Chapter 18
Maverick
“We all set for them to hit the road again?”
Colt nods, walking beside me as we glance through the stalls. By this time, they should all be cleaned out and prepped again.
“Duke said he’ll go, and some of the other men, Wyatt and Tyler,” he explains.
“Brooks used to be the first to jump at it. Settled down, yeah?”
I glance over to the blond curlicue-haired man next to the horse as he talks to one of the new mares, petting her. I shake my head. The man was born to be a horse whisperer.
Colt scratches the stubble growing on his jaw. “Kinsey is pregnant. All of us are going to want to stay close.”
Shock rends through me, and Colt freezes with a curse. “Shit. I think she might have wanted to tell you that.”
Right, because we have such a growing sibling relationship
Fuck. Damn it.
I adjust the hat on my head, swiping my hair back before placing it back on. “Uh, I’ll act surprised if she does. I think Levi has been asking to see her, for her to come by. Probably bothering her more than he should. Lonely old man.”
Colt nods, a frown still on his face. “Yeah, maybe. Look, even if it was only the ranch between us all, I’d be saying this.
But it’s not, she’s your sister. You’ll be that baby’s uncle.
I know you’re sniffing around Brielle who is her best friend.
We’re all tangled up in this mess, and I think she’s afraid to approach you, Mav. ”
I blow out a breath. I know I haven’t made it easy for her either. Everything seems to be moving too fast. One day life is normal, and the next I have a half sister who is now pregnant with half my ranch staff, and I may have an omega of my own to take care of.
“She and Brooks are confirming it at the doctors,” Colt continues.
I nod. “Well, congrats. You’ll make a good father.”
He blows out a breath. “I hope so. At least better than my own.”
Colt’s father isn’t well liked in Brackenridge, having abandoned him and his mother to go knock up another woman in town.
Cooper is his little brother, and both men had to nurse their mothers’ hearts when their father moved on to the next.
Mine may not have been the most affectionate man, but he was loyal to a fault.
I nearly groan at the thought that now Kinsey is carrying his grandchild, one he’ll want to spoil the shit out of.
“I’d keep that to yourself so it doesn’t get back to my dad. He’ll want to know everything at all times. Prepare for the overbearing Levi we grew up with during the ranch’s summers.”
Colt smiles. “You think? Kinsey would probably be thrilled.”
I give him a tense smile. “I’m sure.”
He doesn’t comment on my tone, instead clapping my shoulder. “You know, you should take a break sometime too. It took until Kinsey’s heat to make me realize I needed some space from the ranch. You should think about it, Mav.”
I grimace at the thought, even if I fully trust my crew to handle things. “Yeah, whatever,” I grumble, turning back to straighten out the tools we need to check the horses’ hooves.
He shakes his head with a chuckle and leaves me to it. It’s not long until another presence hovers nearby, but I ignore them. I can tell it’s either Cooper or Duke given the shadow of their hat. They both wear the same style.
When I finally look over, Cooper lingers at my side and I sigh, seeing he wants to talk. “What’s up, Coop?”
He scratches at the back of his neck, glancing around. The movement sends a whiff of his scent to me, and I have to swallow back my growl. Brielle’s scent is all over him, and not just her normal sunshine and citrus, but the hint of honey that comes from her slick.
I palm my mouth, plugging my nose a little as I turn away from him. My anger isn’t as quick to rise, almost like I had expected this. Something about Cooper and Brielle together seems right.
Cooper shifts on his feet. “Do I need to shower and come back?”
If it wasn’t for his pheromones, most would probably mistake Cooper for a beta. He has a very demure personality, always the voice of calm and reason. I’m sure he knows I’m struggling with the scent of him and Brielle.
I shake my head, breathing out slowly. “No, it was just a surprise. I didn’t know you and Brielle were—I just didn’t know.
” And I wasn’t sure what to call it. Damn it, I don’t even know what to call us.
Courting? It seems so proper, and something she’d hate.
But it seems more than that too. Hell, I don’t know what falling in love feels like, but if I had to guess, I think it’d be this.
When I look back at him, he’s watching out the door of the shed. I follow his gaze, finding Duke walking toward us, and I just know. Intuition nagging my heart.
“Oh, fuck me. Him too?” I guess I should have believed it when he was asking what-ifs.
Cooper snorts and then laughs.
Duke stares between us, confused. He stops short next to Cooper, his jaw pulling tight as his nostrils flare. “I guess she was happy to see you.”
Cooper nudges his shoulder. “Don’t be jealous. Plus I have something to share.”
My heart sinks. Nothing would stop me from being with her, but why do I suddenly think of the most extreme scenario?
What if she’s having his baby? Would I be disappointed?
Absolutely. I can smell her all over him, and I’m not even sure if this is the first time.
We’ve never spoken about being exclusive or if she’s being courted by others.
“I asked her to come with me on the next rodeo circuit, and she said yes.”
It’s like a crashing wave washing over me, knocking me back while holding me still, and then the full extent of his words register. “You’ll be gone for weeks.”
I’m stating the obvious. We all know how long they’re gone, but the thought of not seeing her for that long that makes me anxious.
“Come with us,” Duke says.
I could. It’s been years since I went with the men, since at least before my father handed over the ranch. I blow out a breath and nearly laugh at the irony. No less than ten minutes ago, my ranch manager told me to slow down, and I just might take him up on it.
“Alright, I’ll go pick her up.”