Cowboys 03 - My Cowboy Homecoming (24 page)

“Shhhhhhit.” Jimmy cursed, long and low before showing himself. “What the hell are you doing sneaking around here in the dark? You nearly got your ass shot off.”

We were both still breathing hard when two more men ran up behind him. I guessed Malloy and Crispin by their shape in the faint moonlight.

“I startled the sheep.” I said, hands still raised. “I was just visiting my friend Pio here—”

“Are you drunk?” Jimmy demanded. “Take your damn hands down.”

“Of course I’m not drunk. I’m just—” Hot moisture burned my eyes. “I wanted to come home.”

Crispin stepped forward, taking the shotgun from Jimmy’s shaking fingers. “Next time, please let us know you’re coming. That way we’ll make sure not to shoot you.”

***

Lucho was sleeping when I found him, lying on his bed with a plate on his chest, crumbs from what looked to be cookies still evident on his lips. The man did love his treats.

I kissed him awake, relishing the sweet taste of chocolate. “Hey.”

He blinked up at me. “What are you doing here?”

I gave his arm a light thump with my fist. “I told you. Don’t count me out.”

“Are you drunk?”

“Why’s everybody asking that? No, I’m not drunk. I don’t have to be drunk to do something monumentally stupid.”

“Wait. What’d you do?”

I told him the plan I’d come up with to go to the authorities about my dad, how I’d given Slade the tape my father made. “You think Heath would forgive me if I put some of their crimes on him? I can’t take credit for shit that happened before I came home.”

“You’re protecting your mother. He’d understand. But didn’t people see her when she dropped the things off?”

“If it comes up, I’ll just say she was duped. She thought she was dropping off clothes for a prison outreach ministry, and neither of us realized what was really going on until I did it myself.”

He was silent for a while. “Slade’s getting a bargain here. He doesn’t have to pay for any of his crimes.”

“It’s not a bargain. He’s living with them. At least now he’s got the chance to do the right thing—” I gave Lucho’s chest a poke “—for the right reasons. If he doesn’t take it, that’s not on me.”

“What do you suppose he’ll do?”

“I suppose he’ll burn the tape. Represent me. Take care of Ma, if anything happens to me. I suppose he’ll go along like he always has. He’s all about self-preservation and he has a lot to lose.”

“How is your mother?”

“She’s pissed at me.” That hurt, a little. She needed me to clean up the mess, but didn’t like how I was doing it. “She’s still scared of my dad.”

“Okay. So that’s it?” he asked incredulously. “That’s your whole plan? You go to the police and keep your mother and Slade out of it even though you had nothing to do with it?”

“I guess.”

His brows knit together. “I’ll bet you’re one of those guys who jumps on grenades too. Is that how you got your scar?”

I laughed. “No, I can assure you, the shrapnel caught me in the back because I was running like hell.”

“You need a keeper.”

“Maybe. You looking to apply for the job?”

“I think I’ll wait and see if this plan blows up in your face first.”

“That’s fair.” I sighed. “I was so afraid you’d think what I was doing was too little, too late.”

Those brown eyes widened. “What do you mean?”

“I mean you’ll never be sure I came up with my plan because I’m a good guy, or because I don’t want to lose you. Because it’s true. I don’t”—I cupped his face with my hand—“I really don’t want to lose you.”

“Being good and not wanting to lose someone aren’t mutually exclusive.” Lucho wrapped his arm around me. “You can be a total doofus sometimes, you know that, right?”

I sighed.

“When are you going to go to do this thing?”

“Tomorrow afternoon? I have to talk to Malloy and Crispin first.”

Now that I was comfortable and warm, tucked into the curve of Lucho’s body with his arm slung over my shoulder, now that I was surrounded by his scent, I blinked away exhaustion.

“You want me to go with you?”

“That’d be cool because I don’t have my truck here.” I yawned. “I’m so fucking tired. Do you think I could sack out for a bit?”

I was asleep before I heard his answer.

Crispin and Malloy were understanding, sympathetic even, but there was no doubt they weren’t happy. Thanks to me, they were once again short a man. I left the ranch feeling like I’d really let them down.

I had a date with the Grant County sheriff’s office that afternoon, and Lucho agreed to drive me. First, I wanted to make a quick stop at Ma’s house to shower and change, which would also give me the opportunity to introduce Lucho to my ma.

Which was a new can of worms I hated opening.

Right then, it felt a little like clearing IEDs—like I was tripping all the wires, poking into all the garbage, setting off any possible explosion in order to make things safe.

Neutralizing any possible threats so I could move on.

