Page 47 of When It Reins (Three Rivers Trevors Ranch #5)

mitch

“What the hell!” a young voice squeaks out, jumping at the sight of twenty-plus people descending on them. When I get close enough, I see Johnny, the early morning stall cleaner.

I let my shoulders sag in disappointment, and the rest of the group does the same.

Aaron never showed.

Turning from the scene where CT reassures Johnny that he isn’t in any trouble, I rub my forehead in confusion. I would have sworn that Aaron would come here to hurt the ranch, to get back at us all for hurting his business.

“Just got off the phone with Eddie,” Mick tells me, talking about one of our members. “He says the clubhouse is intact.”

That was our other concern, that he would try to hit the clubhouse. That would have been even riskier than hitting the ranch. Knowing what kind of heat my club brothers are packing on an average day, he wouldn’t have gotten very far.

“So where did he go then?” Jax asks, resting his hands on his hips.

I whip out my phone, stress threatening to eat me from the inside out. I just want this fucker taken care of. I want this over. I want to go off and live my life with the woman I love.

You doing okay?

I shoot the text off to Juniper quickly, waiting a beat for a response. I sigh when I don’t see the telltale sign of someone texting back. I switch over to Logan’s texts and ask if everyone is good there.

Yup. No signs of anyone coming around the house.

Ok. Thanks.

That is a relief, at least. I don’t think Aaron knows where Logan and Thea live, though there is always the chance that they’d invited him and Juniper over for dinner, but to my knowledge, they didn’t like Aaron all that much to begin with.

It’s almost strange to see my blood brothers and club brothers working together, especially after how Jax acted when he found out I joined the club and his animosity last year when he was going through a lot.

We’ve grown a lot over the last few years.

I take a deep breath, thankful for the support Juniper and I have, and look at Mick. “Head to the clubhouse. We’ll get together later and talk about what’s next.”

Mick nods at me, and the boys head to the barn stalls where they stashed their bikes in. I look back at the rest of the family. Cal, CT, Jax, and Stetson are standing there waiting for my word on what to do.

“What do you need from us?” It’s Jax who asks the question, and for a minute, I stare at him, grateful that he is once again by my side.

Juniper is the reason I was brave enough to trust my family. To move past all the shit I left bottled up inside of me for the last decade. I owe her more than my own life, and taking care of this asshole is going to be the way I do it.

“I’m not sure.” The words are barely out of my mouth when my phone rings in my hands, and Juniper’s name flashes on the screen.

“Hang on. I need to take this.” I click the answer button and take a breath as I lift the phone to my ear, ready for the relief that follows whenever I get a chance to talk to her.

“Hey, Starling.” I move away from the guys, trying to create some privacy. “No Aaron yet.”

“Mitch.” There is an unnerving hitch in her voice, and I pause my movement, worry seeping in at the sound.

“Juniper, what’s wrong?”

I hear some shuffling in the background, and I have to hold the phone tighter to my ear to hear her.

“I’m sorry.” The words are clear, but there is something in her voice that tells me she is having a hard time keeping her emotions together.

“Sorry for what? You don’t have anything to be sorry for, baby.” I try to soothe my tone, and I glance at my brothers. I motion that I’m going outside, and I have every intention of getting my bike and heading to her right now.

“I can’t do this anymore.”

Her words shatter my world.

I furrow my brow, my steps slowing. “What?”

“I’m sorry. This is just too much.” She clears her throat, and this time I hear the telltale sign of crying. “I thought I was strong enough to handle it, but I’m just not. I’m sorry.”

“Starling, you’re not doing this.” My voice catches, and I clear my throat, my emotions threatening to crawl up and choke me. “I’m coming back right now, and we’re going to talk, but we’re not breaking up.”

“Mitch.” I hear something in the background, and it sounds like another person. My brother, maybe? “I’m so sorry. Please don’t make this harder than it is.”

“Juniper,” I snap into the phone. “We’re not breaking up! We’re going to find this asshole and get our lives back.”

The line goes dead, and I pull my phone away from my ear, frowning in confusion. What the fuck just happened?

“Mitch!” I turn and see the guys running after me. I hold in my emotions, but I’m about two seconds away from snapping at anyone who comes near me.

“Logan called, says Juniper isn’t there,” Jax tells me, eyeing me carefully.

“Where did she go?” I feel my insides freeze, and things start moving around my head, like puzzle pieces finally clicking into place.

“He doesn’t know. Thea guessed maybe her place.” Stetson and Jax look at me, concern written all over their faces.

“I have to go.”

“I’m coming,” Jax insists, his jaw clenched like he’s prepared for me to fight.

And I can’t help it when my big-brother logic kicks into place. “Jax, I don’t know what I’m going to find. Either a girl who just dumped me, or someone in serious trouble. I can’t ask you to be a part of this.”

“You’re not asking, and neither am I.” Jax’s gaze turns steely, and he steps toward me. “You’re my brother. You are the reason that Felicity made it back to me safely, that my family is safe and sound and well. I am not going to let you take this on alone.”

“Neither am I,” Stetson says, nodding at me. “You helped me find Bonnie, man. It’s our turn to make sure your girl is safe.”

“We’re all going,” CT says, staring me down. “We do this together. We watch each other’s backs, and we get Juniper safely, no matter what we find.”

I stare at each of them for a second. The argument that I can handle this alone, that I don’t need their help, that I am feeling fine about this and not completely scared to death about what I might find, rests on the tip of my tongue.

Instead, I give them a nod, relenting to their help, and head out the door.