“It’s why I do everything. For you, your brother, and your mother.” His voice rose, echoing in the wind. I drew little satisfaction knowing I wasn’t the only one pissed off.
“Forgive me if I view things differently now.” I yanked off my glove. “Why’d you revoke my access to the bank accounts?”
He refused to look at me, removing his own glove. “It’s time for supper.”
“Not even an attempt at a lame excuse? I’m not sure if I respect you more for that or if I’m mad you’re avoiding me.” I stalked around the house to the backyard, my boots crunching on the dry grass.
The remnants of my grandmother’s garden were in the distance. That old swing hanging from the tree twisted in the wind. I’d broken that thing standing on it when I was twelve. Instead of getting a talking to, my grandfather had let me help him fix it. He was gone from a heart attack a few weeks later.
I wandered over, testing out the ropes. They were weathered, almost in need of repair again.
When you break something, son, you fix it.
His words of wisdom had stuck with me. I’d lived by them, this swing a symbol of that. Over the years, I’d taken it upon myself to make sure it stayed hanging.
I’d broken a lot of stuff over the last few months, things that needed fixing. So much so, it was hard to know where to start.
I pulled out my phone and sat down on the wood plank. The ropes creaked, but held under my weight. I dialed the person who always had a way of putting things in perspective. The phone rang a few times.
“Give me a hot cocoa Blizzard. Large. Chicken tenders and the biggest fries you’ve got.”
I pulled the phone away from my head and glanced at the screen before returning it to my ear. “Hello?”
“You want something to drink?” a muffled voice asked.
“I’m good.”
I smirked. I’d seen to that. Should’ve known Mulaney would be at Dairy Queen.
“Oh, um, our credit card machine is down.”
“Of course, it is.” There was rustling on the other end of the line. “Keep it.”
“But this is fift—”
“Merry Christmas.”
I couldn’t help it. I laughed. The scrooge would’ve sounded more enthused.
“What the hell is so funny?” Mulaney barked at me through the phone as a bell jingled when she must have left the restaurant.
“Is that why you needed my truck, Heartbreaker? To load up on Dairy Queen?”
“I’m hungry.”
I snickered. “What’s Miss Ruby going to think about you spoiling your Christmas Eve supper?”
“She ain’t gonna know about it.”
I could picture that pissed-off look on her pretty oval face, one which had been aimed at me many a time.
“I might have to tell her,” I taunted.
“You wouldn’t dare.”
“Fine. I could tell her about something else.” Something that would blow everything sky high.
“Is there a reason you called?”
Riling Mulaney was almost as much fun as pleasant conversation with her. I’d never get enough of that feisty spirit. And it was one of the reasons I let her get away with more shit than I would anybody else. I didn’t want to tame her.
“Yeah, but I’m enjoying this conversation more.”
“I’m about to hang up on you.”
“I get a warning this time? You really are in the Christmas spirit.” Aggravating her was too much fun.
The chime in my truck sounded when she stuck the key in the ignition. “I hope like hell I lose phone service soon,” she muttered.
A horn blared.
“Mulaney?” I tensed, listening for any other sound that might indicate what was going on.
“I’m fine. Some asshole wouldn’t get over so I could pull out. Feels like I’m back in Houston.”
The crack of a can opening and a long gulp came through the phone. “How do you drink Dr Pepper and eat a Blizzard together?”
“I’m going to have to take you to Dairy Queen and show you how it’s done.”
“Looking forward to it.” I’d been to the restaurant with her on more than one occasion. She made me stop just about any time we passed one.
“Is your mom okay?” Her voice turned serious, and I felt a twinge of regret for alarming her.
“Seems good, just tired a lot. I didn’t mean to worry you.”
“Then what is it?” She knew me well enough to know I wouldn’t be calling to shoot the breeze on Christmas Eve.
“Dad told me we lost a lot of money in only a few months. He wasn’t specific but I have a feeling it’s more than we thought.”
