“I’ll never get these back on.”
I had just woken up from my nap and Silas had gone outside to fetch my clothes. My shirt was soaked but at least I could pull it on. My jeans were a different story.
“Just wrap up in the blanket and I’ll carry you inside.”
The rain had stopped and I cracked my window to take deep breaths of the clean, sweet air as he drove us home.
“Do you think we’ll hear from Beau soon?” I asked.
Sabrina had been constantly on my mind and I hated that I couldn’t talk to her. I had called her phone a couple of times this week, leaving increasingly frantic fake messages in case anyone from the mafia was monitoring her calls, and each time I’d heard her voicemail recording, my worries had increased.
“I doubt it,” Silas said. “They’ve got supplies for nearly a month. He’ll probably stay up there and make sure she’s set before he comes back.”
“I feel so bad for inconveniencing him but I’m unbelievably grateful at the same time. If he hadn’t offered to do that, I don’t know what we would have done.”
“Don’t feel bad,” he said. “We’ll all do what we can to keep your friend alive.”
It meant so much that everyone had rallied around Sabrina, that they’d do something so risky just for me. “Thank you.” I just hoped that Sabrina wasn’t being too tough on Beau and that when he left her up there alone, she didn’t go crazy. I had sent her with my Kindle but there was only so much she could read before getting restless.
Silas took my hand. “I still can’t believe her story. She’s got talent, that’s for sure.”
“There’s a true statement.”
Sabrina’s story had come out, as promised, the day after she’d left for the outpost. Her writing had been impeccable. Her story crafted to perfection. If I hadn’t known better, I would have thought it was a creative-writing piece, not an investigative report.
Setting those worries aside, I changed the subject. “What do you want for dinner?” As we pulled up to the barn, we were still debating options. I was just reaching for my door handle when Silas’s parents emerged from inside with Dolly happily trailing behind.
“Oh, no.” I tucked the blanket around my bare legs and tried to cover up my breasts. My pink satin bra was shining brightly through my see-through white tank.
“Sit tight,” Silas said, rolling down his window as his parents approached the truck.
“Hi, kids,” Olivia said with a smile. Elliot didn’t say hello, he just stared at Silas.
“Hi,” Silas said. “What are you guys up to?”
“We took the four-wheelers out for a quick drive. It smells so good, I couldn’t stay in the house,” his mom said. “What are you two doing?”
“Just got back from fixing fence down in the lower meadow.”
Elliot’s eyes raked over me and his mouth turned down in distaste. “Right.”
“Dad,” Silas grumbled. “Watch it.”
“Ignore him,” Olivia said. “He’s just mad because I beat him in cribbage twice today. What are you two doing for dinner? I was hoping you’d be free and could come over. I’m making Silas’s favorite, shepherd’s pie.”
Silas looked to me for an answer. “That sounds great,” I told Olivia. “Can we bring anything?”
She shook her head. “Just come on over around six.” The smile on her face was pure, unexpected joy. “Come on, you old grump.” She pulled Elliot away from Silas’s window.
When they were out of sight, Silas hopped out and came to my door, carrying me inside. “Thanks for agreeing to dinner. I know it will make Mom happy.”
“You don’t have to thank me. Considering they live a hundred feet away, we rarely see them.”
I was looking forward to spending more time with Olivia, though I could do without seeing Elliot. Clearly his attitude toward me hadn’t changed and I had a feeling I’d be under scrutiny all through dinner.
Unfortunately, I was right. By the time Olivia served her chocolate sheet cake, I was ready to crawl under the table and stab Elliot in the foot with my fork.
Elliot hadn’t stopped glaring at me since the second I’d crossed the threshold. Olivia had been overly nice and friendly, going above and beyond to make up for her husband’s attitude, but Silas was about five seconds from exploding.
My hand had been attached to his knee beneath the table since we’d taken our seats. If not for his mother and my frequent knee squeezes to reassure him that I was fine, I think he would have dragged me out of there before Olivia had the chance to serve her meal.
“We need to talk about the branding,” Elliot said to Silas. “It’s a month away. Time to start lining up a crew.”
