Cowboy Casanova (Rough Riders #12)(154)

“That’s how you react after your father acknowledges he has a problem? By expecting

he’ll fail? Fuck you. This is why he didn’t—wouldn’t—come to his sons. It’s why

he came to me, because I travel this path every f*ckin’ day. I know exactly where he

is, in more ways than one. It’s also why I’m goin’ in the goddammed house, getting

his bible and getting the hell outta here. But you can bet your ass I won’t burden him

with tales of your overwhelming concern.” Colt shouldered his way through Brandt and

Dalton and stormed up the porch.


Kane followed him.


Ben really didn’t know what to say. This family shit tore him up. He and his brothers

never had the volatile relationship with each other and their father that Uncle Casper

had with his boys, and to some extent that Uncle Carson had with his. Because Ben hated

conflict and tried to cut through it as quickly as possible, he’d gotten the

reputation in the family as the peacemaker. He felt far from that today.


Colt wasn’t inside long. He bounded down the porch, holding a burgundy book.


“So who knows about Dad bein’ in rehab?” Brandt asked Colt.


“My dad, Uncle Cal and Uncle Charlie. Casper asked me to tell them.”


“But not us,” Dalton said.


“It ain’t like our dads said anything to us either,” Kane pointed out.


“And now that I think about it, you sneaky bastards have no right to get up in my face

about keeping secrets,” Colt said. “Did you really think we wouldn’t find out that

the three of you planned to buy Rielle’s place? Without discussing it with the rest of

us?”


Brandt frowned. “What the hell are you babbling about, Colt?”


It took Colt all of four seconds to see the guilt on Tell and Dalton’s faces. “You

didn’t include Brandt in on this scheme?”


“Scheme is a little harsh,” Ben said.


Colt whirled on him. “What about Quinn? Does he know?”


“There’s nothin’ to know. Just something that Tell, Dalton and I discussed.”


“Since you’ve been squawking about wanting an equal say in the operation, this is the

type of thing that oughta be discussed by all of us,” Colt said.


Pissed off, Ben shot back, “Like the acquisition of the Foster place was discussed by

all of us? Or how about the acquisition of the Hackerly place? Or the acquisition of

the Borden place? Or how about the separate section up north that Kade ran for a year?

Were we part of that discussion, or did Carson and Cal decide to do that on their own?

Oh, right, they didn’t even f*ckin’ ask us.” His gesture included Tell, Dalton, and

Brandt. “Any of us.”


“Not the same and you know it, Ben.”


“Bullshit. Alls I know is that it’s perfectly fine for your families to add to your

sections whenever the f*ck you feel like it and run it as a separate operation. But

when we wanna do that? It’s like we’re tryin’ to short shrift the entire ranch.”

Ben forced a slow breath, trying to drop his blood pressure from the boiling point.


Kane said, “I know it probably don’t mean shit, but for the record, Ben, I agree with