Clint’s expression turned hard, revealing nothing. “Get out—”
Nash knew he had him pegged. He could feel Clint’s guilt seeping into his bones. “The feud between our families stops right here, right now.” And that was what all this boiled down to. Nash refused to mirror the mistakes Harrison had made. Yeah, sure, Clint loved his wife and Megan, and obviously he’d been good to them, but his hunger to prove something, to be the best, to come out on top, had burned wicked until he’d enabled a man to do unforgivable things.
Nash wouldn’t be that man.
After a long deep breath, he added, “Neither Megan or Loretta deserve to be dragged through this shit any longer.” It was an odd thing. Nash would’ve dreamed of this moment before. He had Clint by the balls. He could’ve twisted this in any way he wanted to benefit his family. “But here’s the thing, Harrison: I don’t give two shits about you. I love Megan.” He shoved his hands in his pockets, feeling far more relaxed than he ever had before in this man’s presence. That was what happened when you were no longer on edge, coiled, and ready to snap. “She’s all that matters here. From here on out, I’m choosing to listen to what she’s been trying desperately to tell us. She doesn’t want to choose between us, and I’m not going to make her.” Which was exactly what he’d be making Megan do if he told Darryl about his suspicions or hired an investigator himself to possibly find the evidence on Clint he needed.
Clint’s glare lessened.
Truth was, while Nash knew Clint was a sonuvabitch, he believed Clint didn’t have it in him to order Butch to give a vomit-inducing drug to children. The missing cows were more Clint’s style. And Clint had always been friendly to Jenny. The feud had been between the husbands. Nash agreed with his mother and Chase that Clint wouldn’t have ordered her barn set on fire, which could have burned down his mother’s house. Nash now suspected that Butch had acted desperately, possibly because he thought if he didn’t, the payment for his wife’s treatments would stop.
Nash was done with this man in front of him, and he got to the real point of why he had come. “Here’s what’s going to happen, Harrison. Since this wouldn’t have happened without your pursuing Blackshaw land, you’re going to put your money to good use. You’re going to pay the medical bills of all the guests who were sent to the hospital. For all the guests who had a bad week because of your shit, you’re going to pay for them to come back for another week at your expense, including any lost wages they suffer away from their jobs. You’re going to pay to rebuild my mother’s barn and the side of her house. Plus, because you nearly killed me and the kittens I went into the barn to save, you’ll make a sustainable yearly donation to the River Rock Animal Rescue in Megan’s name.”
Clint returned to his seat behind his desk and snorted. “And why would I agree to any of that?”
Nash leaned in and put it all on the line. “For Megan.”
Clint’s jaw clenched once, then he softened in a way that Nash had never seen in his presence. “For her?”
Nash wasn’t sure if Clint was admitting guilt by agreeing to his demands. Or if Clint knew all this had gone too far and felt regret over that. Or if he simply agreed not to put Megan and Loretta through an investigation. It didn’t matter anyway. “No more animosity between the families,” Nash said. “It’s done. I’ll get you the information you need on the guests, and this will be done. Over.” He paused. Then, “We’ll make this right for Megan.”
Clint hesitated, his love for his daughter shining in his eyes. “Only for her and my grandbaby.”
Nash knew as he turned away, letting Clint have the last word, and headed out of the office that the condition of this peace only lasted as long as Megan loved Nash. And Nash was perfectly fine with that.
He planned for their love to last forever.
* * *
The second time Megan had woken up that day had been to an empty bed. Not nearly as perfect as she’d woken up the first time with Nash touching her belly. Yeah, she was becoming a real sucker for that, and her heart melted every time his hand came to her stomach. After she ate breakfast and showered, she fed the kittens wet food and left a bowl of dry food for Diva.
Megan was out the door before she knew it, and hit the ground running. She stopped at the River Rock’s Pawn Shop for the appointment she’d made yesterday while at work. Then she had another appointment with the bank, and with Jannie to sign a whole slew of documents.
