Brazen (Brazen #1)(34)

Seth nodded but didn’t say anything. Zane seemed different today. More calm, less brooding and angry. He wasn’t sure why, and he didn’t really want to ask.

How would Zane react if he knew what had happened in Seth’s bedroom last night? And why the hell had Zane and Jasmine been wrapped up in each other’s arms if they hadn’t had sex? He knew he owed Zane an apology but damned if he could offer him one without going into the details of how he knew Zane hadn’t had sex with her.

“You want to run into Tucker’s and get a drink?” Seth asked. “Maybe we’ll run into Mary Jo.” He said the last with a half-hearted smile and even less enthusiasm. Mary Jo hadn’t been out to the ranch in nearly a year. The last time had been just a few weeks after Jasmine had left for Paris. Even then he hadn’t been into it. Zane had driven her back to town because Seth hadn’t wanted her to stay over.

Now as he looked at his brother, he knew Zane wasn’t any more interested now than Seth had been then. Zane shook his head. “You go on without me. I’d rather hang out at the ranch tonight. I haven’t spent much time with Jaz lately.”

There was a subtle challenge to Zane’s voice as if he expected Seth to object, but Seth stayed silent. He knew Jasmine and Zane had always been close, and it was apparent that Seth had seriously misjudged their relationship.

Seth walked toward the truck but paused as he opened the door. He stared over the hood at Zane who was getting into the passenger seat. “I’m sorry, man.”

Zane met his gaze across the truck. “Me too.”

They slid into the truck, and Seth knew it wouldn’t be brought up again. Fighting with his brother wasn’t one of his prouder moments, and he’d needed Zane to know it was something he regretted.

As they drove over the bumpy terrain back to the dirt road, Zane stared out the windshield. “Dad would be proud of what we’ve done with the place.”

Seth looked at him in surprise. It had been a long while since they’d discussed their parents. He knew it was still a source of discomfort for Zane. Their deaths had affected him deeply.

“Yeah, I think he would. It was always his dream. He loved the land. Loved wildlife even more.”

Zane smiled. “Do you remember the time we all went hunting in Alabama and Mom bagged a bigger buck than Dad?”

Seth chuckled. “Sure do. The old man was impossible to live with for a month after.”

“He was proud of her, though. He bragged about her to anyone who would listen.”

“That he did.”

“I miss them,” Zane said simply.

It grew quiet in the cab. “Yeah, so do I,” Seth said finally.

It had been fourteen years since the tragic accident. At eighteen, Seth had just graduated high school and had been ready to go away to college. But he’d hung all that up to stay on the ranch and take care of his fourteen-year-old brother. Those first years had been tough. Not so much financially. Their parents had left them well provided for. But the brothers had been grief-stricken. Zane especially had been at an awkward age where he’d needed his parents. Seth had done the best he could to be both brother and parent, but he knew he hadn’t measured up.

After they’d brought Jasmine home and hired Carmen, a sense of family had been restored to the ranch. It hadn’t seemed as lonely. And when Jasmine had gone away, she’d taken a lot of the life with her. It wasn’t the same without her.

But now that she’d come back, nothing would ever be as it was before. It was a complicated mess.

They drove the rest of the way to the ranch in silence. When Seth parked the truck, he and Zane got out to unhook the trailer and put away the equipment.

“Have a good time at Tucker’s,” Zane said as they made their way to the house. Zane stripped off his shirt and bundled it in a wad. He tossed it down in the laundry room on their way in. “I’m going to head up for a shower. I’ll catch you when you get home.”

Seth nodded as he kicked off his boots. Carmen would have his ass if he tracked dirt on her floors. He pulled off his shirt but stopped short of taking his pants off. In the past, he wouldn’t have hesitated, but now it didn’t seem appropriate. Damn shame when a man couldn’t walk through his own house in his underwear.

He walked barefooted through the kitchen and into the living room. As he started for the stairs, he met Jasmine at the bottom. She ducked her head and looked away but not before he saw the hurt in her eyes and the smudges underneath.

His chest tightened uncomfortably as she walked away. He’d give anything to have last night back again. He’d give anything not to have hurt her. But he’d done nothing but hurt her ever since she’d returned. It seemed to be the one thing he was good at lately.

With a soft curse, he trudged up the stairs to his bathroom. He needed to be away for the evening, and he had no intention of looking up Mary Jo, or any other woman for that matter. What he could use were a few stiff drinks and a bottle of you-f*cked-up.

Chapter Sixteen

It was just as well that Seth had left. If Zane had to guess, he’d be gone damn near all night. He had that dark look that meant he was brooding about something, and when that happened, he usually threw back a few and slept it off in town.

Jaz was in her room, and he hadn’t heard a peep from her all evening. As ridiculous as it sounded, Zane was nervous about going to her. He knew he’d hurt her with his brush-off and subsequent avoidance. She might not be in a very receptive mood.