The way he says Sinclair is… loaded. Like Jack once borrowed his truck and returned it with a single scratch and Wyatt has been holding a grudge ever since.
I take a bite of the brownie. It’s a little dry but still good because chocolate is therapy. “He’s… been around.”
“He will be,” Wyatt says. “He’s on you tonight.”
My cheeks heat for reasons that have nothing to do with the Texas air. “Wyatt.”
“What?”
“Don’t say it like I’m… a backpack.”
“You’re my sister,” he says, tone firm. “And somebody’s been messing with you.”
My stomach tightens. There it is again—that truth pressing at the edges of the night like an unwelcome guest.
I keep my voice light. “Maybe it’s just kids being dumb.”
Wyatt’s gaze hardens. “Stel.”
I hate that tone. It turns me back into thirteen-year-old Stella who tried to sneak out to the lake and got caught because Wyatt is basically a bloodhound.
“Okay,” I say softer. “I know.”
Wyatt watches me for a beat, then exhales. “Good. Now… try to have fun, alright?”
“Fun?” I echo, looking at the dance floor. “On command?”
“Fun,” he repeats, then tilts his head toward the band. “Go dance.”
I bark out a laugh. “With who? The goats?”
Wyatt’s eyes flick across the crowd—then land on Jack.
Oh.
No.
Wyatt smiles like a man who has just decided to poke a bear with a stick because it’s entertaining. “Go ask Jack.”
My brownie nearly falls out of my mouth. “Excuse me?”
Wyatt shrugs. “What? He’s already glued to you. Might as well make him useful.”
“Wyatt,” I hiss, mortified. “Absolutely not.”
He leans closer, voice low. “You think I don’t see the way you look at him?”
I choke. “I do not look at him.”
Wyatt lifts a brow.
I point vaguely at my own face. “This is just… my face.”
“Sure,” Wyatt says, like he doesn’t believe me for one second. Then he steps back, smirking. “Dance, Firecracker. It’s Valor Springs Rodeo Days. Live a little.”
“I am living,” I call after him. “I’m breathing! I’m eating a brownie! This is peak living!”
Wyatt disappears into the crowd, probably to go scare a teenage boy away from setting off illegal bottle rockets.
