Dazzled and Dazed

by Harley McRide

  My mom smiled at my dad, and I could see tears in her eyes. Looked like they were getting another grandbaby and one they didn’t have to share with the other parents. This was also good, then we had plenty of time with Brit on our own. These guys didn’t know how to remain in the background, to be quiet and reserved. Granted Brit was a little flamboyant, and I would never try to change her.

  “You were right, honey. We do need to start building on to accommodate our growing family. Selling the dude ranch was a wonderful idea.” Mom leaned over and kissed my dad’s cheek.

  “You sold the dude ranch?” Fin was the first to respond. Wow, okay that was a little bit of a shock. They loved that ranch.

  “Of course, adding on cost money. And besides, none of you ever had time to go or wanted to go for that matter.” Dad acted like they didn’t drop a bomb and turned to Anthony. “I think I am one up now, Anthony,” Dad crowed.

  “Your parents owned a dude ranch?” Jet said.

  “With real cowboys?” Brit asked, and her eyes got dreamy. I looked at Jet, and he smiled. Her statement brought the coffee shop fiasco back. We both leaned into her.

  “Baby, you want to ride a cowboy? Jet and I have no problem buying a hat if you want to play out that fantasy,” I whispered.

  “Hell, some of those ropes would come in handy. I can think of several things to do with them,” Jet whispered on the other side of her.

  “Stop...umm...you will draw attention back to us,” Brit said a tad breathless, and Jet and I sat back and smiled. Seemed there was a way to make the woman speechless.

  “We shall see about that!” Anthony yelled and drew our attention back to the dinner in hell. “Sonia, get on the phone with Georgie and Sofie. Tell them they are slacking,” Anthony said.

  “On it. They’ve had plenty of time. Those girls need to start carrying their weight in this family. Tony can’t do it alone!”

  “Fuck, I would have paid a cover charge to this dinner,” Jet said, and I shook my head.

  “I’m feeling like we got the better deal, Bry. A wedding doesn’t sound so bad,” Reed said, and the two bumped fists.

  “I do what I can,” Petal said and laughed.

  “Well...as fun as dinner has been. Maria and I have an early day tomorrow, but I would like to thank everyone for not including us in the crazy and respecting that Maria and I will do things on our own schedule. Not because everyone dictates it or needs to fill a quota,” Ranger said and stood. “You ready to go, babe. We have to pick Velma up at the hospital on the way home, too. When we dropped her off to visit with Josh and Angelique, we told her we would only be a couple hours.”

  “Ah, man, do we have to go, Dad? We haven’t even had dessert. And what if someone else has something to share. We’ll miss it,” Rucker said, he eyes bright and shining with anticipation as he looked around.

  Everyone, including me, seemed to have forgotten the little ears at the table. Rucker sat taking in everything around him. Other than the cuss words, which we were all going to have to clean up our language not only for Rucker but the kids on the way, I couldn’t feel too bad. Rucker was part of the family and the earlier he was subjected to the crazy, the better his chance to build up an immunity to it.

  “Ruck, come on. I’ll stop at the store and you pick out whatever you want. Just as long as we take it home to eat,” Ranger nodded and turned to Maria who glared at Sonia while she held a finger up as if telling Ranger to hold on.

  “Is that your way of letting me know you don’t expect Ranger and I to give you a grandchild, mother?” Maria’s voice was low and contained, which was not a good sign.

  “Shit, Jet be ready, we might have to intervene before this gets out of hand,” I whispered.

  “Dude, this shit was out of hand twenty minutes ago.”

  “At least we’re sitting far enough away that we’ll walk away unscathed,” Brit chuckled. “Now shush, I don’t want to miss anything.”

  “Maria, don’t you think you’re reading too much into what Sonia said?” Ranger said and frowned at Maria.

  “No, she isn’t. Anthony told me I was too hard on her, and he was right. At her age, she doesn’t need the added family pressure when you both decide to add to your family. I decided to be content with the fact she found a man,” Sonia said, then smiled down at Rucker and rubbed a hand over the boy’s head. “A man who brought a great gift into our family.”

