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“You don’t have to stay.” Garth poked the straw of his drink through the lid. “You can just drop Kyle and me off. We can get a ride back.”
“Kyle can’t go. He can’t afford another run-in with Sheriff Paxton.”
“I can decide for myself.”
“It’s a party—” Garth started.
“A party that sounds like it’ll get out of hand.”
Garth shrugged. “So we leave when it does.”
“John Henry—”
“Won’t care,” Garth said.
When it came down to the doing, John Henry Makepeace couldn’t always be counted on. Garth figured that was why Kent was such a pain in the butt at times. Someone had to be responsible. Since his grandfather and his brother weren’t, Kent had appointed himself conscience to both.
“He’ll care if he’s called down to the sheriff’s office one more time to explain why he can’t keep Kyle in line,” Kent said.
“And he’ll get over it just as quick.”
Bull’s-eye, Garth thought when Kent’s eyes opened and his glare was cold enough to cool the stuffy air around them.
“We’ll all go, then,” Kent said after a while. “First hint of trouble and we leave.”
Garth and Kyle shared a conspiratorial look over Kent’s head.
“Fine.”
“Sure.” Garth picked up his carton of fries and started munching on them. Promises were made to be revised. He glanced at his watch. Half an hour to kill before he had to prod old Kent along.
The only thing around with any energy was Red Thunder. As its name implied, the river was never quiet. Unlike its meandering sisters, the Neches to the west and the Sabine to the east, Red Thunder ran straight and fast. And today, swollen by a week of rain, it seemed in a mighty hurry. Like him, Garth thought. He was in a hurry to get out of this one-stoplight town.
He had plans, big plans, and he’d set goals to reach them. Like a road on a map, he knew exactly where he was going and couldn’t wait to get started on his trip to the top. And his drive was as powerful as the river’s. Nothing was going to stop him.
Footsteps muffled by the thick padding of leaf litter drew nearer. A branch cracked. A pine bough swished. None of them stirred. The arrival was much too hesitant to belong to the forest ranger assigned to patrol the Woodhaven Preserve.
When the footsteps reached the clearing, Garth smiled. Well, well, look who’s here. He might have drawn a pat hand from a stacked deck after all. He plucked another fry from the carton he was holding and glanced over at Kyle, wondering how his friend would react.
Kyle tossed his burger to one side and shot up, then busied himself with picking up rocks along the riverbank.
Pine bough in hand, Ellen Paxton hesitated before walking into the clearing. Her blond hair hung in a long braid down her back. Garth had told her to let it hang loose. He liked the way the gold glinted in the light, and often fantasized about running his hands through the silken strands.
She hadn’t listened to his other advice, either. Her denim cutoffs were too short and her red T-shirt too tight. Not that the outfit looked bad on her. Watching her move, he was getting hotter by the second. She didn’t have much to fill the top, but those firm, long legs of hers could give any man a hard-on. Thing was that neither the short shorts nor the tight shirt were her nature, and she didn’t look comfortable playing the role of temptress she was striving for. Fresh innocence and loose, gauzy fabrics suited her more. He’d told her so.
Her gaze, with its anxious gray-green eyes, sought out Kyle, then swept quickly away to fixate on Kent. So that’s how she was going to play it. He’d told her to use him to win Kyle over again. She was doing this all wrong.
The empty fry container collapsed in his fist. One day, he’d get to her, if only to prove to himself he could.
She sank next to Kent, swiveled the straw from his drink in her direction and sipped. A kiss of red lipstick branded the white straw. She looked better in pink. He’d told her so.
Kyle’s jaw worked overtime as he pretended not to care.
“I saw your truck by the road and thought I’d stop and say hi.”
Garth smiled and leaned back against the hickory tree. Saw, my foot. He’d called her from the burger joint, and knowing there’d be fireworks, he’d told her their plans. He’d laid out a perfect step-by-step course of action for her. But had she listened? No. She was playing a game she couldn’t handle.
She should have listened to him.
But what the heck, this could still prove more entertaining than an evening drinking beer at Shannon Blake’s party. And he might still get what he wanted in the end.
“So what are y’all’s plans for the summer?” Ellen asked with a brightness that sounded exaggerated and an ease her tight muscles against Kent’s side denied.
Ellen was crazy in love with Kyle. That was plain to see on her face even though she was trying hard to ignore him. Kyle was gaga over Ellen, too, even though he was pretending she was nothing more than a weed at the moment. Garth had had to suffer through enough of Kyle’s fawning to know.
Kent started to get up, but she hung on to his arm. The straitlaced Makepeace didn’t want to let Ellen use him to get to Kyle, but he was also too accommodating to hurt a lady’s feelings, whether she deserved it or not.
