Page 96 of Brooke's Bliss
“Bo!”Trev yelled.
“He’s overstimulated.”Bo was cool under pressure.“Bethalready told us she’s going to be fine, but Trev can’t stand the thought of ourbaby girl bumping her knee, much less breaking a limb.I happen to know ourboys are going to do a lot of that.Talk to the new guys for us, Shane.Theyseem okay, but Trev is acting like he doesn’t trust them.He’s been standoffishsince they walked in, and we need some help, so figure out how much experiencethey have.”
The truck honked and Bo stepped back.
“I’ll handle it,” Shane told him.
“Do you need help?Does Beth have the boys?”Brooke got outand walked around as Bo got into the truck.“Is my sister-in-law here?”
Bo’s grin kicked up.“Your sister-in-law found out one ofher husbands was in jail and made a beeline for town.Apparently Rye’s askingthe sheriff to leave them alone in the cell for a half an hour.”
Shane could guess what would happen then.“You need one ofus to come help with the younger kiddos?”
Those boys could be a handful.
“Thanks, but we’ve got it,” Trev promised.“I’m sorry toleave you with the new guys.And those dumbasses brought a girlfriend, thoughshe’s done nothing but sit in the living room and play around on her phone.”
Shane got out of the SUV.“We’ll be fine.Maybe Brooke canmake some cookies.Miranda loves her peanut butter cookies.”
“I’m sure she would love that.By the way, Max is bringingBay back,” Trev said, his eyes grim.“The guy declined to press charges.Nate’sfinishing up paperwork and then Bay will be back.We’re supposed to…”
“Move the herd.Clean out the back barn.Get the new fencingready for Friday.I’ll get it all done.Go.”Shane waved him off.It wasnothing he couldn’t handle.In the last couple of months he’d noticed Trev andBo and Jamie had started leaning more heavily on him.Not Bay.Him.
Because he was the organized one, the one who was deeplycompetent when it came to keeping things running.He used to joke that he wasnothing but middle management with cows, but was that a joke?Managing any kindof business or job had roughly the same principles.
Could he manage a set?
“I’ll make some supper later for all of us so Beth doesn’thave to worry.”Brooke moved to his side.
He couldn’t lose this woman.
He reached for her hand as Trev sped away.“You need to getsome groceries?”
He honestly didn’t like the thought of her driving aloneright now.What was going on around town wasn’t some coincidence, and it wasall about him.The most important thing in the world to Shane Kent was BrookeHarper, so he intended to keep an eye on her.
Her head shook.“I happen to know what Beth was going tocook for supper.It’s an easy recipe.I’ll go check in with Lucy and see ifthey need any help in the barn.I’ve got hours before I need to start cooking.I think I’ll hang with the goats for a while.Unless you need backup with thenew guys.”
“I can handle it.”He glanced over where they stood.One ofthe two had a cell phone to his ear.“Though I’ve learned if Trev gets a badfeeling about people, he tends to follow his gut.I’ll see if I can figure outwhat’s putting him off.”
She went on her toes and kissed him.“You’ll do great, babe.I’ll text my brother and let him and Bay know I’m already out here.”
He’d talked to her about his wariness about the events thatwere unfolding around them.It could be coincidence or it could be somethingelse.One way or another he wanted her on her guard.“Tomorrow, I’ll talk toNate about how we can figure it out.Hopefully it won’t take long to find outif my old boss is searching for me.”
Her nose wrinkled.“We have ex-boss problems.”
“Yeah, maybe we should think about working for ourselves.”It was as close as he intended to get to talking to her about work today.Sheneeded some time to see that they could make a great team and that he and Baywere serious about her career.They could work anywhere.
It would be kind of fun to see parts of the world theywouldn’t have.Including Los Angeles.
She nodded.“Maybe we should.I will think about that.”Shewent on her toes and pressed a kiss to his lips.“I’ll see you in a bit.”
She walked away, and there was no way to miss the twofuckers who watched those hips of hers sway as she made her way toward thebarn.
His girl.His and his brother’s, and that meant somethingout here.
“Yes, I think we’re a go,” the taller of the two was sayingas Shane walked up.His eyes met Shane’s, and there was a startled look there.
Got caught being cocky when he shouldn’t.Well, it wouldn’tbe the first time a guy thought an interview was going way better than itactually was.The kid looked like he’d done some ranch work in his time.He wasleanly muscled, with skin that saw too much sun.His hat waswornin, and so were his jeans and boots.
