Chapter 19
Lane
More or Less
“He’s a good kid.” It wasn’t the first time Cy said that about Cam since the troubled teenager had taken up residence at the ranch, but it was the first time he sounded like he really, truly believed it. Slowly but surely, Cameron Bauer was finding his way on the Warner ranch. Webb was the one who taught him to ride, Cy was the one who helped him with his homework because they were both good at math and I sucked at it. I took him with me on weekend rides and shoved a fishing pole in his hands before he could argue with me. The kid was also a natural at playing the guitar, so there were quiet hours that I sat with him and taught him all my favorite songs—yes, even Taylor Swift.
We all wanted to give him something he could take away from this place that would stay with him long after he left to find his own way in the world. We were determined, as a whole, to give the kid everything he’d missed out on before he became ours, and then some. Every time he learned something new, got a piece of the people who were determined to teach him all about what home and family was, he got emotional. His old man hadn’t taught him anything but to hurt and to feel shame for who he was. He deserved so much better than that. We were all doing our best to prove that to him. The exact same way Boyd Warner did for Brynn Fox all those years ago. It was sort of ironic how full circle this whole thing had come.
It had taken some getting used to, having a streetwise, still skittish kid around the house. Cy watched the newcomer with careful eyes, but eventually, Cam won him over. It took a lot less work to get Leo on board. She was already hovering over the teen and fretting as much as Brynn did. The kid was smothered in affection and love, and it was obvious he couldn’t be any happier about it.
“The brother, though, he needs a boot up his ass.” Cy tipped the rocks glass he was holding up to his lips and finished the whiskey he was sipping on throughout dinner. Mikey Bauer was enough to drive anyone to drink. It was clear to see when the two brothers were together, that even though Cam was the one with the checkered past and questionable reputation, he was the Bauer who had been blessed with a kind heart and an endless well of consideration.
I nodded in agreement and took a pull from the beer I was holding. When Brynn mentioned she arranged for Mikey to come up and visit his brother for the weekend, I could see the apprehension in her eyes. The older Bauer boy was a bit of a disappointment across the board, but he was the only family Bauer had, so she didn’t want to drive a wedge between them. I didn’t think visiting a place with terrible cell phone service, and spotty WIFI was a good idea for a kid who couldn’t handle being out of touch with his friends for even a second, but Mikey seemed excited about the prospect of seeing a real-life ranch, so I kept my opinion to myself. The fact that Opal was also around for the weekend had proved to be a good distraction for the older teen as well. Brynn’s sister was pretty, soft-spoken and smart as hell. It was clear Mikey was interested, but every single time he said something shitty to his brother or made a snide remark about the ranch, she shut him down cold. There was a lot of her older sister in her, and that would serve her well when she got out into the big bad world. If I was being honest, I got a chuckle every time I witnessed the verbal beatdown Opal gave to the little shit. He deserved it for being an ass.
“He’s not all bad, just a little clueless.” I was thinking about all the times he put himself between his father and his little brother. And how he really did want Cam to have a safe place to go, even if he wasn’t the best at providing it. He tried, and that was more than their parents did. “I think he needs to do some serious growing up. I’ve been there, blind to how my actions are affecting those who cared about me the most. One day he’s going to get a wake-up call he can’t ignore.” I pointed the beer bottle in the direction of the kitchen where the brothers were playing a board game with Brynn, her sister, and Leo. The ladies were winning and having a great time lording it over the teenage boys.
“If I catch him trying to look down Leo’s shirt one more time he’s going to get more than a wake-up call. He needs to learn some goddamn respect for women.” Cy’s deep voice was low and thunderous. He could tolerate a lot, but anyone disrespecting his woman was a no-go.
I nodded in agreement and sighed. “I’ll talk to him about it.” The “again” hung in the air unsaid because I’d already knocked the teenager upside the head once for openly ogling Brynn’s ass when she was serving dinner, and for the way he accidentally walked in on Opal when she was finishing her shower.
“It’s crazy how different they are. I mean for all our differences, me, you, and Sutton are still pretty similar at our core. None of us are night and day like those two.” He shook his head in bewilderment.
“Cam had to face a lot of obstacles Mikey didn’t. I think that changes you. For instance, maybe all of us would have had better luck in love if we hadn’t grown up with a mother who used it as a weapon against us.” All three of us still bore the scars from Lydia Warner’s version of love.
