Brayden : A Beckett Brothers Novel Book 1 (The Beckett Brothers)

by Susan Fisher-Davis

“Yes. She’ll never get out. Her lawyer tried to get temporary insanity, but that was shot down pretty quick once the jury heard the recording of her telling me how she did it and why. They convicted her of first-degree murder because it was premeditated. She had those gloves with her all day.” He shook his head. “Sad thing is that my mother in-law divorced James a week after Tara’s sentencing because he had never doubted my innocence. I guess she blamed me for losing both her daughters and him for not hating me too. I’ve always kept in touch with him. Carla died of a heart attack not long after Tara was imprisoned. I suppose the stress got to her.”

  “I’m surprised James doesn’t blame you, when one of his daughters killed the other one over you.”

  “I know, but he always believed I was innocent.” He lay back down. “Go to bed, Melissa. It’s late and I’ve talked with you about this more than anyone since getting out—even my family.”

  “All right. Thank you for telling me, I appreciate it.” Walking away, she turned back to him. “Brayden, why didn’t you let me visit you?”

  Huffing, he glanced away from her then back. “I didn’t want any visitors except my family the first three years. James would write to me, at least twice a week, and ask to visit. I finally gave in. One day, he told me Tara wanted to see me. I didn’t want to see her or anyone else for that matter, but I agreed because of James. Now I’m glad I did because if I hadn’t I’d still be in prison.”

  “I’m glad you did too, but you still could have let me know I could visit.”

  “I didn’t want your pity, Melissa,” he growled. Not from you…never from you.

  “It wasn’t pity, Brayden. Yes, I felt bad for you being in there for something you didn’t do but I wanted to see you because we both loved Maisy.” She hesitated and he saw her shoulders drop a bit. “I’m going to bed.” She turned to walk away from him.

  “Melissa? This goes no further than between us. If anyone else needs to know, I’ll tell them.”

  “I understand.” She left the barn, closing the door behind her.

  Brayden stared at the door, and wondered if he should tell the men starting on Monday. What about Julie Powell? He was positive he was going to hire her, but would she still want to work here if she knew about his past.

  Yawning, he closed his eyes and prayed for sleep to come soon. The quiet got to him most nights, even though he’d been out of the hellhole he’d lived in for three months now but sometimes, the quiet was too loud at times.

  ****

  Tears ran down her face as she sat on the sofa in the housekeeper’s quarters. How had he coped? Five years out of his life were just gone and all because a woman believed he belonged with her because she was in love with him. Granted, Melissa was in love with the man too, but for Tara to kill her own sister, hell to kill anyone, was beyond crazy.

  Melissa wiped the tears away and stared out the window. The moon lit the entire yard. She gazed at the barn and slowly understood why he slept in there. It was the thought of freedom.

  Brayden and Maisy had both loved horses and they’d had a beautiful horse ranch. She’d always been amazed at how he could almost read a horse’s mind. There was something in the way he was around them. She’d see him running his hands over them and she knew he was checking them over. Maisy had been the same way. She’d loved all equine. Melissa remembered Maisy telling her she wanted to talk Brayden into taking in abused and neglected equine. Melissa had smiled because Maisy could ask him for the moon and he’d do his best to get it for her. He’d loved her so much and so it had always been hard to visit Maisy and see Brayden touching her or kissing her when she’d wanted him for herself from the first minute she’d set eyes on him. Perhaps she understood Tara’s motivation better than she realized.

  Still, she couldn’t help but wonder if he blamed himself for Maisy’s death even though he hadn’t pulled the trigger?

  Another tear rolled down her face as she thought of him losing five years of his life. She couldn’t imagine what it was like being in that cell, waiting to be put to death for something you didn’t do. Brayden probably woke up every day praying they’d arrest the right person. Thank God, his lawyer had believed him and for the two detectives who had helped. How had he functioned during the days? How had he slept at night?

  Sighing, she stood and walked to her bedroom then crawled under the covers. She prayed that eventually he’d learn to let some of the past go and be happy again. Her last thoughts before sleep claimed her were of Brayden alone in the barn…in the dark.

