The Secret (Butler Ranch Book 3)

by Heather Slade

  She looked at Naughton. “Yours too?”

  He shrugged. “Don’t know where mine is.”

  Alex walked around him. “It’s right here, on the counter behind you.” She set it on the table in front of him.

  “I’ve been calling you both for the last two hours.”

  “I’m sorry, baby.” Maddox tried to pull Alex into his lap, but she swatted his hand. “Let me get your coffee first, and then you can tell me what the hell happened.”

  Naughton put his head in his hands, wishing he could stop the room from spinning.

  “Drink this.” She set a glass of water in front of him and another in front of Mad, and put her hands on her hips. “All of it.” When they had, she refilled their glasses.

  Naughton watched Alex open the refrigerator, get out the milk, and add a little to Mad’s coffee and more to his. Alex had been a part of their lives for so long, it wasn’t just that she knew how Mad liked his coffee, she knew how he liked it too.

  “Thanks, sweetheart,” Maddox said when she set the coffee in front of him. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay. I get it. Now tell me, what the hell happened?”

  “You wanna tell her?” Maddox asked.

  “What happened today or all of it?”

  “She knows everything that happened up to today.”

  “Even about thinking you saw Kade in Harmony?”

  “Oh, Lord,” Alex said for the second time. “Damn, I wish you hadn’t killed that bottle of bourbon. Did you see him too, Naught?”

  “Not Kade. Da,” Maddox answered for him.

  “Okay, start at the beginning.”

  Naughton looked at his phone. “Crap. I can’t believe it’s after nine. I told Bradley I’d bring her truck over.”

  “I still had her phone. When she came to pick it up, she got her truck.”

  “Was she mad?”

  “Should she have been?”

  Naughton shrugged. “Hell if I know.”

  “I’ll say this again when you’re sober, but Naught, don’t screw this up. Bradley is worth the effort.”

  “I know,” he murmured.

  She laughed. “That’s how I know you’re really drunk. Now tell me what happened this afternoon.”

  Naughton skipped over the time he spent with Bradley, and cut straight to thinking he saw his father in Harmony.

  “Are you sure it was him?”

  Naughton shrugged.

  “Why you didn’t go knock on the door and ask why he was there?”

  “Bradley was with him,” Maddox answered.

  “And that made sense when you were both sober?”

  Naughton nodded. “Whatever this shit is, she doesn’t need to get swept up in. She’s already feelin’ guilty about the fire.”

  “Why?” Maddox and Alex asked at the same time.

  “She thinks the boyfriend might have something to do with it.”

  Alex looked at Maddox, who looked at Naughton.

  “What?”

  “They questioned him.”

  “About the fire?”

  “Yeah.”

  Naughton knocked his chair over when he jumped up from the table. “Where the hell is he? Where’s she?”

  Alex stood and put her hand on Naughton’s arm. “Settle down. Bradley is with her aunt and uncle.”

  “Where’s the boyfriend?”

  Again, Alex looked at Maddox.

  “Just tell me!”

  “He checked out of the inn this morning, so we assume he’s back in Napa.”

  “You assume? What if he’s not?” Naughton rubbed the back of his neck. “I can’t drive, I’ve had too much to drink. You gotta take me over there.”

  “What? No. She’s fine. I told you she’s with her aunt and uncle. You can’t go over there now. You’re too drunk.”

  “I’ll walk then.” He stormed out the door, letting it slam behind him. He hadn’t gotten very far before Alex was on his heels.

  “We’ll call her, okay? Let’s go back to the cottage, and I’ll call her. I’m telling you, you can’t go over there like this.”

  “Like what?”

  “Drunk off your ass.”

  “What if he hurts her?”

  “Naughton, stop and look at me.” When he stopped walking, Alex stood in front of him and put her hands on his shoulders. “He isn’t going to hurt her.”

  “Do Charlie and Jean know?”

  “They know Trey was questioned about the fire, but not why. The marshal made it sound like they questioned him more about what he’d seen than where he was or if he had any involvement.”

