by Hanna Hart
A Cowboy Billionaire Secret Baby
(Brookside Ranch Brothers)
Hanna Hart
Copyright ©2020 by Hanna Hart - All rights reserved.
In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document in either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.
Respective authors own all copyrights not held by the publisher.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Epilogue
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About the Author
Chapter One
Bennett
Bennett Brooks was not a suit person—he was happier in cowboy boots than he ever would be in a tux.
He stared into the vertical mirror in his childhood bedroom and examined the black suit with silky lapels that framed his broad shoulders and tall frame.
His mother, Shannon, had set the suit out on his bed like he was a little boy who needed dressing.
He supposed when you have seven kids like his parents did, you never stop parenting them.
At thirty-one, visiting home for Bennett still meant bickering with his siblings and watching his mother make a ridiculously lavish breakfast every morning as if he were a teenager.
Bennett came from a unique family, to say the least.
It all started when his parents bought their first ranch. The Houston, Texas property was called Brookside Ranch, a luxury dude ranch that turned a wild profit.
Many years later, his parents decided to franchise the ranches, buying six that spread across the United States, each under the Brookside banner.
The ranches became a billion-dollar business.
When Bennett’s eldest brother, Jett, turned twenty-one, his parents had him take over one of the ranches.
As the rest of the five boys hit their legal age, each was told they were to move across the country and run a ranch.
When Bennett turned twenty-one, he inherited the Brookside Montana ranch some eighteen-hundred miles from his friends and family.
He was happy to do it. He loved the life of a cowboy, but not all of his brothers were as happy about the idea.
“That’s a sharp suit,” Kennedy said as she leaned against the doorframe of Bennett’s bedroom.
Kennedy was the youngest sibling and only girl in the Brooks clan. She was nineteen years old—twelve years younger than Bennett.
One would think this meant she and Bennett weren’t close, but the truth was all of the Brooks boys had a special place in their heart for their baby sister and she got along with all of them in return—save for their Rockstar brother, Phoenix.
“You do know this is Greg and Amy’s wedding, though, right?” Kennedy snorted as she looked over the ridiculous classy suit her brother wore.
“Hm. Is that why I flew eighteen hundred miles, scanned through a wedding registry, and had a bachelor weekend with Greg last month?” he said with a wink. “I’d plum forgot.”
“Always here to help,” she grinned.
“Yeah, thanks,” he snorted. “What’s that supposed to mean, anyway? About this being their wedding? Are you trying to insinuate that Greg’s poor? `Cause I happen to know this wedding cost them a lot of money.”
“It cost their parents a lot of money,” Kennedy corrected snidely as she picked at a fray in her jean shorts. “What does he do again? Grade school teacher? And what is she...a cashier or something?”
“Who’d have ever thought my baby sister would grow up to be such a snob?” he said with mock-shock.
“I’m not a snob. I could care less about how much money someone has. All I’m saying is you’re gonna stand out like a sore thumb,” she said.
“I’ll take my chances,” he countered. “And what are you up to tonight besides bailing on this wedding?”
“Hey, Greg is your friend, not mine,” she giggled.
“Got any plans?”
“Yeah, I’m gonna go out with Catherine,” she told him, though from her tone, he knew it was a lie.
“Uh-huh,” he said absent-mindedly. “That’s the story you’re telling Mom. But what’s the real plan?”
Kennedy grinned and hopped up on Bennett’s bed. She hung her legs off the side and watched him in a childlike manner as he fixed his tie in the mirror.
“I’m going to this party on Catherine’s campus,” she said, watching the door carefully for any signs of their mother lurking about.
“Not too late to go back to school, you know,” he offered.
“Forget it,” she said with a smile. “Why go back when I can reap the social benefits of my friends who are in college? It’s all the partying with none of the responsibility.”
“Don’t let mom hear you say that. She’ll have a heart attack,” he laughed. “What’s the plan, then? Wait until you’re twenty-one and hope Mom and Dad give you a ranch?”
“Please,” she said with a playful eyeroll. “That’s basically my nightmare. I’m not getting sucked into this Brookside sideshow.”
“Think about what you want to do with your life, alright?” he said. “I mean it. I want to see you do something you love.”
“I’ll think about it,” she said, not meaning a single word. “Happy?”
“Deliriously,” he said with wide-eyes.
The two talked for a few more minutes before Kennedy went bounding out of the room to answer her cellphone.
Bennett was back in Houston for his childhood friend’s wedding. Greg had been seeing Amy for years and the two were tying the knot. Bennett was happy for them and took it as a great excuse to get out of Montana for a couple of weeks.
