Liz catapulted into Jake’s arms once they dismounted in the stable yard. “Oh my god, that was insane,” she murmured. “I am fucking done.”
Jake circled his arms around her tightly, sensing she needed the contact, happy to oblige, and needing a moment to collect his thoughts before the circus of police descended for more statements. He buried his nose in her neck, grounding himself in the scent of her, the comfort of her in his arms. Even though they were all exhausted, dusty, and sweaty, she smelled good, and felt right, in his arms.
Brady lifted Sandy’s reins out of Jake’s hand and gathered up Finnegan’s while whistling the theme toRocky. Liz laughed, her face buried in Jake’s chest.
“Thanks, Brady,” Jake said.
“You get to untack ’em. I’ll just put them into their stalls,” Brady called as he walked away flanked by both horses.
Tanner stormed past next, silently glaring straight ahead as Chip jogged to keep up with him, nose pressing to Tanner’s back, his ears trained on his rider.
“He’s going to explode,” Jake murmured. “Should we do something?”
“Nah. That’s Tan. He looks madder than he is. He stews while he’s sorting it all out in his head, makes him look like he’s chewing rocks.”
“It’s more than that,” Jake said. “He’s got a reason to be mad, right now, and I don’t blame him.”
Jake’s eyes followed his brother as he disappeared through the wide stable door, understanding his anger, wishing his brother wasn’t so closed off. If things were different, he’d string up a punching bag in the cattle office and offer to teach him to box out his frustrations. It was certainly healthier than holding it all in.
A constable’s car was already turning up the driveway as he reluctantly let Liz go, and he groaned. They wouldn’t get to rest just yet.
“Let’s get inside and take care of the horses, we’ve got that to deal with before we can collapse for the night,” Liz prodded, pointing at the two officers getting out of their car, and he followed her into the stable.
* * *
“And then, he just turned and decked him! I saw it all from the side of the truck! I have no idea how that prod didn’t take him to his knees.”
Brady was gesturing wildly, his chair tipped back, his cheeks pink from the wine that Jake had pulled up from the cellar to celebrate their adventure. It was also doing a good job of relaxing everyone’s nerves. Jake was leaning on the table beside Liz, her hand on his thigh warm and heavy. It felt good having her there beside him, celebrating their win, such as it was.
By the time they’d shuffled back into the house close to dark, Peony had a meal ready for them. She’d shooed them all off to have showers, and when Jake reappeared, Tanner had been sitting at the table, stopping Jake short. They’d looked at one another, and Jake had sat down across from him and passed him the bowl of salad silently. Tanner had taken it with a nod, and they’d all dug in.
Tanner’s silence wasn’t unusual, and Jake didn’t go out of his way to engage him in conversation. Brady, with his natural flair, filled the room as he retold the story.
“I can’t imagine the bruise you are going to have, Jake,” Peony said. “You should get some arnica or muscle rub on that.”
Jakehmmed at that and ran a hand over Liz’s. A massage, maybe mutual? The thought of her hands sliding over his skin was more than enough to make him adjust himself in his seat, and he cleared his throat while Peony side-eyed him, indicating she was onto him.
“Might be a good idea. I’m already sore from being in a saddle for so long. I’m not a seasoned rider like my brothers and Liz, here.”
“You did fine.”
Everyone turned as Tanner looked up at all of them, his fork stalled midway to his mouth. Jake caught his brother’s eyes.
“Thanks,” Jake replied, feeling the need for a bit of levity in the silence that followed. “Was quite an introduction, I think. Maybe next time I can try wrestling a cougar? Ride down a cliffside chasing wild buffalo?”
Everyone chuckled at that, and Jake jerked to his feet, restless from the compliment that Tanner had just given him. Liz leaned back and gave him a curious look, so he wiggled his eyebrows at her to convey it was fine. She rolled her eyes and swatted his arm, and turned back to ask Brady to pass the potatoes. Jake picked up a few empty dishes, and Tanner scraped back his own chair and grabbed his and Peony’s plates. Jake headed to the kitchen, Tanner following him.
“So,” Tanner said once they were alone, his back to Jake, his hands splayed on the counter. “I’ll likely need you to pitch in tomorrow so I can get this shit sorted out. Harry can show you where we’re short, but you won’t need to do anything like—”
“This ranch is important to me too,” Jake interrupted, wanting to get something out before Tanner tried to put him in his place again. At some point, his brother would get it through his stubborn head that Jake gave a shit. So if Tanner was open to sharing tonight, he’d give him both barrels.
“This was my dad’s world. One I never got to see, never knew a thing about until a couple of weeks ago. But being here brings a whole new perspective. I have brothers. I have a family I never knew about. One that I intend to take care of, no matter what.Wewill sort this shit out tomorrow, Tanner. Not you. Us.”
His brother was struggling with something, twisting his lips back and forth, maybe absorbing Jake’s blunt statement, trying to find a response. Jake waited, hoping he would blurt it out, but when Tanner just sighed and looked away again, Jake bit back the frustration and realized that it would be a while before they were good. Even taking down cattle thieves together wouldn’t erase the hurt that was grinding away at the man, because it wasn’t Jake he was mad at. Jake was the proverbial messenger.
“Listen, enough for tonight. Let’s regroup in the morning. We’re all fucking exhausted,” Jake said.
“Okay,” and a raised eyebrow was the response from Tanner.
