Chapter 12
Slade
Two Weeks Later
I’d been told Friday and Saturday nights made the Silver Star Saloon profitable.
Mace had whispered those words in my ear as I held him in my arms.
As I drove down the street, my grin spread at the fanciful way I’d guilted him into letting me hold him in bed and talk about nothing important for fifteen minutes. Mace gave as good as he got, and apparently, I enjoyed the pushback. I was honestly having the best time both in and out of bed.
Mace had set the alarm on his phone to make sure we didn’t take a second longer in our cuddle time.
My feelings for him were growing, technically, stratospheric level, but I kept that hidden, and was shit to do anything more than risk being identified, coming to see what all the hoopla was about.
I took the turn into a parking space at the end of Main Street, the only one available. The street was packed in both parking spots and revelry.
Something I’d never seen in this part of the world before, the packed bar spilled into a traffic coned-off space in the street.
A loud country-and-western band played in the street, close to the saloon’s doors.
Picnic tables and other seating had been set up randomly on the sidewalks and street.
The rest of the retail lease spaces were closed.
This was only about a community gathering for a good time.
Where did all these people come from? Who knew, but the mini country-and-western dance club and bar were in full swing an hour before midnight. The longest I could manage to make myself wait before making my appearance.
With the fate of a ruined solitude in my hands, I wore a ball cap that was strategically curved to change the angle of my face and a pair of thick vanity glasses and left the Jeep. If I was identified, everything would change.
With my hands tucked into my vintage jeans pockets, I stuck to the dark sidewalk’s edge for as long as I could. The bar was jam-packed full of people both in and out of the building. Several waitresses weaved through the hordes.
Once I made it inside, I spotted Lori standing at the waitstaff post at the end of the bar, a small tray in hand.
My gaze shifted to one of two men working feverishly, mixing drinks, and pouring beer.
Mace concentrated on the drink he was preparing while also grinning at a customer seated in front of him.
That smile always transformed his face into a rare kind of beauty.
Jeez, I had it bad. Then the cosmic cue that tugged Mace and I together cinched tight again as Mace’s gaze shifted to mine. His hands fumbled, spilling the drink he’d just finished.
“Way to go, Red. My customer’s been waitin’ five minutes for the drink,” Lori yelled. The little hellfire’s head shifted, seeking out what had caused Mace’s blunder. She spotted me. The frustration instantly evaporated. Lori grinned Mace’s grin at me.
She lifted a finger and left her post. I continued working my way to the bar.
“Watch out. Move.” Lori had a bark that mattered. She parted the sea of partiers with a barstool in hand. Her hand grabbed mine until she created a space and pushed the stool between two other patrons. I was now sitting next to Max, someone I knew, at the other end of the bar.
Thankfully, the placement came with easy viewing access of both bartenders. A drink, my usual whiskey on ice, slid across the bar into my hand. Mace didn’t stop working, never glancing my way, but had taken care of me, nonetheless.
I liked to believe that was due to our connection, but he seemed to be that way with everyone. His circle of familiarity was obviously huge, but his ready smile and easy greetings were something I hadn’t seen before. Meaning Mace’s natural contrariness was only with me.
“You settlin’ in okay?” Lori asked.
“Yeah, good enough,” I said, using Mace’s answer to just about everything, taking a sip of the straight alcohol. It was harsh going down every single time.
“At this end of the bar, we can hear each other better,” Max said. “Lori told me she thinks Mace’s been out to see you again.”
All right. How did I answer that? How would anyone know if he had come to see me? I lifted the glass, taking a larger drink this time, scrunching my face, stalling for time and a proper answer.
My silence had Max continuing, “She passed him a couple of times on the highway after pickin’ up the kids.”
Not sure that Mace or I considered that possibility.
I gave a nod. “It’s a small town. Everyone knows everything. It’s like the small town I grew up in. It was hard to escape the gossip.”
Max couldn’t be swayed from the topic. His head tilted my way, the smell of heavy alcohol consumption on his breath. There was no way to tell Max’s current state of drunkenness, but he was headed for a hangover in the morning. His voice was low, causing me to bend in to hear.
“The only thing people know about Mace anymore is the accident, but Lori thinks she knows what’s goin’ on with him now. Those two are usually at odds, but Lori would battle a feral bobcat to keep Mace safe.”
