Whiskey and Wildfire (Sagebrush Cowboys #2)

1. Logan

Chapter 1

Logan

C oming back home to Sagebrush was never my plan. But when my best friend and I lost our jobs in New York City, I didn’t have anywhere else to go. My old boss told us both that he’d personally make sure we never worked in the city again. So, there was no choice but to go home. And after everything my friend and I did to try to steal from the good people of Sagebrush, including my own family, I was lucky to have a place to come home to in the first place.

However, I was not adjusting well. Life in Sagebrush was too slow, too quiet, and too familiar. Everyone in town knew who I was and several of them liked to pretend that we were friends, even though they made my life a living hell back when we were in school together. Their warm smiles felt condescending and cruel now that they were all married with their two and a half kids, dog, and white picket fences. It was all a front as if to say, ‘I told you so’.

I didn’t want kids or dogs, anyway. But I also wasn’t married and now I was working for my daddy again on his ranch instead of the big job in the city that I ran away for. Being back home just seemed to drive home all those horrible things people used to say about me. Maybe I was making it all up, but it felt real to me.

That’s probably why, nearly every night after the family was asleep, I’d crawl out my window onto the roof with a tumbler of cheap whiskey and stare up at the stars. Sometimes I took the whole bottle if I’d had a particularly bad day. It was the only way I could wind down to sleep for the night.

That’s where I found myself once again. I was sprawled out on the roof just above my window. There was no need for a blanket since it was only mid-September. The heat of the day still clung to the land, keeping everything plenty warm until the wee hours of the morning.

It was one of the bad days, but unfortunately there wasn’t much whiskey left at the bottom of my bottle. I took the last swig, feeling it burn as it went down, the fire settling in the pit of my stomach. Leaning over, I tossed the bottle back through my window onto my bedroom floor, making a mental note to buy another the next day.

I’d been on the roof for a bit, just staring up at the stars and cursing everything about my life. I missed New York, I missed my friends, and I even missed getting up and going into that stuffy fucking office every day. But I could never go back there now. Not only could I not get a job thanks to my old boss, but I could barely afford to keep my phone on at the moment. I’d spent every last dollar I had to break my apartment lease and get back to Sagebrush. Now I had nothing but debt and student loans hanging over my head, threatening to crush me flat. My only saving grace was the Baker Ranch and my family’s willingness to keep me fed and housed in exchange for chores.

I wasn’t sure how I was gonna afford my next bottle of whiskey either. What little was left in my bank account was quickly running dry. I wished my life wasn’t such a fucking mess. How the hell was I ever going to get out of that dusty old town again?

A sudden thunk and a rattle made me nearly jump out of my skin as the window opposite mine slammed open. A head of long dark hair popped out, brown eyes searching for me in the dark.

“You out here again?”

“Yes Caroline,” I sighed, putting a hand over my heart as it thudded wildly in my chest. “You scared the shit out of me.”

“Imagine how I felt?” she shot back. “Usually you don’t find men tap-dancin’ on the damn roof after midnight.”

I glanced at my watch. “It’s eleven-thirty, and I wasn’t tap-dancin’. I was just sittin’ here.” I cleared my throat, realizing my accent had slipped back in again. “I mean, sitting here. I was being very quiet.”

Caroline lifted an eyebrow in my direction. “Well then, maybe it was just the sound of your wallowin’ that I heard.”

“Can you just leave me alone?” I scoffed, crossing my arms over my chest as I averted my gaze. “I don’t need any advice from you.”

And, of course, she began to crawl out her window, anyway. “You need somethin’,” she said, taking a seat beside me on the asphalt shingles. “Sittin’ out here and drinkin’ yourself silly nearly every night isn’t gonna fix anything.”

“You got a better idea, big sister? Since you’re so fucking perfect.”

She didn’t react to my scathing tone, even though I sort of wanted her to. If I could start a fight with her, she might go away and leave me alone. But so far, it looked like she wasn’t falling for it.

“Why don’t you try gettin’ off the ranch once in a while?” she offered, her tone genuine. “Go find a man to take your mind off things. Or better yet, find a job.”

“Oh, lots of marketing positions open here in town?”

“I’m sure there’s people in this town that might benefit from your talents. Hell, I know Daddy would. This ranch needs more than just word of mouth if it’s ever gonna be anythin’ decent.”

“Right,” I scoffed. “In case you haven’t noticed, Daddy ain’t exactly my biggest fan right now.”

“Logan… I mean… you did try to steal from the family.”

“But I didn’t!” I shot back, snapping up into a sitting position. “I burned that book in front of the whole damn family! I lost my job, my apartment, my friends, and my whole fucking life so that I wouldn’t betray this family.” I shook my head, pulling my knees tight against my chest. “Everyone’s upset about a couple of recipes, but nobody gives a rat’s ass about what I lost in the process.”

Caroline was quiet for a moment, her eyes fixed on the distant horizon. When she spoke again, her voice was softer. “I know you’re hurtin’, Logan. But you gotta understand, it ain’t just about the recipes. It’s about trust.”

I snorted, but she continued, undeterred. “You might’ve burned that book, but you still took the recipes in the first place. That’s what’s eatin’ at Daddy. He trusted you with everything, and you betrayed that trust.”