“Kent’ll be a gatekeeper at the state park,” Kyle sneered. He hurled a pebble into the river. It splashed and was swallowed without even a ripple. “Safe. Solid. Dependable. Sound familiar?”
Yeah, that sounded like Kent all right. How he could find such dull work interesting was beyond Garth’s comprehension. “Better you than me. Sounds boring.”
“You got it wrong, Garth. He’ll be right in his element. Smokey the Bear will get to lecture everyone who makes the mistake of wanting a camping vacation.” Kyle tipped back his head and howled at his own joke.
“What’s wrong with wanting people to be safe?” Ellen asked with much more intensity than the comment deserved.
“They don’t want to be safe. They want to have fun.”
Ellen’s hold on Kent’s arm tightened. Her face was an indignant scrunch.
“Let it go,” Kent said between gritted teeth.
“I can’t.”
“That’s right, Kent. She can’t let go. She’ll cage even someone as stodgy as you in the end.” Without looking at Ellen, Kyle launched another missile into Red Thunder. The body English behind the motion told a story a mile long.
Garth licked the fry salt from his fingers. A mule facing a wall. He’d been right. Kyle wasn’t ready to kiss and make up yet.
“It’s not the job, Kyle,” she said.
“Then what is it?”
She blushed a deep shade of red. Her gaze darted from Kent to him. “Can’t we talk in private?”
“Hey, you’re the one who came barging in uninvited.”
Ah, there it was. Body language never lied. Why hadn’t he seen it sooner? So they’d done it and innocent little Ellen was a virgin no longer. Funny how Kyle hadn’t mentioned that bit of news. He was usually more than eager to brag about his conquests. What would the sheriff say if he knew his precious daughter was no longer pure? Garth filed away the tidbit.
So Ellen had finally given herself to Kyle and was having a hard time accepting her lover’s imminent departure to a ranch out in West Texas. Not that he blamed her. Kyle had a way of attracting trouble. If she weren’t around, she probably figured some of that trouble would be of the female persuasion. She’d more than likely be right. Kyle lived the cowboy image to the hilt—from hat to boots to horse—and the girls did swoon over his dark good looks when he was all dudded up and riding his flashy black horse. Those high cheekbones, those blacker than black eyes, that singular stamp of pride made a Makepeace stand out from a crowd and attracted women like flies to honey.
But if that’s all Ellen saw, she was missing the most important element. Once Kyle made something his, there was no taking it back—which was the only reason Garth hadn’t made a move on her himself. As pretty as she was, she wasn’t worth getting his eye blackened or his lip fattened because Kyle had trouble controlling his temper. Too bad Ellen didn’t understand that. Or maybe it was good. Maybe while Kyle was gone, he’d finally get a shot at her.
The going would be good for Kyle. He was too much of a dreamer and needed a little dose of reality. A summer sweating on the range would see to that. Then maybe Garth could talk some sense into him. Owning the ranch would be much more satisfying than working it. Once Kyle had a taste of hard labor, maybe he wouldn’t be so hesitant to spend the trust fund that would be his when he reached twenty on one of Garth’s plans. Oil, lumber, cattle, horses, real estate. He’d get back the fortune his father had squandered.
Let him go, he wanted to say to Ellen. He’ll come back. Garth quirked a smile. I’ll help you get over the heartache, darlin’. That had been the whole idea behind inviting Ellen to join them tonight.
Kent was looking ill at ease as he gently tried to extricate himself from Ellen’s hold. But she just hung on to him as if he were a lifeline and she was drowning. She should have played it the way he’d told her.
Without letting go of Kent’s arm, she snapped her head and an overbright smile toward him. “What about you, Garth? What are your plans for the summer?”
He was glad to oblige. This situation was proving more entertaining than any drag race by the reservoir. “My uncle wants me to help him out with his real estate business. Says I’ve got charisma and charisma is important for attracting business.” He flashed her a grin to prove his point, saw Kent roll his eyes.
“Your uncle’ll probably have you doing all the grunt work,” Kyle said, peppering the river with a handful of stones.
Ellen ignored Kyle. “Why, that’s wonderful, Garth! Since you’re aiming to get yourself a degree in business administration, it’s right up your alley.”
An in with the scholarship committee guaranteed him a free education. And Garth didn’t plan on doing grunt work for long. Unlike his father who’d struck out in too many directions without thought, Garth knew exactly what he was after. His planning and dedication had already shown him many shortcuts on the path to success. Give him a few years, and he was going to explode to the top. And like the river, nothing could stop him.
