“Yeah.” He grinned. “But don’t say anything, okay?”
“She doesn’t want anyone to know before the wedding?”
“She doesn’t care about that, but miscarriages run in her family and she’s superstitious about announcing it too early.”
“I can promise you that Mom’s figured it out.”
“Of course. When Phil refused the wine, Mom looked at me and I’m sure it was written all over my face. When I helped her bring in dessert and coffee, I told her to keep quiet. She will.”
“So will I and I’m sure everything will be fine. Congratulations, Daddy-o.”
“Thanks. Sobering, isn’t it?”
“It is, but in a good way. Hey, let me ask you something. How long did you know Phil before you figured out it was serious?”
“You mean serious like love?”
“Well, yeah.” The word sent shivers up his back. Except for Rosie, he’d never told a woman he loved her. He might be really bad at it.
“Honestly? I was in love with her by Day Two, but I couldn’t admit that. I was a rolling stone who gathered neither moss nor maidens. Couldn’t possibly be in love, y’know.”
Brant sighed. “Right.” Damon had resisted the concept just as he had. He felt a little less like an idiot.
“All set!” Phil breezed out the door. “Sorry to keep you waiting.”
“No worries.” Brant started down the steps. “By the way, that cabin you and Damon built for Cade is great.”
“We had fun doing it, although I’d hoped that they’d both have moved in there by now. If Lexi’s keeping her place in town, she’s not ready to propose.”
“Guess not.” He considered repeating Aria’s theories about why that was, but he decided against it.
“You’re looking good,” Phil said. “Life must be treating you well.”
“Can’t complain.”
“You never do,” Damon said. “You could be sitting in a pile of cow patties and you’d smile and say you were lovin’ it.”
“Yeah, well, I wonder if I’ve been a little too easy to get along with.”
“Whoa!” Damon clapped a hand to his heart. “I can’t believe you just said that. I’m thinking we need to call CNN with this breaking news.”
Normally he would have sparred with Damon, but he didn’t have the time right now. “It’s this business with Josh. Aria’s put her heart and soul into her project and he can’t even be bothered to come out here and take a look. That’s not right.”
“I can tell you feel strongly about it,” Phil said. “I’m running to keep up with you.”
“Oh. Sorry.” He slowed his pace.
“So what are you gonna do about it, brother of mine?” Damon shot him a glance. “And for the record, I’d be happy to provide backup. This could be fun to watch.”
“I haven’t decided, but whatever it is, I can handle it. Thanks for the offer, though.”
“Let me know if you change your mind. I’ve never seen you this worked up, not even when we played for the state basketball championship. Or the football championship, come to think of it.” Damon looked over at Phil. “We both double lettered, so be impressed.”
“I am. I’d be honored to wear your letterman’s jacket.”
“Well, um, the thing is, I loaned that jacket to Mary Ann Templeton and I never got it back.”
“Because she burned it in a school trash can after you broke up with her.” Brant smiled at the memory. “What a stink it made, too. Polyester doesn’t burn well.” They’d reached the barn and he slid aside the wooden bar so they could go in.
“I need to buy you a drink sometime, Brant,” Phil said as she walked inside. “Then you can tell me all about Mary Ann Templeton and any other girlfriends I should know about.”
“Just don’t invite your fiancé if you want the scoop.”
“Don’t worry. It’ll be just you and me.”
“Hey, people. I’m right here.” But laughter rippled in Damon’s voice.
Brant wasn’t surprised at Damon’s mellow mood. He was about to be married to a great woman and soon he’d be a father. Good for him. His childhood hadn’t been pretty and he deserved his happily-ever-after.
Baseboard lights cast enough of a glow to guide them but not enough to disturb the sleeping horses. They stopped talking as they walked to the far end of the barn. Brant glanced in first. Lucy and Linus were lying curled together in the straw, but Damon and Phil would be able to get a decent view of the new foal. He stepped back and motioned them forward.