  Monday morning Melissa checked all the animals, and was pleased that they seemed to be doing so much better. She entered Brayden’s office to give him an update but stopped in her tracks when she saw a petite blonde standing in front of his desk, smiling at him.

  “Oh. I’m sorry. I didn’t know you had someone in here. I just wanted to give you an update on the animals.” Melissa smiled, her eyes taking in the woman standing there.

  Brayden swiveled his chair in her direction. “Oh hey…this is Julie Powell. She’s going to be the receptionist, and customer service rep. In other words, she’ll man the phones. Julie, this is Doctor Melissa Conroy, the resident vet.”

  Melissa put her hand out to Julie. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Thank you,” Julie said while shaking her hand.

  Frowning at the woman’s one-sided greeting, Melissa turned her gaze to Brayden, who simply shrugged. “I’m going to show her where her office is then I’ll be back with you, Melissa.”

  He stood and nodded toward the door for Julie to precede him.

  Entering the office a few minutes later, he took a seat behind the desk. “So…how are they doing?”

  Melissa stared at him because he always looked so good but today, the red T-shirt hugged his pecs just so, and his arms fascinated her. How she’d love to feel them around her.

  Tearing her eyes from him, she cleared her throat. “All of them are now eating well. The two we had on IVs are doing great. I was so afraid we’d have to euthanize them, but they’re standing and eating hay.”

  “You know there will come a time we’ll have some come in that will have to be euthanized, so you’d better be prepared for that,” he said.

  “I know. I hate it, but I know it’ll happen.”

  “Good.” He stood. “I hired two men to help out. Come with me, I’ll introduce you.”

  Following him out the door, they walked down the aisle of the barn, out the doors and into the bright sunshine then toward one of the other barns. The sun warmed the ground, and her shoulders. Melissa watched as Brayden lifted his face to the sky.

  “The sun feels good, doesn’t it?” she asked.

  Coming to a stop, he stared at her. “You have no idea.”

  “I didn’t mean,” she stammered, not sure what to say next.

  “I know. I don’t take everything literally. Come on,” he said as he led her into the other barn.

  Two men walked toward them, both young and attractive. They were tall with brown hair and brown eyes and they both smiled at her.

  “Melissa, this is Nico and Logan Bauer. Guys, this is Doctor Melissa Conroy.”

  “Brothers?” Melissa put her hand out to them.

  The taller one grinned at her. “Cousins. I’m Nico. It’s great to meet you.”

  “Hi, Nico.” She put her hand out to Logan. “Hello, Logan.”

  “Nice to meet you, Doc,” Logan said, grinning as he shook her hand.

  “All right. Everyone can get back to work now that the pleasantries are out of the way,” Brayden barked.

  Melissa frowned, as did Nico and Logan. They shrugged and after tipping their hats, walked down the center of the barn to get to work. She turned to face Brayden.

  “What was that about?”

  “Just get to work, Melissa.” Spinning on his heel, he strode away.

  “And men say women are hard to understand,” Melissa muttered as she left the barn to check the ponies.

  ****<
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  “What the fuck is wrong with you?” Brayden growled under his breath as he left the barn.

  Seeing her smile at Nico and Logan was like a stab in the gut. Did she like them? Was she attracted to them? What did it matter anyway? Hell, it mattered, a whole hell of a lot, because he was so attracted to her. The thought of her being attracted to someone else had him clenching his teeth, and a muscle twitched in his cheek.

  Stopping, he took a couple of deep breaths knowing he shouldn’t be feeling like this about her. He knew she was attracted to him but the way she smiled at Nico and Logan had him thinking she was attracted to any man. Damn it! This shit, he did not need.

  Entering the office Julie was working in, he saw her on the phone. When she hung up, she gazed up at him and although, he thought she was very pretty, she didn’t come close to Melissa.

  “Someone called asking when they could come by. I gave them the hours.” She grinned up at him. “How’d I do boss?”

  “So far, so good. I’ll be in my office if you need me for anything. Don’t hesitate to ask me or Melissa any questions.”

