Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
This.
This right here was why Jacob loved his brother.
Ryker had a way of pushing buttons that Jacob never knew he had. He managed to force Jacob into seeing things he would rather ignore. Ryker was the one responsible for teaching Jacob everything he knew, and he’d been the one to instill him with a love of all things rodeo.
Right now, he was being his charming self, joking with Hallie like they were old friends.
He was acting like nothing was wrong and while that infuriated Jacob to no end, it was more about the fact that Ryker knew how to let something go for the sake of someone else than the fact he was ignoring the issue.
Ryker had always been good with people. That was probably why Mackenzie had fallen in love with him.
That was why even Jacob couldn’t help but soften toward him even though he wanted to continue holding a grudge.
Ryker had always been able to roll with the punches.
Maybe that was why he’d finally given up calling and texting.
He’d come because he was tired of being ignored and he was prepared to put his little brother in his place.
They were all seated around the small table when Ryker leaned back in his chair and grinned at Hallie. “So, since you had no idea who I was, I take it that Jacob didn’t tell you anything about our family?”
Hallie glanced in Jacob’s direction. He could read the indecision in her face.
She was worried about giving his brother anything he could hold against him.
She was as loyal as they came. And he couldn’t believe he’d let his anger come between them.
Their friendship was strained at best. She then turned wide, doe-eyes toward Ryker.
“You’d be right. But to be fair, he was better at being a listener. ”
Ryker glanced at Jacob with surprise. “Well, played brother.”
Jacob bit back a smile. “Unlike some people, I don’t feel the need to talk about myself incessantly. I like my privacy.”
“Even when it comes to your girlfriend?”
Hallie stiffened and Jacob narrowed his eyes at his brother. He’d already told Ryker what Hallie was to him, but his brother hadn’t believed him.
“Friends,” Hallie blurted. “We’re just friends.” Her face flushed a deep shade of red, and Jacob could feel Ryker’s pointed gaze boring into the side of his face. Hallie was ignoring Jacob as much as he was avoiding Ryker and it was painfully obvious.
When Jacob finally glanced at his brother, he found Ryker grinning.
Well, great. He fully expected Ryker to make a comment about their strange living arrangement and the way they were together, but mercifully, he went in a completely different direction.
“Did you know that I taught Jacob all he knows? When it comes to riding. Competing. Cooking.” He winked at Hallie. “Women.”
Jacob nearly threw a fist at that pointed statement, but he kept his hands to himself.
“Oh?” Hallie asked, taking the bait.
Here it goes.
“Absolutely. I was already starting to compete. I was…” Ryker tapped his chin.
“Boy, I had to be around eight when I started in the junior league. Of course, it wasn’t the same as it is for an adult, but I was obsessed.
I wanted nothing more than to compete with the rodeo stars.
I idolized them.” Ryker shook his head, a soft smile gracing his lips.
“I wanted to be just like the pros and Jacob? He wanted to be just like me.” His gaze collided with Jacob’s and all their history came to a head.
“The older we got, the better we were, isn’t that right, Jake? ”
Jacob grunted. “You were the best.”
“We both were.” Ryker’s words were quiet, but the emotion shining in his eyes said it all.
“We had plans. We wanted to make it big. Compete with each other in the championship.” Jacob didn’t break eye-contact with his brother as he spoke.
“It was our dream after our father passed away when we were teens. Our mother passed shortly after I graduated from high school. We were in it together, a bond between brothers.”
Jacob wasn’t sure but he thought he saw Ryker flinch at that statement. After their mother had passed away, their bond had solidified further. Never had Jacob believed that something could break them. Until they met Mackenzie.
And just like that, Ryker turned the conversation from being sad to something brighter.
A smile broke across Ryker’s face. “Do you remember that first year we traveled to Montana?” He turned toward Hallie.
“We were born and raised in the south. Rarely did we see snow and when we did, it was only a dusting that melted before we could do anything with it. We didn’t know what snow was really like until that winter. How old were you Jacob? Seven?”