“I don’t know about you, but I feel pretty fucking lucky in love now. Doesn’t matter that I needed a couple of tries to get it right. All that matters is that I did.” He gave me a cocky grin and pushed to his feet. “Speaking of getting lucky,” he wiggled his black and silver eyebrows and moved toward the kitchen. “I’m going to collect my girl and take a peek at what’s under her shirt because I’m the only one who’s allowed to do that. I’ll see you in the morning.”
I waved him off, climbing to my feet as I heard Leo squeal and scream at Cy to put her down. Opal and Brynn’s laughter followed as I made it to the kitchen just as he was carrying his woman off toward their private wing of the house. I gave Leo a wink as she kicked her feet and swatted good-naturedly at my brother’s backside. I took her empty seat at the table, reaching out to swipe a finger through the frosting on the cupcake sitting untouched in front of Cam. He gave me a glare, but it was tempered by the grin on his face. Brynn had done a good job putting some meat on his bones, and he was slowly starting to relax and settle in. For the first week he was under our roof, he acted like any second he said or did anything wrong we were going to kick him out on his ass. I tried to explain over and over again that Brynn had worked so hard to get him here, that he was never going anywhere, but couldn’t seem to get through to him. Eventually, I learned that I was going to have to show him that he was home. Every day I made an effort to include him in some part of the ranch. I wanted him to feel like he earned his place here and then maybe he wouldn’t be so worried about someone taking it away from him.
“What are you all in here giggling about?” I took another scoop of frosting and swatted at Mikey’s hand when he subtly reached for my unfinished beer. The kid was a menace, but in a way, he reminded me of myself at that age. I remember being wild and free when my mom was finally gone, all while making my own rules, and being thoughtless to how my actions affected everyone around me. Opal was purposely leaning away from the handsome young man, watching him out of the corner of her eye. She was used to thoughtless men from being raised in her mother’s house, and she wasn’t about to tolerate that kind of behavior now. It would have been so easy for Brynn to step in and defend her like she always had, but she was letting her little sister learn how to protect herself.
Cam started packing up the parts of the board game and gave me a narrowed-eyed look. “Did you know that Webb’s older brother was gay?”
I paused with my frosting covered finger halfway to my mouth and gave him a startled look. “Wyatt? No, that’s never come up. Did Webb tell you that?” Cam spent a lot of time with the former criminal. At first, Brynn was leery of their connection, but Webb was the only one on the property who knew what it was like to survive on the streets. Sometimes Cam needed a sympathetic ear to bend when life at the ranch got monotonous and boring. They had a connection that I would never be able to have with either of them.
“No, Wyatt told me when he came up with that FBI agent to question me about the conversation I overheard about Goddard. I told him I was trying to get back to school and how the emancipation was taking forever and how my parents were purposely dragging their feet on every damn thing. I may have been whining about the lack of future job prospects for a former gay hustler, and he told me that he was gay and had no problem getting a good paying job. He told me once I got back to school to take it seriously and work hard. He said my past doesn’t have to define my future and that no one needs to know that I used to turn tricks unless I wanted them to.”
Opal pushed away from the table and flicked her long black hair over her shoulder. Mikey watched the motion with rapt attention, but the pretty, dark-haired girl seemed oblivious to the attention. “He’s right. I’m not telling anyone about where I come from when I get to college. I want the chance to decide who I’m going to be and I’m not giving anyone the opportunity to tell me anything different.” She walked around the table so she could hug her sister goodnight and stopped by to drop a quick kiss on my cheek. She pointed at Cam and told him in a stern voice, “You get to be whoever you want to be now, Cameron. Don’t forget that, and don’t forget to be someone who will make the people who gave you that opportunity proud.” Clearly, she was talking about everything Brynn had given up for her to get to this point. Both of those girls were something else. How they managed to be so good and pure considering they came from somewhere so toxic and foul was a true testament to how strong their hearts were.
I told Opal goodnight as she swept out of the room. I turned to look at Cam and told him, “That’s all really good advice, from both of them. Wyatt is a smart, successful guy, and Opal knows a thing or two about where you’re coming from.” I chuckled as Cam gave up trying to protect his cupcake, handing the entire thing over to me.
“You don’t want to be a Fed or a cop though, right? You don’t want a job where you make no money and get no thanks for risking your life, do you?” Mikey chimed in, and as usual, his thoughtless words had me wanting to kick him under the table. Would it be so hard to be supportive of anything that his brother was interested in?
He made a strangled sound and reached down to rub his shin. I laughed again because apparently, Brynn had given him a good thump under the table when all I did was think about it. She was getting more and more aggressive about putting the older Bauer brother in his place. She reached out and clasped Cam’s hand. “You can be whatever you want to be. Who you love has zero bearing on your ability to go out there and be the best whatever it is you decide to be. Remember that.”
