Wild Trail (Clean Slate Ranch #1)(96)
Colt’s confession punched Mack right in the heart, and it did a lot of damage to the part of Mack that was angry at Colt. It didn’t destroy the bad feelings, but they weren’t as strong as before. Colt had done a selfless thing without even telling Mack, and he’d been there when Mack needed him.
“That...” Mack had nothing flowery to say so he stuck to basics. “Thank you. I mean it, man, thank you.”
“Just glad I was there.”
“Wait, you rode? Where’s your horse?”
“Tied her to a tree. I told a nurse to pass the message along to Judson so he could keep an eye out.”
Hopefully the poor beast hadn’t bolted from the noise of not only multiple gunshots, but the eventual noise created by emergency rescue sirens.
Colt waggled his eyebrows. “Dare I ask what you and Wes were doing there?”
Mack grunted. “Supposed to be a date. Was going pretty good, too, before those assholes invaded our land.”
“The cops know anything yet?”
“Not that they’ve shared with me, but I did give them a lead a little while ago.” Mack explained his and Wes’s land buyer theory. “Just can’t imagine what’s out there in the back forty that’s worth risking lives.”
“Dunno. Gold mine? Arthur’s buried treasure?”
“Whatever it is, hopefully the cops can untangle this damned mess, so we can proceed with the restoration.” Mack frowned. “They burned the best building we had.”
“Sorry, man.”
“Good news is we’re all alive. Sucks that my best electrician got shot, though.”
Colt’s mouth twisted into a half-smile. “Yeah, that sucks. Hopefully, he’ll be back at work soon.”
“He needs to follow doctor’s orders about his recovery and worry about work later.”
“Gee, I didn’t know you cared.”
Mack took a step closer, hunching his shoulders and trying to look as unintimidating as possible. “I care. Might be pissed at you, but I still care. Eight years of friendship doesn’t disappear over bad feelings. I just...need time.”
“I’ve got time.” Colt’s half-smile went full wattage. “Plenty of time. Just glad to know there’s a chance we could be friends again.”
“Yeah. There’s definitely a chance.”
Arthur and Reyes arrived at the cubicle to see the wounded warrior, so Mack slipped back out to the waiting room.
He pulled Wes out of his chair and into a long, warm hug. Wes tucked his head into the crook of Mack’s neck, warm breath tickling Mack’s skin. Their rapid heartbeats slowed as they existed in each other’s arms, seeking comfort and support that they could only find in the other. Wes was everything Mack needed. Wes was home.
“I love you, boss,” Mack whispered.
He felt Wes’s smile again his skin. “I love you, too, daddy.”
Everything wasn’t made magically perfect with those soft words, but they gave Mack and Wes something to build on. Something to fight for.
The rest of it they’d figure out together. Always.
Epilogue
“I’m going to vomit,” Wes whispered.
Mack gently elbowed his ribs, careful to keep his smile open and friendly when he whispered back, “Suck it up, boss. You’ll do fine.” He had no idea how Wes could perform live onstage six nights a week without a sweat, but staring down a handful of local reporters was giving him fits.
Then again, Mack had never imagined being part of a small press conference on Garrett land for any reason, and he was a little out of his element, as well. But once the truth about the sabotage against the ghost town had finally come out... Well, the media caught wind and gained an interest.
He, Wes and Arthur stood on the front porch of the almost-finished saloon, giving them a bit of elevation over the eleven-person group who’d assembled to hear a statement, and then ask their own relevant questions. After fielding calls for a week, Arthur had personally invited anyone interested to the site to this meeting so everything could be explained once.
And behind the crowd of reporters, watching with bright smiles, were the newly married Sophie and Conrad Massey. Unwilling to wait until it was open to the public, the couple had said their vows in a simple ceremony that morning, standing on the very same steps as Mack was on now. Both sets of parents, plus Derrick and Miles, were all back at the ranch, probably watching this from the TV in Arthur’s house.
Maybe Wes wasn’t wrong to be so nervous.
“I wanna start by thanking y’all for coming so far out here on a Saturday evening,” Arthur said, his voice booming over the crowd. “Thought it best to get all the facts out there at once, so you can write your pieces, and we can get a little less interesting.”
Several reporters chuckled.
“My name is Arthur Garrett, and these lands have been in my family for generations. This strapping lad to my right is my grandson, Mack Garrett, and on his right is a very talented young actor named Westin Bentley.”
Wes glanced curiously at Mack; Mack winked. With Wes’s acting career warming up again, Mack had told Arthur to use his stage name. Might drive publicity for all of them.
“This whole thing started,” Arthur continued, “when Mr. Bentley was a guest here at the ranch some four months ago. He was out on-trail with a horse, and his horse spooked. Ran them both right into this ghost town we never knew existed.” Arthur detailed Mack’s investment in the project, the odd happenings and thefts, and finally, the dramatic gunfight. He used his natural storytelling ability to make his words pop.