  He couldn’t decide if that was a good or bad thing, but it made him feel worse either way. “She’s gonna blame herself.”

  “No, Naughton. I’m not blaming myself.”

  Alex jumped and Naughton stumbled backwards.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”

  Alex put her hand on Bradley’s arm. “Startle me? Jesus, girl. You scared the crap outta me.”

  Naughton leaned up against her. “Bradley, God. I’m so sorry.” When she caught a whiff of his breath, she waved her hand in front of her face.

  “He’s shitfaced,” Alex explained needlessly.

  “What are you doing here?” Naughton asked. “I was so worried.” He put his arm around her shoulder and rested his head against hers. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

  “Let’s go back, Naught. Now that you know Bradley’s safe, we’ll get some more water in you, and you can call it a night.”

  Naughton shook his head. “Only if you come with me,” he said to Bradley. “I gotta keep you safe.”

  She put her arm around his waist. “I’ll come back with you.”

  “Why are you here anyway?” Alex whispered.

  “Couldn’t sleep. Especially after Aunt Jean told me Trey had been questioned.”

  “I’m so glad you’re here, Bradley,” Naughton said again. “Let’s go home now.”

  “How much did he have to drink?” Bradley whispered.

  “Half a bottle of bourbon far as I can tell. Mad’s in no better shape.”

  When Alex helped Bradley get Naughton inside his cottage, they agreed it wasn’t a good idea to try to get him upstairs.

  He sat down on the couch and pulled Bradley with him. “You gotta stay here, with me, tonight.”

  She couldn’t help but smile. “I do? Why’s that?” The alcohol lowered the wall Naughton kept so carefully constructed around him, and she got a glimpse of how sweet he could be. Tomorrow, though, he was going to feel like death.

  “I gotta keep you safe.”

  “I’m not in danger, Naughton.”

  “You might be. You never know with all Kade’s shit. We all might be in danger.” Naughton closed his eyes, and his head fell back against the couch.

  “What’s he talking about?” Bradley asked Alex, following her into Naughton’s kitchen.

  “I’m not sure, but whatever it is, you can rest assured he doesn’t know either.”

  “The fire…”

  “I have my own theory about who started the fire.”

  “Naughton told me about Calder.”

  “He’s my number one suspect.”

  “It’s hard to believe this is all over wanting to buy land.”

  “It’s a fifty-six billion a year industry, and that’s just in California. Over one-hundred billion in the US.”

  Bradley nodded. She knew the numbers, and as daunting as they were, she still had a hard time wrapping her head around someone going to such lengths as arson.

  “What did he mean by ‘Kade’s shit’?”

  “No clue.”

  “I thought Kade was dead.”

  “He is.”

  “So what does he have to do with the fire?”

  “He doesn’t. To be honest, I can’t figure out any of this. There’s one thing Naughton got right in his drunken ramblings, though. There doesn’t seem to be an end to Kade’s shit popping up when
it’s least expected.”

  “Bradley? Where’d you go, sweetheart?”

  “Oh, Lord.” Alex laughed when Naughton hollered from the other room. “I should be videoing all this. She’s right here, Naught. She told you she’d stay.”

  Alex’s shoulders shook as though she was holding in laughter.

  “Stop it.” Bradley swatted her.

  “Any vineyard secrets you want to know, now’s the time to ask.”

  “I refuse to take advantage of a drunk man.”

  “Oh, sugar, you can take advantage of me all you’d like.” Both Bradley and Alex startled when Naughton came into the kitchen, but kept laughing.

  “Come on, Bradley. Tuck me into bed.” Naughton grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the stairs.

  “If this is too much, say so,” Alex told her.

  “I’m okay. Maybe just help me get him up the stairs. I’m guessing that’s where his bedroom is.”

  “You think you’ll like my bedroom, Bradley? Wait until you see my bathroom.”

