His Wicked Mouth

by Jessica Mills

  As long as I didn’t hear about them, I didn’t have to come to grips with that. But it didn’t really matter what I wanted. Annabelle was the one who took it upon herself to bring them up first.

  “Have you talked to your brothers recently?” she asked.

  It didn’t sound like a question that she thought had a legitimate answer to it. Rather, it was a leading type of question. She was asking just to wedge herself into the conversation.

  “Not recently, no,” I said. “It’s been a while.”

  “I just saw Sawyer a couple of weeks ago,” she said.

  “A couple of weeks?” I asked. “I’m surprised it’s been so long. The two of you have always been thick as thieves. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of you going for so long without seeing each other.”

  The two of them had been inseparable best friends most of their lives. They were always running around on the ranch or out in town together. They even went to prom together because neither one of them could find an actual date. We never said anything to Sawyer about it, but most of us brothers thought that was going to be the beginning of something for them.

  As it turned out, there wasn’t even a hint of attraction between them. They were purely best friends, through and through. And that closeness had carried on into their adult years. The last I heard, they always made time to see each other at least on a weekly basis, if not more often.

  “Yeah,” Annabelle said. “We haven’t been able to see each other as often as we usually do. I don’t get to see as much of him now that my father’s health is failing as bad as it is.”

  I felt a little shock of guilt go through me. “I’m sorry.”

  “Not your fault,” she said, seemingly unaffected by my comment. “This is all about him. He’s overweight and dealing with health problems because of his own stubbornness. His diet is terrible, and he doesn’t look after himself. It’s been going downhill for a long time now, but he never would listen to the doctor. A few months ago, it just got bad and I’ve been on a campaign to fix him up ever since.”

  “Well, I’m sure if there is anybody who would be able to do it, it would be you,” I said.

  She laughed. “Getting an old farmer set in his ways to put down the beer and eat green vegetables rather than just meat and potatoes is a little bit more difficult than putting some bandages on cuts after a brawl.”

  Her smile caught me off guard. I couldn’t remember ever thinking of Annabelle as so beautiful. Sure, when she grew up out of her awkward, gangly, preteen age, I always noticed that she was an attractive girl. Her body was kept strong and fit by her hard work on the farm, and her long, coppery hair was unusual. I always liked that she only wore a little bit of makeup if any at all. But in all honesty, I never really looked at her.

  There wasn’t any reason to. At first, she was just a kid. Then she was nothing but my kid brother’s best friend. Now that I was separated from home by a couple of years, I really noticed her. Suddenly, I realized she wasn’t just attractive. Annabelle was stunning. Her features were feminine and soft, but there was a hard, unspoken edge to her. It was the kind of edge that came from a life in the country.

  How I was seeing her that night was completely different than anything I was used to. She looked hot as sin in her little silver dress and high heels. With the exception of the night she went to prom with Sawyer, wearing a dress I couldn’t even remember, all I knew her in was jean shorts and ripped-up tank tops or jeans and flannels, depending on the time of year.

  We looked at each other for a few seconds. Then she stood up from the edge of the bed where she had sat down.

  “I better get back to the hotel before the girls start to worry about me,” she said. “I haven’t heard from any of them, but they are bound to notice I’m missing by now. At least, I hope they did.”

  I laughed. “Let me walk you back to your hotel.”

  She shook her head. “You don’t need to do that. You should just stay here and get some rest. Maybe contemplate how you’re going to avoid collecting more of those cuts and scrapes next time.”

  “You shouldn’t be walking around out there by yourself at this time of night. Actually, it’s four a.m. You shouldn’t be walking around out there by yourself at this time of morning. This is your first time in Vegas, isn’t it?”

  “Yes,” she said.

  “Then I know it far better than you do. It would make me feel better to know you weren’t alone. After everything you did for me, the least I can do is make sure you get back to your hotel okay.”

  She thought about it for a few seconds, then finally nodded. “Thank you. That would be really nice.”

  “Give me just a second,” I said. “It would probably be better for you to have an escort who isn’t covered with blood.”

  Annabelle smiled and nodded her agreement. I went to the dresser, hoping there was at least one clean T-shirt in there somewhere. Things were a bit touch and go when it came to laundry these days. Every couple of weeks, I’d gather up what I’d left on the floor and haul it down to the coin laundry room on the bottom floor. At least one of the machines was usually broken, but I managed to deal with what was there. Of course, everybody else staying at the hotel was also making do with what was available.

  Sometimes, that meant the machines being full all day when nobody came back for their laundry. Or coming back after stepping out for just a minute to find my clothes taken out of the machine and dropped, wet and soapy, on the floor so somebody else could steal the wash I paid for.

  I grabbed the one shirt I had left and made a mental note to head for one of the regular laundromats in the area to get a few loads done. I tossed my dirty shirt aside and noticed Annabelle’s eyes scan over my body before snapping to her purse. A sound inside made her take out her phone and put her focus on it rather than me changing.

  “Well, they noticed,” she said. “This is from Vivian. She’s completely freaking out. Or so she says. Apparently not enough to actually call me, but at least it’s something.”

