by J. L. Beck
I pull back, reaching for the front door. I’m over my father’s excuses and demands for me to be something I’ll never be in his eyes. Cole and Warren are a vital part of me now, and I refuse to separate myself from them.
“If you take this course, your mother and I won’t be able to protect you, Maddie. This town doesn’t take kindly to this type of behavior,” he grumbles, warning me, trying to frighten me once more.
“No, Father. You’re the one who doesn’t take kindly to this behavior. But guess what? I’m over caring about what you want. I’m making Maddie happy, and until you come to terms with that, I want nothing to do with you,” I seethe, slamming the door shut.
Tears swarm my eyes, but I hold them back. There’s no point in crying over something that can’t be changed.
“Fuck, sugar…”
Cole and Warren both wrap me up in their arms, the pounding of their hearts soothing me right away, making the anger and hate festering inside me dissipate.
“We love you, babe. No one, not even your father, will rip us apart. Not again. Not ever.”
War presses a soft kiss to the back of my head while Cole peppers my lips in kisses laden with passion, both men assuring me I’ve made the right choice. I just wish felt as convinced.
Chapter Nineteen
Maddie
Cole, War, and I pull off the highway to face the challenger that is my father. We haven’t spoken to him in over a month, and the silent treatment I’m wading through is breaking my heart, especially each time I see him in town when he drives past me without waving. So, I’m being the grown up here and making the first move. Miracles happen, right?
“Babe, we’re not leaving your side ever, so we don’t want you worrying about us if things are said between you and your father that need to be said. No filters. Okay?”
War lifts my hand to his mouth, planting a warm kiss that toasts the chill crawling through me. This is my War, the guy who’s all about feelings and understands me at a deep level, making me believe I'm the luckiest woman alive.
“That’s right, sugar. You take the lead. You need us, just give us a sign. We’ll kick some ass if need be to break your father into admitting he loves Sampson and your mom, just like we love you.” Cole squeezes my leg as we round the bend in the road leading up to the house.
The hard, fast way about him strengthens my belief in myself that I’m a strong, capable woman. Hope builds that today we all will remove this wedge placed between the three of us and my dad, so we can claim our happily-ever-afters. “I know I can count on you both. I’ve always known—”
“Fuck. What the hell?”
War’s alarming voice blasts through me as he bolts from the truck before it comes to a complete stop in the circular driveway. He hauls ass toward Spartan, who’s getting busy with his mare right there in the middle of Mom’s begonias.
“Oh, hell, no,” Cole blurts.
Before I can even fully express my gratitude for War and Cole or process what the hell is happening, Cole jams the truck into park, pops open the door, and jets after War, leaving me to slide off the bench seat to the ground.
Boots pound against the gravel drive and shoot a cloud of dust into the dusky sunset.
Not sure what the guys plan on doing with the stallion, who’s wild-eyed, his dark red fur frothed up, and a redder stain leaking from his shoulder.
Shit. His injury obviously isn’t life threatening or bothering him a damn bit. Good thing I’ve grabbed my vetting tools, which are behind the truck’s seat.
The scene at the ranch should be funny, really...probably could garnish an award-winning shot of the bulked-up grand champion roping stud Dad could use to advertise the stallion’s virility. Spartan’s standing hock deep in a spray of red flowers and buried inside the chestnut mare, ensuring next year's offspring.
The splintered fence clues me in to what happened and, for the most part, my dad firing the twins—who know Spartan better than anyone when Dad rarely handles the stud—almost makes me snicker. Almost.
Dad punches to his feet and takes a wobbly step, swatting off help from the paramedics. Mom’s poring over Dad, but he’s fighting her, too.
Figures.
He’s a stubborn ass who’s too pigheaded to admit when he needs help, which he obviously does. I’m hoping he needs me, too, but I can’t be sure. Dad has sent me away on multiple occasions. Should I blame him, when every time I show up I stir his worst nightmare by drawing attention to my relationship with Cole and War and shoving my happiness in his face when he’s miserable?
It’s a toss-up, and we need to work on our communication, which is what I’m trying to do now.
Sure hope Dad’s checking out the guys. Cole grabs a lasso from the barn and ropes the mare on his first toss. Yeah, Cole’s a badass with ropes and knots. War’s all shaking the grain can, stooping low, and talking to Spartan like he’s talking to a lover. Hey, that’s me….
Spartan hops off the mare and dodges the men who attempt to corral him, tail raised, prancing, and circling the mare as if he’s thinking of dishing himself a second helping.
I’m hoping Dad’s paying attention to how the men sacrifice for my father and his business. Our family’s livelihood.
Dad swipes at his forehead and comes away with a splash of red, and his complexion turns ashen.
My heart punches into my stomach as I take in his condition. The ambulance light spinning red, lighting up the barn eaves, makes more sense than just Mom overreacting. Dad could have a concussion.
I hurry toward my father as he palms Mom’s shoulder.
“Fuck no. Why’d you call him? There’s nothing for him to see.” He grabs for Mom’s cell, who twists away and presses the phone to her ear.