I nodded, taking in the information. My gaze shifted to Mace, who ignored me completely. I shouldn’t ask Max. If I were smart, I wouldn’t. Mace battled with his barriers all the time. He’d tell me if he wanted me to know.
“What accident?” I asked. Yeah, my desire to know everything about Mace won over.
“He didn’t tell you? He doesn’t share much, never has. Maybe five years ago, no seven, maybe eight. Yeah, eight, we’d just graduated.” I could tell Max was swerving off course with the way his gaze glazed over, trying to figure out exactly the timeframe, not the guts of the story.
“What happened?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Max came back to the story. “Mace did rodeo for as long as I remember, he was damned good at it too. It was a thing he did with his dad until he got older then handled everything himself.”
I suspected we were in another veering of the conversation, so I asked again, “What accident?”
“Yeah,” he lifted his beer mug and took a long drink, bracing himself as if the story caused a wave of grief.
“Red had a girlfriend named Natalie all through high school. Between her and Wildflower, his mare, he was a happy guy. It wasn’t abnormal to see Wildflower tied to the post outside. Those two were inseparable.”
Max lifted his beer, draining its contents before continuing.
“They were drivin’ home from a rodeo, the road was under construction and they had an accident.
It’s sketchy what happened. They blamed Mace, but I think that was because the other driver was from the Dunn family.
They’re legendary in Texas. The Dunn kid was drunk and tried to pass a car that was slowin’ down for a curve.
The driver tried one way and couldn’t pass then went the other.
Chain reaction, dude. There were bikers there.
Like bicyclists. Mace was in the vehicle comin’ into the turn.
There were only two lanes. The Dunn kid veered into Mace’s lane, goin’ at least fifty miles an hour.
The way it all came together caused mangled deaths. Mace was the only one to survive.”
Taking in the information came with the added emotion of his newfound feelings. His chest took the story like an arrow to the heart.
“That’s awful. How many people died?”
“Six people. He lost his mare, and Natalie was pregnant. By the time Mace managed through his own hospital stay, and rehab, and grief, he came back to his life a different man. I don’t think they thought he’d make it.”
I reached deep, pulling out my best acting skill, trying to hide the overwhelmed way the information touched me.
“Mace seems to love his animals. He’s on and on about needing to feed them.”
Max furrowed his brow and shook his head. “Mace doesn’t currently have any animals. He hasn’t recovered, or at least that’s what Lori thinks.”
The object of their conversation appeared suddenly in front of them.
I hadn’t realized how far I had leaned toward Max to better hear, or how far I bent to give my prods to keep him talking.
Mace’s direct stare at his brother-in-law was more in line with the Mace I knew, not the friendly guy I’d seen peeks of since arriving.
A blush stained Max’s face, but honestly, that may just have been the natural color of his skin.
“Need another beer?” Mace clipped to Max.
“Sure. I guess. I’ve had a lot to drink tonight, might as well keep goin’,” he said, his expression turning jolly.
“Mace, I’m waitin’ for my order. It’s been four minutes,” Lori said in the exact same tone as Mace had just used with Max and me.
“Hang on,” Mace said, his gaze never leaving Max’s. The stare conveyed more than anything Mace might say. He was frustrated and warning Max of the consequences, but his brother-in-law was too far gone to care.
He left without looking at me.
Max did the tilt thing with his head, swiveling toward me. This time he came with a sway, leaning closer, still having to talk loudly over all the noise surrounding them.
“Lori thinks Mace’s gay. She thinks his girlfriend had been messin’ around on him.
Honestly, Natalie was a ho. I don’t know if Mace knows Lori feels that way.
I can’t imagine she’s lettin’ that ride unsaid.
I think Red’s just given up on life. He’s always been super grounded.
He knows his own mind and understands how the world works.
I think he thinks he had it all and lost it. He’s not the same guy.”
Huh. The use of the word gay sent a numbing set of tingles racing over me. It made me nervous what others might think of me if they suspected Mace was in fact bi. Those secrets needed to stay hidden.
I’d learned enough for tonight. At least my Mace-trauma theory had roots.
“Why’d you say anything to me?” I asked.
“Lori feels like you’re a safe place. Weird, huh?” Max said, turning enough to look me in the eyes. Yeah, it was.
“You and Mace grow up together?” I asked.