“This is still a dumbass plan, army. I’m hoping your mother and Slade can talk you out of it.”

“It’s not dumb, because—” I counted off on my fingers. “One, Ma’s going to be safe. Two, we’re taking Slade off Dad’s team. Three, Dad’s little operation, and his control over my family, ends. And four, maybe you won’t look at me like I’m garbage anymore.”

He gasped. “I never—”

“You said it yourself: I’m not going to be any use to anyone until I stop running from my dad.”

“I did not say that,” he muttered.

“Not in those exact words. But you were right. I ran away to the army, and I’ve been running ever since. Even after I got home, I used the J-Bar as an escape. I have to confront reality now, or I’ll have to keep running forever.”

“You’ll be lying to the police,” he pointed out. “Cops know lying when they hear it, and if they find out the truth—”

“They’re going to have to prove it. And why would they? Why would they even bother trying to prove a confession is false?”

“It wouldn’t be hard to break your mother.” He reached over and laid his hand on my thigh. “Have you thought about that?”

I laced our fingers together. “Then I guess I’d better be extra convincing, so they don’t need to.”

He glanced out the window. “You just always gotta be right.”

I laughed. “About most things, yeah. I was wrong once . . .” I slid a glance his way. “About you, as a matter of fact.”

Surprise lifted his eyebrows. “What did you get wrong about me?”

“My heart was pretty full in Tucson. I didn’t think I could feel like this, but it turns out I was wrong.” I let the heat creep all up my face and said the words anyway. “You challenged me to be a better man and I almost dropped the ball.”

“Aw, c’mon.”

“No, really. I was going to do what I always do. I was going to avoid my dad and make myself useful somewhere else. That was good enough when it was just me, getting by. But it’s not good enough to build something on. It’s not good enough for a man like you.”

“So . . . you’re looking to build something?” he asked. “Around here?”

“Yeah.”

“What kind of something?” It looked to me like he was trying to hide a smile, but maybe that was wishful thinking.

“Dunno.” I said. “We’re both pretty good with horses, right? And it turns out I love being a cowboy.”

“It’s hard work.”

“I’m not afraid of hard work.”

“Gonna be pretty hard to do from prison.”

“You know what I think?” I finally said. “I think it’s not going to come to that. I hope it’s not. But if it does, I’ll be back.”

“And I’m supposed to be here waiting?”

“That’s up to you. But you know what? I think you will be. If you feel about me the way I feel about you, you will.”

“We’ll see.” I heard him mutter “dumbass plan” again.

We came to Ma’s place and crept up the gravel drive. It reminded me of that first day, of listening to him call me a Tripplehorn motherfucker in that flat, angry voice. Of hearing him accuse me of my father’s crimes. I wondered if he remembered.

I pulled up next to the shed and parked. Turned off the engine and sat there, hoping my ma wouldn’t come out on the porch to wait for us. Hoping we had at least a little private time.

He gripped my hand tightly. “No matter how any of this goes, I want you to know—”

“We’ve still got a thing?”

He relaxed against the seat cushion. “Yeah. We’ve got a thing.”

I hooked him by the neck and pulled him to me, tilting my head, meeting his lips in a savage kiss.

My heart was racing when he pulled back to look at me, and I knew one kiss wasn’t enough, it would never be enough, and with a groan, I wrenched him to me, opening his lips further and licking his teeth, twining my tongue with his. He shook with longing, and I closed my eyes in ecstasy as I lifted my hands to his hair, as I dug my fingers in and pulled him closer to get more . . .

He shifted so he lay half on my body. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and he kissed me again, cupping my face, sighing against my mouth. As we broke apart, he rested his forehead against mine.

“This thing we got—” he sat up and adjusted himself “—needs some room to grow.”

I glanced down at the tent in his jeans. “That thing you got needs more room than mine.”

He gave me a playful shove. “You know what I mean.”

“I know. But hang in, okay? Don’t—”

“I know, don’t count you out.”

“I was going to say, ‘Don’t give up on me.’”

“I won’t,” he said quietly. “Ever.”

My throat was thick with emotion. I nodded and got out of the truck. “Okay. Let’s do this thing.”

I got my hat and Lucho’s crutches from the back. He took them from me with a small smile, and followed me up the steps to the porch.

The first thing I noticed was the door was slightly ajar.

I pushed Lucho against the wall on one side of the door, and leaned close. “Let me go inside and check it out—”

“Like hell.” Lucho pushed me away. “I ain’t one of your soldiers, General Tripplehorn.”

“Sergeant Tripplehorn,” I corrected. “And this will be easier for me if you aren’t making yourself into a target.”

