Two hours later,Jesse and I arrive at Grizzly River Ranch. Truett is sitting on the front porch, looking fit to be tied.
“Where the hell have you been?” he questions, his voice as angry as I’ve ever heard it.
“With Jesse,” I answer. There’s no shame in that statement, and I’m not expecting what happens next.
Truett gets up, strides across the gravel, and takes a good look at Jesse. He doesn’t flinch as Truett looks him up and down. The glare is enough to frighten me, but Jesse doesn’t back down. “My fuckin’ sister? You could have anyone, and it had to be my fuckin’ sister?”
Jesse shakes his head, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallows roughly. “Yeah, it’s always been your sister.”
Before those words make it completely out from between his lips, Truett’s fist meets his face.
“Truett!” I scream. “He’s your best friend.”
“And you’re my sister. He knows you’re off-limits.”
Jesse doesn’t fall, but he’s knocked so that his back is resting against the pickup truck. It’s holding him up as he struggles toget his bearings. “It was always her,” Jesse says again, shaking his head. “You knew it, I knew it, and so did she.”
Truett pulls back again, but I rush forward, grabbing hold of his forearm. “Please stop, please,” I beg, my voice smaller than I mean for it to be. There are tears pooled in my eyes, and I’m trying desperately to hold on to them. I don’t want Truett to see me as his little sister who can’t handle the hard things. It’s why he never told me about the trouble the ranches were in to begin with.
“He knows how I feel about you. He never should’ve looked twice at you, Aubree. Judging from the hickey on your neck and the fact you’re still wearing the clothes you left here in last night, he’s done much more than that.”
I can’t deny it. It’d be stupid to. “I’m also a grown-ass woman who knows what I want. You’re not my dad, Truett. No matter the situation we were dealt.”
“I’ve acted like it,” he argues.
“And I’ve let you. That’s my fault. I should’ve never let you take that much responsibility. You were a kid, just like me. Maybe over the age of eighteen, but you were still a kid. Both of you were.” I lick my lips, my eyes going to Truett’s. “And we’ve had so much loss in our lives, True. I always come back to Jesse. Regardless of whether you like it or know it, I always do. Let me have some joy and happiness.”
“I know who he is,” Truett says quietly. “He’ll hurt you.”
“Life has hurt me. He can’t do anything that life hasn’t already done, True. Let me have the joy before this life goes dark and there’s no chance for any of us. Can you please do that?” I plead, breathless. “For me. Can you do that for me?”
“I’ll do it for you.” He pushes the words out between gritted teeth. “Not for him, but I’ll do it for you.”
Reaching up, I cup his cheek with the palm of my hand. “That’s all I ask, True. If he hurts me, I’ll let you handle it.”
He turns to Jesse. “You know I’ll fuckin’ handle it and you. Watch yourself. Best friend or not, I will end you.”
Jesse spits blood, wiping at his cheek. “I’d expect nothing less.”
The three of us head inside, the tension thick enough to cut with a knife. Truett’s jaw is still set in that hard line I know means trouble, while Jesse holds a bandana to his split lip. The silence stretches between us as we settle into the living room, Truett in Dad’s old recliner, Jesse on the couch, and me perched on the edge of the coffee table between them like some kind of mediator. In the background, the fireplace, which has always brought me comfort, stands like a beacon in a storm.
“We need to talk,” I say, breaking the quiet. “Jesse told me about the job you two are planning.”
Truett’s head snaps toward Jesse so fast I’m surprised he doesn’t get whiplash. “You told her? What the fuck, man? The whole point was keeping her out of this.”
“Don’t blame him,” I interrupt before Jesse can respond. “I asked him not to lie to me anymore. About anything. He was respecting that.”
“Respecting that?” Truett’s voice climbs an octave. “Aubree, this isn’t some game. This is dangerous shit, and the less you know, the safer you are.”
I stand up, crossing my arms. “I’m already in danger, Truett. We all are. The ranch is failing, we owe money we don’t have, and, apparently, there are people who want to hurt us. Keeping me in the dark doesn’t make me safer. It makes me unprepared.”
Jesse finally speaks up, his voice rough. “She’s right, True. She deserves to know what’s happening in her own life.”
“This is exactly why I didn’t want this to happen,” Truett says, gesturing between Jesse and me. “Now you’re taking her side over mine.”
“There are no sides here,” I say firmly. “We’re family. All of us. And family doesn’t lie to each other, no matter how good the intentions.”
Truett runs both hands through his hair, a gesture so familiar it makes my chest ache. He’s done that since he was little whenever he felt overwhelmed. “Fine. We’re doing the Morrison job, and now you have no plausible deniability.”
