I had always been that way about women. The need to protect them was just bred into me. My dad was the same. So was Finn. I guess with Lee it skipped a generation or something.
But this was different. I’d watched George grow up. Had Christmas dinner with her every year. Went to every one of her birthday parties, and she was at mine. So seeing someone I knew so well hurting so badly and not being able to do anything to take it all away was torture.
I let her cry in my arms, awkwardly patting her back and stroking her hair until she stopped and pulled away.
“I’m so sorry, I don’t know what got into me.” She backed up, just slightly, and the absence of her body shot through me, making me highly aware of how much I had liked it.
“It’s alright, darlin’,” I replied. I wanted to pull her back in, but I didn’t dare.
I gazed down at her, and my heart skipped a beat. Her green eyes were shining up at me, full of trust. I reached up and wiped a tear from her cheek, and she gave me a half-smile.
I swallowed hard and time seemed to stop around us as we peered into each other’s eyes for what seemed like forever. Finally, Cherokee whinnied and stomped his hoof on the ground, jarring us from our trance.
What the hell was that, I thought, as my stomach flipped.
I grinned, grabbed George’s elbows, and took a deliberate step back.
“Call me if there’s anything I can do, okay George?” I said, trying to shake off whatever had come over me.
She blinked and nodded at me silently.
I tipped my hat and walked out of the barn, my gut all tied up in knots.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
GEORGIA
Three Days Later
Crit hit the railing twice with his hand and his coach’s assistant hurriedly pulled the gate open as Crit and the bull exploded from the stall. I always felt queasy during those eight seconds of the ride, holding my breath and saying a little prayer no matter who was on the back of the bull. I’d grown up watching first my dad, and then all my brothers, and the Haggard boys too, on the backs of bucking bulls, falling off, breaking limbs and collarbones and noses and whatever other body part fell victim to the bull’s wrath that day.
There weren’t too many days that went by where someone wasn’t shedding blood. You’d think I’d be used to it, but it never failed to make me shudder in fear every time I watched, even after all these years.
After eight seconds of Crit’s body being flung every direction as the enormous bull did its damnedest to get him off, the buzzer sounded and I exhaled as Crit let go of his grip on the rope and he flew off, landing on his ass, the dirt flying around him in the air, as the bull trotted to the end of the arena.
“You gotta stay focused, Crit,” Dustin Elliot, Crit and Beau’s coach, said as he gave Crit a hand up. “He almost lost you there at the end.”
“Yeah, my grip was a little loose,” Crit replied.
“Hey Crit, we’re going home now,” I yelled over to him. Ruby was sitting next to me and she had insisted on stopping by the arena to watch the boys practice before we headed home. “Gotta feed the herd.”
“Alrighty, sis, I reckon I’ll see ya back home,” he said. He tipped his hat at Ruby and I could have sworn I saw her blush. “Howdy, Ms. Ruby.”
“Howdy, Crit!” she drawled, twirling her long red hair around her finger as she smiled at him. “That was a real nice run there.”
“Thank you, kindly, Ms. Ruby,” Crit said, winking before turning away from us and heading towards the exit with Dustin.
Ruby sighed, and I nudged her as I laughed.
“Cut it out,” I said. Ruby had been carrying a torch for Crit since we were little kids. Once we had grown up, she had continued her pursuit of him, but he always said she was too young for him. I think his resistance only made him that much more attractive to her.
“Yeah, yeah,” she said.
“Come on, Cherokee’ll throw me out of the saddle tomorrow if I’m late with his dinner.”
We walked down the bleachers we were sitting on, and made our way to the back of the arena. By the time we reached the door that led to the stables and parking lot, Crit was standing just inside the door talking to Seth and Dustin.
Between the three of them, they practically lived at the arena.
“Have a good night, ladies,” Dustin said. Dustin had been our family’s coach for decades, and he had taken my father’s death real hard. I hadn’t seen his usual jovial smile grace his face in six weeks. I gave him one of my own as he reached to open the door for us.
