Page 80 of The Cowboy's Bullfighter
“Ricky.” Bella gave Ricky a look. “He’s working. You know that.”
“I know. I know, I just—I could have—He’s my big brother.”
And Ricky was in deep, life-altering shit.
“You might oughta call him, then tell him to call me, if he needs to.” His head was pounding.
“Okay. I will. Can, um, can Bella stay in my room?”
He wanted to snap that it was a tad late to worry about sleeping arrangements and being all proper, but he wasn’t going to put that on them. They were stressed enough.
“Yeah. And when Brooks gets back, we’ll talk to him about y’all moving into the second master suite, if you want. So you have room for the baby. He’s pretty much sharing my suite now…”
Although if the son of a bitch didn’t come home?—
“Y’all go on. I need a beer, and a minute. Things have a way of working out in time, or so they tell me.”
He stood, fighting the need to cry with the jolt of sheer agony that hit his gut. He’d fought a bull with his back broke, he could do this.
“Thanks, Uncle Coop. Seriously.”
“You’re welcome, son. You’re okay. So are you, Bella.”
She smiled, her lips only quivering a bit. “Thanks, Uncle Coop.” And they were off like their asses were on fire.
He managed to make it to the fridge, got his beer, and then headed for his bedroom. He was so tense his body hurt even worse than it needed to, so he grabbed a couple of Tylenol from the bathroom, too.
He had spent a long few months being what amounted to a single father to these kids, but he was getting used to being part of a duo.
Then he dialed Brooks.
It was time for the motherfucker to come home.
Now.
Brooks satwith his feet up on the porch rail of the bunkhouse he was staying in, because he was the sole person there at three o’clock in the bloody afternoon.
Pete had promised to make a decision today, but he noticed that the close of any real business was in about two hours, and he still didn’t have an answer about who the damn man was hiring.
And his beer was flat and warm and he hated it.
He frowned as his phone rang and frowned deeper as Coop’s name showed up.
It was awful late for Coop to be calling.
“Hey, babe, how?—”
“I want you home. Now. You get your ass on a plane and you fucking come home or you can stay down there!”
Oh. Whoa. Damn, he’d never heard Cooper Adams sound…panicked.
“Coop? What’s going on?” He put his feet down, sitting upright. Something told him he needed to be ready to get up and be action figure Brooks.
“What’s going on? Well, let’s see. I sliced my hand open, I’m pissing blood because that fucking stallion kicked me, and Lucy had her first period. Johnny’s got a black eye, Mason is on a three-day school suspension, Ricky and Bella are pregnant, and Mina peed herself at school! I want you home!”
Bellering.
Coop was bellering.
