12. Duke
DUKE
“Oh my God,” Dallas whispers. She sets the food down on the rocking chair.
I manage to tear my eyes away from her just in time to see the red Chevy truck pulling up, halting to a stop right before rear-ending her car. The door opens, and a man steps out, slamming it shut.
He stalks up to the porch, his dark, beady eyes raking over her before meeting my gaze. He slows, his footsteps faltering for a moment. Then his jaw sets, and he keeps stalking toward us.
I instinctively step in front of Dallas, shielding her. This must be the ex. The man is shorter than me by at least five or six inches. The undeniable urge to clench my fists and see what his facial bones feel like surges through me. Instead, I cross my arms over my chest.
“Can I help you?” I ask him.
Who the fuck does he think he is, showing up on my ranch like this?
We must have left the gate open after Dallas came in. He clenches his fists and lifts his chin. His eyes flicker from me to Dallas before landing back on me.
“Who are you?”
I’m the man who’s going to beat your sorry ass if you don’t get off my fucking ranch.
“Duke Redford.”
“Hmm,” is all he says.
“Would love to know the name of the man I’m going to be putting in the hospital,” I drawl.
Dallas gasps behind me.
His face reddens. “What did you just say to me?”
“You heard me.”
His eyes move to Dallas behind me. “You like hanging out with big, tough-boy liars now? How long have you been screwing him?”
Now, I really am pissed the fuck off.
“Matt, listen—” she begins.
I step closer to him. “I meant every word, and if you don’t get your sorry ass off my property, it’s going to happen a lot sooner than you think.”
I pop my knuckles, my blood already nearing the boiling point. He throws his head back and laughs loudly, like a complete psychopath. Dallas suddenly darts in front of me.
“Duke, please stop,” she pleads, her eyes widening up at me before she flips around to face him.
That’s when I realize that I fucked up. I made this situation ten times worse for her because despite how big of a dick he is, she has no choice but to deal with him. Guilt stabs my gut, but I step closer to her, in case he gets any ideas about laying a finger on her.
“My apartment caught on fire. The boys and I had to run, literally. Please keep your voice down. I just got them to bed. Duke doesn’t even live here. This house belongs to Rosie, my friend. He came by to talk to Eden, who’s inside. I was just about to go get her.”
I don’t outwardly react to the lie. She must have her reasons for telling it to him. He’s glaring daggers at me while she speaks.
“I tried calling you a million fucking times,” he spits out, finally looking at her.
“I know. I’m sorry. I just texted you back. It was chaotic and scary. I didn’t mean to ignore you. I’m really sorry, okay? The boys are fine.”
“So, you just live here now, huh?”
“No, of course not. Rosie offered for me to stay a few days, just until they let us go back. I’m thinking two nights, tops.”
“This is too far away for me to drive.”
“I know. I’ll meet you in town, at Walmart or something, to exchange the boys. Is that okay?”
He doesn’t say anything else. He doesn’t ask if she’s okay. He doesn’t ask if he can do anything to help. Instead, he looks me up and down one more time before curtly nodding and stalking back to his truck.
Dallas’s shoulders sag in relief as he slowly backs the truck up, reversing into the yard before heading back toward the main house and the gate.
She turns to me, her face fallen, looking more exhausted than she did before he showed up.
“Dallas, I—”
“Just leave it, Duke. I’m so tired I could cry. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” She brushes past me, grabbing the food off the rocking chair before going inside.
Right before she closes the door, I hear a faint, “Thank you for the food.”
I stand there for another five minutes, staring at the closed door and replaying the interaction in my mind. The way Dallas jumped in front of me and immediately started speaking in a calm, soothing voice to that asshole tells me a lot more about what their marriage was like.
She was apologizing to him for having to flee an apartment fire with two toddlers, and he didn’t even show a shred of concern for her.
What kind of hell was she living in, being married to a guy like that?
Sam and Dolly’s wedding is the following weekend. I only see glimpses of Dallas and the twins, but she doesn’t move back to the apartments. I don’t know if her entire place went up in flames, and I don’t ask.
I do, however, have groceries delivered to the bunkhouse. I order her a mix of stuff I remember liking as a kid, as well as a few basics, like eggs, bread, and the pinot noir wine I saw her buy at Walmart.
On the wedding day, everyone is bustling about, but I’m too busy sitting with Pops and keeping him from falling when he gets up to really help with anything. Oyster runs through everyone, causing mayhem and stressing Dolly out until she demands I go lock him up in the barn.
On my way over, I see Dallas coming up the driveway. She left with the boys, but when she parks at the bunkhouse and starts walking back to the main house, they’re not with her anymore.
She’s wearing low-hung gray sweatpants and a cropped pink top. Her makeup-free face is pinched in concentration, like she’s deep in thought. I haven’t spoken to her since the night her ex showed up. She doesn’t seem to notice me on her way to the main house, where the girls are getting ready.
After locking Oyster up in the barn, I go back to sit with Pops in the main house while we wait for the nurse. She gets there an hour later, so I finally get to go join the groomsmen and Sam at Holden’s place.
Everyone is in high spirits, even though there’s a noticeable heaviness around us.
I wish things were different for my sister and my best friend.
I wish their wedding day didn’t have to feel like this.
Maybe it’s mostly my perception after caring for Pops all this time and seeing the deterioration firsthand.
Sam seems happy. He’s smiling more than I’ve ever seen while Holden gives him marriage advice.
