by SJ McCoy
“Yup.” She blew out a big sigh and peered over the counter. She hadn’t seen Spider yet; he must be in the back. But she needed to start prepping him for her big brother’s visit – and she wasn’t looking forward to it.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Spider had grown used to the beauty of the valley, but he didn’t think he’d ever get so used to it that he took it for granted. Riding his bike down Highway 89 from the bakery to Frankie’s was the kind of drive that he’d only dreamed about before. The highway followed the route of the Yellowstone River as it snaked between majestic mountains on either side. It was the kind of ride he’d had on his bucket list and now, it was his daily commute. He loved it.
He was loving it a little less this afternoon, though. At least, his mind was otherwise occupied. He’d left the bakery earlier than usual because he was meeting Frankie at the house. She’d been spending every night at the cabin with him but today was the day her brother arrived.
From what he’d heard about Maverick, Spider wasn’t expecting much of a welcome. Alan had laughed at him earlier and wished him luck – making it very obvious that he was going to need it.
He turned off the highway and saw a truck coming down the long driveway that led off the ranch. He pulled over when he recognized Ace driving it. Ace put down his window and greeted Spider with a smile.
“I put in a good word for you, kid,” he said without preamble.
“Thanks.” Spider gave him a rueful smile. “Any words of advice?”
Ace laughed. “Sorry, Spider. You’re on your own with this one.”
“Yeah. I know. Tell me one thing, though?”
“What’s that?”
“He cares about Frankie, right? When he knows the way I feel. The way she feels … that I love her. That’ll count for something with him, won’t it?”
Ace’s expression softened. “It will. You’ve got to remember. He had to do his best to be a parent to her, not just a brother. He feels responsible for her.”
Spider nodded. He could understand that. Hell, he respected it. He just hoped that there was a way that he might be able to earn Maverick’s respect in return.
Ace’s brow furrowed as he held Spider’s gaze. “Are you as serious about her as I think you are?”
“How serious is that?”
Ace cocked an eyebrow. “As serious as it gets.”
Spider nodded slowly, not sure he wanted to admit it to Ace before anyone else, but not willing to deny it. “I am. I’m seeing meeting Maverick as the first step toward …” He swallowed. He’d told Owen that he hoped he might marry Frankie someday, and right now, that someday felt like it was getting a lot closer. Ace was still watching him closely. “I don’t know what he’s going to have to say about it, but yeah. I want to marry her.”
Ace grinned at him. “Well, all right, then. In that case, I’ve got your back. I don’t doubt Mav will give you a hard time, but he’ll get over it. He’ll see who you are, and how you feel about her.” He chuckled. “And he’ll see how Frankie feels about you. It’ll work out. You just hang in there, okay?”
“I plan to. It’s the only option I have.”
~ ~ ~
“You’d better be nice.” Frankie scowled at Mav.
He chuckled. “Yeah? Why would I do that? The whole point of me being here is to be not nice.”
“Why, though?” She hated that her voice sounded whiny. Like she was still a little kid asking why she couldn’t have more ice cream – or in her case, more likely why she couldn’t ride for another hour.
Mav chuckled again. “Because I’m your big brother, honey. I need to check this guy out. If he’s an asshole, you know damned well I’m going to run him off.”
She huffed out a sigh of frustration. “Well, thanks for the vote of confidence! You really think that after all the years I’ve avoided tying myself down to anyone, that when I finally fall for a guy, he’d be an asshole?”
Mav held his hand up. “That’s not what I’m saying. But since you admit that you’ve fallen for him, can you at least accept that it might be easier for me to be objective about who he really is than it is for you?”
“Yeah. Of course, I can. If I were blind enough and dumb enough to fall for an asshole, then I’d be grateful to you for saving me from myself, but Mav …”
“I know!” He folded his arms across his chest and leaned back against the island. “I’m not going to fight with you the whole time till he gets here. That’ll only wind me the fuck up. And that won’t do him any favors. So, tell me something else? What’s been going on around here?”
