Crazy About a Cowboy

by Dylann Crush

  She strained, trying to make out some sort of landmark in the darkness but all she could see were waves of tall grass and weeds shifting in the slight breeze. “We’re going up there?”

  “Why don’t you wait in the truck?” Trent suggested.

  “Hell, no.” She’d rather take her chances with Jasper’s brothers than wait around in the truck for something bad to happen.

  “You can’t go traipsing around in that.” Mitchell nodded toward the formfitting dress she had on.

  “Just watch me.” She climbed out of the truck and her heel immediately sank into the ground.

  “At least put these on.” Trent handed her a pair of rubber boots.

  “Thanks.” She left her heels in the truck and slipped her feet into the oversized boots.

  They set off up the hill, Davis checking his phone every so often to make sure they stayed on track. She knew the Taylor family was close, but never imagined they kept track of one another’s whereabouts with an app.

  Davis had explained it was their mother’s idea. She’d insisted on it when they were younger, and the brothers had kept it up so they could keep tabs on one another. Whatever the reason, hopefully it would pay off.

  The four of them cleared the top of the small hill and looked down at an old barn. Light streamed through one of the doors. Muffled yells and cheers drifted up the hill.

  “You’re sure he’s in there?” Delilah asked. Looked like there was some sort of party going on.

  “I sure as hell hope not.” Mitchell’s jaw was set. Besides Jasper, he was the biggest of the brothers. If he felt uneasy, Delilah ought to be shaking in her borrowed rubber boots.

  “Shit.” Trent scrubbed his hands over his barely there hair. “Please tell me this isn’t what I think it is.”

  “What?” Delilah looked over the dozen or so trucks and SUVs parked outside the barn, a bad feeling starting to take root in her chest.

  “Let’s not go making shit up. Jasper deserves the benefit of the doubt until we know for sure what he’s up to.” Davis slid his phone into his pocket. “I’m going closer.”

  Delilah made a move to follow. “You’d better stay here.” Mitchell put a hand out to stop her. Then he nudged his head toward her as he looked at Trent.

  “I’ll keep an eye on her.” Trent put his arm in front of her, like that barrier would keep her from following the other two. “Let’s wait it out up here.”

  She wanted to argue, but she also had enough sense to realize that if they thought it was bad, there was probably something horrible going on inside that barn. “What do they think’s happening in there?”

  “I don’t even want to say.” Trent grabbed a tall piece of grass and focused on ripping it to small pieces.

  Delilah pursed her lips, her heart squeezing so tight, she couldn’t stand to be still. When Trent didn’t expand, she figured she’d have to take matters into her own hands, and took off down the hill after Davis and Mitchell.

  “Dammit.” Trent followed, cursing as he caught up. “Jasper’s going to kill me if you get hurt. Can you please stay back?”

  “I’ll stop at the edge of the grass. How’s that?” She needed to witness what was happening with her own eyes.

  “I can see why he likes you so much.” He attempted a smile, but Delilah could sense the worry underneath his grin.

  She ducked down in the grass, her skin tingling with the sensation of bugs and other creepy things crawling all over her. Not wanting to find out if it was just her vivid imagination or if a variety of critters covered her skin, she shook her arms and tried to be quiet while Davis and Mitchell edged toward the open barn door.

  Mitchell moved fast, darting from the cover of the grass to press himself against the boards. He turned slightly, peeking into the barn. Her pulse ticked up while she waited.

  After what felt like eons, he scrambled across the gravel and squatted down next to them. “It’s bad. Jasper’s in there, along with about a dozen dogs and a big group of huge assholes. I think we need to bring Bodie in on this. We can’t take ’em all, not by ourselves.”

  “What do you mean Jasper’s in there with dogs?” Delilah put a hand on Mitchell’s arm, drawing his attention.

  “I’m sorry, you might not want to be here when this all goes down.” He cocked his head. “Davis, you want to take her back to the festival?”