  “See, babe. You took it the wrong way. No pressure on us.” Ranger touched Maria’s back, and she looked up at him.

  “I see. You are the one who is delusional to the fact they have sucked you in, Mr. call-me-up-and-tell-me-that-my-dad-and-uncle-Reilly-would-be-stopping-by-because-Sean-texted-I-wasn’t-feeling-well. What were your words? Oh yes, ‘Tell them no you aren’t pregnant and that we are in control of when we get married and have children.’ Isn’t that right?”

  “I could be wrong, but that sounds like a setup,” Brit said, and when Jet and I frowned, she rolled her eyes.

  “I’ve tried to tell them all that the parents dance under the moon and cut heads off chickens, but no one wanted to listen,” Mia said and shrugged.

  “Why the hell are you snapping at me? We are adults, we control what happens and doesn’t.” Maria stood and waved her hand to include all of us, and faced Ranger.

  “No one in this family is in control. We are all puppets in the parents’ master plan. I don’t know how they do it, but they get their way. It makes no difference what we do to protect against them. They always win!”

  “Honey, I think you need to get a little more rest. You’ve been under a lot of pressure lately with what has been going on.” I felt myself cringe at Ranger’s placating tone. If you wanted to keep important body parts you didn’t provoke the women.

  “Pressure, it’s not pressure, you...you, jerk, it is hormones!” Maria yelled.

  “What?” Ranger said with a frown, and then nodded. “I’m sorry, honey, is it that time of the month? I will get you a chocolate bar.”

  “That ship has sailed. You’re a detective—figure it out.” Maria sat back down, and Ranger looked around, then back down at Maria.

  “A baby?” Ranger asked, and Maria placed her head in her hands and nodded.

  Rucker jumped out of his seat and ran around the table. When he reached Maria, he threw his arms around her, “I love you, Mom.” Then he looked up at Ranger. “Am I really getting a brother or sister?” Ranger looked at his son and nodded with a completely shaken look on his face. His mouth opened and shit, but nothing came out. “You were right, Nonna. I’ve been asking for one in my prayers just like you said to.”

  The tender moment with Rucker had at least settled down the group momentarily. But it didn’t last long. When the moms moved to give Maria and Ranger hugs, Anthony pumped his fist in the air and yelled, “We are even again!”

  “Just a suggestion, but might be a good idea to hide the whiskey before these dinners,” Jet laughed.

  “I’m just thankful none of us are hiding anything,” Brit said, and I began to cough. Jet, the bastard, started laughing harder, which then had my dad’s eyes back on us. When he smiled at me and lifted his brow, I stared back and lifted my brow. No way in fucking hell was I jumping on the crazy train today. I decided Brit needed to know before the others in the family. Plus, I’d covered my tracks well, there was no way the old man knew.

  “Going to play it that way, are you?” My dad said, and I frowned.

  “I have no idea what you mean. Everyone here knows Brit is ours, there is nothing else to tell.” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Brit looking back and forth between my dad and me. And if I could reach Jet without accidentally hitting Brit, I would punch him for snickering.

  Dad sighed and stood, which drew everyone’s eyes to him, and they all picked that moment to shut up. He moved to the cabinet that sat in the corner and opened the bottom and pulled out a box. When he came back, he sat the box in his vacated chair and opened it.

  “I
don’t know why my children think they can keep anything from me. And really, at their age, they should’ve figured out that I know everything that pertains to my family and the people I love.” Dad turned and handed me a pen. I looked down at it, then at him.

  “How did you find out?” By then, I’d forgot the others were even listening.

  “Does it matter?” Dad said and plopped down Magenta’s books. Thank God, the front cover was facing down since Rucker wasn’t that far away. Before I could say anything, Falon and Mel walked back into the dining room.

  “For fuck’s sake is there nowhere that author’s books don’t show up! I’m going to have to meet this woman.” Falon helped Mel sit down and looked around the table. “Did we miss anything else while Mel visited the porcelain god?”