He gave her a shy grin that he seemed to reserve only for her, and nodded his head. “I will. I think it’s cool that he’s openly gay and in the DEA. That’s pretty badass. He must be pretty tough.”
She dipped her head in agreement. “It is. He’s also a good brother and a very nice man, which is also very badass.”
Mikey made a gagging noise and pushed his chair back from the table. “I know you missed getting all the mushy, lovey-dovey stuff from Mom and Dad growing up, but now you’re drowning in it, kid. I know you’re gay and all, but damn, you still need your balls.”
Without thinking, I plunked my beer down on the table and rose to my feet. I heard Brynn say my name and felt Cam scramble to his feet on his side of the table as well, but none of it slowed the furious rush of anger that was crashing through my veins.
I reached out and clasped the teenager on the back of the neck. He sputtered and struggled, and I frog-marched him out of the kitchen and out of the front door. My boots kicked up dust as I kept moving him against his protests and objections toward the barn. He was a well-built kid, but I had four or five inches on him and months of unaddressed aggravation to deal with. I would never raise a hand to someone I knew I could really injure, and I would never hurt someone without a really good reason. I knew both the Bauer boys had been knocked around by their old man, and it hadn’t done either one any kind of favor, but Mikey needed some kind of discipline. He was out of control. I was going to put him to work the way my dad did when I mouthed off and overstepped the bounds he had set for me. All three Warner brothers were familiar with what happened in the barn when someone acted out.
Shoving into the massive building, I flicked on the lights and was immediately greeted with a round of snickers and whinnies from the horses. I dragged Mikey into the tack room and handed him the first shovel I came across. I lifted my arms and arched my eyebrows at the petulant teenager.
“When you talk shit, it’s only fitting that you spend the rest of the night cleaning it up. There are thirty stalls. They all need to be mucked and then relined with hay. I’m going to stand here and watch you do each and every single one of them. Every time you bitch about it, I’m going to find another chore for you to do.”
He looked at me and then down at the shovel. With a sneer, he threw it on the ground. “You can’t make me do anything. I’m out of here.”
He started to push past me, but I grabbed his arm and looked at him with a lifted eyebrow. “It’s over fifty miles to the next main road and then twenty more from that road into town. There is no Uber out here, no cab you can call. This is your only option. Clean the stalls. The quicker you’re done, the quicker you can get back up to the house.”
“And if I don’t?” Defiance was clear in every line of his body.
“If you don’t, you’re leaving tomorrow, and the free ride you’ve had because your brother loves you without question dries up. You are not going to disrespect him any longer, and you are not going to walk all over his generosity. You’re that kid’s hero, he risked his life when he thought you were in danger and you’ve done nothing but shit on him since you were reunited.” I told Brynn to stop sending the gift cards, but she insisted that she couldn’t. Even though he was a royal brat, Mikey Bauer was still one of her people.
He reached up to rub the back of his neck while looking down at the tips of his white sneakers. “You don’t understand.”
I scoffed. “You’re right, I don’t. I have two brothers I would die for, and who I know would die for me. You can’t even be bothered to spare yours a kind word. He blames himself for everything that happened to you, including what your dad put you through. You might be a lot of things, but you aren’t stupid. You know what your dad did has nothing to do with Cam and everything to do with him being sick and evil.”
He shuffled his feet and looked up at me under his eyelashes. “I wanted things to be better with Cam gone. What kind of brother does that make me? When I woke up in the hospital and they told me he took off all I could think was ‘thank God.’ I don’t have to be the guy with the gay brother anymore. I don’t have to dodge Dad’s fist anymore. I thought it would all stop.” I could tell by his tone that it didn’t. “I thought the same thing when he came back. Maybe it would be better. I wouldn’t have to worry about where he was and what he was doing anymore. But then he told that cop how he survived, and all I could think about was how I wanted him gone so it would go easier for me. It’s all fucked up. I can’t get it straight in my head. I’m jealous he got away from Dad, but horrified at what he had to do to make that happen. I say dumb shit I don’t mean because I can’t find the right words to apologize, and I do mean stuff because I don’t want him to look up to me anymore. I let him down in so many ways. I’m not a hero, I don’t want to be one either.”
