Chapter 30 Lincoln
Chapter thirty
Lincoln
The sun’s well on its way in the sky when I wrap both hands around a mug of coffee and lean back against the kitchen counter, back a little sore from too many hours on my feet and not enough sleep.
Jasper is sprawled at the table in sweats and an old rodeo T-shirt, black hair a mess, baseball cap abandoned for the morning.
Beau stands at the counter, shirtless under an open hoodie, pouring coffee like it’s the only thing keeping him upright.
“Tell me again why we didn’t just burn the damn place down and call it a night,” Beau mutters before taking a long sip from his mug.
“Well, one, it’s part of the building we keep all of our animals in,” I say dryly. “And two, because arson usually tends to complicate things. Plus, nothing was actually missing or broken. They just tossed the place.”
Jasper snorts. “They. We know who they is. Those fucking Coates brothers.”
Their name lands heavy in the room.
I take a slow sip, jaw tightening. The offices upstairs were a fucking disaster—drawers yanked out, papers scattered, desks overturned—but nothing was taken. No ledgers. No contracts. Not even some cash we keep in a small safe for random shit.
It was a message. Not a robbery.
“Cowards,” Beau snarls. “If they wanted a fight, they could’ve just shown their faces at the Barrel.”
That’s how we figured they knew we weren’t home. Someone we didn’t notice must have tipped them off that none of us were on the property. “They wanted to remind us they’re not going anywhere. Neither is Miles Keller. He still thinks he can bully his way onto our land by using those fucking morons.”
Jasper rolls his shoulders, tension radiating, even now in the morning light. “They’re gonna regret it.” Before I can respond, he glances at the clock. “We should probably wait until Lawson gets here before we get into it.”
Beau’s grin turns mischievous. “Speakin’ of Lawson…”
Here we fuckin’ go.
“You think they slept together?” Beau asks, lifting his mug. “Because my money would not have been on Lawson to make the first move out of all of—”
“I swear to god,” Jas cuts in. “If Law got to kiss her before me, I’m gonna lose my mind.”
I scrub a hand over my face. “You two sound like fucking idiots.”
“That a yes or a no?” Beau presses.
“I’m sayin’ stop speculating like a couple of horny teenagers.”
Jas smirks. “You jealous too, Linc?”
That word hits harder than I expect.
Because, yeah.
I’m fucking jealous.
I was jealous last night when I watched her dance with Jasper. I was jealous of the way she looked at Beau. I was jealous watching the way she fit against my brother’s body, the way her laughter carried across the room. But I’m not jealous in a way that I don’t want them to have her, too.
No. That’s not it at all.
I’m jealous because I want her too.
I can’t avoid it anymore.
I’ve tried.
I’ve tried so goddamn hard.
After everything with Melissa, I didn’t think I could ever let myself open up like that again.
But Abigail’s just… she’s fucking everywhere.
She’s everywhere, and I want to be wrapped up in it.
I want more rides in the snow. Dinners with her at the table.
I want to feel her lips on mine. Feel her skin shiver beneath my touch.
Feel her breath against my neck as she moans my name.
I want slow mornings with her. Hard days on the ranch.
I haven’t even had her, and yet, I want her.
And I don’t know what to do with that.
“Drop it,” I mutter. “Both of you. This isn’t a competition. We talked about it.”
Beau opens his mouth again, and the front door swings open. Lawson steps inside first, broad shoulders filling the frame, posture different than usual. Taller. Steadier. Like something, finally, after all these years, has clicked into place.
And then Abigail walks in behind him.
The three of us lock our eyes on her.
She looks… nervous. Not scared. Not regretful. Just aware. Of us. Like she knows we’re all clocking the same thing at the same time.
And jesus fucking christ.
Does she look stunning.
There’s something about her this morning—soft but glowing, eyes a little brighter, lips a little more pink, mouth a little more relaxed, like it’s been kissed thoroughly.
Whatever happened last night didn’t dim her.
It lit her up. For a moment, I allow myself to imagine her sounds, the way she might arch into my touch, the taste of her mouth, the feel of her fingers as they thread through my hair—
Lawson snaps a finger and points at Beau without even looking at him. “Don’t even fucking start.”