She shrugged, not particularly wanting to talk to him at all. She was too mad at him.
“How’s little Owen doing?”
She had to smile. He knew her so well. Asking about the kids or the horses she worked with was normally guaranteed to make her forget everything else and start rattling on about them. She wasn’t falling for it this time, though. “He’s doing great. He’s making so much progress. He’s going to start riding twice a week soon, too.”
Mav nodded but didn’t meet her gaze. That was typical! He was here to give Spider a hard time, but he wouldn’t even look her in the eye when the conversation strayed anywhere near anything to do with Libby – whom he knew was Owen’s riding instructor. She was soo tempted to talk about Libby but thought it better not to antagonize him with Spider due any minute.
“And he adores Spider.”
Mav’s head jerked up at that. “You introduced him to the kid? I don’t think …”
She laughed. “Actually, you could say that Owen introduced him to me. Owen’s the reason he’s here. He calls him his little buddy and he rode all the way up here on his motorcycle from LA just so he could visit him.” She finished with a nod, daring him to have a comeback for that.
Mav simply cocked an eyebrow. “How does he know them?”
“He helps run the community center that Reid and his brothers are involved with. He’s friends with all of them. And Dr. Johnny and Jean both love him.”
Mav smiled at her through pursed lips. “Anything else you want to throw in there before he arrives?”
She couldn’t help smiling back at him. At least he was seeing the humor in it. She’d half expected him to be all big-man, no-nonsense and not willing to listen to anything she had to say, and she so didn’t want to have to deal with that. “As a matter of fact.” She smiled sweetly. “I should probably remind you that he saved me from those big thugs at the gas station last weekend.”
Mav narrowed his eyes at her but couldn’t hold in a laugh. “You mean he saved them from you? You’d probably be locked up for having shot them if he hadn’t dived in with his fists.”
She made a face. “Well, you might think it’s funny. But I’m glad he was there.”
“Dammit, Frankie! I’m glad he was there, too. I want to shake his hand and tell him thank you. But at the same time, I want to run him off and …”
They both turned at the sound of a knock on the front door. “Well, you might want to start out with that thank you. And I’ll tell you now; if you run him off, I’ll be running with him.” She ignored his scowl and went to open the door.
~ ~ ~
Spider took a deep breath to calm himself and then knocked on the front door. He wasn’t looking forward to this meeting, but he was looking forward to having it behind him. Even if Maverick was going to be as unwelcoming as everyone made out, at least Spider would know what he was up against.
The door opened and Frankie stood there smiling at him. That went a long way to steadying his nerves. “Hey, you.” She greeted him with a hug. With her arms wrapped around him and her lips pressed to his in a quick peck, he was pretty sure there was nothing and no one on Earth that could keep him away from her. “Come on in. Mav’s here.” She took hold of his hand and gave it a squeeze as she led him through to the kitchen.
He’d tried to imagine what her brother would be like, and the man standing in the kitchen was about w
hat he’d expected. He was big, built like a brick wall. His face was rugged, weathered. He had the same dark hair and bright blue eyes. His eyes held an intelligence as they met Spider’s. He stepped forward and held out his hand.
“Maverick.”
Spider shook with him. “It’s good to meet you. I’m Spider.”
Mav’s lips pressed together. “Yeah. I know.” He dropped Spider’s hand and looked him up and down.
Spider held still under his scrutiny, trying to remember how he’d felt the first time Grace had brought Oscar into the coffee shop. That helped. He’d been ready to run Oscar off. He hadn’t liked the idea of some rich guy taking advantage of the girl he thought of as his sister. He could relate to Maverick not wanting some tattooed stranger taking advantage of Frankie. He wondered what he could say that might provide reassurance and not sound like he was trying to –
“You got no family, right?”
Maverick’s question felt like a gut punch. Spider shook his head slowly. He almost wanted to laugh at the thought that Mav might be making sure there’d be no one to report his disappearance if he bumped him off.
