Page 13 of Duke
Christ, I’m dying just thinking about it.
I shift my hand on the wheel. The sun glints off the polished handle of Ryder’s pocketknife, making me blink. “Been better. Shouldn’t have had that last beer.”
“What the hell happened? Seemed like you and Wheeler were really hitting it off. Then poof, she just disappeared. Mollie said she slept in her room at the New House, which means she didn’t sleep in yours.”
Wheeler’s car was parked there when I headed that way for breakfast at half past four this morning. She didn’t come out toeat with us. But when Wyatt stopped by the New House to chat with Patsy an hour or so ago, he said the car was gone.
My lungs burn. Wheeler and I have chemistry. We were definitely having fun. I’m not making any of that up. Clearly she was looking for a good time. But the second I hinted that I’d be interested in more, she bolted.
Huh.
Makes me think that underneath her flirty exterior lies some kind of wound.
I’d know, because I got one too. Only mine seeks comfort, whereas hers seeks solitude.
“I don’t know what happened,” I say. “But I’m gonna find out.”
“You should. Ain’t seen you corner someone that way in an age.”
“We don’t get much fresh blood in these parts.”
He tilts his head. “Don’t pretend like it’s blood you’re after. Seems like she’s your equal. Y’all are smart and curious about the world, and you both like to pretend you suck at darts when in reality, y’all are scary good at it.”
“Awful observant for a guy who was ripping shots all night.”
“Hey. We had a lot to celebrate. And I was just trying to keep up with Billie.” He lets out a low whistle as he lifts his hips and tucks the knife back into his pocket. “Girl can drink anyone under the table. Colt says she came out of the womb that way—reins in one hand, bottle of tequila in the other.”
Billie is one of the Wallaces’ six children. Growing up with five brothers, she learned early to hold her own.
She also learned early that Ryder was the favorite in our family for a reason. He’s the baby for starters, a whole ten minutes younger than me. He’s got a big heart, although that means he’s easily hurt. He’s also smarter than he gives himself credit for.
Billie hides it well, but she’s been in love with my brother for as long as I can remember. Ryder likes the attention. Who wouldn’t? And I think he could fall in love with her too, real easy.
But because he’s so smart, he knows that’d just end in disaster. Colt, Billie’s brother, hasn’t had it easy—like Sawyer, he’s a single dad—so we’ve all made sure not to rock his boat any more than it’s already been rocked. Especially since Ryder and I have a bit of a reputation. We’re not playboys by any means, but we’re also no angels. I’m too restless to sit still and behave, and Ryder’s just got too much to offer the world to stay put or stay small.
I clear my throat. “I say this with love—”
“Oh, Jesus, what?”
“You’re too smart to torture yourself and Billie, yeah? So don’t do it. Not when we just got handed our dreams for the ranch on a silver platter. Combining Rivers Ranch with Lucky Ranch? That’s a huge win for us. Let’s not fuck it up before it even happens.”
Ryder’s grin fades. He raises his forearm so that his fingers brush the top of the doorframe and taps it. Once, twice. “Think you can stay away from Wheeler?”
I scoff. “I might not have much choice in the matter.”
“You do. And you won’t. Stay away from her, I mean. She isn’t gonna make it easy for you, but you’ll find a way to win her over.”
I take the turn onto the long stretch of country road that links our ranch with the Wallaces’. “Since when can you read the future?”
“I can readyou. And I’ve been doing that since you and I were womb mates.”
“Ha.” It’s an old joke, one Dad used to make all the time.
A hollow feeling spreads through my center. Same sensation you get after being sucker punched. The grief—it’ll hit you out of nowhere like that.
“You think they’d want this for us?” I ask.
“Want what?”
