“Yeah, we found some douche bag in his car when we were locking up the house. He was parked out by the side of the house rambling about the hot tits he had met at the bar. She stuck her tongue down his throat and asked him to drive her someplace. She had promised him a blow job if he drove her and her friend, guessing that was you to some girl’s house,” Travis stated, but still, the disappointment and hurt were obvious in his voice. “Trudy seems to have planned this one out herself. I drove the guy back to Indies’ and got your truck. He kept going on and on about his turn with hot tits. If Scotty hadn’t told me what she’d said to him, I would have punched the guy out, but…”
“I’m sorry, man. As soon as her friend called her by name something must have clicked in my brain as to who she was. I told her that I was staying at Audree’s and she seemed thrilled. She went over and asked some guy sitting at the bar, douche bag, I’m guessing to drive us to her friend Audree’s house. Then she shoved her tongue down his throat, grabbed my hand and dragged me out to the car. Saying let’s all go see Audree.”
“You guys were lucky to even make it back in one piece. Your driver was totally shitfaced.” Travis glared at Gavin. “Well, better to know now rather than later and I’m kind of glad that it was you and not someone else. I just wish you had thought it out better before bringing her here. You do know what it looked like, when we saw you holdin’ her up against that wall, with her hands all over you?” He shook his head again.
“Yeah, drunken plans never seem to work out, do they?”
“Not really, no.” He looked back toward the wall. “Did you and Audree really… you know… the wall?” He watched his brother shake his head, but saw the corners of his mouth turn up. “Gross, man. Probably nowhere in this house is unclaimed.”
“Eva’s and Ruby’s rooms are probably the only places…”
“Yeah, so don’t want to know… go get cleaned up and I’ll get you some more coffee.” He turned away from Gavin. “I’m going to hope for the best about my room.”
“Hope away, man.” Gavin laughed wholeheartedly.
“Shit.”
“Hey, Trav,” Gavin called after him. “Audree really doesn’t trust me at all, does she? She didn’t even let me explain. She instantly thought I was with Trudy.” Gavin’s voice broke at the thought of Audree thinking he would bring another woman into her house. Did she even know him? How could she think he would do that to her? How could she think so little of him? Now, he was pissed at her. He would have to think about that later, but, for now, he would use the anger building inside him and direct it toward his well-deserving father.
“How dare you go behind my back and add this!”
“Father,” Travis started.
“He simply covered his own ass and screwed you in the process, just like you did in your original deal. You get nothing.”
“Don’t you dare! I know this was your doing.” Malcolm Montgomery pointed at Gavin, who was sitting off to the side and smirking at his father’s outburst.
“Actually, I just heard about it this morning.” he nodded at Travis with pride. “Trust me, I wish I had thought of it years ago.” He shook his head. “You have been maneuvering Travis into this bullshit marriage for years. I should have stepped up and done something years ago, but…”
“But what, you weren’t man enough?”
“Actually, I was hoping you would man up, see how fucked up all of this was, and change your mind. I was also hoping that Travis would decide he didn’t want to take over the farm; I figured he would just work with Spencer, maybe get his own land someday. Now, with this new deal, we can combine our farm with Meager’s and Audree’s.” He smiled when he said her name, knowing it would drive his father nuts.
“You will not give that little bitch anymore of my land!” Mr. Montgomery roared.
“You will never disrespect Audree or her family again, or you will have more problems than you could have ever dreamed,” Gavin said, standing eye to eye with his father. “She has done nothing to you old man, and you will stay away from her and her family. Don’t even think about them. This is done!”
“So that is what this is all about?” Mr. Montgomery chuckled.
“Is she doing both of you now, or are you still holding out hope that she will finally choose you, Gavin?” Gavin found himself being shoved backward just as he pulled his fist back to punch his father in the face.
“Gavin, this is what he wants.” Travis pushed his hand against Gavin’s chest holding him just out of reach of his father.
“I’ll be more than happy to give it to him,” Gavin huffed. “You were a son of a bitch when we were children, and you are a son of a bitch now! You can kiss any money that you were getting from me goodbye. You are on your own.” He looked at Travis, who nodded at him. “You have one week to get the hell off of our land and out of our house. And don’t even think of destroying anything or setting the place on fire, I’ll do it myself before I let you hurt us or anyone else anymore.” He glared directly into his father’s eyes.
“I raised you boys…”
“You didn’t raise us! Mom raised us, and then you brought in one of the coldest women possible who pushed us even further away. Audree’s family was more of a family to the two of us than our own father and aunt.” He shook his head. “We sure as hell were never made to feel like this was our home, neither one of you even noticed that we were never here.”
“I didn’t coddle you. I was raising men!”
“Again, you did not raise us! Don’t you dare take credit for the men we have become!” Gavin shot back.
“How dare…”
“Father, you have till the end of the week to make arrangements. You can have whatever cash you have hidden in the house, and we will give you a third of what the land is worth. After that, you are not welcome here,” Travis sighed. “And if you are planning some type of revenge, don’t bother.” Travis saw the hurt flash in his father’s eyes before it was quickly replaced by rage.
