Chapter 28 Tommy
Oh my God.
I jump out of my seat and bolt for the door.
“Gerald!” I yell, jogging down the steps and towards her car. “Go find Bryant.”
Of course the wolf-dog comes up for a quick scratch behind his ear and I repeat the command once more before he gives Sam’s car one last longing look and trots back to the stables.
“I’m so sorry about that,” I say, opening her door. “He’s a gigantic fluffball, but he’s intimidating as hell when he does this, which isn’t often, I promise.”
“Who is he?” Sam asks, watching the huge canine disappear into the main stables.
“It’s Bryant’s dog. He’s likely half-wolf, half-dog, but no one knows anything else. His name is Gerald and every now and then he’ll check out a car that pulls up. He has a tendency to put his paws up on someone’s arms or shoulders so he can look into their eyes, and that can be super weird the first time it happens, but he’s been harmless to everyone on or visiting the ranch, and that includes the livestock,” I explain, reaching my hand down. “Here, let me take something for you.”
She finally looks up at me and shakes her head to clear it. “Pardon me, I wasn’t expecting that. I think my brain is trying to catch up with seeing a wolf, even a half-wolf, out here.”
Her face scrunches up and she looks at me when she accepts my outstretched hand. “Did you say his name is Gerald?”
“Yeah, Bryant named him.” It’s hard to read how she’s feeling beyond surprised. But she didn’t turn around before I could even call Gerald over, so that’s a good sign.
She glances in the direction the wolf-dog went and lets out a startled laugh. “It’s a good name for him.”
Holding out my free arm, she steps close to me so I can wrap her in a tight hug. I rest my cheek on the top of her head and breathe in deep, enjoying that addicting scent that always centers me.
“You always smell so damn good to me,” I murmur. “I hope that’s not weird to say.”
She shakes her head against my chest, then looks up at me. “Nope, not weird at all.”
She lifts up on her toes, closes her eyes, and then my lips are on hers, caressing and coaxing little sounds from her. Her fingertips press into my back and her brown tote rests against my hip as it dangles from her elbow. There’s an extra tingle that wasn’t there before and a pepperminty smell that might be driving me a little wild, and I wonder where that’s coming from. I grip the back of her neck so my thumb can trace along her jawline, feeling the shift when she opens for me, allowing me to caress her tongue with mine. Then she erases the miniscule space between us.
Ignoring her open door, I steer her backwards so she’s pressed against her car, dropping my hand to her hip and trailing it along the back of her thigh to hitch up her leg. Her fingers lock behind my neck and she does a little jump so she can cross her heels at the small of my back. God, I could die a happy man right now. Relishing every sensation, I squeeze the back of her thigh, trailing up her jeans, feeling frayed holes every now and then. When I cup her ass, my fingers snag on a pocket that has been torn, making me want to tug it off right here. The entire herd of cattle could stampede by right now and I wouldn’t be able to tear myself away from her if I tried.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen her with so much as a button out of place, let alone holes in her clothes. Being able to explore them through touch has me pressing against her like there’s a way to be closer. As if there was something besides a few layers of torn fabric between us. Her hands shift to my hair, urging me to stay right where I am.
A piercing catcall cuts through the air and something low, almost like a growl, rumbles in my chest.
Sam squeaks and her feet hit the ground.
“For fuck’s sake,” I murmur into her hair and turn my head.
“Chuck, you’re a dick!” I yell in his direction as I cover her ear and tuck her head against my chest.
His laughter carries across the corrals. “Just encouraging my little brother, that’s all.”
“This is mortifying,” Sam says into my chest. “What was I thinking? We’re at your place of business and here I am practically groping you in the parking lot.”
“I can promise you, every single one of my brothers has done much more not only out here, but in the office, too.” I grimace. “You know, where I work.”
“Still completely mortifying. How do I hide even more?” She’s made herself as narrow as possible, like no one saw her legs a moment ago.
“Come here.” I shift so my arm is around her shoulders, keeping her close. She whispers something that sounds like a mini pep talk to herself, shuts her car door, and leans against me as I tug her towards the house. “We can go inside before we even think of dealing with my most obnoxious brother.”
“No,” she groans but stops, keeping me right there with her. “You remind me not to hide. Plus, I’m riding a horse today, I can be brave.”
“You’re always brave, but it’s okay to drop your stuff off so I cool off before saying something stupid to Chuck.”
“That’s a reasonable compromise,” she says, letting me walk to the house with my hand on her hip, feeling it sway with each step. “Wait, all of your brothers have made out here?”
“I suppose none of us have ever caught Matt anywhere, but yeah, everyone else.”
“Huh,” she says, her brow furrowed.
“Who were you thinking wouldn’t have?”
“I guess I’m surprised about Bryant. He seems more,” she pauses, “solitary.”
“Bryant may be that, but he’s definitely not celibate.”
Sam looks up at me with an inquisitive look. “Why does that sound like some sordid tale?”
“He’s not the most social person, and he likes to keep things simple, according to him,” I explain, bringing her into the office since I didn’t bother to log out of a damn thing when I saw Gerald at Sam’s window. “So there’s a woman he met back in college who lives in a nearby town and they hook up.”
“Since college?”
I nod. “I met her a few times and neither of them has any interest in the other, but apparently, when they’re both single, they’re happy to ‘get things out of their system’ as Bryant once said.”
“But Matt has outsmarted you all and never got caught? It almost sounds like a right of passage at this point.”
Once the computer is shut down, I return my full attention to her. “Honestly, he’s the only one who hasn’t brought anyone here. He doesn’t really stay over anywhere, either, but we try to not ask too much, if that makes any sense. I realize that I’m not that much older than him, but since he was still seventeen when our dad died, we’ve all had to look out for him differently and none of us want him to resent us for treating him like a kid and not just a brother. So, while Chuck will go out of his way to tease the rest of us about our dating lives, a few moments ago was a lovely example of his maturity level half the time, he never says anything to Matt about it. Even when Matt blushes, he’ll hold his tongue.”
Trying to brush the lock of hair that fell onto my forehead again, I run my fingers through my hair. It’s no surprise that I was in such a rush earlier that I didn’t even grab my hat on the way outside. Looking up, it’s still hanging in its usual spot on a hook near the windows. “Sorry, that conversation took a turn.”
“Why would you apologize for telling me about your family?” she asks, standing in front of the desk with her head tilted to the side.
That gives me pause, realizing that Maisy really never cared. God, I was blind to so many things.
Shaking those thoughts from my mind, I walk around the desk to bring Sam into the house. “I suppose you’re right. I just get caught up sometimes assuming every girlfriend would be annoyed at listening to me ramble.”
“Now it’s my turn to be curious about your exes setting the bar low.” Her eyebrow raises as she smirks.
“Touché.”