It was a good opportunity to reconnect with his siblings, as well. A few of his brothers would be going to the wedding, and they hadn’t been able to spend much time together this year on account of some family drama.
“Don’t forget your tie,” Bennett’s mother Shannon said as she stepped in his room.
He pointed toward the silky slim fabric around his neck and said, “Got it covered.”
“I don’t think that looks right,” she said, scratching her chin thoughtfully as she examined him.
“I know you’re excited to have us all under the same roof, but that doesn’t mean I need you dressing me,” he teased.
“I love having my boys home again,” she said, fussing with his tie.
“Even Hunter?” he asked with a wry smile.
Like a dog being called, he heard Hunter slide down the hardwood hallway past his room. His brother latched onto the doorjamb as he slid by and pulled himself into the room. “Especially Hunter!” he called out gleefully.
“We are supporting Greg and Amy,” his mother said, noncommittal to answering his question. “A wedding is a time to come together as a family.”
“Is that what you learned at my wedding?” Hunter asked with a childish grin.
“I didn’t learn anything at your wedding because you eloped, remember?” his mother said, not making eye-contact.<
br />
“We eloped because nobody supported us,” his brother piped up.
Shannon frowned. “That isn’t true. Family is family is family, no matter what—and you know that!”
Hunter made a silly face at Bennett in the mirror and Shannon immediately stiffened.
“Hunter, please,” she sighed. “I don’t have time for this right now. We have ten minutes before we’re supposed to leave,” she clapped. “Up, up, up!”
With that, his mother left his room to make the rest of her rounds with his siblings.
It didn’t take long for his mother to grow frustrated with Hunter.
It didn’t take anyone very long to get frustrated with Hunter.
In fact, it was the fifth born who had created turmoil in the family over the last year and a half.
Hunter had all of the energy in the world. He was endlessly talkative and loved life at his ranch in Wyoming. He used to be the brother that everybody got along with. He was the family touchstone. But two months earlier, in June, Hunter eloped with his wife.
It wasn’t that the family wasn’t happy that he had found love, but the love he found just so happened to be with their brother Phoenix’s ex-fiancée.
Hunter and Rachel started dating under Phoenix’s nose, it seemed, and not long after they got together, Hunter bought the brothers out and removed his ranch from the Brookside banner.
It caused a definitive rift in the family, with each sibling taking sides.
Bennett took Phoenix’s side. Morally, it seemed wrong for him to date Rachel. But beyond that, removing himself from the Brookside chain felt like a slap in the face. It felt like he was saying he didn’t want to be a part of the family anymore.
Being back at home with Hunter was awkward, to say the least. But his younger brother wouldn’t be ignored. He was too friendly—too gregarious—to be ignored. He wanted Bennett’s forgiveness, and he would talk his head off until he got it.
Tearing Bennett from his thoughts, Hunter tossed his brother a cane with a marble knob handle and a black top hat.
Bennet couldn’t help but smirk at the sheer ridiculousness of it. Did his brother just carry around novelty dress wear?
“And this is for...?” he asked.
Hunter raised a brow and ran a hand across his shaved head. “For Greg being your best friend, you sure don’t know a lot about his wedding. It’s themed, remember?”
“Themed?” Bennett repeated, looking down at the hat. “Seriously?”
“The roaring twenties,” his brother said with an English accent. “So we all have to dress like idiots! I asked Mom if I could wear a monocle and fake mustache to complete my nineteen-twenties façade. Wanna guess how that conversation turned out?”
Bennett laughed, “I’m guessing not good.”
“Nah.”
“Sorry,” Bennett blinked. “Why is it themed?”
Hunted shrugged. “He’s your friend. I guess you didn’t get the memo.”
“Guess I didn’t.”
“Good thing you have your little brother here looking out for you then,” his brother said, throwing his top hat on and tipping it toward Bennett.
“Hm,” he mumbled.
Hunter bit his lip and studied his brother carefully. It was the first time Bennett had seen his happy veneer falter in the week since he’d been home
“What, you’re not still mad, are you?” Hunter asked, raising a curious brow.
“Look, the only reason I’m talking to you again is because Phoenix seems to have forgiven you for some reason.”
“It’s the face,” Hunter grinned, pointing a thumb at himself. “He can’t stay mad at the face. Besides, we’re family.” Then, in his best impression of their mother, he said, “And family is family is family!”
Bennett pressed his lips thin, trying not to laugh.
“Phoenix is with Miranda now,” Hunter said as though it were some sort of peace treaty. “Mom says it’s going well. Plus, he has his tour. Plus, we were friends once, he and I, and we’re doing a pretty good job getting back to that, considering.”
“Feels like some alternative universe where you and Phoenix got along.”
