Nate's Deputy (2019 Reissue)

by Lavinia Lewis

  Maybe he could find himself an apprenticeship in town.

  In Lubbock, Tristan had been working in a grocery store to make ends meet after he’d dropped out of college when their Pop died. But as soon as he’d started drinking, Tristan had quit his job and had been coasting ever since, hardly seeming to be interested in anything. Well, anything other than getting wasted.

  They’d had money to live on for a while, sure, but it wouldn’t last for very long the way Tristan was spending it, and they needed everything they’d inherited from their father in order to purchase a home so they could have somewhere to call their own.

  That meant that everything Jared earned went to support Tristan too. He didn’t mind looking after his brother at all—he saw it as his responsibility now that their Pop wasn’t around to do it anymore—but that wasn’t the point.

  Tristan was twenty-one now—a man.

  It was time he took on some responsibility.

  Time he grew a pair.

  Jared checked his watch. He didn’t have long to wait to find out about their housing situation. In exactly fifteen minutes, the Realtor’s office would be calling to let him know if he’d been successful with his bid on a ranch a few miles out of town.

  Jared had never been as nervous.

  This house could be the catalyst that his brother so desperately needed to make some all-important changes in his life and to start thinking about his future.

  They had to be successful on the bid.

  Their future in Wolf Creek depended on it.

  Chapter Three

  After bolting the door to the stall, Nate carried Misty’s saddle back to the tack room. It had been a long, strenuous day already and it wasn’t even lunchtime. Nate was looking forward to a relaxing shower to clean away the grime and sweat he was covered in.

  The Realtors had promised him a call at exactly one thirty to let him know the results of the bidding. Nate was hoping the hot shower would help ease his nerves as much as his tired muscles. He hung up the saddle and harness then made his way out of the barn.

  He was halfway across the yard when Aaron appeared at the bunkhouse door.

  “Nate! Phone call!”

  “Fuck.” Nate sprinted across the yard and up the porch steps to the door. “Who is it?”

  Aaron shrugged and ducked back inside the house. “Don’t know,” he threw over his shoulder. “Didn’t say.”

  Nate frowned and walked through to their shared kitchen to take the call.

  It was only twelve-thirty, so it couldn’t be the Realtor yet, could it?

  “Nate,” he said into the receiver.

  “Ah, Mr. Stanford. Sorry to call so early, but I’ve had news about the ranch and I thought you’d want to know right away.”

  Nate held his breath.

  He’d managed to talk the bank into lending him forty thousand dollars to add to the inheritance money he’d been holding on to since his mother’s death. He’d got more money when Rick was killed, a substantial amount split between him and his sister, but he hadn’t wanted that money at first.

  He’d just wanted his brother back.

  But the best way to honor Rick’s memory, he’d decided, would be to buy their family farm. Nate had placed the largest offer he could, leaving barely enough for running costs for the first few months until he started to recoup his losses. He only hoped it had been enough.

  His whole life rode on this decision.

  “I do, thank you, sir.”

  “I think it would be best if I cut right to the chase. It’s not good news, I’m afraid. Your bids were all too low. The ranch has been sold to someone else.”

  Nate clenched the phone in his hand, feeling his wolf begin to stir as his anger rose to the surface.

  “Thank you for letting me know,” he bit out.

  He ended the call and slid the phone back into its cradle.

  “Fuck!”

  He stared around the bunkhouse kitchen, rubbing a hand along the back of his neck. His face grew hot and his ears burned from the humiliation of losing his family’s home.

  “I’m sorry, Rick,” Nate whispered. “I’m so sorry I let you down.”

  Nate took a seat in one of the wooden chairs that surrounded the kitchen table and closed his eyes, fighting to keep his wolf in check. Whenever he was upset or angry, his wolf grew restless—pacing within him and desperate to be set free.

  Even though Nate hadn’t lived at the ranch for the last two and a half years, he still considered it home. He’d grown up in that ranch, and he’d naïvely believed he would always call it home, but there was no chance of that now. Someone else would soon have the privilege of using that title for the place.