“I did the best…”
“It wasn’t nearly good enough,” Gavin interrupted him and held up his hand to stop him from speaking. “If anything happens to this house, this land, or any of the Edwards’ property, I.Will.Kill.You.” Gavin stepped up and poked his father right in the chest. “I have nothing else to say to you; as far as I’m concerned, you are dead!” he said, looking Mr. Montgomery square in the eye before turning and walking out of the house.
“Gavin,” Mr. Montgomery called after him.
“End of the week.” Travis pointed at him. “And, of all of the woman to pick from, you picked Trudy. Maybe you should go pick her up before you leave town. The two of you deserve each other,” he shook his head. “By the way, the Sheriff will have an officer outside till the end of the week, keeping an eye on you, so feel free to leave as soon as possible,” he said and stalked out the door after Gavin.
***
“Holy shit! Holy shit! Did we really just stand up to that old bastard?” Travis asked, laughing nervously, as they drove away from the house.
“Yeah, we did.” Gavin shook his head and laughed at the glee on his little brother’s face. “You now have your own farm, little brother.” He smacked Travis on the shoulder.
“You mean we have our own farm.” Travis looked over at Gavin.
“The place is yours, Travis. You finally stood up to the old man and fixed it so…”
“No, we did this together. You showed me the real Trudy.” He tipped a smiling face at Gavin. “I had already made the changes to the contract; that was just the final nail.”
“And I lost Audree anyway.” Gavin put his head in his hand.
“You helped me and I’ll help you. She will be back next weekend. You can tell her everything that you have been feeling and holding onto all these years.” He chuckled when Gavin shot him a look.
“You’d have to be blind not to have seen it when you were kids, you loved her then, and you love her now. The hell with Clint, if he can’t dea
l with his sister being loved and taken care of by one of the best men I know, then he is an idiot,” he paused. “We’ll get your girl back.” He smacked Gavin’s thigh and continued to drive.
***
When Audree got to her mother’s house that Thursday night, her mother was waiting for her as she opened the door. Audree fell into her mother’s open arms and they fell to the floor together, Audree crying so hard she lost her breath to the sobs.
“Momma, I have to get out of here. He has finally completely broken my heart.”
“Oh, baby. I’m so sorry. You and that boy have been hurtin’ each other for years.” She brushed her hand down the back of Audree’s head like she did when she was a little girl.
“I know, Momma, I know. I just thought…”
“You thought he would finally get his head out of his ass and lose that stupid idea that Clint had a right to keep the two of you apart. I think he was more afraid of it not working out and losing either, or both of you.”
“I love him so much.”
“I know you do and he loves you.”
“Then why does it hurt so much?”
“Because you love each other so much.” She squeezed Audree. “Let’s get you up to bed and then we’ll figure out what to do in the morning.”
“I’m leaving, Momma. I’m taking Eva to Brooks early. If he isn’t ready for us, then we’ll stay in a hotel until he is.”
“Let’s get you to bed and talk about this in the morning.” Talia stood up, her arms wrapped around Audree, and walked her up the steps to the room she shared with Eva when she slept over.
“Momma, how long have you known about Gavin and me?”
“There was always a spark between the two of you. I figured the two of you would find each other eventually and start a fire together.”
“But we…”
“Love each other and you two found the only way you could to show it. Now you will have to figure out if that fire will burn hotter and last, or fizzle out and end.”
“It just hurts so much.”
“You’ll need to know what you want and what you are willing to give and take; then you have to tell him. Once you do, you will be on the right path to your happiness.” She kissed Audree’s forehead before she slipped into the bed behind her daughter and curled up with her daughter.
“Thank you, Momma. I love you.”
“I love you, too, dear. Always.”
***
“Audree, honey, you have to get up.” Brooks gently rocked her back and forth on the bed. “Come on, my mom took Eva to the store with her.” He shook her again and she groaned. “Come on. Talk to me. I got bits and pieces of what happened from Ruby and Travis, but you need to talk to me.” He sat on the edge of the bed rubbing her back. “Do I need to go kick someone’s ass?”
“Please, just leave me alone, Brooks,” she pleaded.
“Not a chance, honey.” He tapped her back. “You have a choice, you get up on your own, or I carry you into the shower and throw your ass under cold water until you start talking.” He stood up when she groaned again. “You know I’m not kidding.” He slipped his hand under her legs and she squirmed away.
“Okay, okay, I’m up.” She bolted upright and dragged the pillow she had been hugging with her to sit against the headboard. “Gavin finally broke what little was left of my heart,” she sobbed.
“Travis told me that much. He called the morning you got here. He said Gavin…”
“Don’t say his name, please. It is still like salt in the wound,” she choked out.
“Fine, Travis said that he was a mess the morning that you left,” he continued rubbing her back.
Audree called Brooks and told him that she needed to come earlier than Monday and would be driving, he told her not to drive to Fresno. Unbeknownst to Audree, Travis had told Ruby, and she called Brooks to let him know what had happened. He told Audree he would makes some calls and get back to her. She hadn’t expected him to call in some very large favors and have a friend of his send a small, private plane for her and Eva.
