Her Renegade Rancher EPB

by Jennifer Ryan

  The paramedics made quick work of loading Wayne onto the gurney, doing their best to bring him back.

  “Will he make it?” The hope in Luna’s soft voice tore at Colt’s insides because he knew the truth that Luna didn’t want to face.

  The tall paramedic pressed his lips together and gave a subtle shake of his head. The flat line on the monitor didn’t blip even once, no matter how many times they jolted poor Wayne with electricity.

  “No. No. He’s not gone. He can’t be.” She stomped her foot and tried to go after the paramedics to get to her friend. “You have to save him. You have to!”

  Colt held tight to her. “Luna, honey, they’ll take him to the hospital, but I’m sorry, he’s gone.” He buried his nose in her neck, smelled her sweet scent, and closed his eyes when a wracking sob tore through her. He kept his arms locked around her, holding her close, even when she tried to bust free again.

  “No. No. It’s not true. He’ll be fine. The doctors will bring him back. They have to bring him back,” she wailed.

  Colt turned her in his arms and hugged her tight. She wrapped her arms around him, pressed her face to his shoulder and neck, and wept so hard he felt her pain rock through him.

  With the paramedics gone and the commotion over, the other patrons quietly paid Tim at the register and walked out. Tim gave Colt a sad look, then ducked back into the kitchen. This late at night, it wasn’t likely very many customers would come in for a late-night meal or snack. Colt settled into holding Luna through her tears and the quiet, somber way she leaned into him.

  Settled in his arms, her fingers dug into his back, holding him close to her. He’d wanted her like this for so long, he’d actually forgotten what that nagging, insistent yearning inside of him was until now. That damn kiss started something between them, then turned into a curse that haunted him into his dreams, insisting for something he didn’t understand until now. Such a simple answer he’d made complicated by staying away from her all this time, hiding behind the fact he thought he owed her an apology, an explanation. All he really had to do was admit one thing. He wanted her. She meant something to him.

  Still, the pieces of him and her didn’t quite line up. They still had unfinished business with the whole kiss and his friend, her ex, Billy.

  Why did his friend want to keep her away from him?

  For the reasons that seemed so obvious now, but he’d never seen in the past? What else had he missed back in the day when he’d avoided getting in between Billy and Luna, when he’d gone out of his way to hang with his friend, never acknowledging he really wanted a glimpse of her? A moment to see her smile at him when the smiles she’d given Billy dimmed and disappeared. A chance to have even a glimpse of the happiness his friend seemed to have had with her.

  He always told himself, no, he’d never cross that line. But he did cross it, and he couldn’t go back. He’d been stuck in a wasteland of wanting someone he shouldn’t, but here she was, in his arms, but she still didn’t belong there.

  He held her shoulders and gently pushed her away, but not out of his grasp. She kept her hands gripped at his sides.

  “He can’t be gone.” Her eyes were so filled with sorrow he felt it in his soul, and his own eyes glassed over.

  “I’m sorry, honey, he is.”

  Her hands gripped him tighter. She shook him, letting out her pent-up frustration. “I don’t know what to do.”

  “The hospital will notify his family. They’ll take care of him.”

  She deflated all at once, her shoulders going lax beneath his hands. “He was my friend.”

  “I know, honey.”

  Her tear-stained face tilted to the side. Those beautiful blue eyes stared at him with the question she whispered. “Are we still friends?”

  He didn’t know what to say.

  “He told me to fix things with you, that I should do it now before it was too late. Take-it-from-an-old-guy, time-gets-away-from-you kind of thing. Too much time has passed without us saying what needs to be said.”

  He swiped his thumbs across her wet cheeks. “Luna, you’re upset. This can wait.”

  “No, it can’t. Not anymore.”

  “Then let me be the one to say it. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have kissed you.”