  “I’m sure you will be caught up. But the author you speak of is Magenta O’Reilly, and you’ve met her on more than one occasion.” Dad handed me the first book, “Can I get these autographed? I don’t have time to run all around the city to chase down pre-signed copies.

  I didn’t even have to look. I felt every set of eyes in the room on me.

  “Shit, dude, you win.” Falon laughed and sat down.

  “You’ve got to be shitting me! I had my whole surprise planned for this dinner. Do I get to share something awesome? Nope, I can’t share that everyone in this family never has to worry about money again. Hell, our kids or grandkids will never have to worry about money. No, I don’t get to, because everyone feels the need to one-up the other. Goddamn, I give up,” Michael said and slammed his hands down on the table. His face was red, and I could see the pulse at his temple from where I sat.

  “Mike, take a breath, man,” I said, and Michael growled and glared at me. I raised my hands in surrender.

  “Stop it!” Zoey yelled and pushed herself out of the chair. “Michael wouldn’t be ready to lose the top of his head if this dinner hadn’t turned into its typical buffet for the deranged. It isn’t every day someone gets to share they made the family 3.2 billion dollars.” Zoey lifted her empty plate and finally looked around the table, probably because a pin could’ve been heard hitting the floor. “Now, does anyone else want dessert?” With all eyes on her, she headed toward the archway that led into the kitchen.

  When we looked back at this dinner, I’d bet it would be with laughter, but that would be years away. I should have felt ashamed for feeling relieved at Michael’s outburst, but in my family, you took the advantage when it was handed to you and ran with it. I wasn’t about to complain that his explosion or the bomb Zoey drop had taken the focus off me, if only temporarily.

  And no, I wasn’t delusional the women who had stalked my persona for weeks wouldn’t make me pay for my deceit. But, there was one person at the table that I was worried my secret would hurt, and I would have to suck up to get her to forgive me.

  I looked down at the woman who literally bounced into my life as she looked at me. “You aren’t getting off that easy, you know that, right?”

  “It never entered my mind once.” Jet laughed at me, and Brit turned her head toward him.

  “I figure you knew and were up to your neck in everything, so you aren’t off the hook either.” Jet’s face fell, and I laughed and relaxed back into my chair while Michael explained how the government stepped in and made an offer for his patented special ink and everything associated with it—the wand to use when you were in close proximity, to the program and software we were developing to expand the range.

  Now if we could shut down the underground fights and everything surrounding it, maybe we’d get to enjoy the money our efforts got us.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Jet

  Smiling, I walked out the door behind Brit who was tearing into Sean. When she looked over her shoulder, I dropped the smile. “And you are just as guilty. Messaging with me and the others. Wait until Angelique finds out, it’s going to devastate her. Did either of you even think what would happen when we found out? No, you didn’t, it was all a game. Is a relationship with me part of the game, too?” Sean growled at her last question and stopped her beside the truck.

  “I have listened to all I’m going to. I’ve endured my mother, Ms. Maddie, and Sonia asking me if the sex scenes were from experiences. I listened to my brothers go on and on about my pen name being a woman, and did I channel her when I wrote the female between the two men. My father wants to go to a signing with me for fuck’s sake. So, for the last time, I planned to tell you before them, but par for the course with my family, no one is allowed to keep a part of themselves secret. They are happiest after they peel back every layer. Jet wouldn’t have even known if he hadn’t found one of my manuscripts. You want to bitch, whine, and moan because we used my persona to get to know you because God only knows it was the only way you would let us in. Then you go right the fuck on with it. But I am done with it! Get the last out of your system.” Sean pulled the door open and waited until Brit got in, then he slammed the door.

  I got in on the driver’s side and started the truck as he got in the passenger seat. As I backed up, I could see Brit in the rearview mirror. She had her hands in her lap and was staring at the back of Sean’s head.

