Page 44 of Nica (Texas Boudreau Brotherhood #17)

December, a couple of weeks before Christmas

T he community center buzzed with laughter and conversation, strings of white lights casting a warm glow over the celebration swirling within.

Dusty Warner stood near the back wall, watching as Gabe spun Nica around the makeshift dance floor, both radiating the kind of happiness that seemed to light up everything around them.

So much had happened to his friends in the past several months—danger that had threatened to tear them apart, chaos that could have destroyed everything they’d built together.

But they’d managed to make their way through it all, finding their happiness on the other side.

Now, tonight, they celebrated with their family and the whole town.

Looking at the happiness on Douglas and Ms. Patti’s faces made all the craziness worthwhile.

Dusty lifted the champagne flute in his hands, then lowered it without taking a sip.

He’d grabbed one when they’d made the toast to the happy couple, though he couldn’t stand the stuff.

He’d been around enough champagne when he’d been a kid that he could have drowned in it.

More than once, he’d snuck a bottle out and shared it with his friends, back in those days when he lived in Hollywood, even though he’d barely been a teenager.

But those days were long ago, and he didn’t miss them.

Honestly, didn’t miss anything about his old life.

He’d come to love Shiloh Springs and everything it stood for.

The holidays were coming, with Christmas only a couple of weeks away.

He’d watched the businesses up and down Main Street put out decorations on their storefronts, and it seemed like every day there were more twinkly lights and colored baubles adorning the awnings and windows.

Yet he felt—nothing. Almost like he was empty inside.

Lost in his thoughts, he hadn’t paid too much attention to the people around him, so he hadn’t noticed Shiloh and Ridge, the Boudreau twins, move to stand with him, one on either side. Each held a bottle of beer in their hands, and with a grin Ridge held out one to him.

Dusty gave a sigh and took it, putting the still-full champagne glass on a nearby table. “Thanks.”

“Figured you might need something with a little more substance,” Shiloh said, his voice carrying that easy drawl that marked all the Boudreau brothers. “You looked about as thrilled with that champagne as a cat in a bathtub.”

Ridge chuckled, taking a long pull from his beer. “Can’t say I blame you. That fancy stuff tastes like fizzy disappointment to me.”

Dusty managed a small smile, the first genuine one he’d worn all evening. “It’s good to see them happy,” he said, nodding toward where Gabe was now dipping Nica dramatically, making her laugh so hard she couldn’t catch her breath. “After everything they went through…”

“Yeah,” Shiloh agreed, his expression growing more serious. “Thought we might lose them both for a while there. But look at them now.”

“Love has a way of pulling people through the worst of times,” Ridge added, then shot a sideways glance at Dusty. “Speaking of which, you’ve been standing over here looking like someone stole your favorite truck. What’s eating at you?”

Dusty shrugged, rolling the cold bottle between his palms. “Nothing specific. Just…I don’t know. Everyone’s getting into the Christmas spirit, decorating, planning, and I feel like I’m watching it all from behind the glass. Like I can see it but can’t quite touch it, you know?”

The twins exchanged a look over his head that he pretended not to notice.

“Maybe I should take off for a couple weeks after the new year,” Dusty continued. “Get some distance, clear my head. Figure out what’s wrong with me.”

Shiloh snorted. “Nothing’s wrong with you, brother. You’re just restless.”

“Restless?” Dusty asked, though he had a feeling he wasn’t going to like where this conversation was headed.

“The same way I was restless right before I met Maggie,” Ridge said with a knowing grin. “The same way Shiloh was acting all twitchy before he finally caught up to Renee, chasing that woman halfway across the country until she finally gave in.”

“And the same way half our brothers acted right before fate decided to drop the perfect woman right in their paths,” Shiloh added. “It’s like a family curse, except instead of being cursed, we’re blessed.”

Dusty shook his head. “Good thing that’s the Boudreau curse then, and I’m not a Boudreau. You two are reading way too much into this. I’m just not feeling the holiday spirit this year.”

“Uh-huh.” Ridge’s grin widened. “That’s exactly what I said. Right up until Maggie literally pointed a shotgun in my face. Could have knocked me over with a feather, because I knew right then I was a goner.”

“And I was convinced I just needed to focus on work,” Shiloh chimed in. “Which meant chasing after Lucas’ missing sister. When I finally caught up with Renee, it was like fate had smacked me between the eyes and turned my whole world upside down in the best possible way.”

Dusty took a long drink of his beer, hoping it would wash away the uncomfortable feeling that the twins might be onto something. “You’re both crazy.”

“Maybe,” Ridge conceded. “But we’re crazy and happy. And my bet is that before Christmas Day, you’re going to be eating those words.”

“Christmas?” Dusty raised a brow. “That’s awfully specific.”

Shiloh shrugged. “Call it a hunch. The universe seems to have a sense of humor when it comes to timing.”

Out on the dance floor, the music shifted to something slower, and Gabe pulled Nica close, whispering something in her ear that made her beam up at him, like he’d just promised her the moon.

Dusty felt that familiar pang again—not jealousy exactly, but a longing for something he couldn’t quite name.

“Look,” Ridge said, his voice gentler now. “All we’re saying is don’t be so quick to run off somewhere. Sometimes the thing you’re looking for has a way of finding you when you least expect it.”

“And sometimes,” Shiloh added, “it finds you right here at home, where you never thought to look.”

Dusty considered their words, watching as more couples joined Gabe and Nica on the dance floor. Maybe the twins were right. Maybe he was just restless, waiting for something he didn’t even know he wanted. Or maybe he really did need to get out of town for a while.

Either way, he supposed he’d find out soon enough.

“Well,” he said, raising his beer toward his friends, “here’s to whatever comes next.”

While the party continued into the wee hours, Dusty climbed behind the wheel of his patrol cruiser, driving through the streets of Shiloh Springs.

He’d guzzled a couple cups of coffee before leaving the party.

He’d volunteered for the night shift, knowing most of the people wanted to celebrate with Gabe and Nica.

He wished them all the best. Nica was a good friend, and he still felt guilty about her being taken on his watch.

Still had headaches from the blow to the head he’d taken when she’d been snatched from under his nose.

Driving through the streets of Shiloh Springs didn’t reveal anything.

There were no emergency calls during the middle of the night.

It was close to the end of his shift, and he patrolled the long empty stretch of road that led toward town.

An unexpected feeling, something akin to anticipation swept through him.

Nothing he could put a name to, but it made him sit up straighter in his seat, scanning the dark sides of the street, looking for…

he wasn’t sure what he looked for, but his instinct, the one who usually alerted him to trouble, was pinging like a pinball machine.

Something was out here—he knew it. Felt it deep in his bones. Something different. Something unexpected. And the thought ricocheted through his mind that nothing would ever be the same again.