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“Deal.”

Gage glanced back toward Thea’s room. “They might come here. They’ll claim they want to see her ‘cause they’re family.”

Brett smirked. “Not on my watch.”

“How long can you stay?”

“As long as it takes.” That much was sure. Plus, he had a few questions for Thea when he got the chance.

“You’ll have to leave at some point.”

“Nope. Jess can bring whatever we need, and I have a few friends who can stand watch if I absolutely need help.”

Gage narrowed his eyes. “You have friends?”

Brett threw his hands out at his sides. “I’m a very friendly guy! Not that you ever cared about getting on my good side.”

“Can you trust them? And they can’t be Pattons.” Gage said, all joking aside.

“I trust them with my life.” That was an easy truth too. He’d trust any of the guys on the ranch with his life and Thea’s any day.

Gage looked back again. “I have to get to work. I’ll be back this evening.”

“Where are you working now?”

“Beau Lawrence’s shop.”

Brett knew Beau enough to trust him with some things, but did he trust the guy’s wisdom when Thea’s safety was at stake?

“The ranch is in the off-season, and there are enough of us who stuck around to handle things that need to be done.”

“Let me give you my number. Only use it if you have to, but keep me posted about her.”

Brett pulled out his phone and saved the number. Gage left without much of a good-bye, and Brett took up pacing the hallway. Being on guard twenty-four-seven would require a lot of diligence, but he’d be ready if any of the Howards showed up.

His phone beeped, and he checked the text from his sister.

Jess: Where are you?

Brett: Hospital.

Jess: You need a ride?

Of course, Jess would be ready for him to part ways with Thea for good.

Brett: I’m staying.

When Jess didn’t reply, he slipped the phone back into his pocket. He’d need a change of clothes if they didn’t release her soon, but Jess probably wasn’t the person to ask for help right now. He’d call his roommate, Linc, in a few hours and get him to pack up a bag for the hospital stay.

After all these years, he still felt the same loyalty to Thea as he did when they’d been together. Had she really defended him? If so, why had she seemed scared of him? Had the fear been because of Gage? Brett kept flip-flopping between trusting Gage and keeping his guard up.

If she’d initially thought he was innocent all those years ago, why did she leave without telling him where she was going? As much as he wished they could have run away together, he’d been a person of interest in a criminal case and hadn’t had the liberty to leave.

But their relationship had been going great until their families decided to ruin everything. They’d been head over heels in love. At least, Brett had been in love. He’d known she was the one for him, and he’d let her know. He was too outspoken to leave people wondering what he was thinking. Thea hadn’t gone a day without being reminded of his love for her.

Her voice had echoed in his head from years ago, and he’d questioned everything since she left.

Gage had delivered the news when Brett came looking for her, and the resulting fistfight hadn’t been his brightest moment. Though they’d both grown up in families that hadn’t guided them to use their words instead of their fists, Brett wasn’t a violent guy. He could still say he’d never started a fight, but he’d made sure to always be the one to end it.