Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 87367 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 437(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87367 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 437(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
I wanted Brody O’Ralley.
Now I had to figure out if I had the balls to do anything about it.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Brody
I took another swig of bourbon from my flask, sitting on my ass and gazing out across the pond at the Mitchell property—the pond we’d sneak off to as kids so many times, the place where Cohen and I had enjoyed such a good time. The sun was setting in the distance, a cruel reminder of the memories I would have to leave here.
Elliecomb nudged her face against the side of my head, and I turned, stroking her neck softly. She’d always known my moods so well, could sense when I was hurt or in pain.
Thinking about my losses.
We’d hardly had time for goodbyes, and even worse, I’d put so much on him.
It wasn’t his fault if he didn’t feel for me the way I’d come to feel about him. Maybe it was best for both of us that he’d picked up and moved along so quickly. Certainly made it easier than him telling me he didn’t feel the same and staying, and then, knowing that, we’d have to continue our relationship of exchanging tips and tricks in our areas of expertise.
I told myself he’d done me a favor, even though I knew it was only a justification to soothe my pain. No matter what I told myself, it couldn’t magically change the way I felt. Losing someone was never easy, and there were no shortcuts to getting to the other side.
As the sun finished setting, I did my best to accept the light that had set in my heart…then rode Elliecomb back to the stables and headed home.
Walking up to the house, I noticed a familiar car in the drive. Cohen? I picked up the pace, hurrying around the house to the front porch, where Cohen sat on the steps, illuminated by the light above the front door. His hands folded together, his gaze toward the woods.
He’s back.
No. He’s not, I reminded myself, because he could have come for any number of reasons. But if that were the case, why stop by here rather than the Mitchell house?
“Cohen,” I said as I neared him.
He pushed to his feet, turning to me. “Brody, hey…”
“Brody’s here!” I heard Dwain’s voice coming from inside, as though they’d been awaiting my return.
“Welcome to the O’Ralley home,” I said.
“Yeah, I was impressed I didn’t get shot straight away.”
Confused and upset as I still was, how could I not laugh? His beautiful smile returned, which just seemed so much worse if he’d dropped by only so he could take it away from me again.
He started to say something when I heard the creak of the screen door, and Big Daddy came barging out.
I practically threw myself between him and Cohen. “Big Daddy, now is not the time. Can you just give it a minute?”
“I need a minute first,” he said as my siblings started filing out of the house behind him.
Suddenly my heartbreak was becoming a family affair.
“No, I know how you feel,” I said, more than a little agitated. “Clearly, Cohen came over here to talk to me, so can you give us—”
“It was my fault he went away,” Big Daddy blurted out, and I could read the guilt in his expression.
“No,” Cohen said behind me.
“Yes, it is. I overheard you talking to Dwain about being at his place one night. Rage overtook me, the feud mixed with my own past with his mother. I felt like he was using you to hurt our family. I was thinking I’d just be giving him an earful, but then he told me that, apparently, he found out his great-grandpa really did steal our family’s secret recipe, and that really set me off. I thought he was trying to make me even more upset, or confuse the hell out of me. I really couldn’t figure out why he’d said that, so I snapped.”
“You chased him away? How could you—”
“No, it’s not—” Cohen started, but Dwain shushed him.
“Brody,” Lee said, stepping beside Big Daddy. He towered over all of us, looking impressive as ever, not just because of his stature, but because of the serious expression on his face. If anyone could shut me the hell up, it was Lee, since he’d never been the sort to speak unless he had something to say.
“Let him explain himself,” Lee added in such a calm manner that I bit my bottom lip. “And if you’re still raw about it after, then give him hell. But, Big Daddy, you need to be out with whatever it is, because we don’t need no more secrets in this house.”
He was right, but I knew if the next words that came out of Big Daddy’s mouth had to do with this Mitchell getting off our property, I was going to lose my shit.