  When she nodded, he left her office and entered his own then took a seat behind his desk. According to Glen, Melissa’s apartment would be ready later today. Brayden exhaled. That meant he’d have to sleep in the house since he couldn’t sleep in the barn where he’d be too close to her. While she was staying in the housekeeper’s quarters, he had stayed as far away as he could by continuing to sleep in the barn. She was far too much of a temptation. All he had to do was knock on her door and he knew she’d welcome him in.

  Christ! His cock was pressing against the fly of his jeans just thinking about her. It seemed to have a mind of its own when it came to her. He wanted to bury himself deep inside her and feel her clench around him when she came, and he’d make sure she did. He loved bringing a woman to orgasm. The way their bodies responded to him, their breaths growing heavier, their skin growing flushed, and their moans rising in the back of their throats always pushed him over the edge. Rubbing his hand over his fly, he knew he could satisfy himself, he’d done it enough in prison, but it was nothing compared to being inside a woman and feeling her inner muscles squeezing his cock.

  Son of a bitch! Standing so quickly that the chair slammed into the wall behind him, he left his office to head to the house. He needed a cold shower and he hoped it helped—for a while anyway.

  Chapter Six

  As Brayden started out of the barn, he heard a vehicle pull up. He wasn’t expecting anyone but then again, he was beginning to get used to people dropping by without an appointment. He strode out into the bright sunlight and came to a halt when he saw a big truck, but then smiled when he saw Ash jump down from the cab.

  “Hey, what are you doing?” Brayden asked greeting his brother with a handshake and hug.

  Ash grinned. “Making a donation. I brought you some feed.”

  “You didn’t have to do that, but I’ll take it.”

  “Good thing…because if you’d said no, I’d have just dumped it all here.” Ash glanced around. “Nice place. Where do you want it?”

  “Back the truck up to that barn,” Brayden said, pointing to the first big barn by the fenced pasture. “I’ll get Nico and Logan to help us unload.”

  “Will do.” Ash walked back to the truck, climbed in then drove it to the barn and backed up to just inside of it.

  Once Brayden found Nico and Logan, they returned to the barn and began unloading the bags of feed. Nico whistled when he saw all the bags then quickly looked at Brayden.

  “Beckett Feed? You’re Beckett Feed?”

  “I’m not, my brother is. Ash, meet Nico and Logan Bauer, two of my ranch hands. Guys, my brother, Ash Beckett,” Brayden said introducing them.

  He watched Ash shake their hands and then they all got back to work. The feed room had storage bins along all four walls. They were airtight to keep the feed from getting moldy as well as keep moisture, insects, and rodents out.

  “Can I help?”

  Brayden spun around to see Melissa standing in the doorway. He nodded.

  “If you could cut the bags open after we bring them in, it will save us time. Then we can just dump the feed in the bins.”

  “Sure,” she said then sent a smile to Ash who grinned back at her.

  Damn it.

  Brayden blew out a breath. “My brother, Ash. Ash, this is Melissa Conroy.”

  He watched them shake hands and thought Ash lingered longer than was necessary as he addressed Melissa.

  “I remember you being at the trial,” Ash said quietly, glancing at Nico and Logan who continued to work. Brayden gave him a nod to thank him for not saying it loud enough for them to hear.

  “Yes, I remember you too. It’s nice to meet you,” Melissa said.

  “You too, darlin’.” Ash winked at her and Brayden rolled his eyes.

  “Get your ass back to work and quit flirting,” he growled out.

  “Are you talking to me or her?” Ash folded his arms across his chest.

  “Both of you,” Brayden said as Melissa walked away.

  Ash stared at him and a slow smile lifted his lips. “Good to see that.”

  Frowning, Brayden stared at him. “See what?”

  “You being jealous over a woman,” Ash said in a low enough tone of voice so Melissa wouldn’t hear him.

  “Fuck you. You’re talking out your ass, Ashford.”

  Ash burst out laughing. “You only ever call me Ashford when you know I’m right.”

