Page 11 of Things Left Unsaid

His words have me gritting my teeth.

I haven’t seen Susanne McAllister since she was a bratty teenager in the middle of a fire so fierce the scars remain on our land.

I didn’t intend on seeing her again either.

The good folks of Pigeon Creek know she wasnearthe stables when they went up in flames.

Only I know that she wasinsidethem.

Hell, I’m the reason she’s alive—I carried her outside.

“You discussed this with the McAllisters already?”

“They’re land-rich,water-rich, but money-poor, Colton. We, on the other hand, have plenty of everything but water.”

“I can’t believe Juliette McAllister agreed to this.”

How bad are things at the Bar 9 if she’s willing to fraternize with the enemy?

“She doesn’t have a choice,” he demurs, staring at his manicured nails. “They went through the same seasons we did. The bank’s branch manager knows I’ve been trying to buy her out so he told me the bank didn’t offer the Bar 9 a loan on account of their credit being shot. That’s why I approached her.

“Either we join forces or she loses everything.”

I don’t know why because they hate us as much as we hate them, but that has me rubbing a hand over my chest, right above my heart.

There’s been a McAllister in Pigeon Creek, Saskatchewan, since the early days of settlement. They’ve been on this land almost as long as we have.

“That’s a damn disgrace.”

“Might be, but it works to our advantage.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Why me?”

“Juliette. She said you were the only one strong enough for her Susanne.”

Whatever the hell that means.

Like he senses my confusion, he grins. “Think of it as a compliment. Anyway, it’s not like Cody ever stays long enough to say ‘I do.’ Cole’s gotten himself hitched to that Mia girl, and if Callan were the same age as Susanne, he wouldn’t have the balls?—”

“I told you to leave Callan alone. He’s eighteen years old, dammit, and he brings plenty to the table. Jesus, he’s been my assistant since he was sixteen!”

“What use is a boy who won’t get his hands dirty to me? I run a ranch!”

“You also run a business and his savvy is taking us places. He’s still in school, for Christ’s sake. Imagine what he’ll do for the company once he graduates.”

Before this can devolve and I give in to the urge to strangle him, I step over to the window behind his desk. This office is technically mine now, but the bastard always lays claim to it whenever he shows his face around here.

Looking at the Seven Cs’ acreage always brings with it a semblance of relief.

Unlike Cody and Cole, my younger brothers, I’ve never felt the call to be anywhere else. Sure, city living in Saskatoon was tempting a time or two, but I got enough of that when I went there for university. A degree later, minoring in animal science and majoring in accounting, I came home. Willingly.

The plains might be bleak to some, but this is my place.

I’ve known that since I understood what a legacy was.

Even if two of my brothers would do anything to get away, to me, this is where my soul belongs. Callan understands that. He’s the only sibling of mine who does.

But…

---