Her words stung, but I couldn’t deny the truth in them. I swallowed hard, fighting back the lump in my throat. “So, what am I supposed to do now? Just live out the rest of my days as the family disappointment?”

Caroline sighed, reaching out to put a hand on my shoulder. “No, you dummy. You’re supposed to earn that trust back. Show ‘em you’re still loyal to this family.”

“And how the hell do I do that?”

“I don’t know, Logan. But whatever it is, it sure as hell ain’t sittin’ on this roof gettin’ piss drunk in the middle of the night.”

I let out a long, frustrated sigh. Caroline was right, as much as I hated to admit it. Drinking myself into oblivion every night wasn’t solving anything. But the thought of facing my family, of trying to earn back their trust, felt overwhelming.

“I don’t even know where to start,” I muttered, running a hand through my hair that was slowly getting wild and out-of-control thanks to my lack of care.

Caroline was quiet for a moment, then said, “Well, why don’t you start by helpin’ me with my new business venture?”

I turned to look at her, surprised. “What business venture?”

She grinned, a hint of excitement in her eyes. “I’m startin’ up a rodeo training program. Gonna teach folks how to barrel race, rope calves, all that good stuff. Could use someone with your marketing skills to help get the word out.”

I blinked, considering her offer. It wasn’t exactly the job of the century, but it might be a place to start.

“I can’t pay you anythin’ to start,” she started.

“Yeah, I figured,” I muttered. “But the least I can do is help you get started, I guess.” Another sigh. “At least one of us should get our dreams.”

Caroline’s face lit up with a smile. “That’s the spirit, little brother. We’ll get you back on your feet in no time.”

I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. “Yeah, sure. Whatever you say.”

She nudged me with her elbow. “Hey now, don’t you go gettin’ all mopey on me again. This could be good for both of us.”

I nodded, not entirely convinced but willing to give it a shot. What else did I have to lose at this point?

“So, what exactly do you need me to do?” I asked, trying to muster up some enthusiasm.

Caroline’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she launched into her plans. “Well, first things first. We need to get the word out. I was thinkin’ maybe some flyers around town, maybe a Facebook page. You know, all that fancy city marketing stuff you learned.”

“Flyers and a Facebook page is fancy? You could pay a twelve-year-old to do that.”

Caroline rolled her eyes. “Alright, smartass. If it’s so easy, why don’t you show me how it’s done? Make somethin’ that’ll really catch people’s attention.”

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “Fine. I’ll come up with something. But don’t expect miracles. This isn’t exactly Madison Avenue we’re dealing with here.”

“I don’t need Madison Avenue,” Caroline retorted. “I just need my little brother to put that big city brain of his to use for somethin’ good for once.”

The words stung, but she was right. She usually was. We sat in silence for a moment, the cool night air rustling through the trees. Despite my reluctance, I could feel the gears in my head starting to turn. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. At least it was something to focus on besides my own misery.

“You know,” I said slowly, “we could probably do more than just flyers and social media.”

Caroline’s eyebrows shot up. “Oh? What did you have in mind?”

I leaned back, letting my mind wander. “Well, if we’re really trying to drum up interest, we could host some kind of event. A showcase, maybe. Get some of the local rodeo stars to do demonstrations, offer beginner lessons. Make it a whole day thing.”

Caroline’s eyes lit up. “Now that’s more like it! We could set up at the fairgrounds, maybe even get some of the local businesses involved. Make it a real community event.”

I nodded, warming to the idea. “Exactly. And we could use it as a launch for your training program. Get people excited, maybe even sign up a few students on the spot.”

“Logan Baker, I think you might be onto somethin’,” Caroline grinned, slapping me on the back. “See? This is why I need you. That big city brain of yours is good for more than just gettin’ into trouble.”

I couldn’t help but smile a little at her enthusiasm. It felt good to be useful, to have someone actually want my help for once. “Don’t get too excited. We still have to pull it off.”

“Oh, we will,” Caroline said with determination. “Between your marketing know-how and my connections in the rodeo world, we’ll make this happen. I bet Colt Dawson would be happy to ride a couple bulls for us!”

“I’m sure he would,” I said, shaking my head. Just what I needed, another person in my life more headstrong than my sister. “But we can’t start on it right away,” I added. “Not with the cattle drive coming up at the end of the week.”

“Don’t worry about that. I didn’t expect us to start makin’ this thing go right now. We gotta help Daddy with the drive and that’ll leave us the winter to get things sorted before next spring.” She grinned at me, a wild sparkle in her eye. “Maybe we’ll even have our own rodeo. Can you imagine it? Caroline’s Ropin’ School presents the Sagebrush Annual Rodeo.”

“Ropin’ school sounds like a place where you train Dominatrixes…”

Caroline reached out, smacking me on the shoulder. “Maybe I am, little brother. The world needs more women who know how to tie men up that don’t behave! Might teach ‘em a thing or two.”

“Daddy will love that.”

“What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him,” she grinned with a wink.

We spent the next hour on that roof, brainstorming ideas for the event. By the time we finally crawled back through our respective windows, I felt a small spark of something I hadn’t felt in a long time - hope.

Now I just had to survive a grueling week long cattle drive.