  “I kissed you, but I’m not sorry I did it. I’m sorry you stepped back and out of my life. I’m sorry that it’s taken me this long to tell you that I never meant to push you to do something that went against the way you felt for me and your friend. I’m sorry that you were forced to stand up for me against your friend.”

  He pressed his thumb over her trembling lips to get her to stop. “I stood up for you because it was the right thing to do. I kissed you because I wanted to kiss you. I stepped back because I thought I took advantage, when I knew you’d eventually make things up and go back to Billy.”

  Her hand wrapped around his, dragging his thumb over her plump lip and chin and down to her neck, where she held his hand against her soft skin. “You were wrong. I’d ended things with him weeks before that night, and I’m glad I did, because none of it was real.”

  “What are you talking about? He loved you.”

  She shook her head side to side, a fresh wave of tears sliding down her cheeks. “In the beginning, it seemed so genuine.” Her voice cracked. “I loved the attention he showered on me. Then, he got bored. He’d pick fights, and we’d eventually break up.”

  “I told him what an idiot he was for letting you go.”

  “Yes, he told me that night at the bar that’s exactly what you’d say. So he’d come crawling back with promises that he’d be nicer, we’d be better together. I fell for it over and over again. Until I couldn’t do it anymore, because I finally saw what he tried so hard to hide. He didn’t really want to be with me. He just didn’t want me to be with you.”

  “Why would he think you wanted to be with me?”

  “You were best friends. You two hung out together all the time. You kept a respectful distance from me. When the three of us were together, Billy went way overboard on the ‘She’s my girl. Look how lucky I am to have her’ bullshit. I saw the way you were with other girls. You liked to have fun, but you treated the girls with respect even though you didn’t want anything serious with them. When Billy got out of line, picked a fight for no reason, or generally acted like a jerk, I’d tell him to act more like you. You always treated me better than decent. You had manners. You worked hard with your brothers. You took things seriously when they counted.

  “He didn’t like me comparing him to you. In fact, it pissed him off.”

  “That’s ridiculous. We were friends, not competitors.”

  “That’s what you thought. But that night in the bar when you walked in, I got up from my friends and headed in your direction. I hadn’t even seen Billy in the bar that night. But he’d been spying on me and intercepted me before I got to you. I didn’t mean for him to see it, but I guess I couldn’t hide it anymore.”

  “What?”

  “The way I felt when I looked at you. All those times I told Billy he should be more like you, it finally dawned on me that’s not what I wanted. Not him, acting like you. I just wanted you. So I got up when I saw you and thought I’d buy you a beer, say hi, and see what happened.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “I know, long shot, right? I mean, you were his friend. You’re not the kind of guy who does that to a buddy. But we were broken up, and I thought, Why the hell not? If I don’t try, I’ll always wonder.” She pressed her hand to his chest. “I was tired of wondering.”

  Colt’s mind did not compute. All this time, she wanted him. “What did Billy say to you?”

  “Same thing he always said after we broke up and he wanted me back. The thing is, I didn’t want to hear it anymore. I didn’t want to hear it the time before, when we got back together, but I did because I thought maybe that time he’d be the right kind of guy. He wasn’t ever going to change, but I had. I wanted something more. Someth
ing better. Someone better. That night, he saw it. I didn’t want him anymore. I wasn’t going to take him back. I wanted to walk away from him and take a new path.”

  Still unable to believe the unbelievable, he asked, “One that led to me?”

  “I’m sorry. I never thought my rejection would set him off like that.”

  “He grabbed you. Tried to drag you out the back door.”

  “Away from you. If he’d been sober, he probably would have laughed in my face and told me there was no chance in hell of you dating me, but he was drunk and acting stupid. You stepped in to make him let go of me and take him home to sober up.”

  “The next thing I know, he sucker-punched me.”

  “I’m really sorry.” Her pale cheeks flamed pink. “It’s so embarrassing to have to admit all this to you. I had no right to come between you and your friend. That was never my intention. Then I found you outside sitting against the bumper of your truck with your hand pressed to your swollen jaw. I only meant to apologize, but I saw your face and I felt so bad and then I . . .”

