Kaden & Keegan (The Walkers of Coyote Ridge Book 9)

by Nicole Edwards

  “Well, I was thinking when I win the date,” another woman chimed in, “I’ll cook dinner for you both. At my place.”

  The woman probably had food in her refrigerator. In her pantry, even. Bristol hadn’t been to the grocery store in ages.

  “Steak and baked potatoes,” the woman added. “Big, strong men like you deserve a good meal.”

  Bristol fought the urge to mimic gagging herself as she turned back to the refreshment table. She still had a couple of cups available, but she needed a moment to catch her breath.

  If she was the one who won the date with the twins, she’d hope for a nice restaurant, maybe some wine and conversation. Sleeping with them would be the last thing on her mind. On a first date. As if.

  Oh, God.

  Her face flamed as she realized that was exactly what had happened. Kaden had invited her over, she’d gone, and then…

  Oh, crap. What was wrong with her?

  A firm hand curled around her arm, tugging her around.

  “Oh, my heavens! I’m so sorry I’m late,” Bianca blurted, her hair a bit disheveled.

  Bristol schooled her expression, forced a smile. “You’re late? I didn’t even notice.”

  “I got caught up with a resident. They stopped in at my office to talk about updating the equipment at the park. I told her we could go over it at the next meeting, but she insisted on talking to me now.”

  Bristol eyed Bianca’s hair. “A resident?”

  “Yes.”

  “Where’s your husband, Bianca?”

  “What?”

  Bristol grinned, giving Bianca the knowing eye. “He’s in town, isn’t he?”

  “Maybe.”

  She laughed, patting her own hair as a signal. “Your secret’s safe with me.”

  There was a rare blush on Bianca’s cheeks as she began to finger comb her hair.

  Bristol motioned around the area. “As you can see, everyone’s enjoyin’ themselves. But I think they’re gettin’ antsy.”

  “Good turnout. I can only hope they’re all gonna dig deep into their wallets.”

  “I don’t think you’ll have to worry about that.” She had a feeling, like Jamie and Adeline, many of these single women had been saving up for this event.

  And she very seriously doubted they were all doing it for a good cause. Selfish reasons probably played a pretty big part.

  *

  Kaden wished like hell he hadn’t signed them up for the auction.

  Had he known that two days before they would’ve had an erotic encounter with the woman he was in love with, he wouldn’t have given this thing a second thought.

  And yes, he was fairly certain he was in love with Bristol. Had been for quite some time now. The only thing keeping them apart was insecurity. Keegan’s and Bristol’s. Which meant Kaden was stuck in the middle, torn by his loyalty and love for both of them. This event was going to end up hurting them all, even if neither of them realized that.

  How the hell had they gotten to this place? Two nights ago, for the briefest of moments, Kaden had seen his life laid out before him, that evasive happiness he’d been searching for within his grasp only for it to be ripped away at the last second.

  Unfortunately, they were committed to this auction because Walkers didn’t go back on their word. And the turnout was good, which would hopefully reap the results the mayor was going for as far as raising money was concerned. What Kaden was worried about was Keegan, because his brother hadn’t been the same since Thursday night.

  He’d gotten used to being called the moody twin while Keegan had the reputation of being fun-loving and never serious. But what people didn’t realize was that they were very much alike, not only in appearance but attitude as well. From the womb, they’d been close. Growing up, they rarely did anything apart. Why it worked out that way, he had no idea, but Kaden had never felt the need to be separate from his twin. The opposite, really.

  For the past thirty-seven years, they’d had the same experiences, living life almost as though they were one. Perhaps because of that, he could often feel what his brother was feeling. They’d always wanted the same things, their interests mirroring the other’s. And that included the desire to own and operate a ranch one day and to settle down with one woman they would share.

  The biggest difference between them was that Kaden had never lost hope that one day they would find that love that would last. Keegan, on the other hand, had sworn it off, hence the reason his brother had treated Bristol so callously the other night. Keegan was only trying to protect himself from heartache. Having been pushed out by the women they’d been involved with before had kept him from opening up to anyone else.