To his relief, Mav let out a short laugh. “You should see your face, Frankie.”
She scowled. “You should hear yourself. You’re not going to frighten him off saying stupid shit like that.”
Mav gave Spider a small smile. “I can see that, but I had to check.” His smile faded. “I didn’t really mean it like it sounded. But you need to know that family means everything here. You mess with one of us, you mess with all of us.”
Spider had to smile. “Yeah. I already met your cousins. They made that clear.” He held Mav’s gaze. “But I made it clear to them, and I’ll do the same with you. I don’t intend to mess with Frankie – in any sense. I’m not messing around here. I’m deadly serious.”
He could feel her looking at him, but he continued to speak to Maverick. “I know I’m an unknown quantity. I’m not just an outsider, I look different, too. But I’m serious about becoming a part of this valley, a part of the community here …” He finally looked at Frankie and added, “And a part of your sister’s life.”
The way she smiled back at him made his heart beat faster. Then Maverick’s hand came down on his shoulder, and it beat faster still. “Words are all well and good, but the truth takes time. I believe you have good intentions, but we’ll see. I can’t say that I believe you’ll ever be a part of this valley, or this family …”
They both turned at the sound of Frankie drawing in a deep breath. She scowled at Maverick. “I’ll tell you again, Mav. If you run him off, I’ll be running with him.”
“I don’t think he’s saying that he’s going to run me off, sweetheart.” Spider didn’t dare look at Maverick for confirmation. He didn’t want to hear that he was wrong. “He’s saying that only time will tell, and he kind of has a point there.”
Frankie turned her scowl on him. “Are you saying he’s right?”
Spider smiled and heard Maverick stifle a laugh. “No! I’m saying that it’s perfectly reasonable not to want a take a person at their word the first time you meet them. Especially if you think they might pose a threat to someone you care about.” He winked at her. “I know you understand that. Remember the first time we met?”
This time he did turn back to Maverick when he laughed out loud.
“He’s got you there, Frankie. I heard about how you pulled the shotgun on him.”
Frankie scowled. “Yeah, well. That was different.”
Spider thought it was best to keep his mouth shut. He didn’t want to antagonize her just to win over her brother.
“It wasn’t that different,” said Mav. “And he’s right. We’re off to a better start than I expected but I’m going to reserve judgment for a while.”
Spider felt himself relax. That was as good as he could ask for. Frankie still looked less than thrilled. But he was happy to take what he could get.
~ ~ ~
Frankie leaned back in her chair and watched Spider and Mav talking by the grill. It was all going better than she’d dared hope. Mav was still prickly, but she could tell that he kind of liked Spider. He kept forgetting to scowl and every so often he’d laugh at something Spider said – in a good way, like they were friends. She started to relax.
“Frankie, would you grab us another beer, honey?”
That wiped the smile off her face. She was glad that the two of them seemed to be getting along, but that didn’t mean that she was going to play housewife while they did the man thing by the grill.
Spider shot a look at her. He understood, she knew it when he winked at her and said, “I’ll go. Do you want one?”
She scrambled to her feet. “I can get them.” She made a face at Mav when he smirked at her. She knew what he was thinking – that she didn’t mind doing it for Spider.
A few moments later, she came back out with her car keys in her hand. “I’m going to have to run to the store. We’re out of beer.”
“Do you want me to go?” asked Spider.
Mav answered before Frankie got the chance. “Frankie can go, can’t you, honey?” He smirked at her again. “While the men talk.”
Ooh! She could happily strangle him. But he was only doing it to wind her up, and she knew it. Maybe it was a good thing to leave them alone together. Let Mav get his big brother act out of the way once and for all and then hopefully, they’d all be able to enjoy the rest of the evening.
She went to Spider and pressed a kiss to his lips. “I won’t be long. Do we need anything other than beer?”
They both shook their heads. “Okay, then. I’ll be back.” She met Mav’s gaze. “You play nice, you hear me?”