Hunter blew out a breath. “Well, this conversation has been super,” he said, turning to leave. “By the way, you’re welcome for saving you from the shame and embarrassment of showing up at this wedding without your costume on!”
“Saving me embarrassment or causing it?” he winked.
Hunter turned from the doorway.
“It is good to see you, Hunter,” Bennett said and watched his brother noticeably brighten.
“See you downstairs,” Hunter said.
“See you downstairs.”
By the time they got to the wedding, most of the guests had already arrived.
The ceremony went smoothly, with no name mix-ups, no tripping down the aisle, and no long flowery speeches.
That said, the couple did write their own vows.
Bennett usually hated this. His younger brother Colt wrote his own vows and Bennett was beyond uncomfortable hearing that much of his brother’s lovey-dovey side.
Wasn’t that something that should be kept private?
“I, Greg York, promise to you, Amy Bradshaw, before our family and friends, to stand by your side, to share and support your hopes and dreams,” his friend spoke into a microphone.
“I vow to always be there for you,” Amy added. “When you fall, I will catch you. When you cry, I will comfort you.”
Bennett wanted to roll his eyes at the sentiments, but the truth was, it wasn’t so bad after all. It was kind of touching. The way they looked at each other spoke volumes about the affection they had for one another.
“When you laugh,” Amy said with tears in her eyes, “I will share your happiness. No matter what lies ahead of us, I will see it as a journey that can only be completed together. I promise this now and forever.”
“I promise this now and forever,” Greg repeated, and the two began exchanging their rings.
It was moving to see two people love each other so purely.
Bennett’s parents had been married for some forty years, and he supposed that counted for something, but his own experience with relationships hadn’t precisely been picture perfect.
There was also the debacle with his brothers and Rachel.
“You did it, man!” Bennett cheered as he met Greg in one of the dressing rooms after the ceremony. He threw his arm around his friend’s shoulder and cheered, “Congratulations!”
“Did you ever think we’d see this day?” Greg laughed. “Me, married? I can’t even comprehend it!”
“Ah, sure, I could see it once you met Amy. I knew you were a goner!”
“She’s amazing,” Greg grinned. “You know what this means, right?”
“What?”
Greg nudged him. “You’re next.” Bennett laughed and his friend continued, “Jeffery has Alissa, Tom is with Nadia, and now there’s Amy and me. You’re the only one left from the old group who’s riding solo.”
“Yeah, I’ll get right on that,” Bennett laughed.
“Still haven’t heard from Yasmin?” Greg asked.
Bennett offered a one-shouldered shrug. “Nah,” he said, trying to let the pain roll off of him. “That’s over with. I’m happy not to have the headache of it. But this day isn’t about me!”
“Hey, it isn’t about me, either,” Greg said. “This is Amy’s thing.”
“Alright, alright,” Bennett said quickly. “Let’s get you back out there before she blames me for throwing your day off schedule.”
Chapter Two
June
If June could do anything in the world, she would be spending time with her daughter instead of going to work.
But, alas, somebody had to pay the bills, and it wasn’t going to be five-year-old Ember.
June Harman was thirty-one years old, freshly separated from her husband—not by her choosing—and had started a job as a server-bartender wit
h her best friend Danielle less than a month ago.
She worked at The Lipkin, a lavish wedding venue in Houston, Texas. It had old wooden pillars and a brown and beige marble checkerboard floor.
More than any night since her ex-husband had left her, all June wanted to do was curl up on the couch with Ember, watch movies, and eat popcorn by the handful.
But if she had to work, this was the night to do it.
The Lipkin’s timeless interior made it the perfect venue for formal affairs and rustic events alike, but she had never seen a wedding reception like the one that was currently storming their doors.
Every woman who walked through the door sported a curly updo or trendy bob cut. They wore headbands with feathers and beaded jangly flapper dresses.
The men who accompanied them were dressed head to toe in full fitted suits, white gloves, and top hats.
“It’s themed!” Danielle shouted with excitement as she watched the guests pour in.
“I have genuinely never seen anything like this before,” June marveled. She wasn’t someone who wanted to come off as girly or shallow, but she was a big lover of fashion and all things vintage.
A live band played vintage jazz music that was so infectious, the moment they started playing, June and Danielle couldn’t help but tap their toes and shimmy their shoulders. It was the type of music that made you want to dance.
“What are we doing today?” June asked.
“Serving!” she said.
June nodded and tried not to look disappointed. She was fine serving for the evening, but the wedding was so much fun to look at that she wouldn’t have minded being one of the bartenders.
“Isn’t this beautiful?” Danielle asked, gesturing toward the women entering the venue in their beaded dresses.