Thank goodness for the smooth flight that let Eva sleep, while Audree cried behind her dark sunglasses through the entire flight. Brooks met them at the small airport and, after securing their bags and Eva in the car, he helped Audree into the passenger seat without a word. When they got to the house he shared with his girlfriend of two years, Marissa, he helped Eva to her bedroom. He took Audree to the guest room that she regularly occupied during her visits.
Audree kissed Eva and disappeared into the guest room for the next two days, telling her that she was sick and needed a couple of days to feel better. She only left the room to use the bathroom then would crawl back into the bed. On the third day, Marissa came in and forced her to get out of the bed, shower, and get dressed while she changed the sheets on the bed. Audree had barely eaten and barely spoken, except to answer no when she needed anything or was offered food.
Eva would come in and cuddle with her before she went out for the day with Brooks, who had taken the week off to spend time with his daughter. This left Audree in the house alone, which was fine with her. She mostly slept and cried and forced herself to eat a little of the food that Marissa or Brooks would leave for her.
“Audree, you have been in this bed for almost a week.” He shook his head. I can’t watch this anymore.” Brooks kneeled in front of her and rubbed his hand up and down the back of her calf.
“Did they tell you that he finally told me he loved me…. after… after what he…” she took a deep breath. “After he brought that whore into my house and practically fucked her against my wall! Did they tell you that?”
“Travis told me why.”
“I don’t care why.”
“I know he’s not celibate when he is not with me, but to bring it to my house. And with Trudy…”
“Honey…”
“Please don’t make excuses for him. I hate him and I don’t ever want to see him again.” She wiped the tears from her eyes.
“You love him, Audree. You always have. Trust me, if you hadn’t loved him, we would have probably worked out, at least for a while.” He smiled at her.
“No, we wouldn’t.” She chuckled. “We would have driven each other nuts within a month. You are one of my best friends, and I certainly wouldn’t want to screw that up with the bullshit I have with him,” she sighed. “Hell, I don’t even know what I have with him.”
“You have his initial tattooed on your hip, you’ve loved him most of your life.” He lifted her chin with his finger. “I knew it as soon as I saw it on your hip, and I’m sure he did the first time he saw it. That “G” is hidden, but it is totally visible for anyone who looks at it close enough and I’m sure he’s looked.” He laughed when her head shot up at him. “And anyone who has ever been in a room with the two of you can feel the electricity between you. Hell, I felt it the first time I met him. He wanted to kill me for being the one who knocked you up.” He laughed. “I knew I could trust him with you, and our daughter, otherwise you’d be living here with me. Screw the farm.”
“That farm is my life.”
“No, it’s not. Your family is your life and he is part of your family.”
“I hate him!”
“You hate what he did, not him.”
“I looked him right in the eye and told him that I hate him.” She tried to hold back the tears, but knew she couldn’t, so she let them roll down her cheeks.
Brooks had seen her cry before and had even been there after one of Gavin’s exits, to see the mess she suffered after he left. It was as if she was two different people, one person when Gavin was around, and one when he wasn’t. She was much more herself when he was around and seemed deflated when he wasn’t; almost like a shield had been erected to protect herself from the pain and she let it down when he was around. She was fun and flirty when Gavin was there. She was more business and less fun when he wasn’t. Brooks had seen both of these and knew, for a fact, that the fun, flirty Aud
ree was the true Audree.
“Look, Marissa will be home soon, and my mom is making dinner.” He wiped away the tears rolling down her face and kissed her forehead.
“You and Marissa have been so great; I’m so sorry for bringing this here.” Audree shook her head.
“Audree, I love you. You and Eva are my family. I would hate it if you hadn’t come here. Besides, Marissa knows what it’s like to be involved with a selfish ass, one that jumps before he looks.” He laughed.
“That I do,” a woman’s soft voice came from the doorway. “Nice to see you awake.” She walked across the room kissed Brooks on the lips then turned and wrapped her arms around Audree. “Why don’t you go and run a bath for Audree so she can soak until Eva and your mom come home?” She smiled over her shoulder at Brooks.
“Yes, ma’am.” He smiled at Marissa and Audree as he turned toward the bathroom.
“I’d ask how you are, but…”
“I’m a hot mess.” They both chuckled.
“Men will do that.” Marissa squeezed her shoulders again. “They are thoughtless and selfish and sweet and kind and loving.” She smiled.
“When they aren’t being asshats.”
“Brooks told me what happened.” Marissa shook her head.
“That he needed to get his little brother out of a marriage arranged by their insane father?” She shrugged when Marissa looked down at her with a smile. “I know why he did it; he just picked the stupidest of ways to do it.”
“Jumping before he looked,” they both laughed.
***
“I totally ruined everything.” Gavin sat on the couch in Clint’s house where he had been staying for the last week. It had been almost a month since Audree had thrown him out of her house, and they hadn’t seen or spoken to each other at all.
It had taken Travis almost a week to get Gavin to stop drinking and out of Audree’s house. Gavin refused to leave, begging Travis to bring Audree back to him. He took to sleeping in her bed just to be near her. He had even stopped eating the first two days until Travis called Talia for help and she forced him to get out of bed and eat.
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