He laughed and grasped Spider’s shoulder. “Relax. We’re good.” She could tell by his smile that he meant it, too.
“Okay. I’ll be back.”
“Had we better hold off on dinner?” Spider asked.
They both looked at him.
“It’ll take an hour to get up to the store and back, won’t it?”
“I’ll just run down to Gardiner. I can go to the new gas station and be back in twenty minutes.”
“Okay.”
She waved at them and went to get in her truck, grateful that she didn’t have to drive all the way up to Emigrant – or leave them alone for a whole hour.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Spider checked his watch. It’d been more like forty minutes than twenty since Frankie had left.
Mav caught him looking and chuckled. “She won’t be long. And do you really think she’s going to do okay in the city with you?”
“Yeah.” Spider pushed down the sense of unease he was starting to feel that she was taking so long and forced himself to focus on Maverick. He actually liked the guy. “I was worried at first. I mean, it’s not exactly her kind of place, but once she got talking to Terry and decided that she could help out with the kids …” He shook his head with a smile. “I think she’s going to do just fine. And it’s not as though I’m planning to drag her off and keep her there. For the next few months at least, I’ll be spending most of my time here, at the bakery. I need to keep going back to LA. My business is there …” He paused and met Mav’s gaze. “If it were just for the business, I might sell it and move up here. But it’s not.”
Mav shook his head. “I know. It’s about the center and the people that you help there. I get it.” He pursed his lips. “I’ll be honest, I wanted to give you shit about why you couldn’t just move here. But I respect the hell out of what you do at the center.”
Spider raised an eyebrow, surprised that Mav even knew about it.
Mav shrugged. “I’ve been asking around.” He looked at his own watch and blew out a sigh. “I wish she’d hurry up.”
Spider pulled his phone out, he couldn’t explain it, but he was feeling worried that she was taking so long. “I’ll give her a quick call.”
Mav smirked. “She let you get away with tracking her down like tha
t? She’d give me hell.”
Spider didn’t smile back. “She probably will me, too. But …” He shrugged, not sure he wanted to tell the big, burly man in front of him that he was worried because Frankie was taking a few minutes longer than she’d said she would.
Mav’s smile disappeared. “You’re worried?”
Spider dialed her number and waited. “Yeah. But in a minute, hopefully I’ll be embarrassed instead.”
Mav’s eyes narrowed as he watched Spider’s face. Spider tried not to show his rising panic as her phone rang and rang until her voicemail picked up. “Hey. It’s me. You can kick my ass for bugging you when you get home, but I … I was worried. Call me back?”
He hung up. It was probably crazy, but his heart was beating hard and fast. Mav didn’t look any happier than he felt. He turned off the grill and pulled his own phone out. His eyebrows came down when he reached her voicemail, too.
“You can be as mad as you like as soon as you call us back, honey. But call us back, okay?”
They stood there staring at each other for a few more moments. Spider ran his hand over his head and said, “I think I need to go and …”
At the same moment Mav said, “Come on, we need to go …”
They both stopped abruptly. Mav let out a short laugh, but Spider didn’t feel much like laughing. “I’ll take my bike.”
Mav nodded and started running toward his truck. He stopped before he reached it and called to Spider, “What’s your number?”
He tapped it into his phone as Spider told him. “I just sent you a text, so you have mine. Keep in touch. We’re headed south on the highway. You’ll see the new gas station on your left after we get through the canyon.”
Spider nodded and watched Mav pull away as he took a minute to connect his earbuds to his phone before pulling on his helmet. There was no point in having Mav’s number if he couldn’t talk to him. He could only hope that they were both overreacting, and that Frankie would laugh when she crossed paths with them on her way back. But something in his gut told him she was in trouble. Everyone had warned him about keeping his eyes peeled for deer whenever he was on the road, especially since he was on his bike. If she’d hit a deer, he hoped she’d be okay – she should, since she was in her truck, but then what did he know?