He grinned at that. “’Cause you’d worry?”

“Yes I’d worry. It’s probably nothing, just let me look around.” He nodded, and I pushed the door open carefully. Inched my way inside, hugging the wall, careful to avoid the place in the hall where the hardwood squeaked.

I didn’t hear anything. Didn’t see anyone there. Nothing was out of place in the living room and the office seemed undisturbed.

When I got to my mom’s room, though . . . everything was wrong. My stomach dropped as I took it in. Drawers were open and clothes littered the floor.

“Ma?” I called, and hearing no answer, I sped through the rest of the house, frantically looking for any sign of her. She wasn’t there.

“Tripp?”

“She’s not here.” I was retrieving my gun from under my mattress when I heard Lucho call from the hallway.

“What’s going on?”

“Someone tossed my mom’s room. She’s not here. I’m going to call it in—”

“Wait.” When I pulled my phone from my pocket, Lucho stopped me. “Show me.”

I took him to Ma’s room, and he looked at the mess. “Check the closet.”

I walked over to the closet the same way I’d faced Pio. I didn’t want to. I was afraid of what I’d find in there. But Lucho had issued the order in his gentlest voice, and so I went, and it was empty.

“There’s nothing.” I couldn’t make sense of things.

“Nothing unusual,” Lucho asked, “or—”

“Nothing. Someone has taken her clothes. Her shoes. Her handbags. They’re all—” I turned to see the room as a whole. The clothes on the floor—those weren’t her best things. They weren’t what she’d wear if she were planning a trip.

“Oh my God, she’s gone with Slade.”

“With Slade? How do you know?”

The truth of that empty closet sank in. “I just know.”

“How can you be so sure?”

Was I sure?
“It makes sense. He’s not the kind of guy to leave anything to chance. My dad could make serious trouble for him, even without proof. If anyone looked closely he probably has other shady dealings. We’re talking disbarment and possible jail time, even if I accept full responsibility for the contraband, there’s probably more, and my father would know about it.”

“But where would they go?”

“Slade’s rich enough to finance a new life somewhere. If Ma agreed to go with him . . . It makes perfect sense.”

I glanced around again, noticing her big cosmetics case and the little one I’d taken to the hospital were gone. Her perfume no longer sat on the vanity. No thug was going to come in and rip off her Chanel No. 5.

She’d taken her favorite things.

“I’m sure.”

Slade had been in love with Ma for years. He’d taken care of her. He’d endured my father’s demands because of the blackmail yes, but I’d seen how he looked at my mother. He’d sent her flowers. Promised her he’d protect her . . .

Ma had run off with Slade,
and I’d made it possible.

“I need to look around. See if they left any kind of note.”

“Where do you think they went?”

“I have no idea. But knowing Slade, it will involve white sandy beaches and untraceable cash. Do you suppose he’s been planning this all along?”

“He seems like the type.”

“Hey. I found something. Look.”

Ma’s wedding ring sat on the nightstand beside her clock. I stared at it for a long time, numb to the many emotions the sight brought me. Lucho laid his hand on my shoulder.

I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and hung on, processing the pain, seeing the evidence with my own eyes. I’d come home to save my mother from my dad, and in a way . . . I had.

I sat with Lucho at the breakfast table, where we’d found a neat stack of papers, signed and notarized, putting all my family’s assets into a trust. It wasn’t new; it had Heath’s name on it as well as mine, but it hadn’t been among the papers I’d gone through that first night. Ma had left her cell phone and credit cards. Her checkbook. She was gone.

“What are you supposed to do now?”

“I have no idea.”

“Are you still planning to keep that appointment with the sheriff?”

I glanced up. “Sure. Why wouldn’t I?”

“Maybe now you don’t have to.”

“What do you mean?”

“What can your dad do? Your mother’s not here to threaten, his lawyer’s gone. Maybe you just walk away, because it’s over.”

Maybe it was. “I’m still going to.”

“Why?” He frowned. “There’s nothing your dad can threaten you with anymore. No way he can manipulate you. This is a win. You can keep your job at the J-Bar. Move in there, even, with the rest of us. We’ll be cowboys together.”

God knew, that's what I wanted. I could turn my back on all of it and let my mother’s great escape free me from telling the sheriff about any of it. I could live there, work the J-Bar when they needed me. Get some livestock of my own. I could—

“Do you hear something?”

“Hell yes, I hear something.” I dug under the papers I’d been looking over and found Ma’s burner phone vibrating on the laminate table. “Shh . . .”

I answered without saying anything. I hardly dared to hope it was what I thought it was.

“Birdie?” My father’s hushed voice in a noisy open space. “You there?”