“Sounds about right,” Jacob murmured.
Ryker chuckled. “It snowed during the night after we’d gotten to the hotel. First snow of the season. After I looked out the window, I knew I had to get Jacob up.”
“Dad was so mad,” Jacob chuckled and out of the corner of his eye he noticed Hallie startle at the sound.
“He was. But that’s because we left the hotel room wide open. It was six in the morning and still snowing. We were still in our pajamas and I convinced you to go outside to make a snow angel.”
Hallie gasped. “In his pajamas?”
Jacob turned to her fully, though it was awkward with the neck brace. “Yep. I caught a chill and couldn’t compete. We had to pay to use the dryer on site.” He was smiling even as he helped Ryker tell the story. “It’s one of my earliest memories.”
Ryker was smiling, too. “I got grounded and dad wouldn’t let me compete.”
“He said that if I couldn’t, then neither could you.”
“Worth it,” he chuckled.
“Yeah,” Jacob whispered, “worth it.”
Ryker turned to Hallie. “What about you? Got any crazy siblings who put you in the snow when you were a kid?”
She shook her head. “No, but I have a lot of cousins. I’m actually adopted because my parents couldn’t conceive, but they never made me feel like I wasn’t always meant to be part of the family I have.
It’s big and crazy.” Her smile broadened as her eyes darted from Ryker to Jacob.
“They’d do anything for me, and I would do the same.
I’ve never felt like I was missing anything. ”
“Sounds amazing.” Ryker glanced at Jacob. “We don’t have any cousins. It’s just us now.”
“Well, you have your wife and kids, so that’s not exactly true anymore.” There was less bitterness in Jacob’s voice than he’d expected. While it was a sore spot, Jacob couldn’t deny he was glad Ryker had found happiness. He deserved to have someone in his life.
Jacob could see it in Ryker’s eyes the second they’d made contact. Ryker might have been angry with Jacob. He might have been exhausted that they were still at odds with each other. But underneath it all, he was truly happy. He could still head home to people who loved him unconditionally.
That was more than Jacob had.
And that was the reason Ryker had told him he was sabotaging his own happiness.
Slowly, Jacob slid his eyes to Hallie and watched as she remained invested in Ryker’s stories. They were getting along so well, but then that wasn’t a surprise. Ryker could be friends with anyone without even trying.
Hours slipped away from them. Food grew cold. Night fell. Ryker got to his feet and patted his pockets with his hands. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to stay this long. I promise I only came to check on you—”
“You’re not driving tonight,” Hallie insisted. She shot Jacob a pleading look as if he was the only one keeping his brother from staying. If she knew Ryker at all, she’d know he didn’t do anything he didn’t want to. And while Ryker had come by to talk to him, he didn’t like confrontation.
Ryker offered a small smile to Hallie. “It’s fine. I can get a hotel for the night.”
“You’re not getting a hotel.” No one was more surprised than Jacob that the words came out of his ow mouth.
Though Ryker was a close second. It was in the barely discernable lift of his brows and the slight quirk of his mouth. Yes, he’d won this round. He’d managed to weasel himself back into Jacob’s life even though Jacob had wanted none of it.
But that was who Ryker was.
With a sigh, Jacob shifted in his seat. “My bed is big enough for both of us. It’s not like we didn’t share the occasional bed when we were competing.
Stay the night. Leave refreshed.” When he allowed himself a peek at Hallie, he found her smiling at him and the sight of it nearly knocked him off his feet.
Heat sparked in his chest at her approval.
There was something about making that woman happy that did something to him.
It wasn’t healthy.
He didn’t care what other people thought of him.
But apparently, he cared a great deal about what Hallie thought.
Perhaps it was because she’d been helping him without expecting anything in return. Or how tirelessly she tried to improve his mood. The way she cared. Not just for him, but her family. Hallie had a big heart and the man she would inevitably end up with would be very lucky.