By the time she arrived at Kinky Spurs for her shift, her emotions felt run through a cheese grater. Which was maybe why when she found Emma and Harper sitting at the bar waiting for her, her throat squeezed tight. At one time, they all worked here together. God, that felt like a lifetime ago. Life had changed so much.
The emotion began to spill out, and there wasn’t a damn thing Megan could do to stop it. She desperately sucked in air, trying to fight the tears threatening to release, hoping to hell the girls didn’t notice her.
They did, of course.
“Oh, my God, Megan, are you okay?” Emma was off her stool, rushing toward Megan and throwing her arms around her.
Always the sweet one, that was Emma. Which also wasn’t helping the overflowing emotion. Especially when Harper leapt in for a hug too.
Megan dropped her cheek onto Emma’s shoulder. “This baby is doing weird things to me.”
“Emotional things aren’t always bad things,” said Emma, leaning away. “What happened?”
“Nothing to warrant the waterworks,” Megan said, moving to the bar. “I was thinking about how things used to be when you two worked here and how much has changed.” She paused, feeling that same strangling sensation rise up in her throat. She cleared her throat to wash it away, and asked Harper, “I take it you also heard what happened with Nash and my dad and that’s why you’re here?”
Harper smiled softly. “Just doing what good friends do and checking in.”
Oh, no.
More tears flooded Megan’s face. She laughed, slightly unnerved by the number of tears she’d shed lately. “I don’t even know who I am. This baby is making me so mushy. Thank you for being such good friends.”
Emma gave Megan another quick squeeze. “Well, you’re a good friend back, so we’re all a lucky bunch.” She returned to the stool she’d been sitting on, her purse resting atop the bar.
Megan took the chair at the table closest to them. A sudden bout of heartburn shot up her throat, causing her to clear it again. She reached into her purse and popped a couple of antacids into her mouth.
“That’s new,” Harper pointed out.
Megan nodded. “Just this morning. I really hope it doesn’t last. It feels like my throat’s on fire.” She exhaled deeply then shook her arms out, forcing the unexpected emotion away. “So, I guess you want to know what happened, right?”
Harper nodded.
So did Emma, leaning forward with interest. “I only got bits and pieces of everything from Shep.”
Megan relaxed back in the chair and crossed her legs. She gave Bethany a wave as she stocked the bar, then looked back at the girls. “Before we get into all of the family stuff, the sellers accepted my offer on the house. Now I’m waiting on all the financing stuff.”
“That’s amazing news,” Harper said.
Emma nodded. “So super-exciting.”
Obviously understanding that the conversation was private, Bethany headed into the backroom. Harper waited for her to vanish through the door, then her expression turned curious. “Did your dad help you out with the down payment, then?”
Megan went to smile and speak, but her voice came out in a choked sob. “I’m sorry,” she eventually managed. She drew in another long breath then admitted the hardest truth. “I sold my grandmother’s ring to the pawn shop this morning to get enough for the down payment.” She glanced down at her bare hand feeling naked. Exposed. In the worst way possible. “It’s the right thing to do, I know that, but selling the ring . . .” She inhaled and exhaled slowly. “The ring wa
s really special to me. But everything’s just crazy with Nash and my dad, and I need to have this safe space the baby and I can live in.”
Harper gave a soft nod. “You’re doing what a good mom does.”
Emma nodded too, albeit with the saddest eyes Megan had ever seen. “I’m sorry that this is all happening to you. But I feel like this is a good step in the right direction.”
“Yup,” Megan agreed, even though nothing really felt right. “We tried to make it work, right? I can’t fault either Nash or my dad for that, but it’s not going to happen. They cannot get along, no matter what I do.”
Harper frowned.
Emma looked full of pity. She finally inhaled sharply and gave a bright smile. “It’ll be okay. I just know it. Things always work out for good people, and you are good people, Megan.”
“Always the optimist.” Megan forced a smile.
