Espino, Stacey - Hardcore Cowboys [Ride 'em Hard 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (2 page)

Chapter Two

Cord nailed the last sheet of plywood to the front window of their house. His hands were nearly frostbitten, but securing their home before the worst of the storm hit had to be done if they wanted to avoid a massive cleanup. Val was busy securing their stock of cattle, the horses, and dogs. They were calling it the storm of the century, and if all the stories were true they hadn’t gone overboard in preparing. Their cellar was stocked full with nonperishables—canned goods, rice, beans, preserves—you name it. Two gas-powered generators were on standby in case the power went out. The
Carson
home was already warmed by woodstove, but they’d spent the past few days chopping enough firewood to last the next two winters. They’d gone to town and stocked up on gasoline, candles, bottled water, lamp fluid, and plenty of ammunition.

When disaster struck, there were always a few individuals who looked to take advantage of others. If anyone expected to come and take over their well-prepared ranch, they’d have to answer to the barrels of two loaded rifles and a cache of others. Nobody stole from the
Carson
brothers. They’d worked their fingers to the bone since they could remember. Their daddy had died in a mining accident when they were teenagers. When the dry spell had swept across the state leaving farmers bankrupt and desperate, their father had left to look for work—and never came home.

Cord and Val had been only eighteen when they took over responsibility for the family farm. They cared for their momma, but the toll of losing her husband left her a broken woman. She’d survived him by nine years before something as simple as pneumonia took her life. Cord believed it was because she wanted to die, wanted to join the man she loved in whatever place awaited people when they passed on. That was five years ago. It was just Cord and his twin brother now.

Their eldest brother was off traveling the rodeo circuit. He showed up when it suited him, usually between November and March when the paying events dried up, but not this year. Wyatt had never been the same after their father’s death and grew more distant with each passing year.

Some days Cord wondered what the fuck the point was. Neither he nor Val had a woman or a dream, and, at thirty-two, it seemed like everything was bound to go downhill. One day he’d wake up unable to even get a hard-on.

“Barn’s secure,” shouted Val. The wind had picked up, blowing freezing sleet across the open land with an eerie howl. Cord slid the hammer into his tool belt and squinted his eyes to see his brother. “We best get inside.” His brother's voice was drowned out by the wind.

He followed Val to the side entrance of the house that led into the oversized country kitchen. His ears burned from the quiet, and his frozen flesh tingled in the warm air once inside. They’d kept a strong fire going all day, and the place felt like entering an oven after freezing one’s ass off for hours.

Cord kicked off his boots, unbuckled his tool belt, and shrugged off his heavily padded jacket. The sofa called his name. All he could think about was crashing and clearing his mind. The thought of being holed up in their century-old home for days should have brought him comfort, but he’d still have to take turns with Val to venture into the elements to feed and check on the animals.

“Beer?”

“Yeah, pass me one.” Cord turned on the TV, but the satellite was down, so he shut it off.
Great
. They could stare at the walls, or each other, until the storm passed.

Val settled in his worn reclining chair, bringing a chilled bottle to his lips. “Season will be ruined.”

“We’re not the only ones. I don’t think the storm spared anyone for miles. Winter should be leaving, not thriving like this. It’s nearly April, for God’s sake.” They lived in the
Snowbelt
, devil’s alley, but it had never been this bad in late March. At least they’d been prepared for it. He hoped the animals adapted to the bitter cold spell. The horses were already starting to lose their winter coats in clumps when they’d need the extra warmth. God willing the storm would leave as quickly as it had moved into their province.

“The crop farmers are fucked,” said Val, running a hand through his mop of dirty-blond hair. “Wonder if the government will help out?”

“Don’t hold your breath.” Cord hoisted his weary body off the sofa and strode to the bay windows at the front of the house. He tested the frame for air leaks with a flattened palm, wishing it was a usual Sunday evening. By now the sun would be setting and he’d watch the sky transform into one of God’s masterpieces, a canvas of purple, pink and orange. Now all he saw was the ugly brown plywood, stealing the view and making him feel boxed in like a rat in a cage.

“Wanna play some cards?” asked Val, who had to be as bored as him. They weren’t just twins in physical appearance, but identical down to the last gene. Working the ranch together was like a perfectly choreographed dance. They rarely spoke, just sensing what the other would do and knowing what needed to be done. Cord and Val woke at sunrise and didn’t settle into the house until nightfall. Although they could easily afford hired help for their thriving cattle ranch, they only took on farmhands during the busy season and when branding new stock. Nothing beat keeping business in the family. With no woman to occupy their time, work was all they had.