  “You kissed me and proved what a colossal fool Billy was for letting you go.”

  “What?”

  “You felt it. I felt it. My whole world rocked off center, but I thought you belonged to Billy, that you two would work it out again. I had no right to trespass in your relationship.”

  “You didn’t. I walked out of that relationship long before that night.”

  “I didn’t know that at the time, so I walked away. I guess you owe me that beer.”

  Her hands slid down his shoulders and over his arms. Her gaze dropped to the crescent moon cuts she’d left on him with her nails.

  “Oh God, Colt, you’re bleeding.”

  “Yeah, every time we’re together, you leave your mark.”

  Chapter 3

  Simon rushed into the Crystal Creek Clinic and stopped short when Josh stepped out of a room down the hallway. Aunt Bea and Uncle Harry followed Josh, hanging back several paces, whispering to each other. Simon ignored the woman behind the reception desk asking if she could help him, then headed for his brother. The anger in Josh’s eyes didn’t obscure the pain.

  “He’s dead.” Josh’s flat words didn’t register at first.

  Simon shook his head, unable to take it in. “No. We just saw him not even two hours ago.”

  “Heart attack. Dropped dead in the diner at his fucking too-young-to-be-decent girlfriend’s feet.”

  Simon narrowed his gaze and drew his lips into a tight line. “What?”

  “Paramedics told the doctor the waitress tried to save him, but no amount of CPR was going to fix his blown-out heart.”

  Simon raked his hand through his hair and stared at his brother, trying to figure out what the hell was with the anger-laced monotone. Josh could be brusque, but Simon had never heard him be this callous.

  “We were too late.” Josh didn’t show an ounce of remorse about their father’s passing.

  Simon hung his head, overcome with sorrow, taking it in, feeling the pain enveloping his chest.

  “We can’t change whatever he put in his will. We’ll have to work with whatever it says, try to swing things our way.”

  Simon’s head snapped up. He shouldn’t be surprised. Yep, that was Josh, always finding ways to turn everything to his advantage. Whenever they played good cop, bad cop, Josh always got the bad cop role. He excelled at it.

  “So that’s it. He’s gone. Just like that?”

  Josh stuffed his hands in the pockets of his gray slacks. “It’s not surprising. We knew his health was failing.”

  Yeah, Simon knew, but he’d thought his stubborn, strong dad would somehow beat the odds. After all, he’d outlived his much younger wife. The fucking flu took her out five years back. In the back of Simon’s mind, he’d half expected his father to remarry—maybe even the way-too-young waitress he was obsessed with—and live a long life into his nineties.

  “Simon, we need to contact the lawyer and get the ball rolling,” Josh pushed.

  Simon rubbed his hand over his tight chest and blinked back tears. “Can I have five minutes to settle into the fact Dad is dead?”

  “Take all the time you need, but I for one want to know what the hell that crazy old man put in his will.”

  “I’d like to know the same.” Aunt Bea joined them, her white-blonde hair pulled back into a sleek knot, her ears, neck, and hands bedecked in dozens of sparkling jewels. She could probably add a new hospital wing with the amount of money she wore like she was going to a royal engagement.

  Country Queen. The old nickname didn’t bring a smile to Simon’s face like it used to.

  Uncle Harry, always Aunt Bea’s backup and support in any situation, put his big hands on her shoulders. Bea was a tough old bird. Not a single tear gathered in her eyes. Simon choked his back so far, but Josh took after their taciturn aunt.

  “Your father was a good man. He took care of you boys and me and my Harry.”

  Simon wondered if Aunt Bea wanted to plant the seeds for him and Josh to take care of her from now on. Really, didn’t any of them miss Dad? Didn’t any of them care?

  “Your father could be generous when he wanted to be. These last years, he changed.” The disappointment in Aunt Bea’s eyes matched the regret in her voice. Where Simon’s father was kind but stern, Aunt Bea was reserved and distant.