“What?” she shouted. “How did we not know this?”
“That’s what I’m trying to find out.” I stuffed down the guilt for missing something so huge. “Do you still have access to the Carter Energy bank accounts?”
“How the hell would I know? That’s your department, and I trust you to handle your job.” She crunched in my ear, and I couldn’t find it in me to be annoyed. “Besides, I didn’t know if I ever had authorization.”
“You’re interim CEO, of course you do. You have since you became a VP.”
She coughed and spluttered. “I could’ve been getting money out for my projects without asking you?”
“If you’d needed, though I’d have expected you to tell me.”
“That would’ve been useful to know.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I dug my heels into the dirt to curb my rising temper, jolting me in the swing. “I’ve always given you whatever you needed.”
She mumbled something I couldn’t understand before I heard paper crinkle. “If I wanted to get into these accounts, how would I go about it?”
“I’ll email you the info. No use telling you while you’re driving.”
“You’re going to email me the password to the company bank accounts?”
I swung back a little, the ropes creaking against the wood. I planted my foot so I didn’t end up on my ass.
“No, only the login. The password is heartbreaker, all lower case.”
“Don’t bullshit me.”
“Why would I lie about that?” I asked, voice rising. “I wanted it to be something you could remember.”
“Since you’ve got my login details, why don’t you just do it yourself?”
I scowled. Leave it to Mulaney to make me feel about two feet tall and stupid. I couldn’t even think of a worthy comeback so I sat there, silent.
“Good grief, Easton. You’re so damn sensitive. It was just a suggestion. You sound like you want answers now, and I’m still a good three hours from Burdett.”
“Great. Thanks.” If I had any chance of fixing anything I’d broken, I had to get my head right. Clearly, it wasn’t.
“Why can’t you look at the accounts?” Her tone softened, throwing me further off-kilter.
“Apparently, I’ve lost my access and when I asked Dad about it, he changed the subject.”
“That’s not like him. And shouldn’t the CFO have access to the financials?”
“Is that what I am? I’m not sure anymore.”
“Do you have any idea what happened? Where did we go wrong? We closed on that big tract of land in Upton County last week. Did that push us over the cliff?”
“We were more than secure for that deal. From what I’ve seen, that barely knocked a dent in our reserves. I’ve looked at every single balance sheet in EXODUS and can’t find any discrepancies or liabilities that were beyond our reach. Net income and free cash flow has increased in the last two quarters. Working capital was looking good. So, I’m at a loss.” I glimpsed at the old farmhouse, my grandmother in the kitchen window, cooking. “Do you think my father has something to do with this?”
“Jesus. Are you trying to make me wreck?”
“Take a step back. Think about it. He casually throws out merging with another company what, two, three months ago tops? Next thing we k
now he’s talking about it more often, and then he goes in a completely different direction and sells Carter Energy because there was no other way out. In what universe that we operate under does that make sense?” I prayed she had some answers.
“This is Mr. Carter we’re talking about. He lives and breathes the company.”
“Tell me something else, anything, to point the finger in another direction. It kills me to even suggest he’s done something nefarious, but he’s not helping his cause with his behavior.” Blindsided. That’s how I’d felt yesterday. I hadn’t fully recovered yet, but for the first time I could ever recall, I didn’t completely trust my father. I hated that feeling.
Yet, I was confiding in Mulaney like she’d given me a reason to trust her, when she hadn’t either. Her feelings toward me had been made abundantly clear quite some time ago and still, I couldn’t give up.
“Don’t be foolish.” She didn’t sound nearly as confident as she had a second ago.
“That’s the only way you’ve ever seen me, isn’t it? A damned fool.”
“You know better than that,” she said. Sharply.
“I thought I did,” I said bitterly. I took a deep breath to calm my anger. “Look, we’re both heading to New York blind. We need to work together. Can we do that?”
Chapter Nine
Mulaney
Damn Easton Carter.
