Page 71 of Duke
He gives me a soft tap on the hip. “Go get ’em, cowgirl.”
“Stop it!”
“I’m just kidding.” Haines shakes out his T-shirt. “Although I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t excited to finally meet this guy.”
I grab the doorknob. Closing my eyes, I take a deep, fortifying breath. I haven’t been this nervous since…God, I don’t think I was this nervous taking the SAT or meeting my parents’ divorce attorneys for the first time.
Go figure. Telling yourverycute hookup that you’re pregnant is a bit of a mindfuck.
You’re an adult capable of having adult conversations. You did not do this on purpose. It was an accident, and you can handle it.
The timing, though, couldn’t be worse.
I roll back my aching shoulders. Then I open the door.
Duke isenormous. The bulk of his body blocks almost the entire opening. He’s resting one forearm against the side of the doorframe so that he leans forward a little, the scent of him—clean laundry, piney juniper—filling my head.
He looks up, his blue, bloodshot eyes locking on mine, and everything inside me heaves.
He’s so handsome, and he looks so distraught that my vision blurs. Tears.
Lots of them.
“Aw, Wheeler.” He steps forward, uninvited, and takes my face in his hands. He thumbs away my tears, his callouses moving smoothly over my skin. “Sweetheart.”
My heart swells at the endearment. My pulse slows a little at the gentle tone of his voice, his gentle touch. For the first time all day, I feel…like not dying.
At the same time, electricity darts through me at the feel of his hands on my skin. I could fall into his touch if I let myself.
“You found out.” I close my eyes.
“Cash.” I hear him swallow. “He didn’t mean to tell me—”
“I should’ve known it would slip. The five of y’all are so close.” Rolling my lips between my teeth, I open my eyes and meet his. “I hope you believe me when I say I was going to tell you. I just needed to come home first. Get my head screwed on straight.”
“She had to come see me is what she means.” Haines steps up beside me and holds out his hand. “I’m the good brother, Haines.”
“The good brother?” Duke cocks a brow, but he takes Haines’s hand. “Glad I met you first, then.”
My chest feels funny seeing my brother and my…whatever Duke is shake hands. Two worlds I’ve kept totally separate are suddenly colliding, and I’m not sure how I feel about that.
“My older brother is a lot,” I explain.
Haines smiles. “Preston is a dick. Pleasure to meet you, Duke. You came all the way from the ranch, huh? Three-hour drive from what Wheeler tells me?”
“Three and a half with traffic.” But that doesn’t keep Duke from chuckling. “Y’all been talkin’ shit about me?”
“Yes.” Haines is loving this.
Really, he’s loving being in the presence of a startlingly handsome cowboy. I notice Duke’s face is scruffier than usual. The heavy five-o’clock shadow looks good on him.
Really fucking good.
I can’t believe he’s here.
“Well, I think I speak for us all when I say I wish we were meeting in better circumstances.” Duke has the grace to look embarrassed as he runs a hand up the back of his neck, his bicep bulging against the sleeve of his worn denim jacket. He picks up a plastic grocery bag I hadn’t noticed on the ground. “I, uh, come bearing gifts if that helps.”
Haines takes the bag from him. “Listen, Duke, that backward hat is all the gift we need—”
