Stars & Stripes (36 page)

They were home with just hours to spare, and Zane’s mother had requested his presence, citing something of great importance she wanted to discuss before the Steers and Stripes Barbeque began.

“Any ideas?” Ty asked.

“No, but I am ever the optimist,” Zane grumbled as he led the way into the big house. They could hear the others in the kitchen, gathering supplies and making preparations. “Go ahead. I’ll see what Mother wants and be there in a bit.”

Ty nodded distractedly as he took his gun and checked it. It’d become a habit of his every time he entered or exited the house, and like every new quirk Zane noticed Ty developing, it fascinated him. He turned to head for the drawing room, but he stopped in the doorway and peered in before entering.

Beverly was sitting at her desk, papers spread out around her.

Zane walked into the richly decorated room. “You wanted to see me, Mother?”

Beverly looked up, surprised. Zane glanced around the room, the same sense of foreboding assaulting him as when he’d been little and gotten in trouble. This time, it seemed, Beverly was nervous too.

She offered him a weak smile and stood. She was dressed in one of her pristine white suits and had her hair pulled back in a chignon. Surprisingly, a few red and blue ribbons were woven into her hair, a delicate touch of whimsy for the party on an otherwise staid and severe visage.

“I’ve been having a crisis of conscience, Zane.”

Only Zane’s years of practice at hiding his emotions let him cover any outward reaction. Inside, he went cold. He’d gotten that ability from his mother.

He knew what this was about, and he prayed he’d misjudged her. He swallowed hard. “Excuse me?”

“You’re my only son, Zane, and I have loved you in the only way I know how. I have tried to hold my tongue when you made your decisions. I prayed that you would come home to us, in one piece, and find solace in your family. But I’ve seen these past days that you’ve chosen to get your comfort elsewhere. And it is one place I cannot in good conscience allow you to go.”

“Mother,” Zane said, surprised when his voice came out hoarse and tight.

“You are the last Garrett in a long line, Zane. This family needs you in more ways than you can imagine.”

Her words were like ice, biting and sharp, and each one cut Zane deeper.
How could she not care one iota that he was happy now? He tried to stay calm as he spoke.
“Mother, we’ve beaten this horse to rawhide. I’m not coming back to Texas, much less to anything else you seem to think is my duty. I certainly won’t marry some woman I don’t love just to produce another generation of miserable Garretts.”

“You seem to have no problem flaunting your . . . your what? Friend? I don’t even know what to call him,” Beverly said, her lips twisted into an ugly frown as she stalked around her desk.

“His name is Ty. You can call him my partner. Or my boyfriend. How about prospective son-in-law?”

“Zane Zachary Garrett!” Beverly slapped her hand on the desktop, cheeks flushing. “I will not stand for it! I will not ruin this family’s name by having a son who thinks he’s gay simply because he’s got an easy screw on hand!”

Zane’s eyes widened, and the anger he’d been trying to hold back broke free. “You are totally out of line.”

“As are you,” Beverly snapped. “He is after your money, pure and simple.”

“You don’t even know him. You’ve said all of three words to him, all of them cruel.”

“I know his type, and they’re all the same no matter what parts they have.”

“I guarantee you’ve never met
his
type before.”

“Zane.”

“I love him, Mother. And he loves me. It has nothing to do with money.”

“Did he tell you he loved you before or after you mentioned your family was wealthy?”

Her proposition was patently ridiculous, but his analytical mind was forced to stop and a take a moment to consider the answer anyway. It had been after, in fact, but it didn’t matter.

His pause made Beverly close her eyes and sigh deeply. She seemed truly tortured by the revelation, and for a brief moment her defenses dropped and Zane could see the war behind her mask. She was torn between love of her son and prejudices and preconceptions she had held all her life.

Zane stepped forward, desperate to use that torment to his advantage. “Mother. Please, just give him a chance. You said you have only one son, but you could have two if you’d just see him for what he is.”

She pressed her lips into a thin line, fighting not to show any more emotion than she had. She knew it was a weakness Zane would exploit, and she made an effort to bury it away again, right in front of his eyes.

Zane understood suddenly, the realization hitting him like a blast of cold water, what Ty had seen him do so many times.

He was stunned into silence by how badly it hurt.

Beverly took a deep breath. She put her hand on his chest, and when she spoke, her voice wavered. “Have I ever told you how proud I am of you?”

The pain dug deep inside him, and Zane had to choke on a breath to fight back tears. “No, ma’am.”

She pursed her trembling lips and gave a jerky nod. A tear broke free as she stepped closer and hugged him. Her head barely came to his chest. Zane realized he was crying as he hugged her. She felt old and fragile, so very fragile in his hands.

She pushed away and turned, wiping her eyes as she paced away. “I simply can’t, Zane,” she said, her voice ragged but gaining conviction. She shook her head. “You can’t have it both ways.”

“Both ways?”

“You can have your family, Zane. Or you can have him.”

Zane took a step back before he realized he’d given ground. While they had always argued over these things, never had his mother been so cold, so ruthless, and he couldn’t even absorb it as he stared at her. His stomach was roiling.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“Zane,” she said with an almost-sympathetic tilt of her head. “It’s my job to protect this family at all costs. You’re my son. But you’re also a drunk and an addict, you’ve got a worthless job with no future, and you’re a widower who’s taken up with another man.”

“I—”

“He’s not interested in you, Zane, merely your family’s fortune. Can’t you see that? He’s no more than a whore who works on credit!”

“That’s too far,” Zane whispered.

“I will not have you running off and marrying that man to give him access to the family’s money.”

“Mother.”