Emma gave a small shrug. “Someone’s gotta be, and I feel it in my bones; this is all going to work out just fine. Besides, you’ve got an awesome house now that you love. You’ve got this amazing bar that everyone in town enjoys. You’ve got Nash, who has always loved you like crazy. A family who adores you. And you’ve got this sweet little baby on the way.”
Megan nodded, placing her hands on her ever-growing belly. “Yes, I do.” That was what occurred to her when Nash showed up at the farm, ready to decapitate her father. For as long as she could remember, she’d endured the feud. Hated it with a passion. But endured it. She didn’t need to anymore, she realized.
All she had to do was make the choice to stay out of it. And now she had. On her terms. And that felt good.
“Fudge nuggets.”
Harper burst out laughing.
Emma snickered, a hand over her face.
Megan turned toward the familiar voice.
Maisie Carter, the youngest Carter sister, who owned the local craft brewery, Three Chicks Brewery, entered the bar. From the way Megan knew the story, their late grandfather had crafted their local famous brew in his basement. Maisie, along with her two older sisters, Clara and Amelia, opened the brewery in his honor. With a little tweaking, they had developed Foxy Diva. Megan had gone to school with the oldest Carter sister, Clara.
“Son of a monkey!” Maisie gasped, blowing the dark hair away from her bright blue eyes. She kicked the front door shut behind her with her Converse.
Megan rose to help Maisie, who was carrying the boxes of booze.
“Oh, no you don’t.” Maisie dropped the boxes on the table. “You’ve got a baby in the oven.”
Ah, so everyone in town did know. Megan glanced back at Harper and Emma. They smiled and hopped off the stools to help Maisie get the boxes behind the bar.
Twenty-four-year-old Maisie had a definite cool vibe. Her hair was usually in side braids. Megan had never seen her out of her Converse, and she wore overalls or capris a lot. “My sisters keep thinking I have muscles that I don’t.” She smiled at Emma and Harper. “Thanks for the help.”
“Sure,” Harper said, returning to her stool.
Megan moved around the bar to begin restocking the shelves in the fridges. Now getting a better look, Maisie’s overalls had paint splattered on them. “You guys renovating at the brewery?”
“Nope.” She glanced down, shoved her hands in her overalls, and sighed. “I’m doing arts and crafts.”
Megan’s mouth twitched. “Arts and crafts?”
“Yeah, Amelia says I need a hobby.” Maisie shrugged. “But, uh, don’t tell Clara I’m painting during work hours. She’ll . . .” Maisie cringed. “I’ll hear a year-long lecture.”
“My lips are sealed,” Megan confirmed.
“Cool. Thanks.” Maisie moved to the door and opened it, smiling back at Megan. “Looking good, Megan.” She gave a wave and was out the door a second later.
“That girl is like a butterfly floating in the wind,” said Harper after a beat.
Megan agreed with a nod. “She is pretty chill, isn’t she?”
“Yeah,” Emma said, “can I be that chill?”
Megan laughed, feeling better now than before. Maybe just talking about selling the ring made her feel not so guilty for letting go of something that was so close to her heart. Regardless of the fact that she knew it was the right decision, it still sucked.
“So,” Harper said gently, curious eyes regarding Megan intently. “We don’t need to worry about you, right?”
Megan laughed softly. Not being one for grand emotional displays, she understood their concern. She glanced at her hand again and ran her fingers over her bare finger. “Selling the ring was harder than I expected, but I’m okay, really. I know Grams would be thrilled that I bought a house I love with the money. It was just . . .” her throat tightened, “ . . . special, you know.”
Emma gave those sad eyes again. “Yeah, I know.” She was off her stool and her arms were around Megan again, as were Harper’s.
Megan smiled and leaned into the hug. She had great friends. A hot cowboy who loved her. A sweet baby on the way. And a new house. All she was missing was the white picket fence.