  At dinner, before the show started, I had watched Brit, and she was relaxed and fit right in, so much so, it was seriously frightening. If I had any hesitation before, which I fucking didn’t, her around the whole family would have wiped it away. She was ours, dammit, and finally, I thought she understood it, especially since she hadn’t put up too much about eventually moving in with us.

  Hell, I couldn’t wait to take her to Sean’s house. Nope, our house. Sean had bought the place right after he moved back, and I found I spent more time there than I did in the townhouse I rented. Sean was the one to suggest I move in right after Brit came into town. I’d made a deal with him that if he let me pay half the price of it, I would.

  Sean and I had used the time in the brownstone to make the much-needed improvements on the old place. It would be ready by the time we moved back into it. We’d even changed the plans to add Brit her own home office. Truth be told, I wanted it as well. It meant even after this shit was done, she would be safe at both offices.

  In my own thoughts I almost missed Brit’s whispered, “So, I guess this is it. I understand you both have to stay in the brownstone for security reasons, but I will stay out of your way.” I slammed on the brakes in the middle of the street and turned in my seat. God, the woman didn’t even have work to send either of us from zero to sixty.

  “What the hell?” Sean yelled. “Why would you think the relationship is over?”

  “Oh, I don’t know. Could it be because you said you were done?”

  “Not about us, dammit!” Sean huffed.

  I took a deep breath and put the first two fingers between my lips and whistled. When I had their attention, I spoke, “Both of you shut the fuck up. Brit, you’re a smart woman. Maybe start thinking before you speak.” I held up my hand when she and Sean both went to speak. “Not one more word until I am finished. We’ve chased you. We’ve wooed you. We’ve taken you to dinner. We want you to move in with us. You are it for us. Sean was referencing the fiasco of a dinner, not our relationship with you. Could the whole author thing have been handled differently? Possibly. But it wasn’t. And everything we learned about you, I find it hard to regret doing it. You’ve got until we pull up in front of the brownstones to decide which one you are walking in. I’m not going to listen to any more back and forth about this damn relationship because it is more than that. I want the next fifty or sixty years with you. Clocks ticking,” I said, turned back around, and started driving toward the brownstones.

  The drive took just a little over ten minutes, and during the trip, no one spoke. The ball was in Brit’s court now, there was nothing left to be said. I pulled the truck up in front of the brownstone. I shut the truck off, grabbed the keys out of the ignition, and popped the seatbelt. After I ran my hand down my face, I opened the door and slid
out. Sean had gotten out and opened Brit’s door. I waited at the end of the walk and watched her jump down out of the truck. She looked and Sean, then looked at me, and walked toward the brownstone she lived in with Angelique.

  We had our answer.

  Sean closed the truck door and walked toward me. Neither of us spoke until we entered the house.

  “What the hell just happened? How the fuck do we start the day with her as ours and end with her not being?” Sean said as I tossed the keys on the table leading into the living room.

  I flopped in one of the chairs and leaned my head against the back. “Fuck if I know. She makes me so damn crazy,” I said and closed my eyes.

  “Hell, I yelled at her, you yelled at her. Can we blame her for not wanting to put up with us? Damn, dinner wasn’t perfect, especially the part where I got outed, but watching her with everyone...”

  “Yeah, I thought the same thing. But, dude, we are who we are. I don’t think it’s too much to expect her to accept us for us.” I felt defeated, and I knew Sean had to feel the same.

  “I’m going up to take a shower. See if I can wash this day the fuck away.” I opened my eyes as Sean stood. “We should be celebrating Michael’s news and our future with Brit. I mean, it’s not every day you’re handed a shit ton of money, and the knowledge you’ve won the woman. Fuck,” Sean headed for the stairs.

  “I’m with you. Think I’m going up to bed. Maybe when I wake up this whole day will be washed away,” I said and stood.

  “My sentiments exactly.” Sean lifted his foot to take the first stair when there was a soft knock at the door. I stopped dead and looked at the door, then at Sean. He spun and faced the door as I reached for the knob and yanked it open.