Just as the sunlight streamed in, Beau appeared around the corner.
His eyes met mine, and I stopped in my tracks and to my horror, gasped out loud.
“Oh!” I said, as all eyes turned to me. “Beau!”
“Howdy, George,” he said, his usual black Stetson sitting on his head, as he grinned at me, cool as a cucumber. My heart began racing as I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. He stared back, ignoring the other four people standing within five feet of him.
“Beau,” Crit said, his voice lower than usual, his greeting more of a warning than a hello. My eyes darted over to him, and his mouth was set in a firm grimace.
“Crit,” he said, dipping his hat. “Seth, Coach, Ruby…howdy y’all.” His eyes swept across them, and then landed right back on me.
“How you doing today, George?” he asked.
“I - I - um, I’m good,” I replied, my voice sounding anything but good. I was stuttering like a damned silly schoolgirl. I don’t what the hell had gotten into me, but after all these years, Beau Haggard’s presence was having a brand new effect on me.
“She’s fine,” Crit said, stepping forward and standing in between the two of us. He crossed his arms over his chest, and looked at Beau like he had done something wrong. Beau’s eyes trailed up and down Crit’s large frame, and then back up to his eyes.
“Okay, Crit, that’s good,” Beau replied, nodding slowly. “I just wanted to check in on her.”
“Don’t you think you Haggards have done enough?” Crit said, that damned vein on his head throbbing again.
“I’m real sorry about what happened, Crit,” Beau began. “I want you to know that I talked to Lee myself, and I’ve taken care of the situation.”
“Well, if I see him, there’s gonna be a lot more than talking happening —,”
“Crit!” I exclaimed, moving around him. “That’s not necessary!”
“What the hell is going on?” Ruby asked. I still hadn’t told her about Lee. I just wanted to stop thinking about it, so I had tried to block it from my mind again. “What did Lee do now?”
“Nothing, come on, Ruby,” I said, grabbing her hand and pulling her out the door. “Thanks, Beau,” I called over my shoulder as I walked to my truck.
“Nice seeing you, George,” Beau replied as we walked away.
“What was that?” Ruby asked as soon as I slid behind the steering wheel of my truck.
“It was nothing,” I murmured. “Just an over-protective brother.”
“That’s not what I meant,” she replied. “I was talking about the way Beau Haggard was looking at you, George!”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said, as I put the truck in gear and headed out of the parking lot.
“Well, if you didn’t see it, everyone else did. Beau was looking at you like you were a freshly buttered biscuit and he was a starved man!”
“Oh, shut up Ruby. He was not.”
“I tell you,” she replied. “Beau Haggard’s taken a likin’ to you!”
“Beau’s been my friend forever, Ruby. Not everyone is always thinking about sex like you.”
“I don’t know how you aren’t thinking about sex with a man like Beau looking at you like he’s about to slather you in strawberry jelly and gobble you up,” she said.
“Beau’s a little too old for me,” I said, laughing.
“Oh, hogwash! He’s only got a few years on you. And besides
,” she said, twirling her hair again, “the oldest pipe gives the sweetest smoke.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
BEAU
I had to admit, I understood why Crit was pissed. Hell, I was pissed too. And if I had a little sister, I’d be just as protective. George wasn’t even my sister, and I was feeling that way. I was feeling a whole lot of other confusing shit too.
As much as I hated it, I hadn’t been able to get George out of my mind for days. I had been hoping to see her at practice, knowing she and Ruby liked to stop by and watch sometimes. Crit and I had the same coach, but I hadn’t run into him since I’d seen George the other day.
I guess I hadn’t counted on Crit taking it all out on me, but of course he would. One Haggard brother was just as good, or rather bad, as the next. I might not be Lee, but I knew I got lumped in with him just as well.