I sighed, glad that we’d finally landed on a topic that didn’t involve me. In two hours, Elliot and Olivia had interrogated me about my life these last sixteen years. Olivia’s questions had been sweet and curious. Elliot’s had been direct and critical.
“I think we’ll have plenty of help,” Silas said. “The Lee brothers confirmed they could come and rope calves with me. Between Paxon and some of the other guys, we’ll have enough wrestlers. You can take the irons, and Gus can vaccinate.”
Rope. Wrestle. Irons. Vaccinate. I made a mental note to ask Silas what all of that meant.
“Good,” Elliot said. “I figured you’d be on top of it. I don’t know what you think, but I’d rather not let Gus rope. No matter what he says, being on a horse is no place for him.”
“Agreed,” Silas said. “If he begs either of us to rope for a while, let’s tell him no. I don’t want him doing something else to stress his back. Vaccinating should be plenty.”
Silas’s leg relaxed. It was nice to see him and his dad agree on something about the ranch. They still had their disagreements, but maybe this was a sign of more cooperative times ahead.
“Have you ever been to a branding before, Felicity?” Olivia asked.
“I haven’t.” I smiled, relaxing too. “I’m looking forward to seeing it.”
“It’s quite a production.”
“What’s she going to do there?” Elliot asked Silas.
And just like that, we were all tense again.
“Whatever she wants,” Silas growled. I pressed down harder on his leg when he started to rise.
“Elliot,” Olivia warned.
“Just wondering if I need to plan on her being in the way,” he grumbled. “You know how it is with people who don’t know what they’re doing. We’ll spend all day making sure she doesn’t hurt herself.”
“I’ll be sure to follow instructions and not get in the way.” My smile was fake. I bit the inside of my cheek so I wouldn’t open my mouth and tell him to kiss my ass. My patience was wearing thin, but the last thing we needed was an argument during my first dinner in the Grants’ home.
Don’t let him get to you. I pushed my fork farther away.
Silas glared at his dad and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “Felicity will get to do whatever she wants. This is her first branding and I want her to enjoy it. If she wants to stand around and watch, that’s what she’ll do. If she wants to help, we’re all going to teach her what to do. Understand?”
Elliot’s face turned red but before he could respond to Silas’s decree, Olivia jumped in. “Felicity, I could really use your help that morning with all the cooking. We host a big dinner that evening for the crew and their families.”
“I’d love to help. Whatever you need.”
“Great! And would you mind inviting your family? It’s been ages since I’ve seen your mother.”
“I’m sure she’d love to come.”
“Jess usually comes to help every year,” Silas said. “We should have Gigi and the kids come along too. I’ll take Roe for a ride on Lulu.”
My anxiety about the branding instantly settled. Having my family here would give me a safe group to be with while he was working. I wasn’t surprised that Silas had already thought ahead. If he couldn’t be with me all day, buffering my interactions with Elliot, he’d make sure my family was by my side.
I smiled and gratefully leaned into his side. “I’m sure they’d have a great time.”
Turning back to the table, my eyes locked with Elliot’s. His thoughts were transparent.
Sorry, Elliot, but I’m not going anywhere.
No matter what challenge he put in my path.
The next month flew by and the morning of the branding came fast.
“All right, sweetie,” Olivia said. “Looks like the troops are arriving. Let’s get the breakfast pastries and coffee outside.”
“Okay.” I smiled nervously, grabbing a platter of cinnamon rolls.
I was so worked up that my hands were shaking. Over the last month, Silas had explained the process, and though I was excited to see it all firsthand, I still didn’t know what to expect.
Silas and I had been up before five this morning to start preparations. I’d showered and joined Olivia in her kitchen while Silas and Elliot had worked to prepare everything in the corral beside the barn where the branding would take place.
As I was heading outside, a truck and horse trailer pulled through the lot and drove down to the corral. I smiled as they passed me carrying my platter of rolls to the barn, where Olivia and I had set up a nice, long table right outside its doors so the crew could grab pastries and refill coffee cups as they went back and forth to the corral.