She dipped her chin as if to say thanks. “Well, I’m going to head off to bed. It was nice to meet you, Ryker.” She hurried away before either of them could say anything else.
Ryker fiddled with his keys then tossed them in the air and caught them. “I don’t have to stay if you don’t want me to.”
“I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t. The room is on the right. There’s an attached bathroom. You can call Mackenzie and let her know and I’ll see you in there.” He reached for his crutches and headed that way, but his brother’s voice stopped him.
“Thanks, Jacob.”
He nodded but didn’t say anything. Hallie was the one thing he cared about in this moment.
And as he headed down the hall toward her room, he attempted to come up with the words to thank her for what she’d done for him.
She might not realize it, but by leaving him to hash it out with his brother, she’d inadvertently started the healing process.
Her door was ajar and he nudged it open with the rubber tip of his crutch. She was on the floor surrounded by several photographs. Her back was to him and she wore earbuds. Every so often she bobbed her head to whatever she was listening to.
It took a great deal of effort, but he dipped down and picked up the closest photograph. Shock rippled through him when he realized who it was.
He was on the back of the saddle, arm in the air, and a smile on his face.
He didn’t know when she’d taken this picture.
It was slightly blurry, but based on how old that camera looked, that made sense.
He didn’t know much about cameras, but he did know that it took a certain kind to capture objects in motion.
Shifting, he picked up another. This one was of a cow and her calf in a field. Most of the pictures were of nature. Animals. Plants. Landscapes. Sure, there were a handful of people, cowboys mostly. And then there were images of barns and houses on expansive properties.
They were all so compelling.
A gasp ripped through the air just before Hallie snatched the pictures from his hand. “What are you doing?” There was panic in her voice, in her eyes, and the pallor of her skin had grown even worse with each word she uttered.
Jacob was tempted to reach out and brush a knuckle along her cheek—to soothe away that fear he heard.
But that would be inappropriate. Instead, he slowly reached for a picture in her hand, retrieving it.
“You took these.” It wasn’t a question. He’d caught her red-handed.
He’d seen her with her camera. There was no denying it.
A dip of her chin was all she offered. Her eyes swam with emotion he couldn’t read.
“They’re good.”
Hallie exhaled and glanced down at the picture he held. It was the one of him. “Really?” she whispered.
“Hallie,” he murmured a hint of disbelief in his voice, “you are so talented.” He traced his fingers over his face in the picture. “You have an eye for it, that’s undeniable.” There was no hiding the awe in his voice. He glanced up at her and held the picture out for her to take.
She did, her cheeks flooding with color. “Thank you.”
His brows furrowed with a mixture of surprise and confusion.
Based on her tone, she didn’t believe him.
He couldn’t have been clearer what he thought about her pictures.
While she accepted the compliment, she wasn’t allowing herself to fully absorb it.
He wished she could have a little more faith in herself.
Jacob grimaced as he rose to his full height. “I’d like to see more of them… when you’re ready.”
Hallie met his gaze then, but her expression was guarded. “I… you don’t have to—”
“I want to. I can tell you’re not comfortable with sharing this sort of thing, so if you choose not to, I’ll understand.”
She bit down on her lips and rolled them between her teeth. “I’ll think about it.”
Jacob flashed her a smile. “Okay.” He glanced over his shoulder when he heard the bathroom door close. “I wanted to thank you.”
“I didn’t do anything,” Hallie whispered, standing.
“No, you did.” He opened his mouth then snapped it shut as he attempted to put his thoughts into words.
Then he shook his head. “You really did.” He bumped the side of his fist against his leg a few times then nodded at her once more.
“Anyway, get some sleep. Maybe we can make some breakfast together tomorrow? I think I’m capable of watching the bacon sizzle in the pan if you can mix the pancake batter. ”
Her smile was like a warm blanket. It sent currents of electricity through him that made him feel almost lightheaded. “Yeah, okay. I’d love to.”
He backed toward the door. “Goodnight, Hallie.”
“Goodnight, Jacob.”