Chapter 18
The following morning, Nash had a lot on his mind. He’d met Shep and Chase for breakfast at Harper’s restaurant, getting his head right before meeting his mother at the bank. After that, he hadn’t stopped getting shit done until he met Megan at River Rock’s medical center. She was there for her monthly checkup, and Nash had gone quiet, his body still, the moment the female obstetrician placed the heartbeat monitor on Megan’s bare round belly.
Nash held Megan’s hand, his whole life changing in a single second at the steady thump, thump, thump on the monitor.
“That’s our baby,” Megan said, tears in her eyes.
Emotion clamped at his throat, and he kissed her hand to gather himself. Things just got real. That was his baby right there. Nash thought once he’d tasted happiness. Holding the championship belt in his hand had meant the world to him. But it couldn’t come close to how this made him feel. He smiled down at her, brushing his knuckles across her cheek. “Listen to our boy. He’s so strong.”
“Well, we won’t know the sex until your second-trimester ultrasound. You’ve got a few weeks before that,” the doctor said.
Megan laughed. “He’s suspects it’s a boy.”
“Not suspects.” Nash placed his hand on the side of Megan’s warm belly. “That’s my boy right there.”
He caught Megan’s sniff before he spotted her tears. Yeah, he got that too. Things were good. So damn good. He kissed her forehead, this woman who changed his life in ways he never would have thought possible.
Megan began updating the doctor about how she’d been feeling. Nash could only stare down at her and at his hand on her belly. After the accident he’d lost everything. Or so he thought. But he realized now that he’d lost one life, but he gained another entirely. Both lives had made Nash who he was, and he knew he wouldn’t have changed a damn thing. But he also knew if Megan had been in his life back then, he wouldn’t have been so reckless or taken so many risks.
He once thought fate screwed up. Turned out, fate got things right.
“What’s wrong?” Megan asked, dragging him from his thoughts.
Nash glanced up into her pretty, unique eyes, realizing the doctor had left and it was just the two of them. He cupped her face. “I love you, Freckles.”
Her eyes widened before she gave him a sweet smile that was the realest thing he’d ever known. “I love you too.” She reached for his shirt and tugged him closer. “Now get over here and kiss me.”
“So bossy.” He kissed her anyway.
Ten minutes later, they were back outside and striding down Main Street, since Nash had left his truck near Harper’s restaurant. He drew in the warm fresh air, taking in the fresh bread scents coming from the bakery across the road. Since the accident, he never planned a damn thing. It was easier that way. When he didn’t hope for something, he couldn’t taste failure again.
T
hat life once worked for him.
It didn’t anymore.
When they finally reached the truck, Megan stepped forward to open the door, when Nash tugged her back close to him. “Can we walk a bit?”
“Sure.” She smiled.
They passed all the local shops that Nash had spent his childhood visiting while he led her down the road until they reached the entrance to the park. Farther down was the playground, but he took her to a quieter spot that overlooked the pond, where ducks floated on the murky, lily pad–covered water.
When they reached a bench, he gestured there. Once she sat, he joined her and stared out at the water. She smiled, her hands on her belly. His mind was on their baby too, but his thoughts had also been somewhere else this morning. He had made mistakes. It was time to make sure he didn’t make any more.
Nash had no clue how to start, so he began with the truth. “For a long time, I didn’t want to care,” he told her.
Megan glanced at him with her soft eyes.
He focused on the water, not sure he could get through this staring at her. “I didn’t want to think or feel because I felt pathetic when I did. For my entire life, pain made me fight harder. Push on. It reminded me to keep reaching for my dreams. But after the accident, pain weakened me. And I hated that. I was ashamed of how weak I had become.”
Sudden warmth carried over him as she slid her fingers around his and squeezed tight. “Nash . . .”
He dropped his head, looking at their held hands, telling her his truth. A truth that he hadn’t told a single person. A truth that Megan needed to know, because she had found her way into a place inside of him where he didn’t need to hide. “I gave up after the accident because I didn’t want to face that my career was over. I had nothing if I didn’t have that. I was nothing without being Nash Blackshaw, the champion bull rider.”
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