Please, let this go well for Silas. He’d told me that branding was one of his favorite things to do every year, and he deserved to have the day go smoothly, to have some fun. His nightmares weren’t as bad but he was still having them occasionally. The stress of the ranch still weighed heavily on his shoulders and things with Elliot were still strained.
He needed a good day.
“We couldn’t have asked for better weather.” Olivia joined me with a huge thermos of coffee.
“It’s beautiful.” I took a few deep breaths of the cool May morning air and looked to the sky. There wasn’t a cloud in sight and the sun was shining brightly. By noon, the chill would be gone and it would be the perfect day for outside work. “What else do we need to do?”
“Nothing right this minute.” Olivia smiled and linked her arm through mine. “Let’s go check on the guys.” We walked along the corral’s fence to where Silas and Elliot were greeting the men from the truck. “Those are the Lee brothers,” she said. “Do you remember them? They are quite a bit older than you.”
I shook my head. I’d probably be surrounded by unfamiliar faces all day and couldn’t wait for Mom, Jess and Gigi to arrive.
“Morning,” Olivia called to the men.
They all turned and one of the Lee brothers waved. Olivia released my arm and I joined Silas at his side. With an arm around my shoulders, he introduced me to the twin brothers.
“This is my girlfriend, Felicity Cleary.”
We shook hands and one of the brothers asked, “Cleary. You’re the sheriff’s sister?”
I smiled. “That’s me.”
“Speak of the devil, here he comes now.” Silas nodded toward the barn.
I turned and saw Gigi’s SUV park next to my car. The Cleary gang piled out and, with Rowen skipping wildly at my mom’s side, joined our huddle.
“Aunt Lissy!” Rowen screeched, hugging my legs.
I bent to kiss her nose and then leaned over to hug my mom. “Hi,” I said. “How are you today?”
“I’m great.” She smiled and started visiting with Olivia.
Mom had started the drug trial a month ago, and it seemed to be making a small difference. I had been spending afternoons with her instead of evenings, those being reserved for Silas, and I hadn’t seen her have an episode for almost a month. I had my fingers crossed our lucky streak would continue.
“How’s my big man?” I took Ben from Jess’s arms and kissed his chubby cheeks. “Excited to play outside and get dirty?”
“We might have to hose him off before we go home,” Gigi teased. She was as beautiful as ever this morning, her skin glowing and hair shining. It would be just a couple more months until baby girl Cleary joined our family and I couldn’t wait to meet her.
“Choc,” Ben said.
“In a little bit.” I’d definitely won my nephew over but had created a bit of a chocolate-obsessed monster in the process.
After visiting for a while, Elliot declared that there was work to be done and everyone went their separate ways. Gigi and I went back to the house and sat at an outside table, enjoying a morning coffee while the kids played in the yard. In the background, the cows and calves were bellowing.
“So, Jess tried to explain all of this to me last night but I’m still confused as to what’s exactly going to happen,” Gigi said.
“You and me both. I’ve been asking Silas questions for a month and still can’t picture it.”
Last night, the cattle had all been brought into an arena that adjoined the branding corral. Silas and the Lee brothers would ride in and rope the small calves, pulling them into the branding arena. From there, a crew of wrestlers would hold down the calves while Elliot gave them a brand and Gus vaccinated them against common bovine illnesses.
Gigi smirked. “I can’t wait to see Jess wrestling around in the dirt.”
“Silas said that if I wanted to try, I could. And he promised to teach me how to rope this summer. I guess Olivia used to be one of the best ropers around.”
“Seriously?” Gigi asked. “That’s awesome. I hope you try the wrestling thing. I’ll be sure to take a lot of pictures of you filthy and gross to use against you one day.”
“Gee. Thanks,” I deadpanned.
“Do you think the branding is going to hurt the calves? I really hope not. They’re so cute and happy.”
“Silas says that calves are a lot tougher than we’d expect, and the pain only seems to bother them for a second. He promised me that by the end of the day, they’d all be back to running around and playing with one another in the pasture. Still, I feel bad for the little guys too.”