  “I’m not going anywhere until this is sorted out. Somebody better tell me what the hell’s going on before I head in there to see for myself.”

  The brothers looked at one another, then shifted their eyes to the ground.

  Delilah had enough of everyone trying to protect her. She stood, hiked up the skirt of her long dress, and headed toward the barn. “Jasper Taylor! I know you’re in there.”

  “Oh, shit!” Trent sprang from where he’d been hunkered down, wrapped his arms around her, and tried to pull her back.

  “Let go of me.” She struggled against him, her elbow connecting with his gut. He let out an oof, and his arms fell away as he doubled over.

  Two men came out of the barn. “Who’s there?”

  Delilah forged ahead, just one thought in her mind. She had to get to Jasper. He’d tell her what was going on.

  * * *

  * * *

  Not even two minutes later she regretted her questionable act of bravery as she stepped into the light of the barn. Jasper stood in the center of a ring of hay bales. Crates of dogs spread around the perimeter. The men around him stepped back.

  “Delilah, what are you doing here?” He rushed toward her, his gaze racing over her. “Are you okay?”

  The men who had caught her outside came in, prodding Jasper’s brothers along with the barrel of a rifle. “Caught this group sniffing around outside. Somebody want to tell me what the hell’s going on?”

  Jasper stepped toward her, his hands up, palms out. “Let’s all keep our cool. What are y’all doing here?”

  “You told her you had to go help one of your brothers in trouble,” Davis said. “Didn’t make sense to any of us since we were all at the festival, getting ready for the pumpkin float.”

  “He did have to help one of his brothers.” A man stepped out from the shadows.

  Delilah squinted. There was something familiar about him, but she knew she’d never seen him before.

  “Colin?” Trent stepped toward him, his arms wide. “What are you doing here?”

  The two men embraced as Jasper pinched the bridge of his nose.

  Colin. That was Jasper’s older brother. The one who’d moved away. Delilah glanced back and forth between the brothers. Besides Trent, the other two didn’t look quite so happy to see their sibling.

  “What the fuck’s going on?” the guy with the rifle asked.

  “It’s okay, they’re with me.” Colin’s voice was steady.

  Jasper edged close enough to pull Delilah into his side.

  “The fuck we are.” Mitchell’s glare could have burned the whole place down. “Please tell me you’re not involved with this. I’m outta here.”

  “Not so fast.” The guy with the rifle tapped it against Mitchell’s leg. “We didn’t know we were having a family reunion of sorts going on.”

  “Let them go.” Jasper motioned for Davis to move next to Delilah. “Colin and I will stay. If the others don’t get back to the festival, they’re going to be missed. You don’t want Mayor Cherish sending her husband out with a search party looking for the missing guest of honor, do you?”

  The men murmured among themselves and Delilah slid her gaze over the roughly constructed ring of hay, noticing several splatters of something red. She immediately glanced back to Jasper. He didn’t appear to be injured, making her wonder whose blood it was.

  “We’d better scram.” One of the men ran in through the door. “Cops are on their way. I can see the
lights headed this direction.”

  “What did you do?” Jasper yelled at his brothers.

  The men gathered the crates, scattering like ants abandoning a flooded anthill. Engines rumbled, tires scraped on gravel, and Delilah stood there the whole time, wondering what in the world she’d gotten herself involved with this time.

  twenty-seven

  “Come here.” Jasper moved toward Delilah, his only goal to protect her, to shield her from the sheer hell they’d found themselves in.

  “Stay away.” Her green eyes, usually a place of refuge where he could forget his worries and hide for a while, held a world of fear.

  “I’m not going to hurt you. I want to keep you safe.” He held out an arm, desperate to guard her from the chaos.

  “I think you’ve done enough.” Mitchell slung an arm around Delilah’s shoulders.

  Jasper’s heart cracked. Then, as Delilah turned her back on him, taking comfort in his brother’s arms, it shattered. What had he done?