I clasped the kid on the shoulder and gave him a little shake. “He will forgive you pretty much anything, right now. Keep it up, and you are going to push him so far away you’ll never be able to reach him. You need to talk to him, explain all of this, and you need to learn some respect. I get that you haven’t had it easy, none of us have. That’s no excuse to be a little asshole, and if you check out my brother’s girl one more time, I can guarantee you’ll be eating all your meals through a straw. He’s more territorial than a bear. And I’m pretty sure if you keep pushing your luck with Opal she’s going to neuter you.” I gave him a little push and nudged the shovel with my boot. “Now get to work. You’re already looking at a long night.” I could see he was debating pushing his luck and refusing, but he picked up the shovel and made his way into the first stall. I swore I could feel my dad reaching down from the heavens and patting me on the back for a job well done. Never had I felt more like the man he raised me to be than in that moment.
It was late when Mikey got done. About halfway through I felt bad for the kid and helped him finish the labor-intensive job. He was dragging ass and covered in all kinds of filth as we stumbled into the main house. All the lights were off except for the one in the kitchen. I could hear someone banging around in there and figured Brynn had seen us coming back from the barn. Sure enough, she came out of the arched doorway with a mug of hot cocoa, complete with a mountain of whipped cream on the top and a still warm chocolate chip cookie she handed over to the sleepy teenager.
In response to Mikey’s outburst which had earned him long hours shoveling shit, Brynn addressed him with as much love as she would’ve addressed Cam. “You’re right. We do have a lot of love to give around here. There’s plenty for you if you decide you want some of it for yourself, Mikey. We’re happy to share.” She gave him a lopsided smile which he returned before slowly limping his way off toward the guest room where he was staying.
Brynn grabbed my hand and pulled me after her into the kitchen. I shook my head, telling her that I was tired. All I wanted was a shower and to pass out in my nice soft bed with her beside me.
I shut up when she backed me into the counter, reaching around for something behind me, before getting on her knees in front of me. I blinked at her in surprise and lifted an eyebrow. “Uh, I’m never going to say no to a blowjob from that pretty mouth of yours, but are you sure you want to start that here? Not to mention I’m all dirty and I stink.” The entire lower part of the house was wide open, the only room on this level that had four walls and a door was Cy’s office. Anyone could walk in on us at any time even though it was the middle of the night.
I laughed when she handed me a familiar yellow and green bag. I had no idea where she managed to find me Funyuns at this time of night, but I would take them. The laughter died when instead of reaching for my belt and zipper so she could free my rapidly thickening cock, she reached for my hand. Looking up at me with those dark eyes shining she held up one of the smaller round chips and asked me, “Lane Warner, will you marry me?”
I looked at her and then at the chip and back again. I felt the way my jaw fell open, and I could sense the way surprise had frozen my features. I blinked at her again, before bursting into a laugh that was loud enough to wake the entire house as I sank to my knees in front of her. “Of course I will. How could I turn down my favorite girl asking for my hand in marriage with my favorite kind of ring?” I kissed her forehead and the tip of her nose. I kissed her lips and felt them tremble beneath mine.
She sniffed a little and rubbed her cheek against mine. “I’ve wanted to ask you since we got back from Denver. I even had Leo and Em help me look at rings. I had a plan, I wanted to do something special, but after watching you handle Mikey in just the right way, I couldn’t wait anymore, so I had to improvise. Luckily, I found your stash. You are such a good man, Lane. You are kind and patient. You love with no restraint. You take care of those who need it most, but you don’t try to overtake them. You take care of me and Cam, and now Mikey. You are exactly what I’ve always needed.” She wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me like she never wanted to stop. “I really do want to marry you, Lane. You’re the only person I would ever ask.”
I let her put the chip on my finger and spun it around with my thumb before popping it into my mouth. She wrinkled her nose at the crunch. “Since you asked, I get to be in charge of the rings.” She sighed and gave a reluctant nod. “And I get to get on one knee and tell you that you are my forever when I give you yours. You don’t have to say yes or no, you just have to agree to be mine for all time.”
She gave a little laugh and snuggled into my chest. “I already am so that won’t be a problem.”
I kissed her again and slid my hands under the hem of her tank top. Her skin was so warm and soft against my palms that I couldn’t get enough of it. Before she could protest, I had her shirt over her head, her bra popped open, and my mouth was all over her breasts. I covered one with my hand and worked the other with my mouth. Her nipple pulled taut immediately against my tongue and the other one puckered and poked at the center of my palm. I kneaded the supple skin as I kissed my way up the long line of her throat.
“Not here. Anyone can come in.” She sounded breathless, and her protest was weak.