“Did you know it’s the law to have them branded? Jess told me that, and I thought he was joking. He made me Google it when I didn’t believe him.”
“Well, one thing about today is for certain—it will be educational.”
Hours later, the ranch was packed full of laughing and smiling people. The branding wasn’t just a necessary task but also a chance for neighboring farmers and ranchers to spend time with one another. The fence next to the corral was lined with people watching the crew work in the arena.
My eyes constantly wandered to Silas. He looked so handsome and commanding, as he always did riding Courage. I felt so proud to call him mine, and in twenty years, I wanted to be in this exact place, watching him manage another branding.
The fence line erupted in laughter when one of the bigger calves almost got the best of Jess and Paxon and the duo was sent flying into the dirt, smiling and cursing at the same time. They, along with the other wrestlers, were all filthy but happy.
Silas called for a lunch break and the crew disbursed to grab sandwiches from the table Olivia and I had set up for them. After tying up Courage, Silas sauntered over to me at the fence. “Hey, babe.”
“Hey, yourself. Looking good out there, baby.” I winked
He tipped back his cowboy hat and leaned down to brush his lips against mine. “Having fun?”
“This is amazing. Do you still think I could try to wrestle one of the calves later?”
It wasn’t really wrestling the creatures, just holding down their legs so they didn’t kick when Elliot came over and gave them their brand. I wasn’t known for my upper-body strength, but I could give it a try. There had been other women in the corral today, and seeing them had given me confidence.
Silas grinned and kissed me again. “You bet. Let’s grab a bite to eat first.”
Not long after, I was sitting on the ground, dirty, sweaty and so damn proud of myself. Silas had helped me wrestle three calves while his dad had looked on in disbelief. It hadn’t been easy, my arms were burning and tired, but I hadn’t given up. I’d used all my might and followed his instructions without error.
Silas stood and helped me off the dirt, immediately pulling me into his chest. His mouth came down on mine and quickly swept his tongue inside. Right in the middle of the corral, he kissed me like we were alone in his bedroom.
I kissed him right back. Tongues twisted. Teeth nipped. Lips explored. Neither one of us held anything back.
“That’s my sister!” Jess called from beside us. “Do you mind, Grant?”
He broke away, and we both smiled like silly fools as the crew around us laughed.
“You did awesome, babe,” he said. “I’m so fucking proud of you.”
My heart soared with the praise. “I’m proud of me too.”
If not for Elliot glaring at us, it would have been the perfect moment. Whatever. I turned back to Silas and started laughing. “I’m covered in shit. These jeans will never be the same again.”
“Eh,” he said. “It’s just green grass and water.”
“I’d better head inside and you’d better get back to roping.”
“Okay. See you in a bit.” He gave me a quick kiss before I climbed over the fence and crossed the gravel lot toward the main house.
The Grants’ sprawling house was one of the nicest I’d seen in all of the Jamison Valley. Elliot and Olivia’s log home had a wide porch that ran the length of the front. Its first floor was full of windows and the roof had two large dormers cut into the tin.
Inside, the house was full of rich maple and hickory woods. Olivia had decorated with espresso leather and deep-green upholstered furniture that gave the entire place a rustic and woodsy atmosphere. The kitchen was the only room in the house that wasn’t dark and cozy. It was full of cream cabinets, stainless appliances and yellow granite slabs. It didn’t match the rest of the house but somehow it all went together perfectly.
“Hi,” I said to Olivia and Mom, who were standing in the kitchen. “What can I do?” I was eager to learn all about preparing a meal for this many people. I wanted to know everything about being a branding hostess, like Olivia.
Because in twenty years, I wanted to be right here too, working to prepare the celebration meal for a branding that was wasn’t just Silas’s big day. It would be ours together.
The rest of the branding went by in a flash. I worked tirelessly with Olivia to prepare a prime rib and turkey feast for the evening’s big dinner. She might not have been outside in the dirt but Olivia had worked harder than anyone else on the ranch today and she’d made it seem easy.