Beau raises both hands, still grinning like a fool. “Wasn’t gonna say a word.”
“Mhm. Sure.”
Abigail shifts slightly, her gaze flicking between us, and I catch it. The moment of hesitation. The fear that she’s done something wrong just by wanting more.
By choosing.
Something protective curls deep in my chest. Whatever happened between her and Law didn’t take her away from us.
If anything, it’s made me want her even more.
Pouring another cup of coffee with a splash of cream, I walk past my brother and hand it to her before softly kissing the top of her head. “Mornin’, Sweetheart.”
She stutters for a moment before taking the mug from my hand and looking up at me. “Morning, Lincoln.”
“Sleep okay?” I can’t help the grin that tugs at the corner of my lips.
“Slept great,” she rushes out, trying to hide her face behind her mug as she takes a sip.
“I’m sure you did.” I wink at her, and Lawson huffs a low laugh before clapping me on the shoulder and toeing off his boots.
“Oh shut up,” she jabs, but there’s no real heat behind it. “Go back to ignorin’ me.”
Now it’s me who laughs. “Don’t think that’s gonna be happenin’ any time soon, Abs.”
Abigail rolls her eyes and shoves past me. Well, tries at least. Her small frame doesn’t so much as move me a fraction of an inch.
“So,” Law says as he pours himself the rest of the coffee and goes about making another pot. “What’s the status?”
Holding her head high, Abigail makes her way toward the table where she kicks Jasper’s legs off a chair and takes a seat. I grin to myself because he doesn’t even fight her on it.
“Upstairs was just tossed,” I say, getting straight into it. No reason to sugarcoat shit. “Downstairs by the horses looks like it was left untouched, and all the horses are fine.”
I clock the way Abigail’s spine stiffens. The way her shoulders pull tight, and her fingers grip her mug tighter. Jasper does too, because his knee nudges hers under the table, grounding her without a word.
“Anything taken?” she asks.
“No,” Beau answers from his spot in the kitchen next to Law, and he crosses his arms over his chest. He may look calm, but I know him well enough to hear the edge in his voice now. “Not a damn thing missing. No cash. No paperwork. Nothing.”
“Which means they were here for something else,” Lawson says quietly.
“To remind us they could get in if they wanted,” Jasper adds.
“Who would do something like this?” Abigail asks.
The four of us share a look before Lawson finally nods in my direction.
Taking a deep breath, I give her the highlights.
About how Hearthland Development and their CEO, Miles Keller, have been trying to buy our land to build some bullshit housing development.
About how we found out about everything Miles Keller has done to the pieces of land he’s bought.
About how he somehow manages to avoid all kinds of red tape to cheapen the cost of construction, regardless of how it impacts the wildlife around it.
About how he continuously uses threats and blackmail to get his way.
And about the Coates brothers, they’re failing farm.
How all three of them have been in and out of jail since they were teenagers, and about how they’re a literal shitstain to the community around here.
Then I tell her about how it’s been made abundantly clear that Keller has hired those three dipshits to fuck with our ranch, in hopes that their constant threats will get us to fold.
He couldn’t be more fucking wrong.
We all watch as Abigail takes a moment to process everything I’ve just said. And for a moment, I expect her to panic. To be afraid. But I’m pleasantly surprised when the words out of her mouth are, “What a bunch of fucking morons.”
“Ayyyyy,” Beau says with a grin a mile wide. “So she does have a feisty side. Knew she was in there somewhere.”
“Never questioned it for a second,” Jasper adds with a wink. “Anyway, they didn’t break anything. Didn’t vandalize. That’s not panic, Law. That’s confidence.”
“That’s testin’ us,” I say. “Seein’ what we’ll do.”
The room goes quiet for a beat, then Abigail swallows. “So… what happens now?”
I watch Lawson before he answers. He’s gone still in that way that he gets when he’s done weighing his options. When the decision’s already been made and the rest of us just haven’t caught up yet.
He sets his mug down slowly and clears his throat. “It’s time we send a message."
No one argues.
Not Beau, whose grin is as menacing as it is dangerous.
