Broken(18)

Aunt Earlene seemed as if she wanted to protest, but thought better of it. “Of course, dear. But I’ll expect you to come for lunch tomorrow.” Though she spoke gently enough, the quiet authority in her tone brooked no argument.

Jocelyn nodded and then held up her hand when it looked as if Kyla would join her. Right now she needed to be alone. “I’m sorry, Daddy,” she mouthed to him before hurrying away before anyone could spy the tears gathering in her eyes.





Chapter Four

“You little shit! I ought to break your goddamn neck for that stunt you pulled back there,” Stone practically roared when he approached Cade standing by the pond.

Cade didn’t bother to acknowledge his brother as he skipped another rock along the water’s surface. He wasn’t a bit sorry for what he’d said and refused to apologize for it, especially when Jocelyn had sat there as cool as she pleased, playing the innocent in her self-created melodrama. She had no right to be there, pretending she hadn’t cast them all aside—cast him aside. She had no right to sit there and smile so smugly over her success pretending a false modesty. And most of all, she had no right to be even more beautiful than he remembered or to make him still want her, for that matter.

Stone grasped his shoulder, forcing Cade to turn around. “Look at me, when I’m talking to you, dammit!”

“From where I’m standing you weren’t talking to me, but at me. Can’t you see I don’t want to be bothered?”

“Obviously, but I’m not going anywhere. You owe every single person in that house an apology for acting like a spoiled brat. Aunt Earlene worked hard planning that meal. She and Gertie spent hours cooking in the kitchen to make everything perfect. And furthermore, if I was Jack I would have knocked you on your self-righteous ass.”

Cade shrugged off the hand still gripping his shoulder. “Piss off, Stone. I meant every goddamned word I said and everyone knew I was right. I think I might have gotten through that mockery of a meal had she not tried to play the innocent. She ignored her father’s heart attack for chrissake and now she’s pretending to not know about it? I don’t buy that shit for a second.”

“You were hostile from the minute she stepped into the dining room. Don’t use the heart attack excuse.”

“But it’s true. Admit it, Stone. You’ve had to wonder why she couldn’t be bothered to at least call to find out if her father was okay when he had a heart attack. Jack is like a father to us and when I found him in the stables that day bent over the stall, I was scared. I swallowed my damn pride in my attempt to contact that selfish little bitch but did she bother to return anyone’s calls or answer our letters?”

Stone frowned. “I wondered about it myself at the time, but there has to be some rational explanation. There’s got to be some logical reason for us not hearing back from her. There’s no doubting she loves her father. I mean, you should have seen the look on her face when you mentioned the heart attack. She was genuinely surprised.”

“Or she’s a good actress.”

“You’re being way too harsh, bro.”

“Your point?”

“Cut her some slack, man.”

Cade scooped up another rock from the ground and skipped it across the pond. “If that’s what you want to do then you’re a fool, but it’s my prerogative if I choose not to. I’m not going to be roped in by those lying eyes again.”

Stone grabbed his arm. “Stop it, Cade. You can’t do this her entire stay.”