Not once had she gotten stressed or rushed. She’d moved with grace and efficiency, knowing exactly what to do to prepare a gourmet meal for over forty people. My respect and admiration for Silas’s mom had grown tenfold in one afternoon.
“Phew,” I said when the last person came through the buffet line in the kitchen. “That was insane. You’re amazing.”
“Thanks, sweetie,” Olivia said. “Having your help was a lifesaver.”
Next year, I promised myself I’d do even more to share her load.
“Mom?” Silas called from the front door. “Can you come out here?”
“I’ll go,” I said, touching Olivia’s shoulder. “You should eat and have a big glass of wine. You’ve earned it.”
She smiled. “You know? I think I will.”
I hustled outside. Silas stood at the base of the porch steps, Courage right behind him. “What’s up?”
“Where’s Mom?”
“Inside taking a much-needed break.”
“Oh. I need to get him unsaddled and brushed out. I was hoping she could run down to the corral and grab the vaccines from Dad. They need to go in the fridge.”
I kissed his dusty cheek. “I’ll do it.”
“Lis—”
“I’ll be fine. Your dad and I can’t avoid each other forever. He’s just going to have to get used to me being around.” After dinner a month ago, we hadn’t seen him much but I meant what I’d said. We couldn’t avoid one another forever.
Silas sighed. “I just don’t want him to upset you or wreck your day.”
“Like I said, I’ll be fine. Go and get Courage taken care of and I’ll meet you in the barn. I put our dinner plates in the oven so we could eat together.”
“Thanks, babe.” He gave me another quick kiss before we split.
I squared my shoulders and marched to the corral. Please don’t let him be an ass. And if he is, please help me keep my mouth shut.
“Elliot?” I called.
He spun around from the table he was packing up. “What?”
I found my fake smile. “Silas said the vaccines need to be refrigerated. I just came down to get them from you.”
He grumbled something rude under his breath and turned to close a small, blue cooler, shoving it at me without a word. After I’d spent all day helping him and his wife, he couldn’t even mutter a “thank you”?
“You’re welcome,” I clipped and instantly wished the words back into my mouth. Why hadn’t I just ignored him and walked away?
Fucking hell, Felicity.
With a red face and clenched jaw, Elliot eyed me up and down. “That’s a good look for you, covered in shit.”
There was no keeping my anger in check now. My lip curled. “What is your problem?”
“You. You don’t belong here.”
My eyes narrowed. “You won’t scare me away.”
“Yeah?” he sneered. “We’ll see about that.”
We glared at one another for a few moments before I finally broke away and turned to leave, clutching the handle on the cooler with all my might.
“That’s an even better look,” he called. “You walking away. Make my year, Felicity. Don’t stop until you hit ocean.”
I raised a hand but didn’t speak. My middle finger did the talking.
The evening air was starting to cool but I was raging hot. I stomped back to the barn and unloaded the vaccines into the mini fridge, slamming the door shut when I’d finished.
“Uh-oh,” Silas said at my back.
“Yeah. Uh-oh.”
“Fuck,” he clipped. “What did he do?”
I blew out a loud breath and turned to face him. “He was just his usual unpleasant self. Though, in all fairness, he’s not entirely to blame. I may have let loose some snark.”
“Was that before or after he started shit with you?”
My eyes dropped to my shoes. “Um . . .”
“That’s what I thought,” he muttered when I didn’t answer.
“It will be fine.” I stepped closer to reassure him but he spun around and took a step toward the door.
“The fuck it will. This is bullshit.” He turned back to me, rage burning behind those brown eyes.
“Silas,” I said, holding up my hands to try and calm him down. He didn’t even notice. He just launched into a loud, shouting rant.
“He’s my dad. He should be bending over backward to make you feel welcome here. Instead, he’s been a total fucking dick. You’d think he’d be in a good mood today of all days, but no. He couldn’t even let me enjoy this without ruining it. You know? Fuck it. If he picks a fight with you, he picks a fight with me.”
The curry comb flew out of his hand and into the wall as he spun around and walked to the door.
Holy hell.
The lid on Silas’s temper had just popped off.