“If you choose him, I will draw up
a statement of disavowment, Zane.” Her voice was shaking, but she clearly meant it. “You will be cut off from the family’s fortune to protect it.”

Zane thought he might throw up right there on the carpet. She actually believed this would put him in his place.

“It’s really very simple,” Beverly said. She took a step toward him and put her hands on his arm. “You don’t even have to go back to Baltimore. All you have to do is call in to start the retirement paperwork. We love you, Zane. You need to be at home.”

The bile rising in his throat kept him from answering. There was roaring in his ears, and he wanted to roar along with it and rail at her, but he couldn’t find the words.
She’d never had a chance, despite what she thought.

“You’re talking about my partner. The man I
love
.”

“Zane. Blood is thicker than water.”

Zane’s body went cold. “Mother, he’s shed more blood for me than you ever will.”

He turned and headed for the door.

“I’m not bluffing, Zane!” she called after him. “At least think about it!”

Zane rushed out of the house, blinded by rage so intense he thought he might injure himself if he didn’t dispel it somehow. He shoved the front door open and began to pace on the front porch, dragging his hand through his hair.

The floorboards creaked behind him and he whirled to give his mother another piece of his mind. He drew up short when he found Ty standing there.

“You okay?” Ty asked, his voice gentle.

Zane struggled for a breath and realized he was about to start hyperventilating. He was definitely not okay.

The next thing he knew, Ty was beside him and pulling him into a tight embrace. He squeezed his eyes shut and clutched at Ty’s shirt, hurting so much he couldn’t imagine standing at all if it weren’t for Ty holding him up. Ty’s hand came to rest on the back of Zane’s head.

“It’s okay,” he whispered. “Breathe.”

Zane was shaking, falling apart. His own
mother
. “Ty, she—”

“I know, I heard.” The anger in Ty’s voice was masked by layers of warmth and support as he murmured into Zane’s ear. “Family ain’t all about blood, Zane. It’ll be okay.”

The soft West Virginia twang was more comforting than Zane would have expected, but he still buried his face in the crook of Ty’s neck. He just needed another minute to let the pain peak. He could understand why she didn’t like that he was with Ty. Prejudices ran deep, as did the desire to continue the Garrett name, and to Beverly Carter-Garrett, appearances were everything. But couldn’t she just be pleased to have him happy, like a real mother? Why the hell couldn’t she give Ty a chance?

Zane gritted his teeth and tried to get himself under control. The tears weren’t cooperating.

Ty stood and held him close for long minutes, long enough for Zane to pull himself together. He took a deep breath and stepped back.

Ty took his face in both hands and looked him in the eyes. “Feel better?”

Zane nodded and covered Ty’s hands with his own. “I don’t understand.”

Ty’s rough palm brushed over his cheek. “She’s lashing out the only way she knows how. Give it time.”

Zane closed his eyes as he pressed his cheek against Ty’s hand. “I’ve given it more than forty years,” he said, and it came out more harshly than he’d planned. “I’m not giving it any more. I hope you’re not too fond of Texas. I think I’d rather steer clear for a while.”

“Steer clear?” Ty asked drily. “Is that a cow joke?”

Zane choked on a laugh and whacked his knuckles against Ty’s chest. Ty reached out and hugged him again, and Zane held him close, thanking God that he’d found him. It didn’t matter what happened or what they went through, Ty always seemed to know how to make it better.

Zane frowned as he twisted a pink balloon around and around, forming it into what would ultimately look like a wiener dog with a huge nose. He tied off the last twist and held it up for Sadie.

“That doesn’t look like a pony, Uncle Z,” she said, scowling.

“But it’s pink.”

She narrowed her eyes, and after a long moment she petted his knee with a sigh. “It’s okay. You’ll do better next time.” Then she snatched the wiener pony out of his hand and went running.

Zane coughed against a laugh and glanced across the table at the others. Annie and Mark were laughing, their eyes on Sadie as she caroused. Zane’s gaze fell upon Ty. He was lounging and hiding a smile behind his hand, watching Zane.

“Shut up,” Zane grumbled, but he couldn’t take his eyes off Ty.

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You try it next time.”

Ty chuckled and winked at him. He’d already regaled a group of the younger kids with magic, making a coin disappear and then pulling it out of Sadie’s ear, amongst other tricks. The only thing Zane could do that didn’t involve a knife was make a balloon animal. He’d made swords or those nebulous four-legged animals for each child. Now they were all swashbuckling and pretending to be tigers with their balloons.

There was a loud pop from somewhere nearby, and Zane cleared his throat and shifted in his chair, hoping no one had noticed him staring at his lover. No one was paying any attention to him, though.

The annual Carter Garrett Steers and Stripes Barbeque was in full swing.

Hundreds of people were in attendance, laughing, dancing, eating, and drinking. Kids roamed the crowd in packs. The sheriff and his men were here, as were several animal control officers.

Amidst the festivities was an undercurrent of tension. Barnum the Bengal tiger was still out there somewhere, and there was a high possibility he’d fixated on Ty’s scent as something familiar. The poachers were still free and running around, probably even at the party. And the news of Beverly’s ultimatum had spread through the family, the ranch hands, and the guests. Soon it would be all the way to Austin, and that seemed to be the biggest news of all. Zane was surprised to find that while some seemed to approve of Beverly’s “tough love” approach, most were appalled. She was being snubbed by a few individuals that shocked even Zane. But then, so was he.

“Donations for the trick shooting contest are about to close, ladies and gentlemen,” Harrison called out from the flatbed trailer they’d turned into a flag-festooned stage. “All proceeds this year will be donated to local animal shelters and the Roaring Springs Big Cat Sanctuary. You can sponsor a shooter for two hundred dollars. Let’s have a few more contestants.”