Page 49 of Auctioned to the Cowboys

She shakes her head quickly. “I can’t do that, Clint. I’ve already caused enough trouble here. Jesse’s sister, Barb, and Mitch… they don’t want to talk to him because of me, and now you’re all fighting.”

Drawing away, she swipes a hand over her face.

“Taylor…”

She puts up her hand. “I don’t want you to feel sorry for me, Clint. My past… I hoped when I got away from there that I could at least leave the worst of it behind. I didn’t want you to find out any of this.”

“Did he hurt you?” I ask. “Did he…” I can’t bring myself to ask what I want to know.

She shakes her head, understanding. “He didn’t do that himself, but he let someone else do it.”

Nausea makes my mouth taste metallic and sour.

“He could do the same to Molly, Clint. If he doesn’t sell her the same way he sold me, he’ll find a way of making money from her.”

I sit further up to steady myself, gripping the edge of the bed so tightly my knuckles turn as white as bone. I may have dark secrets in my past, but when it comes to the intentional abuse of women or children, there’s something about that that I just can’t let go of. I may never be able to fix what I did in the past, but I can put this right now in the present and make for a better future for everyone concerned.

“We’ll fix this,” I say softly. “You’re not alone, not anymore.”

The strong woman who sits beside me deserves all the help and protection we can offer her. If that means bringing her sister to Twin Springs, then so be it. Family is family. Something in me shifts. I know that Taylor is meant to be here with us. I know she’s worth fighting for, and we all have to act now, or we’ll lose her forever. I make my way to my room to make the call that will set us all on a path with no turning back. But first I need to call Mitch.

When Jesse and Maverick arrive, I sit at the table with a cup of coffee steaming before me.

“Sit,” I order, resting my arms on the table. They take their seats, eying me carefully, and their expressions only get more severe as I relay what Taylor told me.

“We need to help her,” I say finally. “We need to bring Molly here.”

“Of course.” Jesse runs a hand over his beard, and sighs sadly. “This is a mess.”

“I thought I had it bad as a kid.” Maverick lowers his head and shakes it. “I had this feeling about Taylor… I shouldn’t have ignored it.”

“We didn't know,” Jesse says.

I want to tell him that we should have done more due diligence before bidding on her at the auction. We should have at least found out who was getting the money. We would have known if Jesse hadn’t been so quick and decisive.

“We leave in five minutes,” Jesse says darkly. His jaw is set, and his palms are pressed onto the table. “Tell Taylor to get ready. This ends tonight.”

As I approach Taylor’s door, I’m fueled by adrenaline and cortisol, and my heart is a hammer beating in my chest. Taylor has changed into a different outfit, and when I tell her that we’re leaving immediately, she collapses into my arms. This time, her sobs are tears of relief and not panic. I sense her trust in us has a strong enough foundation that no matter the effect of Jesse’s intentions for her, she can look past anything to be there for her sister.

She’s wrong to think that issues and setbacks will make us want her less. If anything, her reliance on us, her vulnerabilities, and her love for her sister only make us all more determined for her to stay. And her honesty —I can’t scratch that itch now.

A truck approaches from outside. Mitch is here.

Taylor grabs her phone and boots, and we jog down the stairs, finding Jesse and Maverick ready to leave.

“Thank you for coming,” I tell Mitch as we meet in the doorway.

“It’s nothing.” Mitch’s watery eyes land on Taylor, and he gently touches her on the upper arm. “Everything will be okay,” he says. “And I’ll hold the fort until you’re all back safe and sound.”

All the problems between us melt away in the face of outside danger.

“Thanks, Mitch,” Jesse says. “This means a lot.”

17

MAVERICK

FACING THE PAST

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