Chapter 20
CHAPTER TWENTY
Tate couldn’t deny that the second Alexander stepped over the threshold of the barn, he made comparisons. The man was tall and broad, but his suit hid the finer details of his physique. His hair was styled like he was due for a photoshoot with GQ magazine. The way he walked screamed money.
At first, Tate hated just how obvious it was that Alexander could provide a life for Rylee that Tate could only dream of.
Tate wasn’t struggling by any means. His family made a decent living with his business. But there was no way he’d come close to the kind of wealth Alexander exuded.
But then all comparisons fled his mind the second that man sneered. It was painfully obvious how he felt about the barn. Heck, the way he judged Rylee over her decision to live here even temporarily had Tate’s hackles rising.
The last straw had been referring to Tate as the help—especially when he could tell Rylee was uncomfortable.
All traces of insecurity were gone. That man didn’t deserve to date Rylee, let alone be anywhere near her. If she wanted him gone, Tate was going to make sure that happened.
There was only one hiccup.
Rylee didn’t seem too insistent on keeping the guy at arm’s length.
She might have wanted him off her property, but when he suggested she call him if Alexander returned, Tate had felt resistance.
Perhaps it wasn’t the best idea to leave so shortly after that interaction.
Okay, it definitely hadn’t been a good idea, because now he was second-guessing if he’d done the right thing. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Rylee. Quite the contrary. It was Alexander he didn’t trust.
Tate went about his usual duties. He trained kids in bronc riding.
Worked side by side with Jason and occasionally Brent.
Faith’s husband was more than capable of reaching the younger kids on levels Tate could only dream of doing.
Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Brent’s cousins had young kids, and he knew how to talk to them.
Either way, his help had opened up Tate’s availability so he could spend more time with Rylee.
He tossed Brent a coil of rope for their next client and glanced around. “Is Jason back yet?”
Brent shook his head, not even bothering to look up from securing the saddle to their A-frame mock horse. “He said he wasn’t going to be back today. Something about heading to town for a meeting.”
Tate’s brows furrowed. “What kind of meeting?”
At that, Brent looked up. “Didn’t say.” They stared at one another for longer than was necessary and Brent rose to his full height. “I thought the two of you were close.”
“We are,” Tate balked.
“Then why didn’t he tell you his plans?”
Tate couldn’t help but ask the same question. Jason had been absent more and more just as Tate had gotten better at being available. It was like they were playing a game of tug-of-war. And now there were meetings in town he knew nothing about.
“Third time this month,” Brent added, unhelpfully. “Always with that folder of his. Looked official, whatever it was.”
A folder. Meetings he didn’t mention. Tate turned that over while Brent finished with the saddle.
Jason had always been the steadiest part of the operation—the one who noticed what needed doing and did it without announcing it.
If he was quietly working some angle of his own, he’d have a reason.
He always had a reason. The part that nagged at Tate was that he hadn’t been told what it was.
“Maybe he’s tired of you hogging all the clients,” Brent offered.
“Hilarious.”
“I do what I can.” Brent turned back to his work. “Speaking of folks with business in town, did you hear about that Alexander fella?”
At the man’s name, Tate stiffened. “Alexander?”
Brent nodded, crouching down again to double-check the straps. “Yeah. Some hoity-toity city fella who’s been asking around about you.”
Grinding his teeth, Tate turned away so Brent wouldn’t catch on about how much this bothered him. “What has he been asking?” He aimed for nonchalant, but the fact that Alexander was asking about him specifically had alarm bells going off in his head.
“Nothing out of the ordinary. What you do for a living. If you’re seeing anyone…”
Tate glanced at Brent over his shoulder then and noted the knowing smirk that Brent was tossing his way.
“Some folks in town think you and Miss Rylee have something going on. You were spotted at the Aviary a few weeks back.”
He rubbed the back of his neck, needing to choose his words carefully. “That’s because there is something going on. Have people been talking to this Alexander guy?”
“Who’s he to you?”
Tate sighed. “He’s someone Rylee knows. From New York. A pushy guy who doesn’t know the meaning of get lost if you know what I mean.”
Brent nodded thoughtfully. “I don’t think anyone has been saying anything inherently bad. But perhaps we should spread the word that they keep information to themselves?”
Waving a hand through the air, Tate dismissed that thought. “What’s done is done. I’d rather not give him any more ammunition. If he thinks I have something to hide, he’s going to try to use it against me.”
“Against you… how?” Brent asked. “Is this guy dangerous?”
That was a loaded question if Tate ever heard one. Was Alexander dangerous? Probably not. But was he a threat to everything Tate wanted? Absolutely. He sighed. “I don’t know. But that doesn’t mean I won’t be keeping an eye on him.”
“Sounds like a plan. At least let me talk to my cousins. They might be able to do the same.”
Tate hesitated then gave his friend a nod. “Sure. Thanks.”
“Of course.”
Rylee hadn’t brought the surprise visit from Alexander up in conversation and Tate was just beginning to breathe easy again. Unfortunately, his reprieve could only last so long.