I watched George’s truck leave the parking lot, and turned back to Crit and Seth.
“Crit, now I understand you’re upset, and I’ll tell you, I was mighty pissed at Lee myself. I gave him a piece of my mind, and you can bet he ain’t gonna go anywhere near George again, I can guarantee that. I know this is the last thing you need to be frettin’ over, so I want you to know that I handled it. In fact, Lee’s left town for a while, so he’s out of everyone’s hair at this point.”
“Well, that’s probably for the best. Far as I can see, your brother ain’t done much good for your family or mine for quite a while.”
“I have to agree with you there, Crit,” I replied. “Hey, listen, if there’s anything y’all need help with at the farm, please don’t hesitate to let us know, alright?”
“Yeah, we’re good,” Seth said. “Just keep your sorry ass brother away from George, and we’ll be even better.”
“I hear you, Seth, I hear you,” I replied.
I walked away, pissed as an angry mule, even though I did my best to hide it. Now I was just even more upset with Lee. The last thing anyone needed was more animosity between our two families, and it didn’t look like the Hopes were just gonna brush this issue under the rug.
Hell, there’d always been a competitive streak running between me and Crit, but it had always been good-natured. Now, it just all felt wrong.
Competing against him in state was going to be real interesting. Part of me wasn’t looking forward to it, but there was a small thread of my own competitiveness that I knew I wouldn’t be able to ignore after that confrontation.
I drove home that night after practice, my body aching, and my mind clouded with visions of George’s pretty green eyes.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
GEORGIA
The sound of wailing sirens woke me up from a dead sleep. I jumped out of bed and looked out the window, my heart skipping a beat when I saw the county firetruck, its red and yellow lights lighting up the road as it made its way down our driveway. I scanned our property, and couldn’t see a thing out of place.
I raced out of my room and down the stairs, my bare feet carrying me quickly by memory through the dark house.
“Crit! Jesse! Seth!” I yelled, as I flung open the front door and ran out onto the porch, down the steps and into the yard. I looked back at the house, standing dark and peaceful amongst the chaos surrounding it. The firetruck passed me just as I was rounding the house to go to the back of our farm. I gasped when I saw our old tool shed was completely engulfed in flames.
“Oh, my god!” I exclaimed, as I stopped in my tracks. The firefighters jumped off the truck before it came to a complete stop and set to work putting out the fire.
“What the hell?” I said out loud, running my hand through my hair as I looked around for any explanation.
Jesse appeared at my side suddenly, startling me.
“Wow,” he murmured.
“I can’t believe this!” I took a step forward and winced in pain as my foot grazed a rock. Crit came barreling out of the house buttoning his jeans, and he was soon followed by Seth doing the same. I looked over at Jesse, and saw that he had somehow managed to make it out fully dressed. Luckily, I had on pajamas, because I hadn’t stopped to think about clothes when I jumped out of bed.
“What the hell happened?” Crit demanded.
“I don’t know, I just heard sirens and ran out to this,” I replied. I looked over towards the Haggard’s property and saw them all slowly emerge from their house. Beau walked out of his cabin behind his parent’s house and stood on his deck. Hank and Beau went back in, but moments later they came back out fully dressed. I watched as they made the short trek through the field to our house.
“What’s going on?” Hank asked as he neared.
“I have no idea,” Crit said, his voice full of bewilderment. The fire chief walked over to us finally, and began bombarding Crit with questions. All of which Crit had no answers for.
“So, you were all asleep?” he asked.
“Yes, like I said, we didn’t even know the shed was on fire till we heard the sirens. Who called you?”
“Well, son, that’s the weird part.” Randy Webster was the county fire chief, and old schoolmate of our fathers. “We received an anonymous call.”
“What?” Crit asked, confusion set into all of our faces. Crit looked over at Hank. “You didn’t call?”
“No, Crit, wasn’t me,” he replied.
“Me, either, Crit,” Beau said.