Damn him.
Damn him.
Damn him.
He knew just how to pull at my heartstrings, how to make me vulnerable and weak, all things I didn’t allow. He’d been dead wrong that I believed him a fool. I hadn’t had a chance to correct him before he hung up on me, and I’d been too stubborn to call him back. There was no problem with him knowing I respected him, but a big one if he knew how much I cared.
He had no issue with telling me his feelings, not in words but through his actions. I borrowed his truck, no questions asked. He’d packed a cooler full of Dr Pepper and water for the trip. And the damn playlist he’d loaded . . . I’d tried to turn it off, but couldn’t because it was from him. All the things he wanted me to hear that I wouldn’t otherwise listen to.
For eight hours, I’d tortured myself with song after song, but the one that began to play on the outskirts of Burdett nearly did me in. The opening line to “Close Enough To Perfect” struck me right where it was supposed to, square in the chest.
My nose tingled, an unfamiliar sensation before what usually followed. Tears. I refused to let them fall, even as my throat clogged and I jabbed the repeat button, a glutton for punishment.
Easton saw me the way I wanted him to, but only him. I allowed myself a moment of what-ifs that were never meant to be, shutting those feelings down as I neared the Jacobs Ranch.
Somehow he threatened the whole structure I’d carefully built around myself. He had the capability to break through my walls. Hell, if I was honest with myself, he already had. As much as I didn’t want to, I cared about him, about what he thought, and hated he could hurt me when no one else could.
In the distance, the house I’d grown up in was lit up, with wreaths on every window. The tree twinkled from the living room picture window, and the front door was framed with white lights. This place grounded me, and I needed that more than ever.
I backed up to the fenced pasture Mitch had told me to put Ragnor in. Glancing at the temperature on the dash, it was forty-two degrees outside. The cold hit me when I hopped out of the cab, and I instantly shivered. After I’d opened the gate to the fence, I swung the trailer door wide, and Ragnor bolted out.
“Welcome to paradise, handsome,” I said as he took off, running out his frustration. I knew how he felt. Being cooped up in the cab had been taxing for me too.
“I appreciate that, but unfortunately I’m not interested. You look too much like my sister, and besides that, I’m a newlywed.” My brother Stone leaned his forearms on the gate and propped a boot on one of the bottom rungs. “Who’s that?”
“Ragnor.”
“Ah, the wild beast. What’s he doing here?”
“I wanted him to be with family.”
Ragnor galloped around, zigzagging in the moonlight. I couldn’t tell if he was happy or irritated. He appeared even more majestic here.
Stone cocked his head toward me. “You didn’t tell Mama and Dad, did you?” he asked.
“Nope.”
“How long’s he gonna stay?”
I shrugged.
“When are you gonna tell me what the hell is going on with you?”
“Enough with the inquisition,” I snapped. He arched a brow at me. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “The last twenty-four hours have been total shit. It’s being flung at me so fast I can’t dodge it all. I’ve been cooped up in this truck all day. I’m tired—”
“Come here.”
He opened his arms and embraced me in a tight hug. I relaxed against him, feeling a moment’s reprieve from everything going on. It had always been that way when Stone hugged me. His shoulders were broad, which made it so much easier for him to hold tight, and consequently, his hugs were like a soothing balm. I’d missed him. Ragnor reared up and made a sound of protest. Never pictured my boy as the jealous type.
“On a scale of one to ten, how pissed is Ruby that I’m late for supper?” I asked when I let him go.
“Maybe a five. Granddaddy made his special eggnog, so she’s pretty good right now.”
“Ragnor, could you come here please?” It took him a minute. The stubborn thing had to do everything in his own time, but he eventually complied. I stroked his nose. “You were a good boy today. We learned a little bit about each other, didn’t we?” He snorted, nuzzling my hand. “This is Stone. You can trust him too. But eventually you’ll work that out for yourself.” Ragnor eyed Stone suspiciously, who made no move to touch him. My brother was the best damn person I’d ever seen with a horse. He could work miracles with even the wildest of the herd. I’d have brought Ragnor here sooner if Stone had been around instead of shooting movies here, there, and everywhere.