“Oh, my goodness,” Phil murmured softly. “He’s precious.”
Damon wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Yeah, he’s cute, all right. Lucy did good.”
“You’ll get a better view tomorrow when he’s out in the pasture.”
“I’m sure we will.” Phil moved away from the stall. “But I wanted to see him tonight. We’ve all been waiting so long.”
“I know.” Until now he hadn’t fully grasped the anticipation surrounding this event. He’d come in at the very end, but these two had been watching Lucy’s progress for months. So had Lexi, Cade, Rosie and Herb. Then there was the person who’d anticipated it most of all. She deserved better than to have her brother refuse to even see the foal.
Phil waited until they were outside the barn and headed back to the house before she vented her frustration. “I can’t believe her brother hasn’t been out here! How could he be that way? She must have shown him pictures!”
“I’m sure she tried. I don’t know if he agreed to look at them.”
“I’m ready to go over to his apartment and give him a piece of my mind. Maybe this isn’t going to be his salvation, but he should at least have the decency to come and see this sweet baby once, for Aria’s sake. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.”
Brant made his decision. “You know, Phil, neither do I.”
* * *
ARIA WAS CONFUSED by Brant’s text. He’d asked her for directions to her apartment and said he’d meet her there instead of having her come out to the cabin. She agreed to the change of plans although she was disappointed. Her apartment wasn’t nearly as romantic as that beautiful cabin.
But she’d texted him when she’d finished her last delivery and was headed home. At least she’d get to see him. She’d thought a lot about his comments that she should leave Josh alone and let him decide his own fate. Maybe that was the right thing to do.
She couldn’t imagine backing away when Josh had a chance of walking again, but she couldn’t make him get out of that chair. She couldn’t force him to go see Linus, either. She needed his full cooperation to get him into her van.
She didn’t have any power in this situation. Josh had it all, and he’d chosen not to go along with her plan. She could rant and rave all she wanted, but that wouldn’t accomplish anything.
So she might as well enjoy Linus and her time with Brant without expecting anything from Josh. Maybe she needed to accept the idea that he’d spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair. The possibility horrified her, but it must not horrify him or he wouldn’t have dropped out of physical therapy. She would love him even if he never walked again.
Brant’s mud-spattered truck was waiting in the visitor’s section of the parking lot when she drove in. She remembered that he’d named it Bessie, which made her smile. She pulled into her assigned slot and climbed out.
His long legs and determined stride brought him over to her before she’d locked the van. She welcomed him with open arms, deliriously glad to nestle against his solid chest and absorb the warmth of his body. “I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you, too.” He held her close, his cheek resting on the top of her head. “But before I can show you how much, there’s something we need to do.”
“What’s that?”
“I’m here to take your brother out to see Linus.”
“You’re what?” She jerked away from him and peered into his face. Surely she’d misunderstoo
d. “Aren’t you the one who told me to back off?”
“I am, and I’ve changed my mind. You’ve done all this out of love for him because you want him to get better. Maybe it’s a bad idea, or the wrong idea, but he needs to see that foal at least once before rejecting him.”
Her breath caught. “But...he doesn’t want to go.”
“Then let’s convince him. It’s dark out. We can sneak him in and sneak him out without anyone knowing except the three of us. If he can’t manage that, then I find it hard to believe you share the same genetics.”
She felt a rush of emotion so strong that it could only be one thing. But now wasn’t the time to declare it. Maybe she never would. After all, he hadn’t said why he was doing this. To him, it might not be any different than saving a puppy.
Taking his hand, she led him to Josh’s apartment. Light shone through the curtains drawn over his living room window and the noise of a video game filtered through the door, so at least he wasn’t asleep. She didn’t think he slept much, anyway. She tapped their code knock on the door.
It took a while before the sound of the video game ended and Josh opened the door. He did a double-take. “Who the hell is this?”
Brant stepped forward. “My name is Brant Ellison. I’m here to take you out to see Lucy’s foal.”
