Page 35 of Sweet Escape (Whispering Oaks Ranch #1)

Brotherly Love

? Torn - Riley Green

Olivia

It’s another weekly family dinner at the ranch, and almost everyone is here: both of Wilder’s brothers, Evie and Russell, of course, and even Luca and Ivy with four-year-old Rylin.

We’re all seated around the massive table on the back deck, a stunning view of the peaks and valleys in the distance, endless green as far as the eye can see.

Rylin steals the show, going off on a rant about the barn cats and the new ‘baby sheeps’ as she calls them.

No one is more enraptured than Luca, who’s slipped seamlessly into a fatherly role in her life.

They’re a picture-perfect family, and I can’t help but be envious as I watch their interactions.

Their love and devotion to one another is almost palpable from the opposite end of the table.

I’m not sure that’s something I’ll ever find for myself, and that stark realization has me gripping my fork a little tighter.

Griffin is the more extroverted of Wilder’s brothers, and he joins in the boisterous conversation right alongside Rylin.

Jaxon adjusts his glasses and spears his fork into another baby carrot.

There’s a quiet strength about Jaxon, and I get the feeling he’s hiding a secret pain under all of that ink.

He notices me looking and gives me a tight-lipped smile.

The only missing Hayes is the baby of the family, Ruby, a country music darling and long-distance daughter. Can’t say I blame her for the absence. She’s playing sold-out shows all over the country while I’m here playing house.

I feel Wilder’s eyes on me, but I can’t bring myself to look at him, so I shovel another forkful of mac and cheese into my mouth and try to tamp down on the nausea swirling in my gut.

“How are you settling in, Liv?” Evie asks, her kind eyes fixed on me as she awaits my answer.

My mind immediately travels back to the night before.

What are we doing?

Worshipping you, Pretty Girl. Showing you what it should feel like when you’re with the right person.

Griffin snorts out a laugh when I take too long to answer.

I bite into my bottom lip to keep from smiling back. “It’s—good.”

Jesus, Liv. Might as well go ahead and tell them you’re getting railed six ways to Sunday.

Wilder’s gaze sears into me like a brand. There’s nothing but unfettered heat passing between us when I finally chance a look in his direction.

A throat clears across the table, and Russell tosses me a wink, causing my cheeks to flush what I imagine is a vibrant shade of pink.

Wilder’s hand grips my bare thigh under the table, a zing of electricity shooting up my spine as his calloused fingers trail under the edge of my shorts.

I suck in air when they slide dangerously close to the apex of my thighs, and that snaps him out of the moment, rearing back like I’ve singed him.

Interrupting whatever happened, Emmy Lou crawls into my lap, making herself right at home.

She lets out a dramatic sigh before popping a thumb into her mouth.

I couldn’t give Wilder my heart if I tried, but it already belongs, at least in part, to the little girl nuzzling against my chest. There’s no taking it back now.

Wilder

“The fence line on the East pasture needs mendin’. You up for a ride?” Griffin asks, shoveling his last forkful of Mama’s famous casserole into his mouth.

“Tonight?”

He nods, wiping a hand down his beard as he leans back in his chair.

I glance at Livie to my left.

She gives me a soft smile. “We’re good. You go ahead.”

I smooth my massive palm over Emmy’s back. She settles her head against Liv’s chest, sighing contentedly. The way my daughter finds comfort in Livie eases something inside me. It doesn't surprise me, though. Her presence has that effect on me, too.

“Yeah, I’m in,” I say. “Who’s bringing the equipment?”

“Hank and Clint said they’d meet us out there with the truck,” Griffin says.

“Alright. Let me drop my girls off at home, and I’ll meet you back at the big barn.”

My girls.

When did I start including Olivia in that sentiment?

Jax leads us up the well-worn path around the side of the East pasture, kicking up dirt as Griffin pulls up alongside me on Copper. The midsummer heat blares down on us. There’s a tense furrow in Griffin's brow when I meet his assessing gaze.

“What do you want, Griff?”

A slow smile spreads across his stupid face. “You’ve got it bad, brother.”

“The fuck are you on about?”

“He thinks you’re falling for your baby mama,” Jaxon calls over his shoulder. His paint horse, Sunny, whinnies something like agreement.

“We’re all thinking it,” Griff says. “It’s just that I’m the only honest bastard willing to say it outloud.”