  “It’s not what you think.” How could he explain? As he tried to come up with the right words to defend himself, Bodie came through the door of the barn. The sheriff walked in behind him, followed by a few other men.

  “What’s going on?” Bodie moved toward Jasper, his hand ready to grip his service weapon. “Somebody needs to fill me in, fast.”

  Jasper’s brothers began to talk at the same time.

  Bodie held up a hand. “Delilah, what did you see when you got here?”

  She looked Bodie in the eye, her lip trembling. Jasper would have given anything in that moment to wrap her in his arms and reassure her that what she saw wasn’t the truth of the situation.

  “I saw Jasper, standing in the middle of all of those bales of hay. All of these men surrounded him. And the dogs.” Her voice cracked.

  Bodie’s eyes closed for a long beat. “We need to sort this out, but my wife tells me you’re expected to shut down the Fall Festival. If you promise you’ll be available for questions later if I need you, I’ll have someone run you back downtown if you’re up for it.”

  Delilah bit her lip and nodded. Jasper tried to catch her attention before she turned her back and walked away. It was important for her to know that he wasn’t the bad guy in all of this. Before he could say a word, Bodie stepped in front of him, blocking his view.

  “I actually can’t believe I’m about to say this to you.” He reached for Jasper’s arm. “But you have the right to remain silent . . .”

  Jasper tuned him out. He let himself be cuffed and led outside, hoping Delilah didn’t see him being stuffed into the back of the car, his arms behind him.

  * * *

  * * *

  Bodie and his team were able to round up several of the men who’d been at the barn. Jasper hoped Colin would be one of them, but it looked like his older brother might have gotten away. He’d messed up. Bad. He never should have tried to handle Colin by himself tonight. If he’d been the one to call Bodie, he’d probably be kissing Delilah on the swing he and Abby built right about now.

  Instead he sat on a metal bench in the holding cell at the sheriff’s office, waiting for a chance to set things right.

  “Come on, it’s your turn to talk.” One of the other deputies took him into a small office where Bodie waited.

  “Want to fill me in on what the hell you were doing at a dog fight tonight? You ought to know better than that. Just being a spectator is a felony in all fifty states.” Bodie crossed his arms over his chest.

  “I messed up.” Jasper raked his fingers through his hair. “Colin came back in town recently. Said he’d gotten in over his head and wanted to get out. I was trying to help him. When I found those dogs in the barn today, I knew he had to be involved.”

  “And you decided to take matters into your own hands?” Bodie’s lips twisted into a frown. “What did you think you’d accomplish by tracking him down to a dog fight? You know you could have gotten yourself killed?”

  Jasper scrubbed a hand over his chin. He hadn’t thought about the consequences for himself, he’d been so focused on trying to get to his brother and force a change of heart. “I’m sorry.”

  “You sure as hell ought to be. Not only did you put my entire operation at risk, you also dragged your brothers and Delilah into this. Do you have any idea how pissed my wife is going to be? You really think Ido is going to be voted the most romantic small town in Texas when they find out Miss Lovin’ Texas followed you to an illegal dog fight?”

  Jasper shook his head. “If anything had happened to her . . .”

  Bodie didn’t respond, just let the reality of the moment hang in the air. The weight of it pressed down on Jasper to the point where he felt like he couldn’t take in a breath. He thought he’d been doing the right thing by protecting his family from Colin’s misdeeds. But what he’d really done was put everything he loved at risk.

  He hung his head, letting his forearms rest on his thighs while he focused on a spot on the floor just in front of the toe of his boots. “I didn’t mean for it to turn out this way.”

  Bodie reached across the table and clapped him on the shoulder. “There’s no doubt in my mind you weren’t involved in the dog fighting. One of my guys picked up your brother trying to hot-wire a truck and skip town. He confessed to everything and we’ve got enough evidence to put him away for quite a while. I don’t owe that piece of scum a fucking thing, but he wants to talk to you.”

