Chapter 10

"Okay, Carson, what the hell?" Sterling stormed into the rental, hating that he'd been about to come clean to Benji and had been interrupted. Carson had said it was an emergency that was best not explained on the phone, and then Geoff had texted a panicky 9-1-1 as he was on his way to the truck.

So it had better be damn important.

"That talent scout from that The Rich and Unmarried show—he's found you. He's here in town, staking out the hangar."

"Shit. He must have bribed someone at the airport in Aspen."

"Yeah, because you know Jimmy isn't talking."

"No. And I can't see anyone from the ranch doing it." He grabbed a beer out of the fridge. "That could put a serious crimp in this whole fucking mess."

"You know that's right. What are you going to do? You need to make a move."

"Well, I was in the midst of telling Benji what was going on when you called." He flipped the lid off the beer and flung it at the trash, his frustration starting to boil over.

"Like the truth?" Carson blinked at him like he'd smacked the man with a baseball bat.

"Yes. I don't like lying to him. I figure we can work something out."

"Well, shit, Boss, I thought you would want to know right away so no one let the cat out of the bag."

"Yeah." He slumped down into a kitchen chair. "Dammit."

"Let's go home. You say that baby is safe. Obviously Sierra didn't want the baby. Let's go home."

"I can't." He shook his head. "And it's not only the baby, Kit. Things got way more complicated."

Carson stared at him. "Uh-oh. You fucked him, didn't you?"

He shrugged and swigged his beer. Sterling was reluctant to call that fucking. But they'd certainly gone at it, whatever he called it.

Carson stared at him.

And stared.

And stared.

"What?"

"You— Are you falling for him, Silver?"

"It's kind of soon for that," he snapped. But that was how it felt.

"Okay. We need a plan."

"Like what?" He had no idea what to do. He wanted to go back to Ben's and hide.

"Well, if you're going to tell the truth, and you're going to see him again, that's one plan. If you're going to lie and see him again? Plan two. Plan three would be truth and goodbye, and four is lie and goodbye, which rhymes."

He had to crack a grin. "I want plan one."

"Plan one. You are a challenge. So it's avoid the TV folks, tell Mr. Nursey about the baby, the sister, the money, the ranch, the private plane, the yacht…"

"The yacht is really Dad's." He wasn't an ocean kind of guy, though he did like to go to the beach once a year or so and remind himself how small he was.

"Uh-huh. The private hot springs is yours, though."

"Shut up." He did have a gracious plenty in his life, and he was grateful for it, and he wanted to share it with Xavi. Somehow. "I'm not going to take his baby, but—I want to be in his life, dammit. I can help."

He didn't know why Sierra had ghosted them— no one had been evil to her, no one had hurt her. Had his folks been perfect? Fuck no, but they weren't bad people. They were just…people. And he and Sierra had been close as kids.

But she had wanted a different life. So be it. But Xavi just… God, he wanted that kid to have all the advantages he could give. He wanted to watch him grow up. He wanted Xavi to have the family name.

He wanted Xavi to have everything.

The fact he wanted Benji too complicated the fuck out of things.

"Okay. Let me get your psycho assistant on the TV people." Carson rolled his eyes.

"Good idea." Geoff would glitter-and-puka-shell-necklace the hell out of the son of a bitch.

"Yep. That might mean he'll show up here."

"Admit it, you would love it, Kit."

"Hush now." Carson snorted softly. "You leave him for me. I could tie him in knots. A lot of knots. Tight ones."

"Mmmhmm. Kinky." He winked at Carson, then ran his hand over the back of his neck. "What else?"

Carson snorted. "Your dad called. Checking. He has radar."

"The man is freaking uncanny." He rolled his eyes. Dad had this weird-assed thing where Sterling was concerned, and he didn't understand it, but it was regular as clockwork. And usually it coincided with something Sterling would rather the man not know about…

"Anything with Mom while we're at it?"

"Just another plea to have you call her."

"Ugh." Talking money with his mom sucked.

"Ignore her, then?" Carson's grin was vicious. "Or send her to Flighty Butthead?"

"Sic her on Geoff. I'll deal with Dad." His father would simply hop on a plane and come bother him if he didn't foil that shit.

"Fair enough. Geoff gets the mom and the TV folks. You got Dad. What about me, Silver?"

"I need you to buy me time with everything else. You know about stuff that Geoff has no idea about. And I need the breathing room." Carson had signing privileges on a lot of his ranch business.

"You know it. Whatever you need. I want to meet him. The baby. I want to vet him. The not-baby one."

"Okay." He agreed because if he didn't, Carson would find a way to end up in Ben's path. "You're my cousin, after all."

"I am. Annie and I have been working up a dossier on him, you know. He's a solid guy. Like incredibly boring solid."

"He's not the least bit boring, trust me." Benji was fascinating.

"Not at all? Dude, Silver—he buys a single six-pack a month. Every month."

That made his mouth quirk up at the corners. "Yeah, well, he'll have to buy two this month."

"Oh, ho! I'll send him a case. Bud Light twenty-four pack."

"Bitch." He had to laugh, though, because what else could he do? The situation was ridiculous. But here he was, and he didn't know how to fix it, except he had to tell Benji the truth.

Benji deserved it. Hell, he deserved it. He wanted…

Shit, he needed to figure that out, for fuck's sake. The lizard part of his brain wanted to grab both Benji and Xavi and drag them back to Aspen with him. Which might not work out too well at the moment.

Partly because Benji had a life.

And because they'd known each other a week, and Benji didn't know him yet.

And because he wanted Benji to want to run away to Aspen with him, dammit.

He took a deep breath. "I'm in over my head, Kit."

"But you don't want me to take you home."

"Nope. I have to see where this takes me."

Carson shook his head. "You're gonna crash and burn, but I'm in. I'll catch you at the end."

Carson always did, didn't he? From coming out to his dad to losing Sierra to his first broken heart to having to break the first heart of his own. Carson was right there.

His best friend.

"Too bad you and I don't want to fuck, buddy." He grinned when Carson nodded.

"No shit on that. Make life easier."

They glanced at each other, then they both cracked up, howling with laughter.

He needed that—to laugh, to release his pressure valve, and to get his head on straight.

So he would spend a little while with Carson, maybe have some tacos because he hadn't eaten near enough pizza, and get his scattered chickens together.

And then he would call Benji and try to make another date.