“I’m sure you know this, but the husband is supposed to make breakfast on the weekends while she sleeps in. And she’s always right. And when she’s in the wrong, she’s never going to apologize.”
“This sounds very specific to—”
Holden shoots me a glare, and I wisely shut up. Although I’m itching to get into a physical altercation; it might help me with the frustration that’s been lingering underneath my skin for the last week.
With the short planning time, the wedding is simple.
Pops was able to walk Dolly down the aisle without a hitch.
I timed his whiskey intake so that right when the ceremony started, he would be feeling good and ready for a nap about an hour later.
It feels twisted, but at this point, I’m just trying to keep him happy and somewhat numb to the disease spreading inside his body.
The nurse knows he’s still drinking heavily.
She argued with me about it at first, until I explained to her that he’s already a dying man and letting him have his whiskey and coffee isn’t going to make that happen any slower.
I might have had to turn up the charm with her today when she saw how much I poured into his cup.
I wanted Dolly’s wedding to go as smoothly as possible, and it is—so far.
Something gets in my eye when Sam says, “I do,” and I see the smile on my baby sister’s face.
“Who has the rings?” the preacher says.
I step up, grabbing Sam’s shoulder. He turns around, taking the rings from me and whispering, “Thanks, brother.”
He pulls me into a one-armed hug. Emotion whirls inside me as I pull him closer and hug him tighter.
Sam and I have been through hell together.
We’ve gotten into some fucked-up situations, and I know more about him than anyone.
He’s been my brother for as long as I can remember, so making it legal just feels right.
I sniffle when we finally pull back and he turns back to Dolly. The rest of the ceremony is a blur. I try not to look at Dallas, who’s stunning in a pale yellow silk dress.
Once it’s over, I help Pops find his seat. His nurse sits beside him and tries to coax him into eating the brisket and beans a local barbecue restaurant catered.
I grab my own plate and pile it high with the delicious-flavored beef, beans, potato salad, and coleslaw before taking my seat at the table, where the rest of the wedding party is.
Cash claps me on the shoulder. “You ready to give that speech?”
I shrug. My mood has been off. I wish I could get it together for Dolly and Sam, but truthfully, I’m struggling to be in the moment. I can’t stop thinking about Pops.
“Hey, you gotta snap out of it, man. It sucks for all of us, but this day is for Sam and Dolly. What do you need?” He grips my shoulder, his dark brows pinched in concern.
I stare at the rim of my glass before finally meeting his gaze. “I need to go back in time and force him to stop drinking so he doesn’t have to die a week after his only daughter’s wedding.”
Unwelcome tears prick the corner of my eyes, and it makes me angry.
Cash’s face softens. “We all wish that. But we were kids back then. We didn’t know he’d never stop. Holden was trying to hold us all together, and he was still a teenager. You were nine years old, Duke.”
I slowly nod, the pain in my chest refusing to budge.
“Come on. Let’s go chug a beer.” He stands up, tapping Holden and Sam on the shoulder.
They look up from the conversation they were having with Rosie and Dolly.
“I’ll bring them right back, ladies,” Cash says.
We all walk out of the ceremony area, which is just a bunch of tables and chairs with lights strung up in the trees in the backyard. When we make it to the other side of the house, I see a shadow walking toward us. I tense up for a second before I realize who it is.
“You made it,” Sam says, pulling Sterling into a hug.
“Not quite. Missed the best part,” Sterling says.
“You’re here; that’s what matters.” Cash hugs him next.
I hold up the bottle of Four Roses I grabbed from the bar table when we passed by. “We’re doing celebratory shots. You coming?”
“Let me say hi to my wife first.” He pulls me in for a quick hug. “I’ll meet y’all after. Barn?”
I nod, continuing around the house. The stars are shining brightly above us in the night sky. We’re far enough from the closest city, so we always have an incredible view of the constellations.
Once we get to the barn, a single light bulb illuminates it. Lady Liberty is munching on a square alfalfa bale. I pat her neck as I walk by, whispering to her that she’s the only girl for me.
“What’s eating you, Duke?” Holden asks, leaning back against a stack of hay bales.
I take a shot of the whiskey, letting it burn down my throat before handing the bottle to him.
“Nothing. I’m fine.” I unbutton the top button of my brown pearl-snap shirt.
Everyone takes another swig of the whiskey straight from the bottle.
“Well, we already branded your chest, Sam. I guess the ass is up next,” Holden says, keeping a straight face.
I can’t hold in the laughter when I see Sam balk in horror. It comes out loudly, startling Sam. A grin splits across his face when he realizes it was a joke.
He grabs his chest. “Whew. Scared the shit out of me.”
Sterling walks up, draping his arm around my shoulders. Seeing him make it here despite being deployed with the Marine Raiders is a relief.
“How’d you manage to get away?”
He grins. “I couldn’t miss my baby sister’s wedding, could I? We had a two-week wait for the next assignment. Most of the guys had to stay, but I was able to get leave when I told them about Pops.”
I nod. I’d considered going into the military after both Cash and Sterling did it, but I felt like I was always needed here.
After Pops is gone, there won’t be a need for me to stay at the ranch anymore.
“I got something to tell you guys,” Holden says.
I can tell by the tone of his voice that it ain’t good news. With our father on his deathbed, I’m not sure what he could say that would bring down the mood much more.
“The surveyor found a human skeleton on the ranch. We’re under investigation.”
Well, fuck me.