“You have to let me do this, okay?” I cup the side of her face. “My manhood is at stake here. If you go down there and?—”
“They could seriously hurt you!”
“Yeah, they could.” My fingers trail down her arm. “But I seriously love you, and I need them to know that last night wasn’t a one-off. I’ll do anything to be with you, Dolly Mae. Even face your four fucking scary-ass brothers.”
She shivers as the heavy words settle over her.
“You’ll … you’ll what?”
I press another kiss to her lips. “You can watch if you want, but don’t say anything. I can handle this.”
“I’m coming down there,” she says, lifting her chin stubbornly.
I nod, grabbing her hand as we make our way downstairs. When we get to the front door, I hand her my oversize brown hoodie to put on, knowing it’ll be cold once we get outside. While she does that, I put on my cowboy boots before I open the door, stepping out. I’m still shirtless, but this is how I fight in the ring.
The Redford brothers are lined up in front of their trucks. Duke is the only one who looks pissed, his eyes narrowed on me. Sterling and Cash are both relaxed, their expressions borderline amused.
Holden is somewhere in the middle, but his eyes trail over Dolly when she walks out behind me, and he must determine that she’s okay because he relaxes—slightly.
“What the fuck is going on here, Seymour?” Duke practically spits out the words.
I’ve known my best friend for a long time. Even though he’s generally a relaxed, fun-loving kind of guy, he doesn’t exactly process his emotions rationally when he gets angry.
He’s wearing a basic T-shirt and jeans with a flannel over it, but he’s pulling that off now. I know he needs to hit me, just on the principle of me betraying him by screwing his little sister behind his back when I was supposed to be taking care of her.
“Did you hear her screaming, or do you need me to describe it to you?”
Sterling barks out a laugh, but quickly recovers. Cash is trying to hold back a smirk. Holden’s eye twitches, but he maintains a neutral expression.
Duke practically has smoke blowing out of his ears. He lunges for me, his fist coming at me fast. I duck away from his first blow on instinct. I don’t hit back, even though laying him out flat right now would be easy. He’s not fighting smart because he’s letting his emotions get in the way.
I dodge his second hit, causing him to roar in frustration. I decide to stand still for the next one, tensing my muscles and letting him get a good one in. And, fuck, he does.
The blow lands right on my jaw, knocking me back a few steps and nearly making me fall to the ground. I stumble, trying to regain my balance when Holden comes up and punches me in the gut. It’s not nearly as hard, but it still fucking hurts.
Dolly’s gasp reaches my ears, reminding me why I’m taking this beating. I hold back a smile.
Cash is next, planting his fist in the center of my chest so that I fall back to the ground this time. Stars are swirling above my head when Sterling gets to me. He grabs my hand, yanks me up to my feet, and delivers his punch to the other side of my stomach, narrowly missing my ribs. I pitch forward, groaning in pain. He catches me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and leaning down to my ear.
“Welcome to the family, brother.” He claps me on the back and starts guiding me around the house.
My vision is still blurry, but I think I see Holden grabbing a branding iron out of the back of the truck. When we finally make it around the corner of the house, Pops is in my backyard, coaxing a fire to life in my stone firepit.
Holden drops the brand down into the flames. He’s grinning at me now too. “When’s the wedding?”
Sooner than you think.
I turn to look at Dolly, whose face is flushed with rage as she trails behind us. Duke tries comforting her by throwing his arm around her shoulders, but she shoves him off.
Cash is laughing with Sterling as they pull back their shirts to show off the Redford Ranch brands that are permanently etched into their skin. It’s a family tradition, a mark all the men have, even Pops. Holden even has another one with his wife’s initials, R.R., for Rosie Redford.
“You want me to get the brand?” I ask, looking at each one before finally meeting Duke’s eyes.
He still looks angry, but hitting me must have felt pretty damn good because his shoulders are less tense.
“Do you wanna join the family or not?” he asks.
Dolly comes up to me, sliding her hand in mine. “You don’t have to, Sam. Don’t feel pressured.”
