18. Wyatt

Chapter Eighteen

WYATT

A satisfying, carbonated hiss escaped as I pried the cap off my beer bottle and settled into the cradle of my deck chair.Gage sat across from me, balancing a paper plate on his knees and forking down the last few bites of flaky, blackened redfish.The fire pit cracked and popped between us, shooting sparks into the night sky, and I took the chance to study his face in the flickering light.

Not long ago, he was clanging through my kitchen like a bull in a china shop, unable to enjoy the spoils of winning our bet.He couldn't cook worth a damn, over-salting everything and chopping onions like he was trying to break the board, but I loved watching him try.

He seemed lighter, like he was starting to feel at home.A rustic one-bedroom might not have the same grandeur as a centuries-old mansion, but when the world showed its worst, this place was my sanctuary.If I played my cards right, maybe it could be Gage's, too.

Over the past week, he’d overturned every square inch of the house, blowing dust off picture frames, opening and shutting cabinets, poking at the clothes hanging in my closet.Making the space his own, so that when he inevitably left, I’d still smell and feel him on every piece of furniture.

Once he'd finished savoring his last bite of fish, he set the plate by his feet and leaned back with a sigh.His cheeks were flushed from the flames, and firelight picked out gold flecks of stubble on his jaw.

I couldn’t take my eyes off him.

“You know...you're welcome to stay as long as you want," I said, clearing my throat and trying to sound casual.“It’s not what you’re used to, but my door is always open.”

He looked taken aback, and after a beat, he said, “I wasn't born in a mansion, you know.I lived in a one-room shack so deep in the bayou you could only get to it by jon boat.Besides, have you seen the rents in Vegas?This place is a castle compared to my old apartment.”

I cocked my head, curious to hear more about a part of his life I'd been excluded from.“Didn’t Boone give you money?”

He shrugged. "Sure, but I didn't touch it.He wanted me to grow up, so I did.I’ve never needed much, anyway, and I wanted to make it on my own.”

“Did you?”

A self-deprecating smirk tugged at his mouth.“I’m back here, aren’t I?”

“What went wrong?”

He sighed and rubbed at his temples, like he was regretting starting down this road.Gage was always pushing against every line I had, but when it came to his own life, it was radio- silence.He pushed and he pushed, and then when I got close, he shoved me away as hard as he could.

Just like he’d done that night in the pool, right after coming his brains out.

Goddamn.

I shifted to ease the ache in my groin, hoping Gage wouldn’t catch the bulge beneath the fly of my jeans.

His eyes were fixed on the dancing flames.“My brothers and I made a promise that we wouldn’t leave Ben to rot forever.It was the only way they could get me on that damn bus in the first place.Boone wanted us to give it time, so we did.Mason got his law degree, and Dom…well, you know.”

I couldn't stop my reflexive scowl.

Gage’s smile was faint, like he knew exactly what I was thinking.“I can't do much for Ben. I’m no good for anything but muscle and moral support, but after Boone died, I knew it was time to come home.Besides, Vegas wasn’t anything like I thought it would be.The weather's warm, but the people are ice cold.Nothing felt real out there. Even me.I worked the bar scene for a while, but then I figured, if I’m gonna bust my ass, it might as well be here.At least I understand people here.”

I turned that over in my head before asking, “Why bust your ass at all?You were in Vegas. You could’ve been rolling dice, not cracking heads.” I leaned forward, elbows on my knees, and locked eyes with him.“Why do you keep doing this to yourself, Gage?”

His mouth twisted into that signature smirk of his, and I braced myself for the brush off.But then, just as quickly, the smirk faded.“You really wanna know?” he asked, sounding chagrinned.

"If you want to tell me." I didn't want to push too hard.Last time I overstepped had led to the worst case of blue balls I'd ever had.

He laced his hands over his flat belly, tipped his head back, and gazed up at the night sky, like he was gearing up for a long story.“You ever hear of Atticus Beaufort?” he asked vaguely.

What the…

“Tell me."

His smile flickered, like he hadn’t expected me to go along with it and wanted to reward me.“Atticus was a Jesuit priest back when Eden was still a monastery,” Gage said, warming to the subject."Dedicated his whole life to God and the people of this parish, until one day…”

“Met someone pretty, huh?” I interrupted with a grin.

“Bingo.” Gage chuckled, twitching his eyebrows like we were sharing some private joke.“The daughter of a wealthy ship builder.There's still a portrait of her somewhere in the attic.Rosalind. That was her name. The way Boone told it, Atticus nearly went crazy from lust and grief.He left the church, married the girl, and inherited her family's fortune...and he spent the rest of his life trying to atone for it.Hoping to buy his way back into heaven, I guess.”