“Pleased to meet you, Ragnor,” Stone said, producing a cube of sugar from his pocket. Rage sniffed it and turned his head. “Make yourself at home while I borrow your mama before our grandmama comes looking for us. You’ll like her too.”
I started at what Stone had told my horse. I’d never thought of myself as his mama. Never thought of myself in that capacity at all. It was both scary and not so bad all at once.
“You’ll be okay here,” I promised Ragnor, and he took off again. We watched him for a minute longer before turning toward the house.
“In case you’ve forgotten, you know I’d do anything for you,” Stone said when we were halfway to the back porch.
“You may eat those words, little brother.”
“It’s about damn time. We’re starving,” Mitch said as we came through the back door. He barreled over, wrapping me in a hug that lifted me off my feet.
“I just saw you like, what, a week and a half, two weeks ago?” I asked, pretending to try to get away from him.
“Too long.” He hugged me tighter, like he knew I needed it.
“Let go of me, you big bear.” I pushed at him with all the force I had because he’d expect nothing less. I had no problem telling my family I loved them, but this was the way I did it best. “I’d like to at least have one more Christmas, which isn’t going to happen if you keep suffocating me.”
Juliana, his wife, and Leona and Gabby, his two teenage girls, laughed at the spectacle we made. I pointed at all of them in warning, but that didn’t stop them. They weren’t the only ones. Muriella, Stone’s new wife, her brother Carlos, and her friends Vivian and Daniel laughed too. Soon we were going to need a bigger house to accommodate all these people.
“Love you too, little sis,” Mitch said quietly.
“Stop trying to get all my sugar,” Granddaddy said, muscling Mitch out of his way for his own hug. “How’s my girl?”
I kissed his
cheek and embraced him. “Better now that I’m here,” I answered honestly. “Hi, Ruby. Merry Christmas.”
She scowled. She always hated when I called her by her first name, but I couldn’t help it. I loved it, and even the force that was Ruby couldn’t stop me from using it sometimes. I hugged her tiny frame and kissed her forehead. Even though I was nearly a head taller, with her larger-than-life force, we might as well have been eye to eye.
“You didn’t call me this week. Don’t think you can come in here, a sight for sore eyes, and I’ll forget you’re late.” Ruby was like me. The harder she was on me, the more she was telling me she loved me.
“I’m sorry I’m late, Grandmama.”
She knew all the tactics my brothers and I used to stay on her good side. Just because I made her happy by calling her Grandmama didn’t mean I was off the hook.
“You’re forgiven.” She relented easily and then crooked her finger for me to come closer. I bent so she could speak in my ear. “I love you, Mulaney. No matter what you do.”
“Love you too,” I whispered, my voice unsteady. She held me an extra second so I could gather myself. Home. I knew why I’d stayed away, understood the logic of it too. But this kind of loving? Genuine, selfless, unreserved? There was nothing like it, and right now I needed every ounce I could grab, as it would probably be what sustained me in New York.
“You know better than to wear that hat indoors. We didn’t raise you in a barn.” Nobody bothered to point out that all of us, including her, actually spent quite a bit of our lives in a barn. She passed me over to my mother, who was standing beside her, anxiously waiting her turn.
“Why’d you bring a horse trailer?” Mama asked, looking up at me, keeping her arms around me.
“I figured y’all could use the extra hay.”
“Don’t you sass your mama, girl,” Ruby scolded, giving me a stern look. My brothers snickered. I was a step away from a whipping, and they got a kick out of it when I was in trouble. That meant the heat was off them for the moment. When we were together, we reverted to being immature kids again. Our parents rolled their eyes and attempted to admonish us, but we knew they actually loved when all their babies were home.
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