by HELEN HARDT
“So you’ll do it,” Diana says.
“Do what?”
“Ask Ashley to stay, of course.”
Before I can reply, Maya’s back again, this time with our sandwiches and two bottles of water. The only beverage Ava serves at the bakery is pure Rocky Mountain spring water. Nothing with sugar or artificial sweeteners, which precludes coffee and tea, as customers would demand them.
She’s a purist if there ever was one. Not a vegan, though. Vegan and Steel don’t mesh.
I take a bite of my Dale.
“Nice save,” Diana says.
I chew and swallow. “What? I’m eating my lunch.”
She shakes her head at me and picks up her own sandwich, taking a bite. I stay quiet as she chews and swallows.
Finally, she says, “Please, Dale.”
I set my sandwich down on my plate and take a bite of the crisp dill pickle. “Why is this so important to you?”
“Because we made a commitment to Ashley.”
“First of all, I didn’t make any commitment. This whole thing just happened to land in my lap. But that’s not even the point. None of us broke a commitment. Leaving is her decision. Hers. Not mine or anyone else’s.”
“I get it. Her decision. But Dale, you must have done something.”
“I was only myself.”
She doesn’t answer. She takes another bite of sandwich and then drinks some water. Finally, “You’re my brother, and I love you. Donny, Bree, and I all do. But you’re tough on people, Dale.”
“I’ve never been tough on you a day in my life.”
“I’m not talking about me. I’m talking about… For lack of a better word, outsiders.”
Outsiders.
The word makes me jolt a little.
Outsiders.
Donny and I were once outsiders here, and we were welcomed with open arms.
Am I really tough on outsiders?
No, I’m tough on insiders.
Meaning anyone who I risk letting inside me.
And in less than twenty-four hours, Ashley White has threatened to permeate my inner layers. I can’t say any of this to my sister.
“Fine,” I relent. “I’ll ask her to stay.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Ashley
I don’t need to pack. I’ve barely unpacked. I’ll just ride with Diana into Denver tomorrow and then book a flight home to LA. Easy enough. I’ll have to live with my mom, though, since I sublet my studio. God, three months of not being taken seriously. Of being told to get my head out of the clouds and get a job so I don’t end up on the streets like she did. And then I’ll say, “Hey, you’re the one who insisted I go to college.” And she’ll come back with, “So you could get a job. A real job with a desk so you wouldn’t have to break your back doing hair all day. Not so you could drink wine.”
Great.
My phone rings. Hmm. I don’t recognize the number, and I’m not in the mood. I let it ring.
I fire up my laptop to book a plane ticket tomorrow evening.
And the damned phone rings again.
This time it’s Diana.
“Hey,” I say into the phone.
“Ashley.”
The low, rich voice. Even though it’s through a phone line, the dark-red color is still vivid. Usually my sound colors are less intense through technology, but not in Dale Steel’s case.
I swallow. “Hello. You don’t sound like Diana.”
“You didn’t answer when I called from my phone.”
“I don’t answer calls from numbers I don’t recognize.”
A pause. Then, “Fair enough.”
“Did you want something?” I ask.
You. I want you.
He won’t say that, no matter how much I ache for him to.
“You’re obviously with Diana,” I continue, “since this is her number.”
“We’re at our cousin’s bakery having lunch.”
Right. The pink-haired cousin. Diana told me about her. “And you called me because…”
He clears his throat. Man, even phlegm dislodging from Dale’s larynx is a beautiful sound. This is nuts.
“Diana told me you’ve decided to go back to California.”
“Well…I kind of made a deal with the devil.”
Another pause. I expect him to say something like, “I’m the devil?” But he can’t. He’s with Diana, who doesn’t know what went on between us. Unless he told her, and I know instinctively he didn’t. Dale is private. Very private.
“I’d like you to stay,” he finally says.
I’d like you to stay.
His words trickle over me, warming me. If possible, they sound even better than when he told me I was beautiful.
“I’m not sure that’s for the best.”
I know instantly the comment is a mistake. Dale asked me to stay, but he won’t beg.
Dale will never beg for anything.
Another throat clear. “That’s your call, then.”
A shuffle, and then Diana’s voice. “Ash, come on. Don’t be ridiculous. Stay. You’ll learn a ton, get some credit.”
“He doesn’t really want me to stay,” I tell her.
“So what? Is that a requirement?”
Yeah, it kind of is. How can I be around him, knowing what it feels like to have him touch me, kiss me? Knowing I’ll never experience the wonder of him again?
“I guess not,” I say.
“Good. It’s decided, then. You’re staying.”
“Dee—”
“It’s decided,” she says again.
“Let me talk to Dale—”
But she ends the call.
What was I going to say to him, anyway? He won’t say what I want him to say.
Do I want to go home, live with my mother, and take whatever classes are open for late registration?
Or do I want to stay here, on this beautiful ranch? Learn what it takes to run one of the most successful boutique wineries in the world? Get inside the head of one amazing winemaker?
I laugh out loud. In those terms, the answer is obvious.
I’m staying.
My suitcase lies open on my bed. May as well unpack and get my clothes in the closet and dresser. I take out a pair of jeans, when someone knocks on the door.
