Chapter 7
Jackson felt like an ass. He should have left last night when he’d said that he would, but Cricket had looked at him like she was a wounded puppy, and he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
Still, there hadn’t been much of an excuse to stay.
Except that he was weak. And human, and basically just a man.
And she had presented a temptation he couldn’t turn away from.
Though it wasn’t just being a man, that was the thing, because if it was, then it would’ve been about her just being a woman, and fundamentally, he could have turned down any other woman. It was Cricket that was the problem. Cricket was a damn problem.
He was marinating on that as he drove into town for more lumber the next day.
She had been up early, at the crack of dawn, without so much as a complaint, while he had been the one who’d had a hell of a time getting his ass out of bed.
He was driving back out toward Cricket’s spread when he noticed his brother’s truck in the oncoming traffic lane.
Creed waved his hand, and Jackson found the nearest turnaround and followed his brother, both of them parking by the side of the road.
It wasn’t extraordinarily unusual to randomly run into his brother about town.
Gold Valley was a small enough place. And they were off running similar errands, considering they were both ranchers.
They had the same haunts, the same basic routines.
“Fancy meeting you here,” he said.
“Likewise,” Creed said. “I was figuring on coming out to see you today anyway.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. My wife has been after me to check in on you.”
“Why?” Jackson asked.
“Just to make sure nothing untoward is happening between you and her little sister.”
Jackson kept his face flat and immovable as stone. “Is that so?”
“Yeah. She told me that Cricket called her the other night inquiring about how to make steak. Because she was cooking for you. And that got Wren stirred up.”
“I fail to see what your wife’s feelings have to do with me.”
“Well, the funny thing is, then I went by the winery this morning, and I talked to Dad, he said that you and Cricket stormed the place last night, and she demanded to know if he was her father.”
“Oh.”
“And that you said it was really important to know for sure.”
“Look, she had a valid suspicion.”
“Why? Dad was crazy about Mom. He would never have cheated on her.”
Jackson’s frustration finally boiled over. Maybe it was Cricket and all the nonsense with her, or just the vast unfairness of his brother’s complete and total obliviousness over something Jackson had borne the weight of for years. Whatever the reason, he was at the end of his patience.
“Are you blind, Creed? Dad was not crazy about Mom.”
“The hell you talking about? He’s been deep in the throes of grief for her for...five years. Completely messed up. Not right at all. You can’t tell me that’s a man who was not crazy about his wife.”
“He’s a man who was crazy with guilt.” Jackson let out a harsh breath. “Look, I was closer to Mom than you.”
“I...feel bad about that. But I was pretty deep in some of my own stuff there for a while.”
“I know. It wasn’t a criticism. I’m just saying... Believe me, what Cricket thought was valid enough. Did you ever wonder why Dad hated James Maxfield so much? Not just because he’s a prick.”
“Yeah, I mean it crossed my mind a time or two.”
“Dad was in love with his wife. Always. And I think, whatever he felt for Mom never overshadowed what he felt for her. It wasn’t... It was never fair. Ever. It’s not just grief that has Dad a mess. He has a mountain of regret. And he should.”
Creed huffed out a breath. “That doesn’t make any sense. Why would Mom... Why would she be with him?”
“Why do you think? They stayed together for the kids.” He looked at his brother. “That would be us.”
“Why did they get married in the first place?”
Jackson sighed and shifted his weight. “Me. She was pregnant with me. Haven’t you ever done that math?
I have. And anyway, I don’t have to rely on math.
She told me. I thought... Damn, you know, I thought we had this great, happy family.
And then I found out... Not so much. A forced family, and then they tried to...
Honey was their attempt at making things better.
But that doesn’t work. Or at least, it rarely does.
Anyway. That’s what everything was about with Cricket.
She suspected, given that she, like our sister, is a late in life baby...
That maybe she was the product of an affair.
An affair her mother had always wanted to have. But no. Dad said no.”
“Oh. Well, that is entirely different from what Wren was afraid was going on. And I can’t say I could really figure out what I thought was happening...
” Creed stared past him, off at the thick grove of pine trees that lined the highway.
“I don’t know what to make of any of this. I... I didn’t know that Mom and Dad...”
“They didn’t want us to know.”
