Page 31 of Wait in the Truck
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As stealthily asI can manage, I cross the creaky boards of the porch and let myself into the house through the door nearest the kitchen. I expected to find the place quiet like a ghost town, but instead, there’s a low-pitched melody coming from the family room. Listening closely, I recognize the twangy sound of acoustic chord progressions. It’s gotta be Rhett.
He’s the most likely to be awake in the middle of the night. Animals don’t wait until it’s convenient to make their issues known. In fact, based on how my brother’s initial few months of vet training have gone, it’s proven far more likely that emergency calls come in while the stars are still twinkling across the vast Idaho sky.
I hang my hat on the hook near the door and shuffle quietly through the kitchen so I can poke my head in to say good night. Or good morning.Fuck. With a backward glancetoward the window over the sink, I note that it’s definitely closer to dawn than not. Sun’ll be up soon, and another strenuous day of work on the ranch will begin. I grit my teeth, exhaustion settling into my bones.
But fuck it. Watching over my wildflower is quickly becoming an all-encompassing need rather than a mere want. I huff out a quiet laugh. Back at the bar, I’d told her we’re friends because I needed to be sure she’d allow me to follow her to Lilac Meadows, needed her to at least trust me with that much. And making sure she arrived home safe is about as important to me as breathing. I couldn’t fucking handle it if something happened to her. But the truth is, I kinda lied. Sage and I were never destined to be just friends. Little by little, I’ll earn her trust until I become the one person she can’t do without. I’ve always been hers. But then… then she’ll be mine, too.
I pause before making Rhett aware of my presence because my head has skipped right back to that dusty parking lot and the lusty sounds Sage makes when she’s turned-on. Hot currents of desire shoot just beneath my skin. Being with Sage does that to me. Exhaling hard, I readjust myself before ducking my head through the doorway. “Hey,” I rasp, my voice hoarse, my head still half in a Sage-induced haze.
Rhett juts his chin toward me. He’s perched on his favorite chair, his acoustic Gibson slung over his knee, and a bottle of beer within reach.
“The night sucked that hard, huh?” My lips twist, and I lift a brow as I study the tired lines etched onto his features. If Rhett is plucking chords, that means his mind is elsewhere. Sometimes, I worry about how much he takes on. I’ve told him time and time again that we’re in this together, but no matter what I say, the majority of the responsibility will always fall to him by virtue of his status as firstborn son. All I can do is try not to make things harder for him.
In all honesty, I’m unsurprised that he buries himself in work. I think he’d have done it whether our parents were still alive or not. He’s never been the same since his high school sweetheart, Noah, left him behind for a chance at country music stardom, and that old guitar on his knee was a gift from her. I only see it come out when she’s firmly on his mind.
I blow out a breath, waiting as he sits forward in the chair and lifts the bottle to his lips.
“Yeah. Decompressing now,” he mumbles, taking a deep, thirsty swallow. When he finally comes up for air, he shakes his head wearily. “One of the cows ate some fucking baling twine.”
I wince, not needing to ask for more details than what he’s already given—the remorse on his face tells the story. My guess would be that try as he might, he couldn’t save the cow. Knowing Rhett as I do, he would have done everything in his power to help the animal, but I get that itupsets him all the same. He’ll be beating himself up over the loss of life for days—maybe weeks—to come.
I clear my throat, gesturing to him with an upturned hand. “Well, you know what Dad always used to say. ‘Where you have livestock, you have deadstock.’” My lips twitch. It’s only the truth, but I doubt Rhett will take kindly to the reminder. My brother is simply softer where animals are concerned than I am. He knows better than to let things like this get to him, but the poor bastard can’t even help himself. Death is a fact of life on the ranch. He knows this.
He lets out a sigh, and I don’t miss that he purposely doesn’t acknowledge my comment. Who knows whether it has more to do with the reminder of our father’s absence… or that the two of them had a very different relationship than he and I did.
My brother cocks his head to the side, peering steadily at me. “Where’ve you been?”
Before I can sidestep his question, his phone vibrates on the arm of the chair. Anyone from the neighboring ranches knows Rhett will pick up anytime, day or night. I suck in some air through my teeth, shaking my head. I catch his eye, then point at the ceiling to let him know I’m heading to bed.
As I’m leaving the room, his rough voice stops me dead in my tracks. “It’s Sage.”
I really like my brother, it would be a damn shame tohave to kill him for poaching what’s mine.My brows pinch together as I whirl back around, murmuring low, “Why the fuck is she calling you at three in the morning?”
“Down, lover boy.” Rhett shoots me an exasperated look and hurriedly shakes his head as he whispers, “I don’t have a fucking clue.” His thumb jabs at the screen to answer, and he puts it to his ear. “Sage?” Listening intently for a second with widening eyes, he sucks in a breath, then blurts, “One second, honey. I can’t understand you.”
We’re gonna circle back to that term of endearment later, but right now, he needs to give me that fuckin’ phone.I hold out my hand, my meaning clear. Lurching to his feet, he puts her on speaker before slapping the phone into my waiting palm.
I know we said no more John Cena moments, but something is telling me I’m about to kill someone for making my girl cry. With blood pounding a frightening beat inside my skull, we wait, as it’s clear she’s struggling from the sniffling on the other end of the phone. Her wet-sounding sob has my lungs ready to cave in.
“R-Rhett? Is K-Kade there?” I claw my hand through my hair, fingers digging into my scalp as a horrific keening wail leaves her lips.
“I’m right here. What’s wrong, Wildflower?” My mind races at the possibilities, each one darker than the last.
She doesn’t immediately answer, and my eyes lock on Rhett’s. Questions shoot silently between us, but we don’thave an answer to a goddamn one. Despite the fact that I didn’t respond when he asked where I was earlier, there’s no doubt in my mind he’s aware I was with her. I shake my head, mouthing, “I was just there. Twenty-five minutes ago, tops.”
Another muffled cry reaches us as she lets loose a heart-wrenching gasp so sad it practically tears me in two. “K-Kade, I n-need you. He’s d-dead.”
Shock reverberates through me as her words register, and I feel the blood drain from my face. “Sage, who’s dead?” I try my damnedest to keep my voice level and calm, but on the inside, I’m about as far from composed as I can get. Warning alarms sound in my head with all the subtlety of an atomic bomb. I don’t know what’s happening at the neighboring ranch, but there are only two things that really matter to me. Someone over there is fucking dead. And Sage is crying.
Before I’m aware of my intention, I’m already on the move. I snatch up my keys and wallet from where I’d left them on the table mere minutes ago. Through the phone speaker, Sage heaves out a choked sob. And she keeps right on crying after that, annihilating every piece of my heart.
I bolt for the door as Rhett grits out from behind me, “Wait a sec, would you?”
Not even Satan himself could stop me, nothing could keep me from getting to Sage. “Baby, I’m coming for you. Stay on the line.” With a lump in my throat, I turn back toRhett, only to have him practically run into me. “What the fuck are you doing?”
“JohnfuckingCena. I’m going with you,” he grinds out.
