Chapter 14
FOURTEEN
G RANT
“It’s been a minute.” I wrap my arms around my sister, Aspen, and she squeezes me tight.
“It has,” she acknowledges, looking me over for any damage as she lets me go again. It’s the kind of once-over our mother always gave us, and I can still see the echo of her in Aspen.
“Where’s Ethan?” I ask, frowning as I don’t see him anywhere nearby. Her husband isn’t my favorite, but he is family. I hope he isn’t already hiding out in a room on his phone.
“About that.” She sighs and looks into the distance, tucking her hands into her back pockets.
I study her face for a moment. Underneath the fading smile and the perfect makeup and hair, she looks sad, tired even. I know her job keeps her busy, on the road almost as much as her husband is, but she swore up and down she was going to start slowing down and taking it easier.
“He fuck up?” They spend a lot of time away from each other, and if she told me that he cheated, I wouldn’t even raise a brow. Pricks like him don’t know loyalty the way we do.
“Something like that.” She looks into the distance, and I can see whatever has her here alone has done a number on her.
“Is it a temporary sort of fuckup or the kind that sticks long-term?” I ask because she’s always been a little too understanding where her husband’s concerned, especially because of their daughter.
“The latter. Attorneys are already involved, and I’ve got Fallon in counseling. She says she’s fine, but you know teenagers.” She shrugs.
“She’s not coming to the wedding?” I look around for my niece.
“She’s upstairs already, getting ready to go out to the barn. She was gushing over Hazel. You know how those two get along talking about horses.” Aspen smiles up at the house.
“Well, at least she’ll have a little escape while she’s here. But what about you? Need me to snap some necks? Fix you a drink? Fix him one with a little extra ingredient? What’s the occasion calling for?” I joke with my sister, hoping my threats at least cheer her up.
Aspen gives me an admonishing look. “It’s not that kind of fuckup. It’s for the best really. We’ve been growing apart for a long time now. Time was waiting on the perfect storm of events to finally capsize us. I just feel bad for Fallon. I wish we could have made it a couple more years until she was off to college before we changed everything on her.”
“She’ll survive. She’s strong, and she’s got you. Ethan was never good for much, anyway, with him always being on the road all the time. You both might be better off without him.”
“It’s not his fault. Life of a coach, you know.”
“Not exactly, but I understand work being busy. That’s why I’ve stayed clear of it all.”
“You gonna ease into the retirement home alone? Get all the ladies there?” she teases me.
“You think I’ll make it that long? I’m starting to feel doubtful.” I smirk at her to let her know that I’m playing, but I sometimes wonder if I’ll make it long enough to see all the hair on my head go silver in the mirror.
“The family business is weighing heavy these days?” It’s her turn to frown at me. We’ve largely kept Aspen out of the family business. She was a lot like Ramsey, where she had other dreams and aspirations, ones that meant she had to leave Purgatory Falls.
I tilt my head to the side, squinting through the late-day sun. “Heavier than usual at the moment, but it comes with the territory.”
“Well, you know I’m here if you need someone to talk to.”
“Same goes for you, not that you’ll ever take me up on it.”
“I’ll keep it in mind.”
“You gonna stay out on the East Coast with Fallon?”
“Yes. We’ll have to find a house. Ethan and I agreed we’d sell ours and split the money.”
“You could come home, you know. You could teach at one of the colleges here in the state. We’ve got dozens of them.”
“Yeah, but how many of them need a new archaeology professor?”
“What about the museums or one of the CRM firms?”
“You want me home that badly?” She smiles at me.
“I wouldn’t hate it. Ramsey’s back part-time, you know. Even while he finishes out that new contract of his. I’m sure he’d let you fix up one of the cabins on the property for the summer. Or you could come stay at the resort. I’ve got rooms we could convert for you and Fallon.”
“Raising my daughter in a casino might cause the judge to question my custody agreement.” She raises a brow at me.
“You already have one of those?” This was part of why I wanted her back home. She shares so little of her day-to-day life, and I worry about her. It’s always just a quick text here or there giving me the highlights and focusing on Fallon’s achievements.
“They’re drawing one up. We’re trying to keep this divorce as low-key as possible. Neither of us needs the disruption in our careers right now. I’m working on a book, and his hard work is finally paying off.”
“You’re too nice for your own good, you know. I hope you don’t let the next one take advantage of that. You gotta find your inner asshole like the rest of us.” I smirk at her.
“Don’t worry. I have plans to find my inner bitch. But let’s forget any talk about the next one. There’s not gonna be a next one. If marriage has taught me anything, it’s that I’m not cut out for it. Once Fallon is off to college, I’ll have the house to myself, and I can figure out what I want to do with all my free time. I might try to publish another book. Some of the work I’ve been collaborating on has been fascinating. I’ll have so much more time to be out in the field too. I’m actually kind of excited about it. I just hate to tell any of my friends. They all expect me to be pissed off or depressed, and I just… don’t have it in me to feel anything right now, you know?”
“I get it. Trust me. I love my fuckin’ freedom. I tried to talk Ramsey down from being shackled down again with the same ball and chain. But—” I laugh as Aspen punches me in the arm.
“Leave our baby brother alone. You know he’s always had a bleeding heart for her. I love that they’re back together again. It looks good on him.” She juts her chin in his direction, where I can see Ramsey and Hazel making their way over from the inn, carrying some food and drinks. “The last time I saw him this happy was before Mom and Dad.”
Fuck. I think that’s the last time any of us looked that happy. Their death had left a pall over the whole family for years. Made it hard to celebrate anything. Between finally getting some closure for them last year and being able to pull our family back together on this ranch, it felt like maybe a page that had been frozen in time was finally turning for all of us.
“It’s good to see him happy. Good to have him back. The only thing that would make it better is having you back.” I press my point a little harder.
“The only thing that would make it better is seeing you and Levi go down hard the same way.” She grins at me.
“You’d wish your fate on us?” I raise my brows at her ill will.
“Nah. You’d never be in this position. You’d never choose someone like Ethan. If you go down, well… Let’s just say I’m excited to meet her and watch the fireworks.” Aspen winks at me and then turns to greet our baby brother.
“Hey, sis! Did you have a good flight?” he asks, leaning into her hug even though his hands are full.
“I did. Hey, Hazel. Can I help with something?” Aspen asks, and I hold out my hands for the stuff Ramsey’s carrying.
“I’ve got it.” Dakota appears from behind the screen door. “You guys catch up! Can I get you anything to drink?” Dakota looks between the four of us.
“You’re the sweetest. I think we’re good.” Hazel nods at Ramsey and then looks at Aspen. “Can we get you something?”
“You know. I’d love a Stockton Shandy.”
“Hitting it hard already?” Ramsey gives her shit.
“I was told we’re spending this week celebrating.” She holds out her hands palms up. “Just figured we might as well get started.”
“Someone’s going to have to tell me what’s in a Stockton Shandy.” Dakota looks at Hazel for help.
“I can show you, and we can put this stuff away,” I say, nodding to the door.
“Okay.” Dakota’s eyes lift to meet mine and then look away just as quickly, her lashes fluttering like she’s remembering our last phone conversation. And fuck… now so am I.
It’s gonna be a long fucking weekend trying to pretend like I’m not already on fire where she’s concerned.