I can only imagine she’s relaying the information to Sampson because his diesel truck engine propels his truck forward, eating up the space between the main highway and where we are at the house.
Any fight in Dad withers as Sampson swings open the door to his truck and hustles toward Mom and Dad.
But Dad’s face flushes when he spots the big man who’s built like War and Cole, taller than my father by a good four inches.
Maybe it’s the tenderness, the stillness in Sampson as he approaches my father that tears at my heart. Maybe it’s the way my father rolls his head back and meets Sampson’s gaze as the big man palms my dad’s cheek that rips away any doubt in me that love can exist in the shadows.
But as I stare at the shared tenderness and the fear behind their eyes, I know hiding isn’t for me. No. Risking everything is what I’m choosing because love is worth parading around in the wide open for everyone to witness, even if that desire makes us wild-eyed and crazy.
The three of them tangle their arms around each other, and I hear my dad choke up.
I’ve never heard my father cry, and the seriousness of what could have happened shakes me to the bone. Warmth trickles down my cheeks, and I give the three a moment. Or me.
Cole circles the mare, slips on her halter, and leads her back into her stall.
Spartan rears, spins, and bolts when War approaches, causing War to leap backward.
But that’s the challenge of fighting for love. Sometimes it makes us go mad and do crazy shit where we only think about our desires, others be damned. I’m planting my faith in forever with my guys, and I hope Dad will, too.
I stoop at Dad’s side, the back of my eyes stinging when I see the pain he’s trying to hide. Or his secret. I understand hiding, and I’m not hiding any longer, so I lean in and palm Dad’s arm. “Dad, what were you thinking putting yourself between the big animal and his mare when you could have called your sons for help?”
Dad winces, but I don’t think it’s from where I’m touching his arm. I’m thinking—as he’s checking out Cole and Warren, and then Mom and Sampson—that’s Dad’s been playing defense, protecting us all, for a long time.
Both Mom and Sampson wander off a few feet, talking in inaudible whispers.
/> I imagine what they’re saying.
Give them a moment to come to terms with the unfolding situations. To work out this mess of opinions and objections. To find their place among each other again as father and daughter, or as two adults.
Life is a dance, but I’m tired of switching up the moves until I ache inside and out. “We need you, Dad, and I believe you need us.”
Dad huffs and mumbles a bit. “I’ve got this entire ranch under control, except for that length of fence Spartan crashed through getting to that damn mare he’s been stalking since he was a yearling. I should get rid of him. He’s a nuisance, a dangerous animal that’s unmanageable and a pain in my ass.”
“Spartan’s not nuisance. You’ve based your entire career off that champion and his offspring. Neither of you would be where you are if you didn’t have each other.”
I think about how much that applies to me and slide beside my father on the ground. I nuzzle against his shoulder like I did when I was a little girl, connecting with him in my own way. “I miss you. And I know you miss me. But Spartan wants what he wants, who he wants, and he’s not letting a fence, or a foolish human, stand in his way. Neither am I.”
Dad gives Mom and Sampson a look I don’t understand, but Mom raises her brows.
I check out the slice at Dad’s hairline that the butterfly bandages hold together. The wound could have been much worse, so much worse. “Dad, talk to me. Tell me why you’re so upset about me and the twins when you, Mom, and Sampson have the same type of relationship.”
Dad slouches a bit as he checks out the bandage wrapped around his arm, as if he’s looking for lost treasure.
I get the feeling he’s not ready to talk about coming out with the paramedics packing up to leave. And maybe in time, watching how happy the boys and I can be, he'll take a leap of faith right along with us and trust in Mom and Sampson to have his back. “Times have changed, Dad. People are changing. I know about the Clarks and what happened to their house back when you were my age. That must have terrified you beyond—”
“It pissed me off.”
I pull back a little, watching a cloud of darkness slide across my father’s stare. “What pissed you off? That some closed-minded person couldn’t accept three people who loved—”
“It was me, Maddie. I hated them. I hated their happiness. That they were willing to risk everything for love. It was foolish of them. It still is, which is why I keep my personal life private and why I wish you would as well.”
The shock in my father’s gaze, I’m sure, matches my own from his confession. Dad’s a stern man, but he’s also deeply affected by his emotions. And I have to give him credit for opening up to me. Sharing his offense helps me understand why my happiness and carefree attitude bothers him so much. Still I challenge him. “Love exists regardless of the consequences for both of us. I’m sorry, Dad, but I never meant to hurt anyone. Nor is it ever too late to accept yourself, what you want, who you want, who you love. Please take a chance and risk believing you can have everything, too, without hiding. That you can allow yourself to be happy.”
Dad glances at Mom and Sampson holding onto each other in an intimate way I’ve never observed but, in their embrace, I watch hope shine. Hope of a happy future without hiding, like Cole, War, and me.
Warmth of my father's hand slips into mine and he squeezes. “I just want my little girl to be happy. I want my family back. Forgive me for being an intrusive bigot? But watching you three together, even if I don’t want to see you as a grown woman, I know it’s right...but I’ll never get used to seeing you three together.”