  “Get back to work,” Brayden repeated as he turned his back to his brother, but he heard Ash chuckle.

  Damn smartass. He wasn’t jealous. He had no reason to be. Melissa was nothing to him. He glanced over to where she stood cutting open the bags and found he couldn’t take his eyes off her ass as she bent over a bag. He sure as hell didn’t need a hard-on right now but it was like his dick had a mind of its own. Turning away from her, he walked to the truck and climbed into the back to get a bag then he handed it down to Nico. He decided just to stay inside the back of the truck and hand out the bags, that way he wouldn’t have to see Melissa or her ass in those damn tight jeans.

  Why did she wear them so damn tight? She was going to drive him insane looking so good and being so close. Perhaps it had been a bad idea hiring her, but she was damn good at her job. Taking a deep breath, Brayden handed a bag to Logan and forced his mind back on the job.

  The next morning, Brayden was washing one of the horses when she shook and water flew all over him. He turned away but his shirt got soaked.

  “Damn it, Sunshine. I don’t need a shower, you do,” he said laughing.

  “Good morning, Brayden.”

  Brayden turned to see Gray standing by the doorway of the stall.

  “Hey Gray, what are you doing out this way?”

  “I have to go out to Isiah Farrell’s ranch. It seems someone called to report two of his horses looked to be underweight. I’m wondering if you’d like to follow me with your trailer so you can take a look at them. If we need to, maybe we can just take them then and there.”

  “Sounds good. Let me tell Melissa and I’ll follow you with the trailer.”

  Gray nodded and walked out of the barn to head back to his SUV and got in while Brayden headed back through the barn.

  “Melissa?” he called out.

  “In here with Dinky.”

  Grinning, Brayden shook his head. She loved the little burro. Stopping in the doorway, he looked in at her.

  “I’m going out to a ranch with my brother. Someone reported seeing two underweight horses.”

  “Your brother? Ash?” Melissa stared up at him. Damn! Was that an eagerness, he heard in her voice over his brother?

  “No, Grayson. He’s the Sheriff of Hartland County. Do you want to meet him?”

  “I will later. I’m too busy right now.”

  “All right. I’ll be back later. Have Nico clean out two stalls in case I bring them back. Please.” Wa
lking out of the barn, he climbed into the truck with the trailer hooked to it, signaled to Gray to pull out, and then followed him out of the driveway.

  As they pulled into the driveway of the Farrell ranch, no one came out to greet them. Brayden had a bad feeling about it as he stepped out of his truck when he saw Gray emerge from his vehicle.

  Brayden strode toward him. “It seems awfully quiet,” he said as he glanced around.

  “Yeah, it does. I’ll go knock on the door. Why don’t you see if you can find the horses?”

  As Gray walked across the porch of the house, Brayden headed to the barn and entered the dark building. Walking to each of the stalls, he peered into them. It was a small barn with only six stalls and all were empty. Walking out the other end, he shaded his eyes against the bright sun. It might be September and gradually getting colder, but the sun was high in the sky and still bright. His eyes scanned the field and he swore when he spotted three, very thin horses slowly walking toward him. He re-entered the barn to find halters. Gray entered at the other end.

  “Any luck finding the horses?” Gray asked him when he reached him.

  “Yeah, they’re out there.” He jerked his chin toward the field. “There are three of them. They started heading this way so I’m trying to find halters. Any luck at the house?”

  “No, he’s gone. No furniture left in the house either. Looks like he’s been gone a while too. The son of a bitch. He’d better hope I don’t see him again.”

  “They probably think we’re going to feed them. That’s why they’re coming to us,” Brayden said as he entered a room to look for halters. Finding three, he walked out and handed one to his brother.

  “It’s a good thing he’s gone or I’d be running his ass in for animal abuse,” Gray muttered as both men walked slowly to the horses.

  Talking quietly to the horses, Brayden slipped the halters on two of them while Gray put one on the other horse, then they led them to the trailer.

  “They’re not too bad,” Gray said stroking his hand down the nose of the horse he was holding. “I’ve seen worse, but at least they had some grass to eat.”