“Damned if you are.” He backed up the wheelchair and tried to close the door but he was no match for Brant.
Pushing his way in, Brant pulled Aria after him. “We need to have a talk.”
“We don’t and you’re trespassing.” Josh glared at him and picked up the phone from a nearby table. “I’m calling 9-1-1.”
“You could, but that seems like a piss-poor way to react when your sister is only trying to help you.”
Josh shifted his anger to her. “Apparently you decided to bring the muscle to bend me to your will.”
“This was Brant’s idea and you have no clue how unusual it is for him to take this kind of action. He’s the kindest, most gentle—”
“Spare me. And get out of my apartment or I swear I’ll call the police.”
Brant crouched beside his wheelchair. “Don’t do that, Josh. We have a lot in common, you and I. We both love horses. We both love our personal freedom. And...we both love Aria.”
She gasped. “Brant!”
But he didn’t look back at her. He kept his attention on Josh. “So what do you say? It’s the middle of the night. No one will see you come and go. We don’t even have to take your wheelchair. There’s one out at the ranch.”
“So I heard.” But the venom had left his voice.
“It’ll be a couple hours out of your life, but it will mean the world to your sister.”
In the silence that followed, Aria’s heart thumped so loud she wondered if they could hear it. She hadn’t known what to expect when Brant shoved his way into Josh’s apartment, but it certainly hadn’t been a declaration of love. Plus, he hadn’t even said it directly to her.
Yet barging in here to confront Josh was the most loving and romantic gesture she could imagine. This was the man who believed in giving people space, the man who’d counseled her to back off. But he was right in Josh’s face, pressing him for a decision.
Josh gazed at him for several long moments. “You must love her or you wouldn’t have tried this stupid stunt. Let’s go.”
18
BRANT AGREED TO drive Aria’s van to the ranch because she asked him to. She looked a little shaky, but the glow of happiness in her eyes would stay with him for the rest of his life. He lifted Josh into the backseat, next to the sliding door, and Aria climbed in front.
As he drove away from the apartment complex he could feel her gaze on him and he debated whether to reach over and take her hand. But with Josh in the back seat, it didn’t seem like a good idea. The more they behaved like a cozy couple, the more they’d exclude her brother.
The drive was a silent one. He didn’t want to say something wrong after apparently saying something right.
When he’d crouched next to Josh’s chair, he hadn’t known he was going to say that. The words had flowed from his heart, not his head. He’d scared the bejesus out of Aria, too. Once this was over and they were alone, he’d apologize. That had to have been the lamest declaration of love in the history of romance.
Maybe she’d forgive him if he explained that he’d never said that to any woman besides Rosie. Technically he still hadn’t. He’d told her brother, instead. But he had a hunch that without those words, they wouldn’t be on their way to Thunder Mountain.
Josh had issues—no doubt about that—but he loved his sister. Apparently he’d needed someone who also loved her to point out the critical nature of paying Linus at least one visit. He might be going under protest, but at least he was going. And he’d behave himself or else.
Brant didn’t think there’d be a problem, though, or he wouldn’t be doing this in the first place. His money was on Linus. Josh pretended to be a badass, but most guys in his position would do the same. That colt could melt the heart of a seasoned criminal, let alone a fake hardnose like Josh. He wouldn’t stand a chance against Linus’s maximum-force cuteness.
All was quiet at the ranch and no lights glowed except for the one on the porch and two dusk-to-dawn lights. Brant swung the van around so Josh’s door was next to the barn entrance.
“Be right back with the chair.” Good thing Aria had asked him to keep it in the barn. That eliminated the hassle of transporting Josh’s wheelchair out here. The quicker this could be accomplished, the more likely it would succeed.
By the time he returned, Aria had opened the van’s sliding door and she and Josh were talking in low tones. He was glad to see that the guy hadn’t completely zoned out. Not wanting to intrude on the brother-sister conversation, he held back.