  What in the hell was Nate going to do now?

  Maybe it would be best if he went back to Montana. He didn’t relish the thought of moving back there, but he couldn’t hang around Wolf Creek watching strangers take up residence in the place he’d called home for the biggest part of his life.

  That would kill him as surely as anything.

  Problem was, Nate also had his father to consider—not that the old man ever recognized Nate when he went to visit him in the nursing home. His father was suffering from a type of dementia, common in older wolves, so he’d been placed in a special nursing home run by shifters.

  The nursing home was a two hundred mile round-trip from Wolf Creek. Nate tried to visit him as often as possible, but it was getting more and more difficult to see his father like that—a mere shadow of the man he used to be. Nate knew his sister made regular visits because the nurses had told him, but that was beside the point.

  “Nate? Everything okay?”

  Nate looked up and met Cary’s gaze.

  The young panther shifter was hovering near the door, chewing on his bottom lip.

  “Yeah, kid, everything’s fine.”

  Cary crossed the room and took a seat in a chair opposite Nate. “Are you sure? Because you don’t look fine.”

  Nate sighed.

  Trust Cary to be so direct…the kid didn’t miss a beat.

  There would be no point in Nate unloading his troubles on the young panther because he couldn’t change his circumstances, no matter how much he wished he could. Besides, Cary had had the troubles of ten men in his young life. He didn’t need Nate’s problems dumped on him too.

  “Just wondering about some things is all. I was thinking about moving back to Montana.”

  Cary sucked in a sharp breath. “What? But why? Don’t you like it here with us?”

  “Yeah, kid. I like it here just fine, but sometimes a man’s gotta do what’s best for him, you know?”

  Cary’s eyes were wide. “But I don’t want you to leave,” he whispered. “Is it because of me? Because of what happened the night you got shot?”

  “Now you listen here. That night has absolutely nothing to do with my reason for wanting to go, understand? Nothing at all. You’ve got to stop blaming yourself for what happened. Those men were crazy.”

  Just thinking of the night Cary had nearly been killed made Nate’s anger rise. Yes, Nate had been shot, but he’d been able to save Cary’s life in the process. He’d go through it again…and gladly if he had to.

  Cary’s throat bobbed when he swallowed. He pulled his bottom lip into his mouth and chewed on it. The kid might have stopped jumping at his own shadow, but he could still be a nervous little thing.

  “You got something on your mind, there’s no sense in lettin’ it fester. Spit it out.”

  Cary nodded. “Is it because of Aaron? I get the feeling you don’t like him very much. It’s just that you can be…snappy with him sometimes.”

  Nate sighed.

  Had he been snappy with Aaron? He hadn’t meant to be. How in the hell was he going to explain this? He took a deep breath before he spoke, more to give himself time to think than anything else.

  “Didn’t realize I’d been doing that, sorry. I don’t dislike Aaron, quite the opposite in fact.”

&nbs
p; Cary scrunched his eyebrows together in confusion. “Huh?”

  “Aaron is a nice kid—I can see that, and I’ve seen the difference in you since he’s been around, too. You’ve got a sparkle in your eye now that wasn’t there before.

  “You seem…lighter, if that’s the right word. Like all your worries and cares have disappeared.”

  Cary cocked his head to the side as if he were considering Nate’s statement. “I guess that’s because they have. I’m happier now than I’ve been in a long time…probably ever.”

  “I’m glad you found someone that makes you feel that way.”

  “So you don’t have a problem with him.”

  Fuck.

  Cary wasn’t going to let the subject drop, and it was on ground that Nate didn’t want to venture onto, but he supposed the kid deserved an explanation.

  “No, I don’t have a problem with Aaron. But it’s difficult to be around him sometimes because he reminds me so much of my brother, Rick when he was younger.”

  There…Nate had said it, and it had been less difficult to admit to than he’d thought it would be.