I couldn’t find my voice to answer.

“C’mon, you stupid bitch. I haven’t got time for your games.”

That loosened my tongue. “Hello, Dad.”

A long pause. “Tripp?”

“Oh, yeah. It’s me.”

“How’d you get this phone?” Someone was barking orders in the background. “Never mind. I’m going to need a favor.”

“No.”

“You haven’t even heard what it is. I need to talk to Slade, and he’s not answering my calls. Have Birdie get in touch with him, and—”

“No.”

“C’mon, you little shit. I’m not playing games here. Ask Birdie what will happen if you fuck me over.”

“You’ll win father of the year?” I asked. The man really was lower than a snake.

“You listen—”

“No. You listen to me for a change.” I growled the words. “They’re gone. I found what you had on Slade and gave it to him. He took Ma and I don’t know where they are. I told you we were out. I’m taking this phone to the sheriff’s office with me, and I’m going to have a nice little chat with him.”

“You cocksucking faggot bastard. You do it and—”

“And you’ll what? Send your men after me?” I taunted. “All those big gangsters you’ve been threatening Ma with? You know what I think? You’re feeding the big dogs and they let you live, but I don’t think they really give a fuck about your penny-ante shit. I think they have bigger fish to fry. I’m counting on it. And unlike Ma I’m not some sitting duck either.”

“You can’t do this. You do NOT know what this means. I’ll—”

“You’ll need to find another way to get what you need, ’cause if anyone comes after me and mine looking for a fight, I’ll be ready.”

“You are going to get me killed.”

“No. You did that. Only you. Man up and take responsibility for a change.”

I hung up. Silence stretched between me and Lucho. He was clearly waiting to see how I’d react, and frankly, I was too.

While I’d talked to my dad, adrenaline had surged through me. Soon, I’d start trembling. I’d be cold. I’d have remorse, maybe, or I’d second guess myself or—

“C’mere baby.” Lucho stood, holding his arms out for me and I went to him. I breathed him in with immense, pitiful relief. “You think I don’t know what that cost you?”

He fell back against the wall between the painting of a cat on a couch and my high school graduation photo. He cradled me, his big heart thudding against mine. His smile was warm, inviting me to kiss him.

“So we’re going to build something here?” he asked. “You and me? Because we’ve got a thing?”

“I hope so. But Luis, there’s debt, and I don’t know what’s going to happen today after I see the sheriff
—
”

“Shh—” He kissed me with all the passion I’d come to expect and more tenderness than I had a right to. As if it was his right, and his duty, and his pleasure to kiss me. He kissed me like I was his and he was never going to let it end and I never wanted it to end, either.

When I opened my eyes, he took the phone from me.

I held out my hand. “I need to take that to the sheriff.”

Lucho was silent. He appraised me for a long time. This was the defining moment. I didn’t have to go to the sheriff. Ma was gone. Heath was gone. I could let my dad rot in jail and move on with my life. I could do nothing, and let whatever fate had in store for my dad happen. Remain silent, and let all his dominos fall.

I knew Lucho was sifting through all the arguments, just as I was. I knew he was contemplating the hassles that would come our way if I went to the sheriff versus the cost of walking away again. In the end, this was what I had to do for me,
for us.

“All right.” He nodded and gave me the phone. “We’ll go together. That way we’ll both be putting your father, and the past, behind us.”

I smiled at that. “We can start fresh.”

His eyebrow went up. “You ask me, you started a little fresh to begin with.”

“I did not. How was I fresh?”

“You’ve got fuck-me eyes.”

“What the hell are fuck-me eyes?”

“You know—” He made a face at me. “All gooey and I-want-you. Doe eyes.”

“I have cookie dough eyes? You do have a soft spot for treats.”

I pushed away but he caught me, drew me back. Widened his stance so I fit between his legs. “There’s nothing soft about the way I want you.”

“Oh.” I moved closer. Felt his hard cock against my thigh. “Maybe not.”

“You know what I thought when I met you? You’re just like that damn rescue horse.”

“Hey, I thought the same about you once or twice,” I said. “You told me he was going to be trouble, but in the long run he’d be worth it.”

“Yeah?” Lucho gripped my ass to hold me to him and I caught my breath. He felt so goddamn good. “You thought that about me?”

“You’re trouble, anyway.” I let my head drop back so he could nuzzle into my neck.

“I’m worth it.” He lifted his head and pressed his cheek to mine. Rubbed his lips over my earlobe and ghosted a breath of moist air into the skin of my neck. “I promise.”

“Ah, Lu . . .”
I had no doubt.