But Josh spotted him. “Your boyfriend’s here.”
Boyfriend. That term grated on his nerves and not only because of the sneer in Josh’s voice when he’d said it. Brant didn’t want to be Aria’s boyfriend. He wanted to be the man she counted on when the going got rough, the one she laughed with and made love to, the one she kissed good-night and woke up with in the morning.
After positioning the chair next to the van, he stepped away. Aria and Josh had accomplished this dozens of times without his help. In fact, they didn’t need him at all now that Josh was only a few feet from the barn. He could wait in the van, for that matter.
But he wasn’t willing to, so he walked into the barn and joined Ringo, who was sitting on a hay bale near the door. “Keep your toes crossed, Ringo,” he murmured as he scratched behind the cat’s ears. “This one’s for all the marbles.”
Josh’s upper body strength served him well as he got into the chair and propelled it across the gravel and into the barn. Aria didn’t have to do much at all. He might be able to navigate the pasture, after all. Good to know.
Josh didn’t look Brant’s way as they started down the wooden aisle toward the birthing stall. Aria gave him a quick smile and he responded with a thumbs-up. He resisted the urge to follow. Yes, he was the trainer, but Aria had good instincts and could handle this without his interference.
From his vantage point he’d be able to tell if something went seriously wrong. He wouldn’t get to watch Josh’s reaction to seeing the foal, but Aria could describe it to him later. He stayed put and continued to pet the cat.
Ringo’s loud purr blended with the muted sounds of horses moving in their stalls. They were probably wondering what the hell was going on and if this middle-of-the-night intrusion involved food.
When Aria opened the stall door and eased the wheelchair inside, he was glad they’d already practiced this move. If they hadn’t, he wouldn’t have been so sure about hauling Josh out here tonight. A horse nickered, but the sound came from a stall close to him, not Lucy’s.
He hoped she and Linus were awake, but the colt looked adorable curled up asleep, too. Either way should do the trick. If it didn’t, then Jos
h was a hopeless case and Aria would have to accept that. If she needed any support as she worked through her disappointment, he would gladly provide it.
He’d also give Josh a piece of his mind, even though that wouldn’t accomplish anything. It would make him feel better, though. Funny how his easygoing nature shifted when someone was hurting Aria.
That wasn’t all that had shifted, either. If someone had suggested that his world view could change in forty-eight hours, he would have laughed his head off. But it had.
Taking this action for Aria’s sake, a move he wouldn’t have imagined himself making even last week, showed him that he could change, and damned fast, too. Just because he’d never wanted to commit to a woman in the past didn’t mean he wasn’t ready to do it now.
She’d said she wasn’t in the market for a husband, and that was fine with him. He didn’t need a piece of paper to tell him what he knew in his heart. That part they could take a day at a time. No rush, as long as she agreed they should be together. Judging from the way she’d looked at him after he’d confronted Josh, he thought maybe she would agree.
They didn’t come out for quite a while. That should be a good sign unless Josh was sitting there in a funk and Aria was knocking herself out trying to spark his interest in the foal. After what seemed like an eternity and likely was only about twenty minutes, the wheelchair reappeared.
While Aria closed and fastened the stall door, Josh rolled himself down the aisle toward Brant. The guy had impressive dexterity. The basketball team hadn’t been that coordinated when they’d fooled around with Steve’s chair.
Josh came to a stop in front of Brant. His cheeks were damp and he cleared his throat several times.
Brant waited.
Finally, Josh held out his hand. “Thanks, man.” His voice shook. “I owe you.” In spite of his obvious distress, he had a hell of a grip.
“Don’t thank me. Thank your sister.”
“I did. And I will, many times over. I told her this afternoon that a cute little foal wouldn’t make a difference.” He cleared his throat again and met Brant’s gaze. “I was wrong. Thanks for insisting I come out here.”
Cowboy All Night (Thunder Mountain Brotherhood, Book 5) Page 18