Page 37 of A Secret Heart
“You’re a selfish piece of cow dung. Never giving anyone else a second thought. So high and mighty.”
Isaac landed a punch to Ed’s jaw, knocking his head back.
Ed stared at his brother, wiped a trickle of blood from his mouth. Ground out, “We don’t need you.”
Isaac’s gaze shuttered. He stepped back fully. “Is everyone all right?”
“No thanks to you. Rebekah helped.” All the fight went out of him.
He just wanted this to be over.
He whistled for Lightning, who moved close.
Ed ran his hand along Lightning’s side until he reached his saddlebags.
“I located the wolf pack.” Isaac’s muffled voice came from behind Ed. “Ran off the lot of ’em.”
Ed ignored the rambling about wolves. His throbbing hand fumbled to pull out the bundle of letters. Pain pulsed through his jaw where Isaac’s punch had connected, but it was faint in comparison to the pain in Ed’s heart. At a swift pat to his hindquarter, Lightning lumbered back to the edge of the clearing, where he’d been eating before.
Ed swung around, still stiff from the fight. His step caught, and the letters flung to the ground at Isaac’s feet.
“What’s this?”
“Love letters,” Ed spat. “To you.”
Isaac didn’t move. Just stood there with arms crossed, brows raised in question.
“Drew and Nick hatched a plan to get you a wife. We placed an ad. You’ve got an interested party.” At Ed’s quick movement of his arm, fire flamed in his ribs. He clutched his midsection as he lowered himself to sit on a stump by the fire.
“I don’t want a wife!” Isaac’s green eyes went icy. “The three of you had no right.”
“Isaac McGraw doesn’t want the prettiest girl in the whole town.” Ed waved a hand in the air as his voice rose. “Did I mention this girl’s got spunk? She’s not afraid to get the story, no matter who it is. Even Quade. She rides well, rounds up cattle, thinks for herself. She’ll adore the ground you walk on, always has.”
He let his head hang, not from the pain of his brother’s punch but from the pain of losing Rebekah. Who wouldn’t want her? His hand itched to reach for the letters, still spread on the ground. Those letters explained the whole thing.
Isaac’s eyes glittered. There was anger in the set of his jaw. “Who is it?” He swiped at his upper lip. “You said there was an interested party. Who?”
Isaac always knew where to land a punch.
“Rebekah Edwards.” Ed’s throat burned as he said her name.
His brother’s eyes squinted in disdain.
Ed couldn’t take it. He rose and grabbed the letters off the ground. Rounded on Isaac, who braced like Ed was going to throw another punch. “She’s the best thing that’ll ever happen to you.” Ed shoved the letters against Isaac’s chest.
“I don’t need a wife.” Isaac made as if to throw the letters into the fire.
Ed made a quick swipe for them. Caught them midair as Isaac watched. He always saw too much.
“You like her.” He didn’t ask a question. Ed didn’t have to answer.
The fire crackled. Ed ached inside and out. But he’d done what he was supposed to do. He was finished with this.
For a moment, he considered handing the letters back to Isaac, but he couldn’t bear it if Isaac threw Rebekah’s letters in the fire. Ed took them with him as he headed for his horse.
“From the way you came up here all fired up, it sounds likeyouwant a wife.” Isaac’s words chased him. “If Rebekah is so great, why don’t you marry her?”
From the saddle, Ed couldn’t look at his brother as he admitted, “Because she doesn’t want me.”