  Jasper lifted his head. “You believe me?”

  “I never thought you were caught up in that. But if you stand in the way of me doing my job again, I’m not going to be so forgiving.”

  “I understand.” Jasper glanced toward the door where Colin stood, his hands cuffed, his face a mixture of fear and regret.

  “I’m going to give the two of you a few minutes before we book him.” Bodie nodded toward Colin as he slid his hat back on his head and closed the door behind him.

  Colin perched on the edge of a chair, his wrists cuffed together in front of him.

  Jasper leaned back. “What happened?”

  “I fucked up.” Colin wouldn’t meet his gaze.

  “You fucked up because you really fucked up, or you fucked up because you got caught?” There was a world of difference in those two statements and Jasper needed to know which way Colin intended it.

  “Does it matter?” The sneer on his brother’s face told him everything he needed to know.

  Why had he let so many years go by trying to protect his brother and cover up his crimes? He’d wanted to shield his parents, keep his brothers out of harm’s way, and not spoil their image of his older brother. But for what?

  Colin didn’t appear to regret his actions, just that he got caught.

  “When you showed up on my doorstep saying you wanted out, did you mean it?” Jasper’s heart had been shattered twice already tonight. Once at the look in Delilah’s eyes and again when he realized he’d probably ruined everything for everyone he loved.

  “I got left behind. Needed somewhere to hide out for a few hours. And I was injured. Damn dog caught me right on the arm.”

  Jasper glanced at the scar on Colin’s arm, left behind by the stitches he’d put in himself. “You’re not even sorry about what happened, are you? Do you even care that Mom and Dad are going to be devastated when they find out what you’ve been up to?”

  “Let me fix it.” Colin moved closer, his voice shaky. “You can take over for me. You get to the right people and you can be pulling in thirty grand a month.”

  “No.” Jasper stood and moved toward the door. “I’m done. You’ve made your decision on how you want to live your life. I can’t protect them from it anymore.”

  “You’re making a huge mistake. None of this would have happened if you hadn’t brought that chick around. I thought she would have left when she got freaked out by those damn cri
ckets. But no . . . you had to save the day.”

  Jasper turned back to face his brother. “You’re responsible for the crickets in the trailer?”

  “You know what happens if Ido wins that stupid title?”

  His eyes narrowed, Jasper clenched his fists and waited for Colin to continue.

  Colin ground his molars together. “It’s already bad enough with that bitch mayor bringing in all kinds of wedding traffic. If Ido managed to get themselves declared the most romantic small town in Texas, we’d have so many tourists crawling around this part of the county that the dog ring would be done.”

  “So you tried to make sure that wouldn’t happen.” Jasper thought back to all the things that had taken place since Delilah had been in town. “The movie?”

  “Come on, I can’t believe anyone still hangs out watching movies at the Hampton barn. It was a piece of cake to make a few cuts in the film. How was I to know they’d have another one ready to throw on though? And a butterfly wedding without butterflies sure ain’t very romantic, is it?” With his lips curled up in an ugly smirk, Colin glared at him. “At least she won’t be giving you the title now. Not after the crappy time you’ve shown her.”

  Jasper saw red. Anger flared, his hands fisted at his sides, and he took a swing at his older brother, connecting with his chin.

  Colin backed up, a wild shine to his eyes. “It didn’t have to go down like this.”

  “You’re right about that. I should have turned you in years ago when I had the chance.” With that, he opened the door and stepped to the side while one of the deputies went in to finish dealing with Colin.

  He’d fucked up. But unlike his brother, he was more upset about the choices he’d made that had brought him to this moment than he was about getting caught. Hopefully his family would be able to forgive him. He’d not only failed the people who counted on him, like Lacey, but he’d failed the people he loved the most. His parents, his siblings, and Delilah.

  It was failing her that hurt the most.