  “She doesn’t know where you are and all she sends is a text?” I asked.

  That made me uncomfortable. I didn’t like the idea of Annabelle being out in the city by herself, but now I didn’t like her being out with them, either. If her friends weren’t even concerned enough about her to notice she was missing for over an hour, then only sent a text message, they didn’t sound like the most loyal of friends.

  “In her defense, I also got a text from Bridget asking if she really did witness me walking away with that boy. I can only assume she’s talking about you. So, I’m sure they know I’m at least alive. And she must have realized you looked familiar. Even if she couldn’t place you, she knows she’s seen you before. If she didn’t, she’d be blowing up my phone right now.”

  “That makes me feel a little bit better,” I said. “You ready to go?”

  She nodded and we headed out of the room. Back out on the sidewalk, she walked close enough beside me to occasionally brush against my hip, but not so that she was touching me the whole time. It kept her from running into the other people still swarming the sidewalks, who she looked at with shock.

  “I can’t believe there are so many people out here right now,” she said. “About an hour or so from now is usually my favorite time of day because it’s so quiet. Not in Vegas, I guess.”

  “Not exactly,” I said.

  “Is there ever a time when it’s quiet here? Where people actually go to bed?”

  “No,” I told her flatly and she laughed. “There is always something going on here. Some of the nightclubs stay full of people all the way through sunrise.”

  “That’s crazy. I don’t know how long I could be here before I lost my mind.”

  It felt like as good a transition as any.

  “So, how about my other brothers?” I asked. “How are they all doing? Colt still out on the circuit?”

  The last I heard of my brother Colt, he was quickly making a name for himself on the rodeo cir
cuit. He rarely got home to Green Valley anymore, but there was a different feeling about him being gone than me.

  “Yep,” Annabelle said with a slight nod. “He’s doing pretty well for himself, too. Jesse came home earlier this summer. He’s officially done with the service.”

  “Yeah?” I asked. “I’m surprised. I thought he would be in for life. It didn’t seem like he would ever go back to Montana.”

  “Well, he wasn’t in the best way when he got back. But he and Shannon Dailey finally got back together. It’s for good now. They’re off traveling around. But they’ll be back in Green Valley soon enough. It’s funny. Like you said, it didn’t seem like he wanted to ever come back, but not long after he did, he seemed to realize he never wanted to leave again. Not for long anyway.”

  “That’s good to hear. He and Shannon were always good for each other. Strange to think of one of my brothers settling down, though.”

  “Not just one of them,” Annabelle said. “Clayton found himself a nice city girl and they’re building their own homestead on the Montgomery ranch.”

  That stunned me. “No shit?”

  She laughed again. It was a beautiful laugh, so sweet and genuine. “Nope. They’re raising her little girl and planning a family of their own.”

  Far too soon, we got to her hotel and I walked her into the lobby.

  “Can we get together tomorrow so we can catch up properly when my head isn’t so muddled?” I asked.

  Annabelle smiled and nodded. “Sure. I’d like that. How about lunch?”

  “I’ll meet you down here about noon?” I asked.

  “See you then.”

  She hesitated for a second, then turned and crossed the lobby toward the elevators. I waited until she was inside before leaving and making my way back to my hotel.

  Chapter 10

  Annabelle

  After being out and about until almost the time I would usually be getting up for the day, I thought I would go inside and immediately crash. But that wasn’t how it worked out.

  I opened the door to my room carefully so I wouldn’t wake up Bridget who I was bunking with. There wasn’t any point. The lights were still on and she was sitting up in bed reading.

  “What are you doing still awake?” I asked. “I thought I’d come in here and find you dead to the world.”

  “And not know if you made it back here?” she asked. “What kind of best friend do you think I am?”

  “One who didn’t question it when she saw me walk away with some guy, then barely even noticed I was missing for the rest of the night?” I asked.

  “I noticed you were missing,” she said. “But I recognized him. I can’t place him exactly, but I knew he was from Green Valley. Besides, you called out his name, didn’t you? I thought I heard you say something.”

  “You’re right,” I said, prying off the shoes and tossing them aside. I let out a sigh when my feet touched the carpet without the spikes beneath my heels. “Oh, that feels so good. Why the hell do women wear these things all the time?”

  “Because they make your ass look great,” Bridget said. “Are you going to tell me who that guy was?”

  “I was hoping to go to sleep,” I said.

  “After you tell me who the guy was,” she said.

  I took off my dress and walked into the bathroom to wash away the layers of makeup. I usually didn’t wear that much, but it felt appropriate for the festivities that evening. Even still, it felt good for my skin to be able to breathe again.

  “If you must know, it was Garrett Montgomery,” I said.

  “Are you serious?” Bridget asked, sounding shocked. “Garrett Montgomery? Sawyer’s black sheep big brother?”

  “That would be the one,” I said. “He hasn’t been in Green Valley in over a year. It’s been a lot longer than that since I’ve seen him. Sawyer hasn’t even talked to him in who knows how long. I just happened to notice him walking down the sidewalk not looking great, so I stopped to talk to him.”

  “What was going on with him?” she asked.