“What I want is to work my fields, mend the east fence that needs fixin’, and take a ride down to Carter’s for a game of pool when it’s all said and done.”

“Dream on, brother. We’ll be holed in for at least a week. Then it’ll take ages for the snow to melt.”

Cord exhaled his irritation and looked around the living room. Nothing had changed over the years. Everything a monument to a life long past. They hadn’t changed a thing since their mother died, and she hadn’t dared to change a thing since their daddy was officially pronounced dead. Cord assumed it was just one of the reasons why Wyatt couldn’t stand the sight of the ranch. They could sure use an extra hand most days. Winter months were a bitch for
Alberta
cattle ranchers. Besides, families were supposed to stay together. The three of them only had each other in the world, yet Wyatt couldn’t settle down. He moved with the circuit—with only the clothes on his back and a death wish. One of these days Cord and Val would get a phone call telling them Wyatt had been trampled or maybe drunk himself to death. As much as the thought tore at his heart, it was pointless to try and convince their older brother to move back home. God knew they’d tried in the past.

* * * *

Samantha pulled into a highway diner after her third night of tossing and turning in the car. The weather had already begun to change, no longer just a light snow, but growing colder and more blustery. It wouldn't be too much longer until she met the storm they spoke about on the radio.

Samantha pushed open the glass door to the restaurant, every head turning to face her at once. She smiled shyly and sought out the restroom. The regular staff and customers probably weren’t used to strangers out here in the middle of nowhere. They didn’t need to worry as she had no plans on sticking around long.

When she emerged from the bathroom fifteen minutes later, she was changed and refreshed. The red vinyl covering the stools was aged and cracked, but she sat on one and ordered a coffee and a cruller. “Where you headin’?” asked the middle-aged waitress from behind the counter. Her thin, blonde hair was pulled back at the sides by childlike barrettes. Once the woman spoke to Samantha, it seemed to appease the men in the diner.

“West. Maybe BC if I can find it.” Samantha chuckled, but stopped herself quickly when the waitress maintained a stoic expression.

She leaned over on an elbow. “Storm’s a-coming. Not a good time to be traveling.”

A warning? She felt like she was in the middle of a bad ’80s movie. The tone of the woman’s voice was serious, carrying a life-or-death intensity People didn’t really stop traveling for a storm, did they? In
Canada
? Besides, she’d kissed the worst of the bad weather good-bye hours ago.

“I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

The waitress only shrugged and grabbed the coffee pot off the machine. She refilled the mugs of other customers along the far side of the laminated counter. As Samantha sat and watched the other patrons eating their bacon, conversing and laughing, she began to recoil into herself. What the hell was she doing? A grand adventure—for what? Dreams didn’t come true for women like her. But if she turned back now, she'd always wonder what she may have missed.

Chapter Three

Wyatt heaved his saddle into the back of his pickup truck beside his two duffel bags. It was time to head home. He usually returned to the ranch mid-November after his last competition. This year, he’d felt especially down. He wasn’t growing any younger, and traveling the circuit had begun to lose its appeal. Settling down at the
Carson
ranch with his brothers to raise cattle seemed equally pointless. Wyatt wasn’t sure what he needed in his life, but he hoped to God he found out soon.

He turned and looked at the old, one-story motel he’d been staying at for the past few weeks. It was a shithole, but cheap, and nobody asked him any questions. On occasion he’d bring a woman to his room. Those one-nighters usually knew better and kept quiet, no matter what he subjected them to, but the sound of his hand or a paddle against flesh could garner unwanted attention in better run places. The rodeo would start full swing next month. He’d already signed up, as usual, but something deep within tugged at him to return home for the couple weeks before he’d be on the road again in April.

Wyatt loved his twin brothers to death. They were his blood, his memories back to better days. But the old ranch brought with it painful memories of parents who were no longer with them. He blamed himself for not being around to help his father when times had been tough. If he’d contributed financially, instead of traveling the circuit in the name of glory and cheap thrills, his father would have stayed on the ranch rather than get killed in that fucking coal mine. He may have only been a young man back then, as his mother and brothers had constantly reminded him, but it wasn’t an excuse in Wyatt’s books.