Tate was coming out of Sweet Everything Bakery with black forest brownies in hand when he came face to face with the devil himself.
Alexander was dressed to the nines like he was on his way to a wedding. Did the guy own anything casual? He recognized Tate immediately and his lips curled into a sneer. “Tate, wasn’t it?”
Tate folded his arms. “What do you want, Alexander? I thought Rylee made it clear how she felt about you.” Tate made a show of looking Alexander up and down. “You don’t exactly fit in around here.”
“That’s not the criticism you think it is,” Alexander said with a derisive chuckle. “I fit in just as much as Rylee does which is why I’ve come to bring her home.”
“She’s not going anywhere,” Tate ground out. “This is where she belongs. Her soul was born here, and this is where she’ll end up.”
Alexander laughed. It was so loud and unexpected that Tate nearly startled. “If you believe that, you’re far more delusional than I thought you were. Rylee is going through a crisis at the moment. The second she realizes how ridiculous she’s being, she’ll leave.” His smirk widened. “With me.”
Tate’s fist curled at his side. “I don’t think you know her as well as you think you do.”
He huffed out a laugh but then his expression turned stony and he took a menacing step forward. “Make no mistake. Rylee is mine. She just hasn’t realized it. I’ll let her have her fun because it’s only a matter of time before she realizes that you’re not good enough for her.”
Those words hit harder than Tate let on. He already agreed with that sentiment, but he was working on it. No one was going to make him feel inferior. Especially not this fool. Tate lifted his chin, not breaking eye contact. “I suppose we’ll just have to wait and see, won’t we?”
“I suppose so,” Alexander muttered with narrowed eyes. “May the better man win.”
Tate didn’t bother responding to that statement. Alexander wasn’t worth his breath. He had to continue to tell himself that as he went about the rest of his afternoon but apparently, he wasn’t very good at convincing himself because Jason caught on that something was off.
Or maybe he just wanted to distract Tate enough that he wouldn’t interrogate him about going MIA earlier today. Tate couldn’t help but think it was the latter because Jason never initiated conversations about feelings unless it was affecting him directly.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
Tate cut his brother a sharp look. “What?”
Jason gestured in his general direction. “Something’s bothering you.”
Tate turned away from the stove where he’d been stirring the sauce for spaghetti. “Not really.”
“Maybe you should.”
Tate narrowed his eyes at his brother, half ready to make him spill, but then thought better of it. “This whole thing with Rylee is getting to me.”
“Are you talking about Alexander?”
His eyes narrowed further. “How do you know about him?”
Jason shrugged. “I heard Brent talking to his brother about him. He’s some guy in Rylee’s life, right? They have a history?”
“Hardly,” Tate snapped but Jason didn’t react. “He thinks he has some claim on her, but she doesn’t want anything to do with him.” Wincing, Tate hated that he didn’t sound as convinced as he wanted to be.
“Sounds like you have a decision to make.”
Tate stilled and glanced at his brother. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Just that you have to decide if this whole thing is important.”
“Of course it is. I—” He stopped to find the right words. When the only right words were the truth, he said it out loud. “I love her, Jason.”
His twin raised an eyebrow and nodded. “Running a business. Falling in love. It’s hard to juggle it all.”
Frowning, Tate continued to stare at his brother.
He was a man of few words, but he’d never been this cryptic before.
“Is there something you want to talk about?” He fully expected Jason to brush him off and tell him everything was status quo.
But then Jason had never been very good at telling lies.
“Would, um…” He started over. “Would it be difficult on you if I stepped back?”
“You want to quit?” Tate couldn’t stop the shock that showed on his face.
Jason raised his hand. “Wait a minute—”
“That’s what this is about? You don’t want to keep working with me?” Tate’s anger was getting the best of him.
“No,” Jason insisted. “That’s not it. I would still be working with you, but I was thinking…” He shook his head. “I was thinking it might be… you know how much I like working with the difficult horses.”
“Yeah, I know,” Tate drawled, waiting for his brother to get his thoughts out in the open.
“Don’t you think I’d be good with training them?”
Tate opened his mouth but at that moment Lydia wandered into the kitchen, Wren behind her with her hair still wet from the shower.
“Something smells good.” She made a beeline straight for the stove.
“Mmm. Tate’s spaghetti. Can’t wait.” She seemed to notice the current tension in the room and glanced from Tate to Jason. “Did I walk in on something?”
“Yeah, actually—”
“We can talk about it later,” Jason said. “Can I do anything to help with supper? I’m pretty hungry. Need to get this show on the road.”
Tate stared at his twin as he waited on a response. “Sure. One of you can chop up the rest of the roasted red pepper for the sauce and the other one can put the pasta in the boiling water.”
Well, shoot. Tate was okay with switching gears, but he knew there was one more thing to worry about on his list now.
Rylee.
Alexander.
The developer.
His business.
His family.
And now Jason had some issue he wasn’t able to hear the details of yet.