Chapter 14
CASSIDY
While we were late to the barbecue, we weren’t the last to arrive at Hayes’ parents’ house.
Beau and Lainey hadn’t shown yet. I wondered briefly, if they were late for the same reason we were, but then I remembered they had a three-month old.
Surely, that would put them behind. Or at least give them an excuse if they really had been having sex.
Unlike me and Hayes. But no one said a word or asked.
I was hugged by pretty much everyone. Mr. Wilder was by the grill–a huge thing that was clearly meant for a crowd of cowboys–with Trig, Mike, Cam and Taylor, who had her newborn in a sling across her chest. There were a number of picnic tables and rows of coolers full of ice and drinks.
I took the Jell-O from Hayes and carried it into the kitchen where I found Mrs. Wilder.
She had two babies, one in each arm. Based on the age, I guessed them to be Clarabel and Sage, both holding a carrot.
With her was Ellie, who was organizing a vegetable tray, Cammie, who was pulling condiments from the huge fridge, and Zeb, who just came in from the attached garage with a bag of ice in each hand.
“Cassidy, oh, I’m so glad you’re here!” Mrs. Wilder said. “Zeb, they go in the green cooler. Thank you.”
Zeb headed outside after winking at Cammie.
“Hi. I’ve, um, got Hayes’ Jello-O mold.”
“Give that to Cammie to put in the fridge for now. I’m afraid it’ll melt out in the sun right now.”
I passed it off to Cammie, who pushed her glasses up her nose. We were closest in age, but I still felt like a kid, even with her.
“How are things going with you and Hayes?” Mrs. Wilder asked. “He’s not being too bossy, is he?”
I stared at her wide eyed, wondering how she knew.
“All the Wilder boys are bossy,” Ellie added, probably understanding the look on my face. “Although Hayes is probably the worst.”
“He is not,” Cammie said. “Buck is. No, Colt.” She shook her head and laughed. “Okay, they all are.”
“I’m fine,” I said finally.
“Well, good. Since I’ve got my hands full of grandbabies, grab that tray and let’s get outside and eat.”
The tray was filled with napkins, cutlery, and a stack of plastic cups.
In the time I’d been inside, the tables had been loaded down with platters of hamburgers, salads, bags of chips, and more.
Hayes came around and took the tray from me, setting it at one end of a table and passing the napkins to Colt, who started passing them down the line as people began to sit.
Lainey and Trig had arrived too, Mr. Wilder taking his namesake grandson from Beau.
Little Charlie was three months old, completely bald and adorable.
Hayes took my hand and led me to an empty seat, then settled beside me. I was so pleased with how I was absorbed into this huge family. They welcomed me as one of them, the first barbecue because I worked on the ranch, this time because they thought I belonged to Hayes.
Maybe I did. The more time I was with him, the more I thought that maybe, just maybe, it would work out between us.
“You okay?” Hayes asked, whispering in my ear. He held a hamburger in his hands.
I looked at him. This close, his blue eyes sparkled. His face was clean shaven, his hair still long and untamed. I couldn’t help but smile.
“I am. I… feel like I belong.”
He grinned. “That’s because you do." He reached out, swiped his thumb over my lip. “Mustard.” Then sucked on his finger.
“–down near Cheyenne. It’s a huge spread,” Mike said. I’d missed the first half of it.
“Think your parents will come up to visit this summer?” Mrs. Wilder asked him. She’d handed off Clarabel and had baby Sage on her lap, using her free hand to eat.
Everyone was quiet, eating and listening. A baby gurgled.
“In a few weeks for the fair.”
“Grady, I saw your father at the Feed and Seed last week,” Mr. Wilder commented.
“He said he ran into you. My Gran said she’d love to drop by some of her huckleberry jam.”
“My favorite. She’s welcome anytime,” Mrs. Wilder said, then looked at me. “What about you, Cassidy? Would your family like to join us for the next barbecue?”
I swallowed the bit of potato salad I’d been chewing. Most people looked my way, others had their eyes on a baby or their plate.
I panicked. Shit. Shit! Hayes tapped my thigh under the table.
“Oh, um. No. I don’t really think–”
“You said you grew up around here, isn’t that right? You’re younger than this huge bunch, but I’m sure I’d know your family,” Mr. Wilder said. He passed a bowl of macaroni salad down the table when Lainey asked for it.
“I, um, lived in Devil’s Ditch when I was little, then my parents divorced. I moved to Denver with my mother, then went to boarding school after she died. So I doubt you’d have known me.”
“Ma and Pops know everyone,” Trig said, eyeing baby Sage in his mother’s lap.
“I’m sorry to hear she passed away,” Mrs. Wilder said. “But your family is still here?”
“Yes. My father and two older brothers.”
“Your last name’s Cove? I don’t know any Coves.”
Colt was sitting across from me. He’d been shoveling food in like he was a bear preparing to hibernate for the winter, but now his fork was still. His dark eyes were on me and I felt seen. Too seen.
I squirmed beside Hayes, then tucked my hands between my thighs so no one saw them shaking.
“That Jell-O is really good,” I said, although I had none on my plate.
“How old are your brothers?” Colt asked.
I took a sip from my can of soda, then said, “Um, twenty-one and twenty-four.”
His gaze narrowed fractionally.
“Dude, why are you staring at my girl like that?” Hayes asked Colt.
“I think you might want to ask Cassidy that.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Hayes snapped.
Now everyone was really, really quiet. Even the babies didn’t make a sound, and there were five of them.
I looked at my plate. This was it. I expected it to happen sometime, but maybe when I’d proven myself, that I wasn’t like the rest of my family. That I was a good worker. Honest. Loveable.
“I didn’t put it together until right now,” Colt began.
Oh God. He knew. My heart was beating so hard my skin tingled.
“Don’t fuck with her or I’m gonna take her out of here,” Hayes warned.
Oh no. They were going to fight. Hayes was going to hate his brother because of me.
Colt raised a hand and I was surprised it didn’t have handcuffs in it. “Cove isn’t your last name. It’s either made up or–”
“My mother’s maiden name,” I said, my voice soft.
“What?” Hayes bellowed.
Now a baby fussed.
“I think maybe it’s time you tell everyone why you took a job on our ranch. Why you ended up in Hayes’ bed.”
Hayes popped to his feet, fists clenched, but Colt pushed on.
“Tell everyone, Cassidy Trout.”