  I gave her a quick rundown of his brawl. “I’m definitely worried about him,” I said. “He’s always been trouble, but he looked like he was in a bad way. What is on the plans for tomorrow?”

  “That was a quick change of subject,” she said. “We were going to go out to the outlet malls and do some shopping. Then we’ll hit the clubs again tomorrow night.”

  “Didn’t you get enough of that tonight?” I asked.

  “We’re in Vegas, Annabelle,” Bridget said. “There’s no such thing as getting enough of anything.”

  “Well, I beg to differ on that one. I’ll keep another night on the town under consideration, but I’m going to bow out of the malls. You know I’m not so big on shopping.”

  “Are you sure?” she asked.

  “Definitely,” I said. “But you guys go and have a really good time. I will be fine.”

  “Why do I have a feeling that you being fine has to do with running into Garrett Montgomery tonight?” she asked.

  “He just wants to thank me for taking care of him tonight and catch up on old times. Remember, I’ve known him most of my life, just like I have Sawyer. He wants me to tell him about how his brothers are doing and talk about the old neighborhood. That’s it.”

  “Are you sure?” she asked.

  “Bridget, I just had to clean up the man’s scraped-up hands because he thought it was a good idea to beat the hell out of somebody in a bar fight and got himself wailed on in response. This is not me getting all googly-eyed over him. It’s just a friendly lunch. Now, can I please try to get some sleep before the sun comes up?”

  “Go ahead,” she said. “But I expect to hear everything tomorrow.”

  “There’s not going to be anything to tell,” I said. “You will probably have much more exciting stories about the outlet mall then I’m going to have.”

  I climbed into my bed and burrowed down into the blanket. She turned off the lamp, but I didn’t fall asleep. I rolled over, trying to find a more comfortable position. Sleep kept avoiding me. At first, I was worrying about my father. I hoped he took good care of himself during the day and ate one of the healthy meals I left for him rather than piling into his truck and heading into town for the Blue Plate special at the diner.

  Then I hoped he got himself into bed at a good hour and was sleeping well rather than having dozed off in his recliner in front of the TV. That was one of his favorite things to do. He said it kept him company. But he always woke up stiff and in pain.

  After I ran out of things to worry about regarding my father, my mind drifted over to Garrett. I couldn’t believe the coincidence of running into him the way I did, and I couldn’t help think about what brought him there. All he told me was that he had been in Vegas for a while, not why he came or what he was doing. I had a feeling there were a lot of stories behind the dingy hotel room and bloodied lip.

  I finally fell asleep sometime after I would have already fed the chickens and milked the cows. It didn’t give me a lot of time to rest, and by the time I got out of bed, it was almost eleven in the morning. I was groggy and didn’t feel all the way awake. I took a shower to perk me up and was feeling refreshed by the time I got dressed in an outfit that was much more me.

  The rest of the girls came to our room to pick up Bridget and offered again for me to go with them.

  “No, really,” I said. “You guys go and have fun. I would just slow you down. I don’t possess the shopping skills you do.”

  They each hugged me and headed out. A few minutes later, I went downstairs into the lobby to wait for Garrett. Part of me didn’t expect him to come. After what I witnessed the night before, I wouldn’t have been surprised if he slept all the way until evening or woke up with little to no recollection of what happened.

  So I was pleasantly surprised when just a little bit after noon the door to the lobby opened and he walked in. He looked around for a few seconds before catching sight of me. A bright smile c
rossed his face and I was struck by how much better he looked than the night before. Attractive even. Very attractive.

  I scolded myself for even entertaining that thought for a second. Sawyer would be less than pleased with me if he found out I thought his brother was hot. When your best friend is a guy and has seven brothers, there is always that unspoken agreement that no dating lines would be crossed. When it came to Sawyer, I was pretty sure he would have dealt with me falling for any of his brothers. Even multiple of them, as long as I stayed away from Garrett.

  “Sorry I’m late,” he said as he walked up to me. “I was doing some laundry this morning.”

  I laughed. “It was only a couple of minutes. Good to see you looking better.”

  He let out a breath. “I’m feeling better. Thanks. Are you hungry?”

  “I am. Did you have somewhere in mind?”

  “I had an idea,” he said. “Ready to go?”

  I followed him out onto the sidewalk, expecting there to be a car. Instead, we just walked. That was nice. I enjoyed strolling along the sidewalk in the relative calm, compared to late at night. There were still far more people than I was accustomed to seeing out on the sidewalk, but they weren’t as wild.

  The restaurant he brought me to looked like it had been standing there for many years, and when we went inside, it had the comfortable, well-worn feeling that reminded me of the restaurants back home. He didn’t say anything about it, and I wondered if he noticed the feeling, too, and if it was what made him choose it.

  A waiter came by soon after we sat down and handed us menus before asking what we wanted to drink. I asked for water and took note of Garrett ordering a whiskey. I made it a point not to say anything about it, but he must have thought about it.

  “It helps keep me even,” he said.

  That wasn’t the first time I heard that, and it only worked to make me more worried about him. I nodded and changed the subject, not wanting him to feel embarrassed.