  Others would see his insensitive comment as a rejection, but Kaden knew better. He could see it in the way Keegan continued to steal glances at Bristol across the way, his eyes hardly leaving her for a minute. The man was as overwhelmed by her as Kaden, but not willing to admit it.

  It would’ve likely played out better if Kaden hadn’t allowed Bristol’s abrupt departure to piss him off. Rather than go after her or call to smooth things over, he’d let his frustrations fester. And now they were at that awkward point where apologizing for his brother’s rudeness wouldn’t go over well.

  Not how he’d seen that going.

  And here he was, about to be auctioned off to the highest bidder while Bristol looked on. No chance in hell was she going to bid on them, so he was screwed in that department. The most he could hope for was for some little old lady to up the ante because she was looking for some company of the platonic variety. Then again, with the way Keegan had been flirting with the single women, he doubted he’d get that lucky, either.

  Screwed.

  That’s what he was.

  Totally fucking screwed.

  Two hours later, Kaden learned that he’d been wrong to assume. Turned out, they didn’t have the shittiest luck on the planet like he’d suspected. How or why a higher power was watching over them, he didn’t know, nor was he questioning it.

  Of course, he’d been damned suspicious when their names were called and Gage’s numbered paddle had gone high in the air. Considering there were no rules on what could or could not be done on the so-called date, he figured Gage was going to purchase them for manual labor or some shit like that. For a second, he’d been more concerned than if some random woman had won them. Right up until he noticed Gage’s oldest daughter, Kate, was the one bidding on them. She’d been sitting on Gage’s shoulders, lifting the paddle whenever Gage tapped her knee.

  With the help of Keegan spurring the little girl on, they’d brought in the highest bid of the day and landed themselves a McDonald’s date with the cutest five-year-old he knew.

  Too bad Bristol hadn’t stuck around to see it. About halfway through the third guy’s bidding, right before Kaden and Keegan were called up to the stage, he’d noticed her leaving after saying a quick goodbye to Bianca. It had pained him to watch her walk away and not be able to go after her.

  Then again, he figured it was for the best.

  In some regards, they really did have shit luck. But it was nothing a McDonald’s playground couldn’t fix.

  Chapter Nine

  Keegan woke alone in his bed on Sunday morning, a bit surprised to find himself at home. The dream he’d had of Bristol had been so real, so vivid, he’d expected to wake up in her bed, with her in his arms.

  Nope.

  No Bristol.

  Never again.

  He didn’t know where she was, nor did he care.

  If he said it enough, it would eventually be true. That was how it worked.

  It was driving him fucking crazy that he couldn’t stop thinking about her. Before the night they’d spent together, he hadn’t thought about her all that much. Okay. Maybe not nearly as much as this. He’d thought about her, fantasized, even. But this was getting ridiculous. He found himself constantly wondering what she was doing, who she was with. And oddly enough, he wanted to be around her,
to see her smile.

  Which was utter bullshit.

  Why? Why did she suddenly matter?

  Thankfully for everyone, Keegan had something that would take his mind off Bristol and everyone else. Something that involved an errand to run after church, one that included a conversation about a ranch. A ranch that, with any luck, would belong to him and his brother in the near future.

  There would be no woman responsible for changing his and Kaden’s lives for the better. No, that would be credited to chasing their own dream, the one they’d had since they were young.

  A ranch.

  Right here in Coyote Ridge.

  Hell yes.

  He wasn’t sure life could get much better than this.

  Turned out, life could get hella better.

  Church had been one of those inspirational moments followed by a short drive to the outskirts of town and an introduction to Jeremiah Tucker, better known as Tuck by his friends. At ninety-one, the man was an absolute hoot. And from what Keegan could tell, he was quite fond of the Walker family, something they’d learned as Tuck took them on a long tour of the barn, the pasture, then back to the house with the help of a dilapidated old golf cart with mud tires that Uncle Curtis had driven.