I pull Dad into a hug and wrap my arms around his neck. A crystal ball doesn’t exist, but I hope in time Dad will embrace what he has, who he has, and that he can accept himself. “We’ll get through this together. One day at a time, okay?”
Thick arms envelop me from behind, then another and another as Dad links arms with everyone. We all fold into a hug as the paramedics drive away, Spartan munching on the grain placed at his feet on the grass.
The guys may have roped their virgin, but we all came away with something stronger, more mature, and with an understanding that love, no matter how diverse and complicated, is worth fighting for.
I’m fighting for Cole and War, no matter what conflicts arise in our future, and I’ll never let go of the fact that I am theirs and they are mine.
Epilogue
Maddie
I eye the freshly painted wall of the vet clinic that Cole, Warren, and I bought together. The place isn’t huge, but it’s got a house in the back and is perfect for wherever our lives take us.
After everything with Melissa and then Dad, Cole and Warren decided to come and work with me instead of letting his opinion on us bother him, but Dad’s trying, and that’s all I can ask of him, even if he still distances himself from us. Baby steps, right?
The guys and I work together as a team, managing large animals and doing mobile vet clinics.
“The place is starting to come together, sugar.”
Cole smiles, melting away all the crap thoughts that are running rampant in my mind and evoking a heated ache in the pit of my belly for the two men I’m in love with. “I can’t wait ‘til we can officially open the clinic and start taking clients full time.” I try to hide my shaky voice, but it doesn’t work. Warren’s onto me as soon as I start talking.
“Are you okay, babe? You’ve been awfully quiet lately, and with everything that’s happened over the last couple of months… I just want to make sure our girl is okay.”
Warren's concern makes the ache inside me spike with need. How did I ever find two men to love me so compassionately? “You know you two read me like a book.” I nibble on my bottom lip, my thoughts turning heated as they circle me like hungry beasts ready to leap.
“Do we now…” Cole rasps.
Warren massages my shoulders, the tension easing out of me within seconds. “Yes, and I love it. I love having two compassionate cowboys…”
A pounding noise, almost like a knock but louder, resonates through the small space, causing us to pull away from each other.
I shuffle to the door, pulling it open before checking to see who it is.
When my eyes land on my father's worn face, I almost break out into tears.
“Is everything okay? Is Mom okay?” My first instinct is to make sure they’re okay, that’s all that matters, and then Mom pops up over Dad’s shoulder, a smile pulling at her pink painted lips.
“We’re perfectly fine, honey, minus some stubbornness from your dear ole’ dad.”
Mom laughs at her own joke, which causes warmth to fill my belly. I can sense the guys behind me, and I wonder why Dad of all people is here.
“I made a mistake.” Dad sighs, breaking the small amount of silence between us all.
I furrow my brow as I try and digest what he’s saying. “A mistake? What do you mean?” Truthfully, I’m not angry he’s here. I just want to know why he is when we haven’t spoken much since the day he got hurt, as if that day never happened.
Dad exhales a ragged breath and pierces my gaze with his. “I thought I was protecting you by telling you who you couldn’t love when all I was doing was pushing you away. I’ll always love you, Maddie. You’re my daughter first, and who you love, so long as you’re happy, is none of my concern. I just want to make sure you know exactly how much I love you and my sons, and that I’m sorry. The three of you have my blessing.”
“We’re awfully glad to hear that, Derek, because we have plans for a future with Maddie,” Cole starts.
His voice and words cause me to turn on my heels. As soon as I do, I find both Cole and Warren on their knees. “W-what are you doing?”
“We want you to be our wife, Maddie,” War continues.
I pin my gaze on his dark blue eyes, so full of love I start to tremble.
“To have and to hold,” Cole adds.
“Until death do us part,” they say in unison, their hands cradling
a black velvet box.
I’m too taken aback by my emotions to say anything, so I simply nod my head yes. This is what I’ve always wanted. My guys, my family, surrounded by so much love that I’m flying high as the day I met Cole and War.
“Congratulations, sweetheart.” My mother darts through the door of the clinic, wrapping her arms around me, and then Dad follows.
“You take good care of my little girl, boys,” Dad warns as the twins slip the ring onto my finger all at once, together, signifying our unity to each other.
Mom and Dad pull away, and I wrap my men in a tight hug. Well, at least I try to.
“Oh, before we go, this came in the mail for you two.” Dad pulls out an envelope from his jacket’s inside pocket.
The address on the front is from a law firm in Sacramento.
Cole’s jaw tightens, and Warren's fingers glide across the front of the envelope as if he’s trying to determine what it could be.
“Strange. We haven’t had any lawsuits or anything against us.” Warren shrugs, opening the envelope in front of us.
My heart races, wondering what the hell could be inside the fine white stationery with the embossed seal.
I can’t read the words fast enough, as Cole and Warren read them along with me.
To Mr. Warren Adam Pierce and Mr. Cole Daniel Pierce
This letter is to inform you of a trust that has been set up in your names by Mr. Richard Pierce….
My eyes go wide and fear skids through my insides.
Did Warren and Cole’s biological father pop back into the picture? And if so, knowing who they are and where the guys are living, why hasn't he made contact with them before now?
