Page 28 of The Cowboy's Home
“Calm down? What the hell are you doing here?” Craig demanded. But before Wyatt, who could be surprisingly persuasive, could say anything at all, Craig was continuing on. “Get out of here. You can’t convince anyone to sell the ranch, okay? Just give it up. We’ve all said no to you.”
Which is true.One by one, Wyatt had tried to convince his brothers to sell the ranch when their father died. Even before John Hart had passed away, Wyatt had been pushing for the sale, which seemed to Craig to be incredibly tacky. Not to mention incredibly rude. But then, Wyatt had always been abrupt like that.
“I’m not here for that,” Wyatt stated, and there was something quieter than usual about the tone of his voice, something in the slump of his shoulders that seemed almost defeated. It was odd, seeing that from the other man, but Craig still looked at him warily. As far as he could tell, there was absolutely no reason for him to trust Wyatt, and it wouldn’t be impossible to imagine the other man putting it all on as an act. Actually, that would be in complete character for him.
“Well then, why are you here?” Craig demanded with his arms crossed over his massive chest. “And why are you just sitting outside staring at the house?” He looked suspiciously at his brother, but Wyatt just gazed back with dull, dark eyes, and Craig was pretty sure that he’d caught him. “Probably trying to price it out, right? Figure out who you’re going to go after next? No one is going to be on your side to sell this place.”
Which was truer than ever since Derrick and Logan had bought a place adjoining, had finally admitted that they were together, and the ranch, with Derrick and Logan and Malcolm and Kyle all working together, was doing better than ever. There was literally no reason for anyone to sell.
“He’s here because I invited him here,” John Hart said, and there was a hint of wry humor in his voice. “But I am sort of wondering the same thing as Craig. Why were you just sitting outside like that?”
Craig turned abruptly to see his father, and by some miracle, the older man was standing. He didn’t stand much these days, worn out by the chemotherapy, but he was standing now, albeit with a hand against the side of the house to steady himself. Even so, he was shaking with the effort.
“Why?” Craig demanded as he went to his father, walking away from Wyatt. He knew that his dad was a proud man, so he didn’t take his arm like he wanted to. But he did offer himself silently as a resource if the older man wanted to accept it. The fact that he didn’t was no great surprise, though.
“That’s none of your business,” his father said, his voice firm and uncompromising, despite the way that his body was trembling. He wasn’t getting better. It was clear as day this close to him. He wasn’t getting worse, either. The most that could be said about the cancer in his body was that it was being fought to a standstill, that there was a temporary ceasefire going on inside of him.
The thought of not having his father around, of what would happen when that ceasefire broke, was terrifying to Craig. Did his brothers see it yet? Or were they too busy? Or unwilling, as Craig himself had been, to see it?
“I presume I’m still allowed to make the choice to invite whoever I damn well want to stay on my ranch,” his dad continued, his eyes steely and determined as they glinted at Craig. The body might be failing the older man, but his will was as strong as ever.
The pointed comment made Craig flush, but he couldn’t even deny the silent accusation. He had thought that he could kick Wyatt off this man’s land. John Hart was still very much alive, but many people, himself included, seemed to be forgetting that. He had just accused Wyatt of doing something that he had done himself.
“Yeah. Sorry.” And Craig meant it. But that didn’t stop him from turning to look at Wyatt, who was still standing in that curiously dejected, slumped posture, one hand resting on the side of the car like he needed it just as much as their father needed the house to hold him up. “But I’m watching you. Don’t try anything.”
* * *
It was incredible how quickly Wyatt settled back in at home.
No one trusted him, not that Craig could tell. Certainly, Malcolm did his best to freeze him out, and Kyle, who had originally been sent to try to convince Malcolm to sell the ranch, was even less excited about having the guy around than Craig was.
But their father wanted Wyatt around. And that was really the end of it. Craig would have been just as happy to write Wyatt right out of the family, and he suspected that Malcolm was the same, though he didn’t know about Derrick, who was much more moderate in his emotions.
But no one really wanted him there. Or so Craig thought until he walked by the office to see if Skyler wanted to come with him on a ride, and saw Skyler sitting there and chatting quietly with both Mary Anne and, of all people, Wyatt.
It was like being punched in the stomach. That was the exact sensation, like someone, someone very strong, had wound up and slugged him as hard as they could right in his gut. The betrayal would have been overwhelming from anyone in the house, but from Skyler? Who was supposed to be in love with Craig? That was something else entirely, a whole other level.
“No, the software for the accounting isn’t that hard to learn,” Skyler was saying, as Craig poked his head in. “Mary Anne, I’ll show you later if you want. I think Malcolm wouldn’t mind, but I’ll ask.”
Not only was Skyler talking to Wyatt, who looked far too interested, but he was talking to him about private ranch stuff. The fact that the comment was addressed to Mary Anne didn’t actually make Craig feel too much better about the situation. Wyatt was there, his restlessly intelligent, cunning mind doubtless churning away, storing away the information to use later.
That was what Wyatt did.
“Skyler.” Craig’s voice was sharper than he would have liked, but truthfully, things hadn’t been great between them for a while. Not since the wedding that had never happened, and that had been months ago. “Can I talk to you for a sec?” He glared at Wyatt, who looked back impassively. “Alone?”
“Of course,” Skyler replied, his head tilted to the side in a way that was characteristic of him, something that normally Craig found endearing. Even now, it was adorable, but it was also infuriating because it was like Skyler didn’t understand why Craig needed to talk to him. That was his confused look, and to Craig, it seemed far too clear why he was upset. What did Skyler have to be confused about?
Mary Anne scurried out of the room, clever girl, but Wyatt actually stuck around a little bit longer, looking at Craig. But Craig refused to look back, completely and totally refused to tear his gaze away from Skyler.
Eventually, Wyatt did leave, and Craig, pleased with himself for managing it so calmly, turned to shut the door behind him. He didn’t slam it or anything, which was a major feat for him.
“Why were you discussing ranch business with Wyatt?” Craig’s voice came out low, but steady. He wanted to yell, but despite everything, despite the way that Skyler had treated him at the wedding, even though they’d barely spent a few hours together since then, Craig still loved this man. He didn’t understand him, but he loved him.
Maybe they could still work this out, but only if Craig made it very clear that Skyler could never do what he had just been caught doing again.
“I wasn’t,” Skyler replied, his voice even, but there was a sort of silent recoil behind his eyes. Maybe Craig didn’t sound as calm as he thought he did. Well, why should he? The situation was not one that invited tranquility. “I was talking to Mary Anne.”
“With Wyatt in the room,” Craig snapped, managing to keep his voice low still, but it was a close thing. “He has ears, you know.”
