Page 31 of His Fresh Start Cowboy
He pulled into Elmer’s driveway and idled behind Elmer’s truck. “You want some company?” Brand asked before he could stop himself.
Hugo stared at him like he’d spoken in a foreign language. “What?”
“Company. We could go get dinner in town or something.”
“I, uh...” He seemed to consider it for a moment. “Nah, thanks, though. I’d be terrible company tonight, anyway. Rain check?”
“Sure, right. And I meant what I said before. If you ever want to talk, I’m all ears.”
Hugo held his gaze for a long moment, the sadness from before disappearing behind a glint of anger. “Nah. Can’t change the past by talking about it, right?” With Brand’s own words flung expertly back in his face, Hugo climbed out and slammed the truck door shut.
Brand sighed, waited until Hugo was inside the trailer, and then backed out. Headed home. He was surprised to see Shelby’s car by the house. She, Rem, and little Susie were eating in the dining room with Mom and Dad. “Didn’t know you guys were coming over,” Brand said as he leaned down to kiss Shelby’s cheek.
“Hi, Uncle Bran,” Susie said. She rarely pronounced the d in his name, and he didn’t mind.
“Hey there, sunshine.” He dropped a kiss on the top of her curly head. She had her mother’s golden-blond hair and great big smile. “Do anything fun in kindergarten?”
She shrugged, more interested in her mashed potatoes than talking. “Puzzles.”
Okay, then. Brand sat at his place and accepted the platter of baked barbecue chicken pieces from Dad. As he ate, Brand occasionally eyeballed Rem, curious how much his brother knew about Hugo’s past. The pair had been best friends for years, with Hugo spending a lot of his time here at the ranch instead of his own home. He’d get off the bus here after school, and stay for dinner most nights that Brand remembered.
Before that kiss scared Hugo away and he left town.
“Dude, you awake?” Rem snapped his fingers in front of Brand’s face.
Brand jolted. “Yeah, sorry. What?”
“I asked how Hugo was today. Mom said he had an accident with the scooter.”
“He was okay. Worked himself too hard, so I made him take tomorrow off so he can rest his hands.” He was not bringing up anything about the visit with his mother, though. Even if Brand knew more than surface stuff, that wasn’t for Brand to spread around.
“Probably a good idea.” Rem stabbed a green bean with his fork. “He’s the type that likes to work through his issues, not dwell on them. I’ll call him later, make sure he knows I’m not mad about the scooter.”
“Elmer dropped it off at the repair shop already.”
“Cool.”
Mom brought up something she’d heard on the radio while cooking supper, and Brand kind of tuned it out, his thoughts still full of Hugo. Of the absolute misery on his face when Brand had walked into the break room and seen him with his bloodied hands. He couldn’t imagine what was so bad inside Hugo’s head that he’d worked through that kind of physical agony without a second thought.
After Brand had put his plate in the dishwasher, he tugged Rem out the kitchen door and into the cool, late March night air. “I kinda downplayed Hugo’s mental state,” Brand said. “Apparently, he went to see his mother yesterday and it didn’t go well. He’s upset but he won’t talk about it. He just works himself to exhaustion.”
“That’s Hugo, dude.” Rem chewed on his lower lip. “Look, Hugo’s private stuff isn’t mine to share around, okay? You were in college half of the time we were friends, and even when you came back, you two didn’t exactly buddy around because you were so busy helping Dad with the ranch.”
“I know that, but I’m his boss now, and I’m trying to be his friend if he’ll let me. He’s upset after seeing his mother, and I can’t get him to talk about it.”
“Yeah, good luck with that. Hugo can rattle on and on about ranching, horses, and handyman work, but talking about himself? Shit, we were best buds for years, and I still don’t know the whole story.”
“The whole story about him and his mother?”
“And his stepbrother.”
Brand squinted, as if that would help him remember what he knew about Hugo’s family. Hugo’s stepfather, Frank, worked at the Grove Point CSA, and his mother... Brand wasn’t sure if she worked or not. He recalled Rem mentioning Hugo had a stepbrother but not much about the guy—wait. “Wait, you’re talking about Buck Archer? The guy who got a couple of years for assaulting a sheriff’s deputy?”
“Yeah, that’s him. They hated each other growing up and for good reason. Buck’s an asshole, always has been, and I’m betting he came up in conversation with his mom yesterday. Probably why Hugo was in a lousy mood today.”
Hugo’s big mood today seemed like more than that, but Rem had been his friend for far longer and knew Hugo better. Even this older, more confident Hugo. “That’s why Hugo was here all the time before? To stay away from his stepbrother?”
“Pretty much. All he talked about that last year or so was turning eighteen so he could get out of there.”