  “Did you know your daddy’s the one who offered me this prime piece of real estate?” Tuck said, leading the way into the house so they could have lemonade.

  Keegan glanced over at Curtis, then back to Tuck. “He’s our uncle.”

  Tuck grinned, his wrinkled face shrinking as he did. “I’m no dummy, boy. And Curtis ain’t the one who gave me the property anyhow.”

  “Gerald did,” Curtis confirmed. “It was the first piece we parceled out.”

  “How much did you buy it for back then?” Keegan asked, though he knew the question bordered on rude.

  Tuck laughed, easing down into a chair at the kitchen table. “The darn fool wouldn’t take my money. Not that I had much of it at the time. He insisted it was his way of makin’ right for some of his old man’s sins.”

  Keegan had heard plenty of stories about Frank Walker, Sr., and while his kids had turned out to be respectable members of society, the man wasn’t known for his sparkling personality.

  “Would you mind sharin’ what Frank did?” Kaden asked.

  Tuck glanced at Curtis, then shook his head. “It ain’t worth repeatin’. Just know that we got over it long ago. Anyway. It was mighty nice of your daddy,” Tuck said, his eyes taking on that distant look. “And I hate to part with it now, but my kids’re right. I need to be with ’em.” His gaze shifted to Keegan and Kaden. “Wyoming’s a mite cold, but it’ll be a nice place to go to die.”

  Keegan heard the teasing in the old man’s tone, but he couldn’t bring himself to laugh.

  “Unfortunately for you boys, I ain’t got the means to pass it back to the Walkers without a price.”

  “We wouldn’t expect you to,” Kaden told him. “You just let us know your price and we’ll see what we can do.”

  Tuck shifted forward, pulled an envelope out of his back pocket, then placed it on the table. His gnarled fingers moved it in their direction.

  “Keep in mind, this ain’t the list price. It’s the friends’ discount. If it comes down to puttin’ it on the market official-like, I’ll be askin’ market value.”

  Keegan nodded at Kaden, urging his brother to open the envelope. He watched his brother’s face as he did, noticed the slight flare of his eyes before Kaden passed it over.

  He held his breath, then took a peek.

  The number he saw was far less than he expected based on the research he’d done. Definitely reasonable. Which meant it would come down to whether or not they could get the loan. And come up with the down payment. Couldn’t forget that.

  “What about the cattle?” Kaden inquired.

  “Whatcha see is whatcha get,” Tuck answered. “Only ten heads out there. Got that young’n Cassius King takin’ care of things. Might I suggest you keep the young man on. Hot-headed on a good day, but a damn fine cowboy.”

  Keegan figured they’d do well to keep Cassius on. They’d need someone to help out until they got things up and running fully.

  “The house’ll be cleared out,” Tuck continued, “but the equipment’ll stay. Includin’ the tractor, though I’m warnin’ ya, it’s seen better days. I’d go and get myself a good mechanic.”

  “Got that one covered, sir,” Kaden said with a smile.

  Keegan felt that strange churning sensation in his gut. Anticipation. The thought of owning this place was more than he’d thought possible. Not to mention everything he’d ever dreamed about.

  “The information’s all there,” Tuck said, pointing at the papers. “Got the acreage, square footage, even the profit and loss for the past decade. Some of that’s my fault there. Gettin’ harder and harder to handle things ’round here and help’s not as good as it used to be.” He grinned wide. “Or as cheap. But if you’re lookin’ to buy a ranch to get rich, you ain’t in your right mind.”

  No, Keegan knew most ranchers didn’t roll in dough. But it wasn’t about the money for him. It was about owning something he could be proud of, a place he could work with his own two hands.

  “How long do we have to get the money and all that?” Kaden inquired.

  Now Tuck frowned, his eyes lowering to the table. “I hate to put a rush on it, but I need to have everything in order by the end of the week.”