Soon the Ramsey name would no longer stand for his father’s failures, but for Garth’s own success. People wouldn’t snigger behind his back anymore; they’d respect him and look up to him.
“You done?” Kent asked Garth as he gathered the remnants of their fast-food dinner.
“What’s your hurry?” The tension between Kyle and Ellen was just getting interesting. He did like watching a good fight. And if it was good enough, he’d have a sobbing Ellen to console on the way home.
“I forgot I promised John Henry I’d stop by the Feed and Seed and pick up the oats he ordered. Come on. I’ll need your help loading.”
Yeah, right, and if I believe that, you’ve got a jackalope ranch to sell me. John Henry had no more ordered oats than he’d held down a steady job since his accident at the sawmill ten years ago.
Ellen latched onto the hem of Kent’s T-shirt. “Kent…”
“Talk to him,” he whispered.
“He’s past listening to me,” she murmured back, placing both her hands on Kent’s chest. “You talk to him, please, Kent. He listens to you.”
From Garth’s vantage point, the touch looked mighty intimate—almost like a lover’s caress. Kyle didn’t miss it either or the way his brother and his girl stood, hip bumping into hip. Kyle could easily mistake her arms wound around Kent’s neck and the pleading look in her eyes as a come-on, especially in his foul mood.
“This is between you and him.”
“What are you two hatching?” Kyle asked. His fingers were flexing. His gaze narrowed. He was spoiling for a fight. Garth leaned back, ready to watch the spectacle.
“Nothing.” As Kent picked up a wad of discarded napkins, Kyle grabbed his arm. “Let go, Kyle. This is between you and Ellen. I’m leaving, okay.”
“Can you stop the river?” Fire burned in Kyle’s dark eyes, bringing forward the exotic good looks of his Caddo ancestors. The heat of anger had his face tight and his breath short and shallow. His grip on Kent’s elbow looked iron hard.
“Kyle—”
“I asked you a question. Can you stop the river?”
Garth had no idea where Kyle was going with his hot-blooded question, but the wrong answer could break the dam of what little restraint Kyle still had. Kyle was feeling bullied and he’d never backed down from a threat.
Kent glanced over his shoulder at Red Thunder rumbling behind him. Sweat glistened along his hairline. The convulsive swallowing had Garth believing Kent was having to choke down his own temper to keep the situation under control.
“It takes a lot to stop a river,” Kent said calmly.
“Exactly.” Kyle let go of Kent’s elbow and gestured grandly. “The river has to flow. If something tries to stop it, it might slow for a while, but eventually it goes around or through or over. It still flows.”
Lord help us, Kyle was getting metaphoric. Garth never understood Kyle when he started talking in pictures. Facts and figures Garth understood; pretty words were too fanciful for him. Still, Garth thought as he looked at the river, there was a power there that couldn’t be denied. Its energy sang in his blood.
“You’re talking to the wrong person,” Kent said.
Kyle glowered at Kent. “You’re afraid to swim. That’s your problem.”
“Kyle—”
Kyle didn’t back off. He stepped forward and got in Kent’s face. “You’re afraid to even dip your toe in water just because you got stuck in a drainage ditch when you were five.” With the heel of both hands, he gave Kent a shove.
“Your beef’s not with me.”
“What you’re missing is life.” Kyle pressed closer. Kent took a step back. “It’s gonna pass you by. You’re going to end up all brackish and stale and she doesn’t see that. She doesn’t see she’ll hate you that way. She’ll hate her life, herself in the long run.”
“Kyle, that’s enough!” Both hands around Kent’s biceps, Ellen tried to tug him out of the line of fire.
Kyle’s nostrils flared.
Kent gently set Ellen out of harm’s way.
“Talk to Ellen.”
“I don’t give a damn about Ellen.”
“Yeah, right. Don’t know why she cares for a hothead like you, anyhow.”
Kent made the critical mistake of starting to turn away.
With an explosive grunt, Kyle rammed Kent with all his might. The force of the blow made Kent backpedal. He caught himself, then took another step to steady himself. The sandy bank crumbled beneath the weight of his hiking boot.
Kent fell backward, seemed to hang in midair for an eternity. Horror etched itself into his face.
Garth shot to his feet, then stopped himself short.
Ellen screamed.
Kyle swore and reached forward, grabbing for his brother.
Kent hit the water hard.
Kyle thrust out his hand farther. “Grab it!”
He skimmed the tips of Kent’s fingers. The water carried Kent away. Kent latched on to a root on the riverbank. Kyle threw himself against the bank for a third attempt to save his brother. The sandy bank crumbled beneath him. Gravity pulled him forward and he smacked headfirst into the turbulent water, casting both of them into the current.