Gage's eyes were gleaming when he finally dropped them back to mine.“That's the Beaufort legacy. Atticus made damn sure every one of his descendants would use their money and power for the good of the parish.Most tried; Boone succeeded. He saved dozens of kids.My brothers and I got a second chance at life on the condition that we did something with it.They already have...but me? I’m not smart, and I’m not particularly talented.I’m only good at one thing. The only way I can prove that I deserve to be part of this family is by fighting for it when it counts.”

“So, you guys are…what? The justice league of Devil’s Garden?” I quipped, hoping to lighten things up with a levity I wasn’t feeling.

Gage let out a small huff of laughter.“Something like that.”

“You don’t earn a place in a family, Gage,” I said quietly.“That’s a job. Hell, it’s what I do every day.It’s not the kind of weight Boone should have ever put on a kid.”

Gage shrugged. “Small price to pay for family."

“You’re a long way from Gotham, Batman.”

“Am I?” His lips twitched into a grim little smile.“Doesn’t feel so different these days.”

“Is that what you were doing the night you showed up half-dead at my doorstep?Looking for trouble just to prove you're doing something?"

It wasn’t the first time I’d asked, but he clammed up every time I broached the topic.I figured he wasn't going to answer this time either, but he surprised me.

“I made a promise to Ivy,” he said slowly, choosing his words with care.“In a small town like this, she’ll never be at peace unless she knows that asshole won't come after her again.I know what that's like. My dad waited eight whole years to come back and finish the job on me, remember?"

“You found the guys who tried to abduct her?” I asked sharply.

“More like they found me,” he said, wincing.

“You shouldn’t have been poking around at all.” My fingers clamped around the armrests of my chair so hard the wooden finish began to crack.“This ain't the same town it used to be.The street thugs you used to fight on Saturday nights are long gone, replaced by hardened criminals who run drugs and girls across state lines.Christ, you’re lucky they didn’t slit your throat and dump you in the bayou.”

My body broke out in a cold sweat just thinking about it, and the obnoxiously unconcerned expression on his face didn’t help.

“Always figured I’d end up there sooner or later,” he said with a laugh.“You gave me more time than I ever thought I’d get.I’m not going to let Ivy grow up looking over her shoulder the way I did.”

“Gage…” I groaned, scrubbing my hands over my face.“You need to leave it alone. Let us handle it.”

“Like you handled it for Ben?” He rolled his tongue across his teeth and gave me a cynical smile.“I never finished telling you about Atticus, and how Rosalind was engaged before she met him.They say the guy never got over it.Went to his grave cursing anyone named Beaufort.You know what his name was?”

“No.”

“Josiah Vanderhoff.” He enunciated each syllable, heavy with irony.“Folks think we’re just two rich families arguing over who controls the parish, like dogs over a bone.But it goes back a lot further than that.I wasn’t joking when I said Vanderhoff came out of the womb hating our family.”

I grunted, surprised.

He lifted one eyebrow to drive the point home.“You’re a smart guy, Wyatt. You've seen how he acts around us.He hates us on principle, just because Boone loved us, and he won't stop until we're all locked up right next to Ben."

A log snapped in the fire. Gage's eyes were burning into mine.I exhaled slowly and pinched the bridge of my nose.

Vanderhoff wasn’t a friend, not by a long shot.He was a blowhard who abused his position for his own ego, but I'd never caught a hint of him tampering with evidence—and I'd looked.I'd been digging through restricted files for years to find some dirt on him, but nothing ever turned up.

“Acting like a prick doesn’t make him dirty, Gage.”

“Doesn’t mean he isn’t,” Gage shot back.

We stared each other down across the fire, dissatisfied, but done pushing—at least for now.The air between us felt fragile.

“We’re on the same side,” I muttered, tipping back my bottle and finishing the last of my lukewarm beer.

“Yeah,” Gage said quietly. “I know we are.”

After that, only the hiss and pop of burning logs filled the silence.The tension needed to break somehow.I watched him in the dim orange light, clocking the moment his face softened and his shoulders began to relax.My eyes trailed down his body, settling on his hands: rough, callused, and scarred at the knuckles.

“How are you feeling?” I asked roughly.

His lips tilted up at the corners.“Fine.”

“We put in a long day on the water.You wanna hit the sack?”

“Nah. Been a long time since I’ve had a night like this.” He shifted, stretching those long, muscular legs in front of him, and let his gaze drift over me.“I’d rather stay out here a while longer.Kind of like the company.”

I told myself it was just thesmoke, but then Gage’s eyes caught mine, and they were shimmering with heat.He looked like he was bracing for something.Waiting. God, I wanted him. But it couldn't be me reaching out thistime.I’d already pushed too hard, so I planted my hands on my thighs and stayedput.

Whatever happened next, it had to be hisdecision.

But that look in hiseyes…

I licked my lips, and when I spoke, my voice came out thick withneed.“If you want this to happen…you’re gonna have to make the first move thistime.”