“I’ll be fast.” I pulled back and wiggled my eyebrows at her. “You were the one who got on your knees. It gave me all kinds of ideas.” I put my hands under her armpits and hoisted her up. Once she had those endless legs wrapped around my waist, I walked her back to the counter so I could set her down. Her pajama bottoms were easy to remove and much to my dick’s delight she wasn’t wearing anything underneath. I feasted my eyes on naked, gold skin and that perfectly pink and pouty place between her legs. Even her pussy was flawless, and I couldn’t wait to get inside of her.
“I got on my knees to propose.” She laughed as I pulled my shirt open and frantically worked on getting my pants unfastened. She took pity on me when I got an arm stuck and helped me strip down so that my jeans were on my ass and my shirt was a tangled mess on the floor near her pajamas. Cy would kill me if he knew what I was doing in here, but what a way to go.
I stepped into the V of Brynn’s legs, my cock immediately pressing into her soft, wet heat. My stomach contracted in pleasure, and my hands started to shake as I pushed her hair back from her shoulders. I kissed her cheeks, her eyelids, the tip of her nose. I kissed her forehead and the curve of her jaw and traced the sexy shell of her ear with my tongue. I worshiped the face that meant so much to me. Memorized every laugh line and curve. When I finally touched my lips to hers, I could feel the way she loved me in that kiss. Her heart was pouring out of her, her love caught in every breath. It was a special kiss, the first one we shared after agreeing to spend the rest of our lives together. It was the first one of many.
Her naked thighs clenched around me and her damp folds dragged along the underside of my cock, soaking me in her desire. We both shuddered as my tongue dueled with hers. So far none of this was going fast, which was perfect. The pleasure was drawn out, prolonged, lengthy. It forced pinpricks of anticipation to needle our skin and made our breaths choppy and rapid.
I curled my fingers around her jaw and held her head still as I ravished her mouth. She tilted her head back with total compliance and melted into me as I started to rock against her soft center. My dick dragged through her velvety folds, the tip tapping against her sensitive clit with every thrust. I felt my cock swell when she whimpered at the contact. Her arms laced around my neck and she started to move in a slow grind against me.
I ghosted a hand down her spine and got a hand on her backside. I used it to pull her closer to the edge of the counter, so I had better leverage to move against her. Her heels were digging into my ass, and my belt buckle was jangling distractedly where it dangled from my belt loop. I just knew the noise would awaken someone and I didn’t care.
I dragged a thumb over her lower lip and down her throat. I rested my fingers on the base of her neck, not squeezing, but pressing down so she could feel me there. Her eyes drifted closed, and she went limp against me as I found her tight opening and pushed my way inside. Her muscles fluttered around my length, and she pulsed around me. My very happy dick kicked in response and thickened even more. Her pleasure pushed mine to new heights.
“Look at me, Brynn. I want to see my fiancée’s eyes while I make love to her.” I sounded like I’d been eating sandpaper, but she got the hint and pulled those midnight eyes open and locked them on mine. “That’s it. There’s my girl.”
I started to move inside of her. A slow, steady rhythm that made both of us pant.
“Always been yours, Lane. Always.” Her voice didn’t sound any better than mine, but the roughness and unsteadiness were sexy as hell. We made each other unravel. It was glorious. There was nothing like coming undone with the person you trusted to put you back together when they were done with you.
I pounded into her, the counter digging into my thighs and sweat starting to trickle down my hairline. Her fingers were digging into the back of my neck, and she was whispering my name over and over again like a broken prayer. I put a little more pressure on her neck where I was holding her and tightened my grip on her ass. I kissed her until I couldn’t breathe and pushed into her harder and faster as her body quickened and her inner walls started to vibrate and quake around my length. The sounds of sex echoed off the tiled walls, and I hoped like hell my brother wasn’t about to walk in and get a close up of my ‘o’ face. We were close, but not that close.
Brynn’s legs quivered where they were clamped around me, and her pussy tightened like a vise. Her orgasm tugged and pulled my cock, milking mine out of me. I threw my head back and gritted my teeth, giving myself over to the sensation of filling her up and being surrounded by her satisfaction. Sex with her was always something else, but knowing it was sex with the person who was mine and had been mine forever, added another layer to it. There was a possessive, primal part of me that wanted to parade her around looking so blissed out and content so everyone who dared to look at her like she belonged to them could see that I was the only one who was going to get her off from here on out. I owned her pleasure. Her body, and more importantly, her heart was all mine. I’d never been given a greater gift.
“Thank you for coming after me and bringing me home, Brynn.” Neither one of us would be here, tangled up in one another if she hadn’t been brave enough to go after what she wanted.
She laughed as she collapsed against my chest, her heart racing against mine. “Thank you for giving me a home to bring you back to, Lane.”
Home. It’s where my heart…and hers… had always been.