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at five and Brett returned to the house. After downing a liter of water, he grabbed a steak from the
refrigerator. He hadn t even turned on the pan when Cade swaggered into the kitchen.
Well, look who s still alive.
Instead of pissing him off, Cade s wry tone drew a sheepish smile. He turned from the stove and faced
the amusement swimming in the other man s eyes. Sorry about last night, he said, waiting for the
inevitable hostility toward the other man to return. It didn t. Guess I went a little overboard.
Cade s bark of laughter rang in his ears and Brett grimaced at the noise.
Sorry. Cade threw his hat on the table and folded his arms. But man, you should have seen
yourself last night. Haven t laughed like that in a long while.
Glad I amused you.
Cocking his head to the side, Cade made a face. Though I gotta admit, I didn t find it so funny when
you made off with my girl.
Girl? Red curly hair flashed in Brett s mind s eye and he groaned. Uh, sorry about that.
Cade s eyes twinkled in good humor and Brett felt worse. Forget about it.
He shook his head. Guess I ruined your night.
Hell, I m just glad you didn t start a fight.
Me too. Brett looked at the steak on the countertop and then glanced back at Cade. You want
something to eat?
Surprise flickered in Cade s blue eyes and Brett fought a sudden grin. The guy probably thought he
was still drunk.
Nah, Cade said after a brief pause. Already ate. He pulled out a chair and folded his long body
into it. Just wondered if you wanted to take a ride into town?
Brett raised a brow. Why?
To pick up your truck.
Oh, right. Brett nodded. Another dose of guilt pricked him. He d treated Cade like shit for the past
few weeks, yet the guy had been decent enough to drive him home and help him upstairs. Hell, he hadn t
even punched his lights out for macking on his girl. You don t have to.
Cade shrugged. Who else is going to do it?
He had a point. Steeplecrest Ranch wasn t exactly the center of things. You want to go now?
Eat first. I can wait.
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Coming Home
Thanks. Brett got the steak started and then grabbed a couple of sodas from the refrigerator. He slid
one across the table to Cade and then pulled back the tab on his own. As the meat sizzled in the hot oil, he
stood over it and took a long drink of cola. Damn, he was starving.
Jimmy gone home?
Brett nodded, flipping the steak over in the pan. He s not looking too good.
Well, he s working hard. Cade rested his elbows on the table and leaned forward. And with the
accident and everything& He let the sentence trail off.
Yeah.
Their respective fathers had done a lot on this ranch. They were big boots to fill and Jimmy was
picking up the slack. For the first time, Brett realized how lucky he was that Cade had stuck around.
They fell into silence, a silence disturbed by the crackle of frying meat. Not an awkward silence,
much to Brett s surprise. Who d have guessed Cade would make such easy company?
After a few minutes, Brett transferred the steak to a plate and grabbed some bread. The first bite of
meat melted in his mouth and with his appetite urging him on, he shoveled the rest in.
Hungry? Cade asked, a small smile lifting the corner of his mouth.
Brett shrugged, still chewing. When he d swallowed the last crust of bread, he sighed. He could have
eaten another one of those.
You ready to go? he asked reluctantly, mind still on food.
Sure. Cade rose from the table and grabbed his Stetson. His hair had grown out, a shaggy mane of
dirty blond curls brushing his shoulders.
Brett frowned. Why the hell was he noticing a thing like that? Since when had he turned into a
goddamn woman?
He looked away and dropped his plate in the sink. Then he followed Cade out of the house to the
guy s car.
Still using a rental? he asked when they were on the road.
For now. No point in buying one if I m heading back to New York.
Brett blinked, an uneasy sensation tightening his stomach. You re going back to New York?
I don t know. Cade slanted him a look. I m on a trial, remember?
Right. Brett faced forward, concentrating on the road. He didn t want to think about the possibility
of Cade s departure. And he didn t like the sense of dread it roused within him. He d spent weeks wishing
Cade would get the hell out of Steeplecrest and suddenly he d done a one-eighty. Overnight. Like he
wanted Cade to stick around.
Change the subject. I must have been still pissed this morning, he said, keeping his eyes on the
barren land they drove by. When I woke up and saw the time he laughed shortly, I thought for a
second Dad s gonna fucking kill me .
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Ava Rose Johnson
As soon as the admission left his mouth, he regretted it. Stupid thing to say, especially to Cade who d
no doubt read more into it than necessary. Heat crawled up Brett s neck as he felt Cade s gaze studying
him, picking him apart. If the atmosphere had been strained a minute ago, it was ready to snap now.
When Cade remained silent for a couple of minutes, relief eased the knot of tension in Brett s
stomach. Maybe he d let it go.
But then Cade opened his mouth. I don t think it s hit me yet, he said quietly, slowing as they
approached a junction then steering the car to the left. I ve been gone for seven years. Not used to seeing
them every day.
Brett suddenly found it hard to swallow. He had seen them every day. Sometimes it s like they re on
vacation. His lips twisted in a bitter smile. Except they didn t do vacation.
Cade laughed and the rich sound was warm to Brett s ears. They sure didn t. There was a pause
before Cade asked, Does it feel really different without them around?
Thinking about his dad s way of overanalyzing the procedures with Jimmy and Ken s short fuse with
the bulls, Brett nodded. It s a lot quieter. Then he added, Not so quiet with you here though. The words
made it sound as if he liked having the guy around and he wished he could take them back. But then again,
maybe he did like having Cade around. If anything, the time passed more quickly and the workload
decreased faster with an extra person on board.
If Cade had taken his words to mean more than he d intended, he didn t show it. You saying I m
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