  “Oh, Lord,” Alex said again as she helped Bradley deposit Naughton on his bed. “He’s right, the bathroom is spectacular. Take a peek.” She winked. “Mad’s is too, although it’s really different.”

  10

  Bradley knew she shouldn’t be snooping, but Naughton was out cold the minute his body landed on his mattress. His snoring confirmed it.

  Naughton and Maddox referred to their houses as cottages, and they definitely had that look, from the outside at least.

  They both resembled the ranch’s main house, with stone facades and slate roofs. Bradley remembered what Hawks said about how the houses were constructed with concrete underneath the stone and steel beneath the roof’s slate. Also like the main house, there were four dormers on the front of Naughton’s cottage, embellished with black shutters.

  From the outside, Naughton’s looked a little bigger than Maddox’s, although she hadn’t been inside either until tonight.

  She tiptoed down the hall and found two other bedrooms on this level. Both looked unused but had beds in them. Each had a sloped ceiling, and all the walls were painted a taupe color, except one. The accent color in the first of the smaller bedrooms was a dark, sage green. In the second, it was a warm gray.

  Bradley tiptoed back to the room where Naughton was sleeping and sneaked into the bathroom. Alex hadn’t been kidding, and neither had Naughton. It was spectacular.

  One wall of the spacious room was stone, and the floor was too. The finish was natural, like what was used on the outside of the cottage.

  Two glazed sinks sat on top of individual and very cool pedestals that were made from tree trunks, and the tub, plenty big enough for two, sat back in an alcove also surrounded by stone.

  Three doors were inset in the opposite wall, which was covered in what looked like reclaimed barn wood. The first door had a one by two foot window and a control panel to the left of it. Bradley peeked in at the two-person sauna.

  Behind the second door, made of tempered glass, was a steam shower, which, like the tub and sauna, was plenty big enough for two. Behind the third door, made of the same reclaimed wood as covered the wall, there was a toilet.

  Relieved to hear Naughton’s continued snoring, Bradley crept back into his bedroom. The accent wall in this room was painted a cool, grayish blue that complemented the wall of stone the tufted, dark leather headboard of his bed sat up against.

  On the gray-blue wall, a series of black and white lithographs were hung in such a way that the angle of the grouping matched the slope of the ceiling. She wasn’t certain, but if she had to guess, each of the lithographs was produced by the same artist, and the scenes depicted in the simple drawings were of places in Scotland.

  On the third wall, ten rustic wood planks, each looked to be two by eight, were hung one above the other with their ends staggered slightly. On those boards was a large drawing of a grapevine that spanned from the highest board to the lowest. Bradley didn’t see an artist’s name anywhere on it, but she’d remember to ask Naughton. She’d love to see more of whoever’s work it was.

  The last wall held a massive arts and crafts-style armoire that was easily over ten feet tall. Celtic designs adorned the inlaid stained glass panels on each side of the piece, which held eight drawers. Next to it was another door, which led to a well-organized walk-in closet. She expected nothing less of Naughton.

  A tufted-leather oversized chair, which matched the bed’s headboard, sat near a window. Bradley couldn’t imagine a better spot to cozy up with a good book. When she saw a fisherman’s knit throw and a basket of books on the floor near it, she switched off the light near Naughton’s bed, turned the floor lamp on by the chair, and settled in to read.

  That’s the way Naughton found Bradley a few hours later, with a book open on her lap and her head resting against the arm of the chair.

  He didn’t remember a lot from the night before, other than asking her to stay with him, which he felt like a complete ass for doing. He should wake her, but he couldn’t bring himself to. She looked like an angel with the glow of the soft light streaming through the window, resting on her.

  The headache he’d anticipated didn’t materialize, and he vaguely recalled her or Alex giving him a couple of pills before they helped him climb the stairs. He wondered how Mad was faring this morning; his brother had as much bourbon as he’d had.

  Bradley stretched her arms above her head, opened her eyes, and sat up in the chair. “Hi,” she murmured.