“Yeah? You wanna talk about Angelina while we’re throwing around accusations?

” The words are out before I can rein them back in, and a pang of guilt settles low in my gut.

I shouldn’t be bringing up his history with Angie.

As the only vet in the area, she’s a permanent fixture around here, and I know that has to be hard for him.

Griff digs in his heels and takes off down the path at breakneck speed, giving me the middle finger over his shoulder.

“Fuck.” I groan. “I’m an ass.”

Jax slows, letting Sunny pull up beside Buttercup. “He’ll get over it.”

“I know. He lashes out because he’s still not over what happened.”

“Speaking from experience?”

“No. I put up walls so I don’t have to feel it ever again.”

“How very self-aware of you. And how's that working out for you, Wild Man? ”

I huff out an indignant breath. “You sound like Mama.”

Ignoring my comment, he says, “Not looking so good from my vantage point.”

“Fuck you, Jax. You have no goddamn clue what it’s like.”

“You’re right, I don’t. It’s not like my brother ever talks about it. You holed up in that house in the mountains for years. Didn’t visit. Hardly ever called. What were we supposed to think?”

Frustration unlike anything I’ve felt in a long time surges through me.

“What do you want me to say? That it was my fault. That I lost the love of my life, and I’ll never be okay again?

That I could crumble at any minute, and if I ever lost anyone again, let alone my family or the mother of my child, I might not be able to come back from it next time? ”

“You didn’t come back from it the first time, Wilder.

” He grabs Buttercup’s reins and brings us both to a halt.

I look at him— really look at him —for the first time in years, and what I see there is a shock to my system.

There’s something haunted in those emerald eyes, and it hits me that maybe I don’t know my brother anymore.

“You’re not the same man who left for Colorado all those years ago, and I’m not the same boy you left behind. ”

I stare out at the ranch—my home—letting its calm wash over me. “Jax…”

“Jess is gone, but she’s still a part of your life. The best part—Emmy. And if you don’t open your eyes, you’re going to let your second chance slip right through your fingers. You’ll lose Olivia, too, in a different way, but it’ll hurt like hell all the same.”

“When did my baby brother get to be so wise?”

He shrugs, a torrent of emotion passing over his features, there and gone before I can grab hold of them. “Let’s get goin’. We don’t wanna let Griff stew in his feelings for too long. ”

“You’ve been spending way too much time with Mama, Jaxy.”

“You could do with spending a little more time with her.”

It’s a subtle dig, but he’s not wrong. “Yeah. You’re right.”

The fence is more damaged than we anticipated, and it takes a couple of hours to set up the replacement posts and make sure it’s sturdy. Based on the weathering on that stretch of fence, it’s likely that we’ll have to replace several more feet in the near future, but it’ll hold for now.

When we arrive back at the barn, I catch up to Griffin as he gets Copper settled in his stall for the night. “I’m sorry about what I said earlier. I was feeling a bit defensive.”

“It’s cool. I started it.”

“Yeah, but I didn't have to be such a dick about it. I know you mean well.”

“Aww. Are you two about to kiss?” Jax says.

“Jealous, Jaxy?” Griff mocks. “When’s the last time you got laid?”

Jax’s playful tone instantly evaporates. “None of your damn business, that’s when.”

While my brothers have a go at each other, Storm whinnies from one stall over, and I take the opportunity to check on her. “Hey, Pretty Girl. How you holding up, huh?”

I reach into my pocket and hold out a treat, which she graciously accepts. The hoof repair is still healing, but there haven’t been any signs of infection or further damage. Liv checks on her daily, but I think that’s more for her benefit than Storm’s. They have a special connection.

Storm nudges my hand playfully .

“Sorry, girl. I’m all out of treats.”

She snorts.

“Hey now. It’s not my fault. You can take it up with your bestie. She’s the one stealing all your peppermints.”

I stroke her forehead one last time and make sure everything is secure for the night before locking up. Griffin and Jax take off toward their houses, and I go home. I know the best part of my day is waiting for me there.

I used to dread going home to a quiet house.

I’d lie awake for hours replaying that night over and over in my head until sleep would finally take me.

These days, I find myself watching the clock, wondering what the girls are getting up to without me.

When I finally walk in at the end of another long day, it’s no longer the memories I cling to, but their smiles.