  Cary’s eyes widened and his hand flew up to cover his mouth. “Oh God, I’m sorry. I didn’t know. It must be real hard for you to be around him then.”

  “Yeah, but don’t worry about it, kid. It’s my problem, not Aaron’s. I never wanted to make him feel uncomfortable. I’ll watch my behavior around him in the future, okay?”

  Cary nodded. “Okay.”

  “Seems I’ve got an apology to make to Aaron, too.”

  “If you could,” Cary said quietly, “that would be good. Aaron thinks he did something to upset you.”

  Nate sighed.

  He didn’t fucking need this shit right now, but it was his mess—up to him to clean it up.

  “I’ll talk to him, kid. Set him straight.”

  “Will you reconsider leaving, too?”

  Nate sighed. “I’ll think on it. Wasn’t a definite anyway, just something I was chewing over.”

  Cary nodded, seemingly satisfied.

  Nate only wished he could be as happy with the answer himself.

  Chapter Four

  The minute he stepped into Jessie’s dancehall, Nate spotted Pete chatting to a customer at the bar.

  The wolf looked good.

  Nate might not want a relationship with Pete, but an orgasm or two before he left town couldn’t hurt any, could it? In any case, a relationship would be the last thing on Pete’s mind, too. Wolves rarely did relationships—they did casual hook-ups until they found their destined mate…at least that was what most sensible wolves did.

  Nate had heard a tale or two about wolves falling in love and then wham—they meet their mate and someone ends up getting hurt.

  It just wasn’t worth it.

  Pete’s head turned in Nate’s direction. Their eyes locked, and his friend’s face broke out into a wide, wolfish grin that got Nate smiling, too.

  “Nate!” Pete greeted when Nate approached the bar. “Finally got you here. You change your mind about that drink?”

  Nate nodded and took a seat on an empty barstool. “I’ll take a beer, please.”

  Pete grabbed a bottle from a large fridge behind the bar, cracked it open then placed it on the counter in front of Nate.

  “On the house.”

  “Thanks.” Nate raised the bottle in a toast then took a long swig.

  “What made you reconsider?”

  Nate sighed. “Had me some bad news today—thought I’d come and drown my sorrows.”

  Pete nodded. “Nothing too bad I hope, but if you’re looking to forget your troubles, I can think of better ways to distract you.”

  Nate grinned, thankful Pete hadn’t questioned him about his news. He’d thought he might have to sweet talk Pete into bed but it looked like they were of the same mind.

  “That a fact?”

  Pete rested his elbows on the bar then leaned forward until he was inches away from Nate’s face. “Sure is.”

  It occurred to Nate to check the room to see who was watching them but if Pete didn’t care, he didn’t either. He had never hidden who he was and he wasn’t about to start now.

  “What time do you get off?”

  Pete turned and glanced at the clock behind the bar. “I’m working the early shift today, so another couple of hours. You gonna wait for me, Nate?”

  Nate grinned and picked up his beer. “Keep ‘em coming and you got yourself a deal.”

  “Oh, great,” Pete grumbled, glancing over Nate’s head to the entrance.

  “What’s up?”

  “Trouble, that’s what.”

  Nate swiveled on his stool in time to catch a young, slender man enter the bar and stagger across the room. As he got closer, Nate picked up on his scent.

  He was a wolf—a slightly inebriated wolf.

  “Seems like he’s already wasted,” Nate said in an aside.

  “Probably is…think the guy has a drinking problem. He’s in here most nights and he often stirs up trouble. Believe it or not, his brother Jared works for the sheriff’s department.

  “I’ve had to call him down here a time or two.”

  “Hope the kid doesn’t start anything.”

  “You and me both.”

  The young man practically fell upon the bar and perched himself on the stool next to Nate.

  “Beer, please Pete,” he slurred.

  “Looks as if you’ve had one too many already, Tristan.”

  Tristan narrowed his eyes. “I haven’t been drinking.”

  Nate snorted.

  He could smell the booze on the kid from where he sat and would have been able to do so without his wolf sense of smell, that was for sure.