  “You caught me staring. Good morning, beautiful.” Naughton ran his hand over her silky hair. “Doesn’t look like a very comfortable place to sleep.”

  Bradley set the book back in the basket and scooted forward like she was going to stand. “How are you feeling this morning?” she asked.

  “Stay where you are. I love how you look with the light coming in the window. If I had a sketchbook, I’d draw you this way.”

  “Do you draw?”

  “Not as much as I used to.” Naughton pointed to the grapevine drawn on the wood planks. “I did that one about five years ago.”

  “It’s gorgeous. I was looking for an artist’s signature. I love it.”

  “Thank you. Maybe I’ll show you some of my other work one day.”

  “I’d like that.”

  When she tried again to stand, Naughton knelt in front of her and ran his fingers down the side of her face. “You stayed.”

  “You asked me to.”

  “Not exactly the way I imagined us together in my bedroom for the first time.”

  When she closed her eyes, leaned against his hand, and her cheeks turned that perfect shade of rosé, he leaned forward and covered her lips with his.

  “Maybe you’ll come back again sometime,” he whispered.

  She smiled. “Maybe.”

  “How about if I cook a big breakfast to make up for last night?”

  “You don’t have to do that.”

  “I want to.”

  He caught her sneak a glimpse at her phone.

  “Work’s a no-go today. It’s Labor Day, and the winery is closed.”

  “But there’s so much to do.”

  “Not today, there isn’t. We’re not even opening the tasting room.”

  Bradley looked from him to the bedroom door.

  “Come on, sleeping beauty. Let’s get some breakfast.” Naughton took her hand and walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. He pulled the chair out from the table and motioned for her to sit.

  “You don’t have to do this. I can go home.”

  “I don’t want you to go home.”

  “I can help.”

  “That’s an offer I’ll take you up on.”

  Naughton showed Bradley where he kept the coffee and pointed to the coffeemaker. “You can use that, or there’s a French Press in that cupboard.” She opened the cupboard, took out the press, and filled the tea kettle sitting on the stove with water.

  He smiled. “My preference t
oo.”

  “Are you sure about not working today?”

  “Mad and I talked about it earlier yesterday, and we aren’t crushing until tomorrow. Butler Ranch employees, along with most of those from other wineries, have been here, working around the clock as it is. We all need a day off.”

  “Okay, well…”

  “Say it. Whatever’s on your mind.”

  Bradley shook her head. “It’s nothing.”

  “If it’s nothing, it’s something.”

  “I don’t want to intrude.”

  Naughton set the pan he’d gotten out to cook bacon on down and stood with his hands on either side of her, trapping her between him and the counter. Instead of reassuring her with words, he used his lips first, and then his tongue. He kissed her lips, and then each of her eyelids, the tip of her nose, her cheek, and her neck, beneath her ear. When he felt her arms circle his waist, he pressed his body into hers, letting her feel exactly how much he wanted her there with him, in his arms, his kitchen, and soon he hoped, in his bed.

  The kettle on the stove whistled, and Naughton stepped back to turn the burner off. Bradley moved from where she was so her back was to him.

  “You’re quiet this morning,” he said.

  Bradley turned around. “You’re not.”

  “No?”

  “You’ve said more words between last night and this morning than you’ve said since I met you.”

  “There’s a lot I want to tell you.”

  Bradley turned back toward the counter.

  “What just happened? And don’t say nothing.”

  Bradley shook her head, and Naughton walked over to her. “Turn around and look at me. Tell me what upset you.”

  Bradley turned around and looked everywhere but at him. Naughton bent his knees and leaned over until he was in her line of vision. “Tell me.”

  “It isn’t any of my business.”

  “Sleeping with me changed everything. Now it’s all your business.”

  That made her smile. “I didn’t sleep with you.”

  “I was asleep. You were asleep. Both in the same room. That’s sleeping together.”

  She smiled again. “You really can be charming when you want to be.”

  “I feel as though that wasn’t all you wanted to say.”

  When Bradley tried to turn away again, he held her tight. “Just say it.”