  Simon shook his head, felt the well of pain and loss weighted down with his rising anger. “I’m going in to see him. This isn’t the time to discuss the ranch and everything Dad left behind.”

  “He’s gone. Now is the time to step up and take over.” His aunt reminded Simon of what he thought was to be his duty although just hours ago his father had told them it wasn’t going to happen.

  “He’s really gone?” The soft, sweet voice reminded Simon of his mother.

  He turned to the woman he’d resented for a long time. The woman his father spent time with at the restaurant after his mother died. His dad talked about being lonely. Well, he should have gotten a dog, not a woman who could be Simon’s little sister.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” Josh’s harsh tone made the waitress flinch. The guy beside her narrowed his gaze, eyeing Josh and Simon up and down, taking their measure. He looked familiar. Simon might have gone to school with his older brother, but right now Simon couldn’t place the family name.

  Simon stepped forward and extended his hand. “I’m Simon, Wayne’s youngest. That’s my brother, Josh.”

  Luna took his hand in a brief shake.

  “Luna. I was with your father when he passed.” The words barely made it past her trembling lips. Tears gathered in her eyes. One rolled down her cheek. She didn’t bother to wipe it away. “I’m so sorry for your loss.”

  Unlike his family, here was someone who grieved for his father.

  “Thank you for coming, but this is a time for family.” Aunt Bea looked down her nose at Luna, disapproval lighting her eyes.

  “You’re just here hoping to find out what he left you, his filthy, money-hungry whore.” The words came out like a curse from Josh’s lips, stunning Simon.

  “Watch it,” the guy beside Luna warned.

  Luna gasped and took a step back, like she’d been struck. “No. No.” She shook her head. “Not at all. He was my friend. I tried to save him. We both did.” She took the hand of the guy beside her, linking her fingers with his.

  Simon held out his hand to the man, still trying to place him. “Simon. Thank you for what you tried to do.”

  The guy had to release Luna to shake Simon’s hand. “Colt Kendrick.”

  Ah, Simon vaguely remembered Rory Kendrick from school.

  “No problem. I’m sorry about your dad. I didn’t know him well, but he was a good guy. Smart. Always willing to lend a hand to others and give advice.”

  “Really?” Josh’s surprise matched Simon’s.

  “He and my grandfather were friendly. They’d get to talking in town or out at one or
the other’s ranches. When I was around, I liked to listen to them exchange ideas, argue about crops and cattle, that kind of thing.”

  Luna turned to Colt. “I didn’t know you knew him that well.”

  Colt shrugged. “Not that well. It’s a small town. You run into people, exchange hellos and small talk. I don’t do small talk, neither did Wayne. We mostly talked horses.”

  Simon studied the pair. These two were close, but not together. Interesting.

  “So what you’re trying to tell us is that you weren’t sleeping with our dad?” Josh asked boldly.

  Luna’s bright blue eyes darkened with anger. “No. Like I said, he was a friend. We saw each other at the diner twice a week, and sometimes he had me out to the ranch.”

  “You expect us to believe you went out to the ranch and spent time with him, but you weren’t sleeping with him?” Josh asked.

  “We rode the horses. Talked. Had lunch together.” She threw up her hands and let them fall. “You know, things friends do.”

  “Well, you’re smarter than you look, I guess, if you got him wrapped around your little finger without so much as dropping to your knees for him.”

  Colt pointed his finger at Josh. “Shut your mouth, or I’ll shut it for you.”

  Luna gave Josh a hard glare, her mouth set in a firm line. “That’s a vile thing to say, especially when a good and decent man just died. I don’t know what is wrong with you people that you’re more concerned with me than you are about Wayne’s passing.”

  “Apologies. Grief has gotten the better of my nephew’s good judgment. But if you’re not here hoping to cash in on his death, then why are you here?” Aunt Bea pressed one glittering hand to her chest.