“Yeah?”
“It’s Jade. May I come in?”
Diana’s mom. “Yeah. Sure.”
Jade opens the door. Her blue eyes are striking, more so since she’s the only one in her family who has them. Though she’s the daughter of a supermodel, she’s not as tall as her own daughters. Nor is she lithe like a model. Her figure, though slender, is curvier—especially around the chest. Easy to see why Diana and Brianna are both so well endowed.
I feel pretty much concave in Jade’s presence.
I can’t help a slight smile. Dale didn’t seem to have an issue with my less prominent boobs.
“Where’s Diana?” she asks.
“She went over to Dale’s.”
“Tal and Bree are in the orchards, so it’s just you and me. Would you like to join me for lunch on the deck?”
My stomach rumbles slightly. What time is it, anyway? “I’d like that. Thank you.”
“Good. Darla’s just making sandwiches. Anything you don’t eat?”
“Miracle Whip.”
“No problem. We don’t eat fake mayonnaise in this house.” She smiles. “See you outside in a few minutes.”
I nod as she leaves, closing the door behind her. I’m still wearing my tank top and cutoffs. I suppose that’s fine for a casual lunch. I slide into my sandals, and—
I’m suddenly aware that I’m not wearing a bra.
I wasn’t wearing one this morning, either.
I’m not a bra fanatic. My boobs being the size they are, I don’t really need one. In fact, I only own two. Most smaller-breasted women in California go without.
I hastily pull one of them out of my suitcase, shed my tank, and put it on.
/> From now on, the girls will be harnessed. At least while I’m living here.
Darla made roast beef sandwiches with lettuce and tomato. They’re delicious, but I worry about eating so much red meat while I’m here. I’m no vegetarian, but in Cali I live on seafood.
Jade is good at conversation, talkative like I am. Like I usually am. I can’t seem to be talkative around her son.
Jade takes a sip of iced tea. “I can’t believe Diana isn’t back yet. What did she go over to Dale’s for?”
To tell him off.
I can’t say that, of course. She has been gone for a while, though. “I don’t know.” The lie is bitter on my tongue.
“Dale has a soft spot for Diana,” Jade says. “For both his sisters, actually, but especially Diana, since she came along shortly after he and Donny arrived here.”
Is that an opening? Should I ask why?
I’m not sure.
“Be patient with Dale,” she says then.
I lift my eyebrows.
“He can be…a little sharp sometimes.”
“Sharp?”
She smiles. “Kind of like a knife, but he doesn’t mean to be.”
I nod. “I know. Diana warned me.”
“Ryan is adamant that he take the reins with this internship. Tal and I aren’t sure why he feels so strongly about it, but he’s the boss at the winery.”
“I’m not sure Dale is happy about it.”
“Dale’s just a loner.” She sighs. “I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to his… I’m not sure of the word. It’s not standoffishness. He’s very close to his brother, of course, and to Talon and the girls. He and I never clicked the way the rest of them did. It’s something I still struggle with. I’ve always wanted to be closer to him.”
“I’m sure he loves you.”
“Oh, he does. I know that. We just don’t have the ease that I have with my other three children. I regret that.”
“Not all children are close to their parents in the same way,” I say.
Like I have a clue what I’m talking about. I don’t even know my father, and I have no siblings. I know absolutely nothing about this subject.
“I know. Believe me, I know.” She takes another sip of iced tea. “Dale’s a good man, though. Strong and intelligent. Brilliant, even, and so creative. I’m sure Diana told you.”
I nod. She did, but I already know all this based on my twenty-four hours with him.
“Don’t let him get to you. He can come across as…abrasive.”
Try ice cold.
And hotter than hot in the next moment.
“Anyway, on to a different subject. I don’t want to overwhelm you, but we’re having the whole family over tonight for a barbecue to celebrate Diana’s internship. Since she and Brianna are both leaving tomorrow, it’s the only time.”
“The whole family?”
“Except for Donny. It’s a five-hour drive from Denver, and he can’t get here on such short notice.”
“That’s still…” I count on my fingers.
“Twenty people, including you. And that’s not counting significant others. Gina and Henry are both in relationships, and I think Bradley’s dating a new girl. Angie might be dating someone as well.”
“Wow,” I say. “Gina and Ava belong to Ryan, right?”
“Yes. Ryan and his wife, Ruby. Bradley and Brock are Joe and Melanie’s, and Henry, David, and the twins, Angie and Sage, are Marjorie and Bryce’s.” She smiles. “Don’t worry. We won’t quiz you on any of it.”
What the heck? If I’m staying here for three months, I guess I better get to know the family. Sure a far cry from just my mom and me.
Nothing like getting thrown in with the sharks.
Except these are nice people. They’ll all be nice to me. All but one.
The one I want to be close to the most.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Dale
My refrigerator is now stocked—with more than I need, thanks to my sister—and tonight is a big shindig at the main house to wish Diana well on her internship. A bon voyage kind of thing.
