Chapter Twenty-One

Greg had to feed two more horses before checking the fields. He poured grain into one of the troughs when Carter spoke from where he had Skylar tied outside her pen.

Carter loved Skylar, but she could be a pain when it came to tightening the cinch.

Greg smiled and shook his head. No one could say the horse was stupid. "Need help?"

"She's stubborn." Carter let out an exasperated sigh.

Greg nodded in understanding and took Carter's place beside the horse. Greg pointed to a well-worn hole in the cinch-strap. "Here?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Greg. Daddy's going ride with me too, but he got distracted."

"Oh yeah?" Greg knew damn well what had distracted Travis, but he wanted to know Carter's interpretation.

Carter scrunched his face up in disgusted. "Papa started kissing him."

"I see where that might hold him up some." Greg pulled on the cinch strap, but Skylar held her breath and inflated her belly. "You are a stubborn girl, aren't you?"

Greg reached into his pocket and pulled out a mint candy. It was still in the wrapper, but she could smell it. Her excitement allowed her to forget about the cinch strap, so Greg managed to get it to the hole Carter needed.

"They do that all the time. My parents are so weird."

"They love each other. And you." Greg unwrapped the mint and held it flat in his hand. "Good girl."

Skylar took it without another stubborn protest.

"Yeah, I know. Did your parents act like mine do?" Carter ran a hand down Skylar's nose, waiting for her to eat her treat.

"No." Greg's jaw clenched as he thought about how to respond to a ten-year-old boy. Telling him the harsh truth with gory details wasn't an option "They hurt each other a lot. I don't think they ever cared for each other."

Carter shuffled a foot over the dust on the floor of the barn. "Why did they marry each other then?"

That was a good goddamn question, and one Greg had asked himself a million times. He shrugged.

"Do they still hurt each other a lot?"

"Not anymore. My dad died, and my mom is in jail for a long time."

Carter hung his head, leaning into Skylar. "That's terrible. I bet you miss them."

Greg hadn't actually, and that was part of the guilt trip he'd laid on himself since Roger died. He didn't know what to do about it, so he tried not to think too hard. Brian had helped in that regard. "Well, you know how I came here as a kid and Leonard took care of me."

Carter nodded. "Like my dad, kinda."

"Yep. I guess he makes it easier."

"And Neil's like your brother."

"Yeah." Greg smiled. "He kinda is."

"Are you going to marry Brian? Papa and Brian were talking about it earlier."

God, he wanted to dig through Carter's brain until he had a recording of exactly what he'd heard. Since that wasn't fair to a boy so young, he answered, "I don't know."

"People don't kiss each other if they don't want to marry. My papa told me that. You should know for sure before you start kissing him." Love advice from a ten-year-old. Nice.

Greg was thoughtful for a moment, not sure how to word what he needed to say. "I don't know if Brian wants to get married. He might not like me that much."

"Uncle Brian likes you. He told Papa that." Greg didn't even know Brian was on the farm.

"I'll have to think about that, I guess."

Carter shrugged, dismissing the subject. "Will you help me get Splash ready for Daddy?"

"Sure." It didn't take as long with Splash. She was easy to saddle. Once he had her ready with a bridle on, he led her out into the farmyard and waited for Carter to put a bridle on Skylar.

Carter came out with the horse trailing behind him.

The wait for Travis didn't take long as he came strolling down the walking trail with a smile on his face. That must have been a good kiss.

Greg raised his eyebrows but didn't say anything.

Travis appeared confused. "What?"

"What?"

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like you heard gossip about me."

Greg winked at Carter. "That's because I did. Heard you were making out with Jaron." He used air quotes when he came to the making out part.

Travis smirked. "We have company, smartass."

Greg chuckled.

"Go check the fencing on the west side of the property and get out of my face." Travis' grin softened his words, letting him know he wasn't serious. The smile died, and he rubbed the back of his neck. "Seriously, though. I think some cows are slipping through to the other pasture. I left the tools at my house. They're right by the door."

Greg nodded. He went into the barn and grabbed the keys for the four-wheeler off the hook right inside. He went to the shed, got the four-wheeler out and then headed over to Travis' house from the roadway because it was easier getting the four-wheeler down the road versus the walking path.

Greg noticed Brian's car in the driveway and smiled. He'd missed Brian since the minute they parted yesterday. He almost left the vehicle running, but he intended to grab a kiss or five, and that would take time. So instead, he shut it off but left the keys dangling.

Greg tried to see through the tall windows, but the sun shone in such a way it obscured the view. That time of day always did. Greg opened the door and immediately took off his shoes, bracing himself against the wall as he scanned the room.

His stomach ached when he saw Brian sitting on Jackson's lap. Greg rubbed at his chest even as he put his boots back on.

Brian whispered something in Jackson's ear, so he didn't notice Greg right away.

Jaron and Jackson both did, though.

Jaron's eyes widened as he met Greg's gaze. He shook his head and came off his bar stool, putting himself between Greg and the other two.

Jackson had a hand on Brian's waist but let go and held it up as if he'd surrendered.

The silent exchange happened in seconds, but it felt like forever.

The second Brian saw Greg, he lifted off Jackson's lap, crossing the room to him.

Greg held up a hand, stopping Brian from coming any closer. "Don't."

Brian's face paled as he turned to Jackson again as if asking for help with the situation.

Jackson stood. "I'm not poaching man, I swear. Brian and I are friends."

God, he wanted to punch Jackson for daring to touch Brian, but violence wasn't his thing. He wouldn't start down that road, not even to prove something to Brian.

And what the fuck did he have to prove anyway? That he was a possessive fucking prick.

"That's complete bullshit, and everyone here knows it." Greg opened the sliding glass door.

Brian was the one who responded. "Jackson and I have had occasional sex. But—"

"But you didn't mean it when you said exclusive," Greg finished for him.

Brian shook his head. "That's not what I was going to say." He held out his hand and tried to close the distance between them.

Greg turned and walked away, across the porch and down into the yard.

Jaron grabbed his arm as he sat down on the vehicle seat. "You need to calm down. You shouldn't drive while you're so angry."

Greg ignored him and turned the key. Thankfully, it started on the first try. He looked at Brian from where he stood in the yard. "I'm not angry. I'm hurt."

God, his fucking heart ached.

Brian's arms were around his waist, and his face had turned pale. "I'm not a liar, Greg Mitchell."

Greg took off down the driveway, heading for the road again.

Greg would have to find the tools he needed someplace else because he wouldn't go back. They might have some old tools in the shed that would work, even if they would make the job harder.

He found all that he needed in two different places, and by then Jackson had pulled his truck next to the main house. Jackson got out and made a beeline for Greg, but he took off between the barns at a speed he shouldn't have driven. He knew it, and he'd hear it from Leonard as soon as he got back from fixing the fences.

He didn't even think about anything but getting away. He cut across an overgrown field that was more brown grass than green.

He opened the throttle and flew down the hill.

The quad hit a bump and became airborne and Greg went topsy-turvy before landing on something hard, his body breaking against whatever it was, and the air forced from his lungs. He bounced off whatever it was and rolled to the side onto his back. The impact knocked the wind out of him for a second time when the four-wheel landed on top of him.

His vision blurred. He had the brief thought that maybe he'd hit his head on something right before he blacked out.