  The kid reeked of alcohol.

  “One beer,” Pete said, “and if you start any trouble today, I’m calling your brother to come and get you, and you won’t be welcome back here.”

  Tristan’s eyes glazed over as he waved off Pete’s concerns. “No trouble, just a beer.”

  While Pete retrieved the kid’s beer from the fridge, Tristan turned to Nate, and he swayed in his seat a little while his eyes tried to focus on Nate’s face.

  “Who are you? Haven’t seen you in here before.”

  “Don’t come in here, that’s why. Name’s Nate.”

  Nate reached out his hand to Tristan.

  The kid grabbed it clumsily and shook it, his wrist flaccid. His hand felt tiny in Nate’s much larger paw.

  “You from around here?” Tristan asked.

  Nate nodded. “Born and bred.”

  “What do you do?”

  Nate was surprised when his mouth curved up into a smile. “Nosy little thing, aren’t you? I’m a rancher. Work for Kelan Morgan, over on the Crazy Horse.”

  “Alpha Morgan?”

  “One and the same.”

  Tristan smiled his thanks when his beer was put in front of him. He lifted it to his mouth and downed half in one long, greedy gulp before placing it down on the bar. He didn’t let go of the bottle.

  “Where you from, kid?”

  Tristan turned and fixed his glassy-eyed gaze on Nate.

  Jesus.

  Just how much had the kid had to drink, exactly? Wolves had fast metabolisms, so Tristan must have consumed a truckload to be this wasted.

  “Lubbock.”

  “Whatcha doing down here?”

  Tristan screwed his eyebrows together and pursed his lips as though he were trying to remember. “My brother, Jared,” he said at last. “He got a job down here. Works for the sheriff.”

  “And you don’t like it here?”

  Tristan shrugged. “Not really.”

  “Don’t you have family you could have stayed with in Lubbock?”

  Nate normally kept to himself, didn’t strike up conversations with people, especially strangers. He wasn’t sure why he was asking Tristan so many questions, but something drew him to the kid.

  Nate wasn’t sure where the though
t came from but he was certain that beneath the kid’s messed up exterior there was goodness, bubbling just beneath the surface. Could be the kid was a little lost at the moment and needed someone to put him on the right path, and there was something about his scent…

  Nate couldn’t put his finger on it but the kid smelled like…home.

  Tristan straightened and pulled his shoulders back. “Nope. Just me and my brother. We stick together, only family we got.”

  Nate nodded and did his best not to think about Rick.

  Out of all the family he had, Rick had been the only one to really accept him for who he was. Nate’s sister was older and mated to a pastor. She’d turned her back on Nate when he’d come out at eighteen and it had been at least ten years since he’d last seen her or her husband.

  It upset Nate sometimes, but his sister’s disapproval of him had been intense and incredibly vocal. He’d hoped she might come around but he knew many people never got over their prejudices, and when she hadn’t even contacted him to inform him of Rick’s death, that had told him all he’d needed to know.

  Nate supposed he was as dead to his sister as was his brother Rick was now.

  Their mother had died a few years back. She’d been ten years older than Nate’s father and although his parents hadn’t disowned him when they’d found out he was gay, they had never been able to fully accept him either.

  Nate took a swig of his beer and used the liquid to swallow down the lump in his throat. Rick had been his only ally and he’d let a dumb fucking argument get in the way of their relationship.

  How could he have been so stupid?

  He suddenly didn’t feel very sociable anymore. Would Pete be upset if Nate cut out on him?

  The bar door swung open and Nate’s head shot up when he heard Pete’s expletive.

  “Aww, fuck.”

  Nate spun around in his seat to see who had rattled Pete’s cage this time. Three mean-looking young men breezed into the room, grinning and elbowing each other when they set eyes on Tristan. The kid showed no indication he’d heard them enter. He was still hunched over the bar, sucking down his beer.

  The men crossed the room and stood behind him. Nate inhaled deeply to catch the men’s scents—they were all wolves.