Page 45 of Things Left Unsaid

“It’s divide and conquer.”

“Not in this case.”

“This is fucking insane and?—”

I don’t let him finish that sentence. “No, it isn’t. I’ve never been more lucid in my life. I got Pops off the ranch. This deal forced his hand. I’m now in charge of the Seven Cs. If you think I wouldn’t make a deal with the devil himself to ensure that happened, you’re the one who’s lost his mind.”

“I can’t talk to you when you’re being like this.”

“When I’m not listening to your pearls of wisdom? You hate the ranch. That’s fine, Cole. Your future’s not here. Butmineis. I’ll safeguard it when no one else in our line does because that’s all it needs—one guardian—me.

“I’ll do what has to be done. Just like always.”

Disconnecting the call before we hurl insults at one another, I suck in a sharp breath and let my annoyance drain away with the exhalation.

There’s no point in blaming Cole.

It’s not his fault he was born third and I was born first.

It’s not his fault that he hates the land because all it reminds him of is how we lost our mother.

It’s not his fault he’d do anything to get away when I’d do anything to stay.

We’re different people.

With different needs and aspirations.

Still, Marvin Grantley is good for something—a distraction.

As fate would have it, he crosses my path as I park in front of the house.

Because I leave direct staff scheduling to Theo Frobisher, my ranch manager and best friend, I follow my nose and find him over by a paddock, working with one of two fillies we’re trying to gentle. One’s a bolter, the other’s a biter.

Theo should be managing his own ranch to the west of the Seven Cs, but he and his brothers don’t get along to the point where it’d be like dumping three pissed-off cougars in a sack and expecting ‘em not to kill one another. Instead, he works for me and, together with Callan, we run this place like it’s a two-bit operation—not a billion-dollar company.

That’s how my grandfather did it, my uncle Clay, and it’s how I’ll do it.

The corporate side of things, and Seven Cs Inc.’s investment portfolio, is another matter entirely—the business has exploded since Grandfather was alive—but the ranch itself is my domain.

When Theo sees me approach the corral, he ambles over, dragging his hat back and swiping a hand across his sweaty face at the same time. “You look like someone pissed in your cornflakes.”

“Only you’d dare.”

“Cole and Cody would too.” At my grunt, his brows lift and his grin fades. “Problem?”

“Marvin’s at it again.”

His scowl is immediate. “That fucker.”

I grab his arm when he makes to storm off. “Bea asked me not to get involved.”

He grits his teeth—the sound’s audible. “You. Not me. I can?—”

“No. We have to honor her wishes. She’s the one who gets the beating if we mess things up.”

“Why does she stay with him?” he growls.

“If I had an answer to that, I’d be able to convince her to leave.”

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