Ashley will be there, of course, but in the sea of my family, I’ll probably hardly see her. Of course, that may not be a good thing. My brother, the chick-magnet, won’t be there, thank God, but my cousins will be. Brock is nearly as big a womanizer as Donny, and David’s a close third. They’re both slightly younger than Ashley, but that won’t matter.
Not cool.
And…it’s a pool party. Our huge pool is behind a fence over to the right in our large back yard. While the hot tub is close to the house, we get to the pool via a cobblestone walkway.
Pool means Ashley in a bikini.
God…
I’ll make myself as scarce as I can. I’m not much into swimming. I can do the basics, but I’d rather be walking or running. Better yet, out in my vineyards under the stars—away from all the commotion.
And tonight, there will be commotion. A lot of it. When all the Steels get together, watch out.
I’m not sure how to prepare for the evening. Maybe I’ll feign an illness and beg out of it.
But that’s not fair to Diana.
I’m ready to escape with Penny to the vineyards for a few hours when someone pounds on my front door.
“Coming!” I yell.
I open the door and—
“Hey, bro!” My brother barrels inside.
“Donny? I thought you couldn’t make it.”
“What? And disappoint my sis?”
“How’d you get here so fast?”
“One of the senior partners has a small plane and was flying out this weekend. I bribed him with the best peaches on the western slope, and here I am. I’ll just drive back with Dee tomorrow.”
“That’s a good idea. She shouldn’t be driving alone, anyway.”
“She’s twenty-five years old, Dale, and it’s only a five-hour drive.”
I chuckle. He’s right. He’s never babied our sisters the way Dad and I do. Just another way Dad and I are a lot alike.
My brother looks like his normal self—dark-blond hair cut short as opposed to my mass of long hair. Jeans and a button-down. We resemble each other quite a bit through the nose and mouth. I’m slightly taller, but he’s no slouch at six-one.
He’s a good guy, Donny. But do I want him anywhere near Ashley tonight? Big hell, no.
He’ll be all over her like sweat on a pig, and when he takes a break, Brock or Dave will swoop in.
Attractive and available women don’t stand a chance when the Steel men are together.
Normally I don’t give a flying fuck.
And right now, I really hate that I do.
Playing sick is looking better and better.
But this party is for my sister, who I adore.
So I’ll be there.
Under duress, but I’ll be there.
My cousin Brock wears a Speedo. A white Speedo against his tanned skin, as if he’s in some dumbass cologne commercial. And yeah, he has the body for it.
We all do, for that matter. Hard ranch work is good for the physique, but Brock is the only one of us who likes to show his package to the world, as if it’s on sale.
Normally I don’t give a rat’s ass, but tonight, Ashley seems to be buying.
I managed to steer clear of her earlier when we were having dinner. Now, the pool is full, and everyone—with a few exceptions, myself included—is suited up and ready to splash. Uncle Joe loves the water, and he’s the first one to dive in.
“Not swimming?” my mom asks.
“Not feeling it,” I say.
“Me neither.” She smiles and sits next to me on a lounge chair. “But you should be with the young people.”
My mother is actually only fifteen years older than I am. She’s ten years younger than my dad and was twenty-five when Donny and I came to the ranch. I’ve always admired her for agreeing to adopt us at such a young age. Diana’s twenty-five now. I can’t see her as a mother to a
ten-year-old.
Funny. In another life, my mother and I might be friends.
In this life? We struggle.
She doesn’t say anything more. She used to try to force conversation between us, but she doesn’t anymore, which I appreciate. Now, she’s content to just sit with me, maybe say a little, but not force it.
My relationship with her is better for it.
I try not to stare at Ashley.
She’s radiant in a white bikini, and it doesn’t escape my notice that she and Brock look like they’re ready to shoot a commercial for tanning lotion.
He’s already glommed on to her, which isn’t surprising. What is surprising is that Donny’s staying away from her. Since no one was expecting him and we haven’t seen him for several months, each member of the family is vying for his attention, which keeps Ashley off his radar.
Or not. I’m not buying. Even with the family pawing at him, Donny would still find time to pursue a pretty girl. Is he seeing someone in Denver? No. He would have told me. Is Ashley not his type? No. She has tits and a pussy. She’s his type.
Strange, but I’m not going to fight it. I’m glad my Don Juan brother is keeping his distance. Not that I have any hold on Ashley. Not that I plan to.
I lie back and close my eyes, the voices of my family strangely comforting. I don’t have to see Ashley if my eyes are closed. I can simply relax.
Until someone nudges me.
I open my eyes. My mom has vacated the spot next to me, and now my uncle Ryan sits there. “You ready for the toast?”
I sit up. “What toast?”
“To Diana, of course. I’ve got our best sparklers on ice. They’re just as much yours as they are mine. Let’s pop them open for your sister.”
“I think you can handle all that, Uncle Ry.”
He stands and then pulls me up beside him. “You’re my right-hand man. Come on.”
I love Uncle Ryan. I do, but damn, he’s always so jovial. Always smiling or laughing. I guess that’s a good thing, but it’s not me. Not at all. It’s odd that of all the Steel cousins, I—the one who has the least in common with Uncle Ryan—am the one to follow in his footsteps.