Not Jasper, whose jaw flexes like he’s already gearing up for a fight.
And not me, because whatever line the Coates boys think they crossed last night?
Well, they’re about a hundred feet over.
“We should go out there,” I suggest to the group.
Beau throws his hands in the air dramatically. “Or, hear me out, we don’t leave the ranch unattended again. Kinda feels like invitin’ them back to fuck with us twice in one weekend.”
Lawson shakes his head. “Ranch hands will be here until dinner. Full crew. And they’re a bunch of idiots but even I don’t think they’re dumb enough to pull somethin’ in broad daylight.”
I glance at Abigail as she listens. Eyes sharp. Really taking everything in. Lawson’s gaze must follow mine. “She’s comin’.”
Jasper’s first to react, pushing up from his relaxed position at the table so fast his chair scrapes the floor.
“No. Absolutely fuckin’ not.” His voice isn’t angry—it’s panicked.
Raw in a way only someone who’s lost everything can sound.
For a moment, I glance back at Beau, wondering if he’ll have the same reaction, but he’s surprisingly calm.
Then again, while there were some similarities, his experience was much different than Jasper’s.
“I’m not takin’ her anywhere near them,” he continues.
“You know how they are Lawson. If you think I’m lettin’ her near them you are out of your damn mind. ”
“It’s not like she’ll be alone,” Beau says evenly. “We’re all going.”
“And she won’t be safer here without us,” Lawson adds. “It’s not up for debate, Jas.”
Jasper turns to me, eyes blazing. “And you’re good with this?”
I don’t answer right away. Instead, I look at Abigail.
She doesn’t look scared. She looks resolved.
Determined. Then, she reaches for Jasper’s hand from where she sits.
Threading her fingers through his as if on instinct.
Like she knows exactly the weight he’s carrying and what he needs to make the load feel a little lighter.
“I’ll be okay. I promise,” she says softly.
Jasper exhales hard, shoulder slumping just a fraction. “I hate this, just for the record.”
“I know,” I say. “But we’ve got her.”
We’re halfway through town on the way to their ranch when we see them.
All three of them, walking like they own the town rather than being it’s embarrassment. Their laughs are loud even through the truck as they head straight for The Busted Barrel like it’s just another fucking Saturday.
The atmosphere in the truck immediately shifts, every instinct in our bodies sharpens, as Lawson swerves to pull the truck over.
“Well,” Beau mutters. “Ain’t that convenient.”
The second the truck’s in park, the doors are open and our boots hit the pavement. Abigail stays behind the four of us without being told, tucked where she belongs. Where she’s protected.
The middle brother spots us first.
Ethan Coates. The worst of the three and the one with the longest rap sheet, the shortest fuse, and the tiniest fucking dick. He elbows Grayson, the oldest, and smirks as his eyes land on Abigail.
Mistake number one.
Ethan’s grin stretches slow and ugly. He slaps Grayson on the chest without looking away from her. “Guess this is the one you were talkin’ about, huh, Gray?”
Grayson glances past us, eyes flicking over her like she’s a piece of meat. “Sure is.”
Mistake number two.
Ethan chuckles. “You boys got yourself a hot little piece of ass tucked away on that ranch, I see. Nice of you to bring her out. Share her with the rest of us.”
I feel it like a live wire snapping in my chest.
Mistake number fucking three.
He tilts his head, still leering. “Bet her pu—”
That’s as far as he gets.
Jasper moves first. He grabs Ethan by the collar and launches him backward as if he weighs nothing. Lawson’s already on Grayson, fist tangled in his jacket, shoving him hard toward the alley, and Beau hooks an arm around the youngest, Caleb, and drags him with a growl, boots skidding as he fights.
I grab Abigail’s hand. “Eyes on me,” I murmur. “You do not leave my side.”
She nods, breath tight but steady, as she stays glued to me as we follow them into the alley. I don’t miss the way passersbys on the sidewalk suddenly look away.
They know who we are.
They know who they are.
And they know that whatever’s happening is likely well deserved.
Small towns and all.
I round the corner of the alley just in time to see Jasper pin Ethan against the brick wall.
Ahhhh… just like old times.