Cowboy Casanova (Rough Riders #12)(65)

swing it.”


“Because you don’t want Uncle Carson or Uncle Cal to get wind of this either.”


“And buy it right out from under us? Fuck no. But it ain’t like the purchase wouldn’

t benefit the entire McKay ranching operation. It’d just give both our families a

little more land, a little more pull, and maybe a little more respect. I mean, yeah,

they’re treating us better than they ever have, askin’ for our input, increasing our

shares, but sometimes we still feel like the poor relatives.”


Again, Ben couldn’t argue with their logic. “Do you guys have the capital?” Not

wanting to admit he fell into the poor relative category, he added sharply, “Because I

sure as hell ain’t funding the whole thing.” He wasn’t sure he could fund even a

portion of it. He’d have to hope like hell some of his furniture payments came

through.


A fierce look entered Dalton’s eyes. “I know you didn’t mean that to be insulting,

cuz. Yeah, me’n Tell are the youngest, but that don’t make us the dumbest. We put up

the lion’s share of the down payment for that section we bought, more than Brandt. Dad

don’t even know that.”


He whistled. “Impressive. You saved all that?”


They exchanged another look. “Not exactly.”


“What have you boys been up to?”


“Poker.”


“Excuse me?”


Tell offered a shit-eating grin. “We’ve become damn good poker players. We hit

Deadwood for weekend tournaments. Blackhawk, Colorado, has decent-sized pots once a

month. We made a shit ton of money playin’ online before most them sites closed down.

”


“When I was in Vegas with you last December for the NFR?”


“I rocked it at the poker tables. Played a little blackjack. I ended up fifteen grand

ahead.”



Seemed he wasn’t the only one with a secret life. “Does Brandt know about any of

this?”


“No. He thinks we’re man-whores, hittin’ strip clubs all over hell when we’re

really playing poker.”


“Except for the weekends I’m working as a rodeo judge,” Tell clarified. “So you see

why we don’t want him to know about this. Alls we want is a bigger piece of the pie

and not to have to borrow money from one of the uncles to make improvements on our

land.”


“Dad didn’t have a problem with that, but the rest of us did,” Dalton said sourly.


“I don’t blame you. I would’ve had a problem with that too.”


“But we can’t just show up on Rielle’s doorstep and ask if what Rory said was true.

It’d be easier if someone Rielle knows and trusts, someone she owes neighborly favors

to, would get the real scoop.”


“Seriously? I’m supposed to pop over and say, ‘Hey, Ree, thanks for watching my dogs

and for the zucchini bread and by the way, how much are you behind on your bank

payments?’”


“We hoped you’d use your no bullshit reputation to get the facts, and not act the

part of an ass-kissing suck-up like the rest of our relatives.”