  A week? Could they even get it all done in a week?

  “My grandkids’ll be down next weekend to load up the rest of my things. They want me good and settled in before the holiday season rolls in. If we don’t have a contract workin’ by then, I’ll hafta leave it in the hands of the real estate gal. She’ll take care of it from there.”

  Keegan glanced at Kaden, willed his brother to agree to buy this place. No way could they not.

  “And don’t worry,” Tuck continued, “I’m willin’ to rent it to you in the interim so you can move in now. No sense lettin’ it sit empty when I’m gone.”

  Well, that was good news. Provided they could get the loan, they could be getting things underway while they waited for it to close.

  “Somethin’ you should know,” Tuck added.

  Keegan’s attention shifted back to the old man.

  “House needs a lotta work. It’s livable, but most of the appliances have crapped out, the floors squeak in more places than they don’t, some of the plumbin’s leakin’. The roof’s new though. Had it replaced a few years ago.”

  “Anything that won’t pass inspection?” Curtis asked.

  “Doubtful. Nothin’ that’d matter to the bank, anyhow.”

  “Mr. Tucker,” Kaden said, his voice low, “we’re gonna do everything in our power to get you that contract by Friday. We’ll make a trip into town tomorrow, go to the bank, see what we can do.”

  Tuck glanced between the two of them. “I think this place’ll be in good hands if you boys want it.”

  “We definitely want it,” Keegan said firmly.

  More than he wanted anything else.

  *

  Kaden steered the truck back to the house, fighting a smile.

  “A fuckin’ ranch,” Keegan said on an excited exhale. “Can you believe it?”

  “It’s not a done deal yet,” he informed his twin. “There’re a lot of hurdles to jump through first.”

  His brother sighed and Kaden felt shitty for taking the wind out of his brother’s sails.

  “I know. But this is more of an opportunity than we’ve had in a long damn time.” Keegan grinned again. “What time’s the bank open in the mornin’?”

  “Probably eight.”

  “So we’ll be there at five till. Cool?”

  Since Keegan’s idea of being on time meant ten minutes late, Kaden had to think his brother was serious about this. Then again, why wouldn’t he be? They’d only dreamed about this their entire life.

  Kaden didn’t bother to answer because the q
uestion didn’t require one. Regardless of what he said, Keegan would be at the bank first thing tomorrow morning. If Kaden had any hope of making this work, he had to get everything in order before then. Which meant he would have to check into their finances. Luckily for them both, Kaden was the one who had squirreled away money all these years. Not only his own but Keegan’s as well. Had he left it to Keegan, they would’ve had a house full of video games and not a damn thing set aside for their future.

  It sure as hell helped that they’d been living with family for some time now. Because of that, and the ridiculously small amount of rent Uncle Curtis had asked for, Kaden had been able to save a large portion of their paychecks. Based on simple math, they definitely had what they needed to get the ranch.

  However, he couldn’t deny he was excited about the prospect. Question would come down to credit scores, rates, and all that noise.

  Not that he would tell Keegan as much. Not yet. Not until they saw everything laid out on paper.

  A fucking ranch.

  Kaden spent the rest of the day going over the numbers, checking their credit scores, and downloading information from the bank’s website. While he sat on the couch with his MacBook propped in his lap, Keegan was reclined in the chair, his Xbox controller in hand, headset covering his ears.

  Every so often, Kaden’s gaze would lift to the screen and he’d watch as his brother wrecked yet another vehicle.

  That was one gene he hadn’t gotten that Keegan had. Kaden had never been much into video games. He would play, sure. From time to time he would give in to his brother, pick up a controller to stop the harassment. As they’d gotten older though, the novelty had worn off for him. He suspected the same could be said for Keegan, but for his brother, it was a way to pass the time.

  So he sat quietly, continuing to look at their finances, pulling together the documents the bank’s website said they would need to get a mortgage, and waited patiently for Keegan to get frustrated enough to quit the game.