” He shakes his head.
“Dad walking around naked again?” Our parents have no problem showing their love for one another in any way shape or form. Shit, we’ve all walked in on them at some point.
“You don’t know the half of it. I’m not even going to tell you what they were doing in the living room.” I can only imagine.
“No wonder you were looking for a reason to blackmail me. One day, Ryland, you’ll be in my shoes. Lucky for you, my place is built, so I won’t need you to do grunt work. When do you want me out at your house?” I’m sure with Tully not on call tonight, she will be for the next two nights as well as the weekend. Fucking Herbert and his shit with making the newbies prove their worth.Don’t get me wrong, we make sure the new ranch hands work, too. What we don’t do is give them every piece of shit shift or work them to the bone so they’re hitting the first bus out of town.