“Well, that is fucking odd. Any idea what started the fire, Randy?” Crit asked.
“Not yet. Looks like some hay nearby caught fire somehow. I’m just guessing at this point, but I’d say someone started it on purpose.”
“That doesn’t make any sense, who the hell would do that?” Crit asked.
“I don’t know, son. I’m real sorry, though. You’re gonna have to take a total loss for all those tools. You all paid up on the insurance policy?” Randy asked.
Crit looked over at me in alarm.
“We’re all paid up. I paid the bill just a few weeks ago.” Relief washed over Crit’s face and he nodded.
“Thanks, sis,” he said, coming over and putting his arms around me. I stared over his shoulder, watching the shed go up in flames, as I wondered if this was all a dream.
Why would anyone do this to us? Hadn’t we already gone through enough?
Crit let me go, but he stood beside me. Seth and Jesse stood on the other side of me, as we watched the flames come dangerously close to our crops. This farm was the only security we really had in our lives anymore. If anything happened to it, we’d be completely screwed.
“Who would do this?” I whispered.
“I can think of one person,” Crit said through clenched teeth. I knew he was talking about Lee, but I didn’t want to believe it.
If Lee had done this, then it was all my fault.
I shuddered when I realized just how close that burning shed was to our house, where moments ago we had been sleeping.
I said a silent prayer of gratitude to whomever that anonymous caller was.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
BEAU
I watched helplessly as the Hope’s stood together, the flames of destruction reflected in their eyes. They were all confused, but it was the fear in George’s eyes that just ripped me apart.
Why the hell someone would come onto their property and cause this grieving family any more harm was beyond me. But as I watched the flames lick the wooden shed, charring the old wood until it began crumbling to the ground, the only face I could see was Lee’s.
‘I’ll burn this whole town to the fuckin’ ground!’ His words echoed in my head, like a bad song that I couldn’t forget. Surely he wouldn’t have done this. He had no reason to hurt this family - not anymore than he already had. Even if he didn’t remember. Even if he felt like he had been wrongly accused of such a heinous act, surely he wouldn’t stoop this low.
Lee wasn’t that far gone off the deep end. I shrugged off the thoughts of him as best as I could, and kept my mouth shut. The last thing I needed to do was to cast any m
ore shadows on my brother than he cast himself.
He was good enough at getting himself in trouble, he didn’t need any help from me. I still hadn’t seen him since that day I confronted him, and for all I knew, hell, he had already left town.
Surely he was way too far away by now to have done something this stupid.
I was stricken by the urge to swoop Georgie up in my arms and carry her off somewhere safe, but instead, I quietly said goodnight and walked back to our farm. She was safe in her brother’s arms, she didn’t need me to comfort her, as much as I was yearning to.
That feeling was new. And it wasn’t going away, in fact, with each passing day, Georgia Hope was becoming more and more a permanent fixture in my mind.
And I had no fuckin’ idea what the hell I was supposed to do about it.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
GEORGIA
Wet, burnt grass surrounded what was left of the shed the next morning. I led Cherokee around Crit and the group of workers he had assembled to haul away the remains. Luckily, it was full of old tools. All the expensive stuff was in the bigger barn. Our property consisted of four buildings - two barns, our house, and this little shed that was no longer a shed.
Dad built the first barn right after our family bought the property. Years later, he built a brand new one for the horses. We used the old one for storage, mostly, so that’s where all the new, expensive tools were. We had tillers, riding mowers, and everything else under the sun that made running this farm just a little easier.
“You headin’ out for a ride?” Crit asked as I passed by, taking his hat off and wiping the sweat from his brow with a red bandana. I almost felt guilty, but I had finished everything that needed to be done and all the other horses were grazing in the pasture and would be for hours.
“Yep, unless you need me to do something else?” I replied.
THE HOPE BROTHERS: The Bad Boys of Sugar Hill Page 6