“Why did Mom tell you?” Creed sounded hurt. Jackson didn’t have the capacity to deal with his brother’s hurt. Not now.
“She had to tell someone. She was lonely. And...”
“Dad was there for her though. He was. He didn’t leave. And if he didn’t have an affair...”
“You’re a married man, Creed, don’t tell me you wouldn’t feel a difference between being the love of your wife’s life, or knowing there was someone else out there that she wanted first.”
“Right. But you know...” Creed chuckled. “Wren and I got married because of her pregnancy.”
“Given your background, I understand that.”
He nodded. “But it’s not why we stayed together.”
“Yeah, but I think it was why Mom and Dad stayed together.”
“Well, I just pulled you over to give you a hard time, I didn’t figure you’d give me this depressing as hell story.”
“I’m just explaining the last twenty-four hours, which believe me, have been a little weird for me too.”
“Well, be careful with her. Wren is really worried.”
It was Jackson’s turn to stare at the trees.
He could feel his brother’s eyes burning into the side of his face. “If you’re sleeping with my sister-in-law... I might have to punch you. I’d rather not.”
“I’ll be careful with her.”
“That’s not a denial.”
“Can’t give you a denial.”
“Really? Really. Really? Cricket. Really.”
He shot his brother a look. “Say it one more time.”
“So...she thought you were her half brother, and somehow you ended up... You know what. I don’t want to know.
” Creed lifted his hands and took a step back.
“The less I know the better, because I’m going to have to explain it to Wren.
And I don’t want to be the keeper of that information, because God knows I love my wife, but she is the kind of woman to shoot the messenger.
And I like all my body parts where they are. ”
“So do I.”
“And really don’t let Holden find out.” Creed’s brother-in-law, married to Emerson, the middle Maxfield sister.
“Why is that?”
“My loyalty is torn. You’re my brother. Holden... Well, his loyalty is in one place firmly. And, also, I get the feeling he’s done some things.”
“Look, nothing happened that Cricket didn’t want.”
“I’m confident in that. I’m still confident it won’t matter to Wren.”
“Just let us sort it out.”
“I can’t keep secrets from her. But I can keep her busy.” Creed grinned.
“Great. Do that. And keep this to yourself. What’s going on with me and Cricket is nobody’s business but ours.”
“I just don’t get why. I mean, she’s cute enough, sure. But...”
Jackson felt a violent surge of...protectiveness?
He didn’t even know. Just something primal and overly irritable.
He couldn’t explain what appealed about Cricket.
It was not simple. But... She was special, and when he saw her as something other than an adversary to be defeated, he could truly see that.
She was tough. And beautiful. Naive in some ways, sure, but in others...
Like a person outside age or time. Not like anyone or anything he’d ever known.
He came back to that vision he’d had of her the first time he’d rolled up to the ranch.
When he thought of her as a feral pirate queen on the deck of her ship.
And he should have known then. She wasn’t a woman to take prisoners, and neither would she be one to negotiate.
She wasn’t going to give up on what she wanted half so easily as he had hoped.
And now, he didn’t even want her to. Because somewhere in all of this, he’d begun to root for her.
He wanted her to win. That vulnerable, delicate piece of herself only he’d seen was something he wanted to protect now, not exploit.
“Don’t worry about me. And don’t worry about Cricket. She can more than handle herself.”
And he was...well, dammit all, he was going to help her.
Jackson had been gone for most of the day, and it was probably for the best, Cricket had to concede.
She wished he was in bed with her instead of seeing to ranch chores.
But the ranch chores were important and all.
It was kind of the whole point of having him on the property.
But now she wanted the point to be more of him in her bed, and honestly, who could blame her?
Having an orgasm was a lot more fun than doing chores.
But...she also needed to do something other than chores today. Which was how she found herself driving to Maxfield Vineyards.
She usually avoided the place as much as humanly possible.
But it was weird. Today, with a bit of distance from her family, from everything that they were, and all the pain and isolation she had experienced growing up here...
She was not feeling trapped by it. It felt...
better. She felt able to appreciate the beauty of it.
The rolling vineyards, the vast, Tuscan-style villa.
The elaborate pavilions and tasting rooms. It was a beautiful facility, when she wasn’t a prisoner.