Brokedown Cowboy Read online

  It was mid-September, and as far as she knew, Connor’s bank account remained void of settlements.

  “Nope.”

  “Well, that’s a little bit ridiculous, don’t you think?”

  He shrugged one shoulder then took another bite of cereal. “Probably. Just haven’t had the energy to go chasing it down.”

  “Don’t you think you should find the energy? All that equipment...”

  “I’m very aware of what I lost in the fire. I don’t need you to summarize. Anyway, I’ve been making use of Bud’s old tractor. Plus, Jack had some extra tools.”

  “That’s very nice. But don’t you want your own things?”

  “Yes, Liss,” he said, his tone getting hard. “I would very much like to have my own shit. Actually, what I would really like is for my barn not to have burned down.”

  Connor Garrett was six feet four inches of solid muscle. When he crossed his arms over his chest, showing off the strength in his powerful forearms and the full-sleeve tattoo he’d gotten a couple of years ago, he made a very intimidating picture. To other people. But not to her. “Too bad it’s not a perfect world, isn’t it?”

  Connor snorted. “Yeah, Liss, I have noticed that the world isn’t perfect.”

  “Noticing it isn’t enough. You have to do something about it.”

  “I was not aware that my cereal came with a lecture.”

  “It wasn’t supposed to. I have to go to work.” She set her bowl down on the counter then turned away from him, shoving her hands in her jacket pockets.

  “Wait.” She heard footsteps, and no small amount of rustling behind her.

  She turned back toward Connor, who was pouring coffee into a travel mug. “I’m waiting.”

  She watched as he put two spoonfuls of sugar and a splash of cream in the cup. Exactly the way she took her coffee. And of course he knew. “Coffee. You’re allowed to leave mad, but you’re not allowed to leave without caffeine.”

  She took the cup from his hand, holding her breath as her fingers brushed his, tightening her stomach muscles before they could do so involuntarily. “Thus ensuring that I don’t leave mad.” She lifted the cup. “Evil genius, Garrett.”

  “I am that, Foster. As you should well know by now.”

  “I’m familiar. Poker tonight?”

  “As far as I know. Eli has campaign stuff he’s working on, so I’m not sure if he’ll stop by, but I’m pretty sure Sadie is coming. And unless Jack is getting laid with some random stranger...”

  “Oh, Jack. It’s a real concern with that one.” Jack Monaghan was Connor’s other best friend. Between Eli and Connor in age, he’d been terrorizing Copper Ridge with the Garretts since the three of them were adolescent boys. And he had grown up to be a bigger terror than he’d been at twelve.

  Unlike Eli, who was staid and responsible, running for sheriff of Logan County and in a serious, committed relationship with onetime bad girl Sadie Miller. And unlike Connor, who had gotten married in his early twenties and settled into ranch work. Jack had never settled into much of anything. Except sleeping his way through the female population, and steadfastly refusing to grow up by opting for a career as a rodeo cowboy.

  Jack was hell on cowboy boots, but he was a lot of fun to have around. So long as you weren’t counting on him for much.

  “Yeah, well, one of us should go out there and get some.”

  Liss resisted the urge to ask for any details regarding Connor and his getting-some status. She was willing to bet he wasn’t, but then, it wasn’t like he told her everything. And Connor’s sex life was absolutely none of her business. In fact, she had spent the better part of the past seventeen years ignoring the fact that he had a sex life. Or at least trying to.

  “I’m happy for Jack to be the getting-some ambassador. Down with relationships!”

  Connor chuckled. “I don’t think Jack orders his sex with a side of relationship.”

  “He’s a better man than I am,” Liss said.

  “Yeah, me, too.”

  Well, that might answer her question. The one she wasn’t going to ask. The one she certainly wasn’t going to dwell on. Though she was dwelling a little bit.

  “Okay, Connor, I really have to go now. Thank you for the coffee.”

  “Thank you for the cereal. And the other things.”

  “My unending friendship, my support, my willingness to give you the hard truths?”

  “I meant the milk and the half-and-half. But sure.”

  She shot Connor a mock dirty glare and gave him a good look at her middle finger before turning and walking out the door. The crisp air touched her skin, bathing her in a feeling of freshness. The weather had already cooled quite a bit, and mornings were starting to take on that tinge of salted frost that signaled the fact they were leaving summer further and further behind.

  She walked down the stairs and toward her little Toyota. Good thing she had this car free and clear. And hopefully it stayed running. Since, thanks to Marshall, her credit was on life support. That asshole, driving off one day in the brand-new truck that had both their names on it. And then proceeding to not make payments. And then also continuing to use credit cards that were in both their names without her knowledge.

  She’d been able to get a certain amount of dings on the report taken care of, but some of it the bureaus had been unwilling to reverse. Right about now she couldn’t get a car loan, or a new rental house, to save her life.

  Which, because of the general stability of her lifestyle, wasn’t the biggest problem. Until a couple of days ago when she’d found out that her landlord needed her out of the house in thirty days because she was selling it.

  Yes, that had thrown a wrench in the works.

  But she would figure it out. She always did.

  She could always move in with her mother, though the very idea of it made her shudder. She wouldn’t be living on the streets, anyway, ideal situation or not.

  But she would worry about that later. First work, then poker. She could panic tomorrow.

  CHAPTER TWO

  “GET OUT OF my house, Miller.”

  His brother’s girlfriend looked up at him, the expression on her face comically innocent. “I came bearing gifts, Connor. Is that any way to greet a guest with presents?”

  “You brought Beavers paraphernalia into my house. OSU fans can stay out on the lawn. We worship at the temple of green and gold here.”

  Jack, who was already sitting at the table, thumped the side of the green ice bucket, proudly displaying the large University of Oregon O. “This is Duck country, sweetheart.”

  Sadie batted her eyes. “I had no idea. I just found this bright orange bowl and thought it would be a great bowl to bring black and orange M&Ms in.”

  “She’s a witch! Burn the witch!” Jack chanted from his position at the table.

  “Light anything else on my property on fire and I will roast you over the flames, Monaghan,” Connor growled.

  “Sorry, Con,” he said. “Bad joke, all things considered.”

  Connor supposed it was. But then, if you couldn’t laugh at life’s shit, you might as well lie down in it and die. Which...he was closer to doing some days than he’d like to admit.

  Sadie ignored him and walked into the house, putting her giant orange bowl on the table, an ugly blot near his hallowed Ducks ice bucket. “Eli should be by later. I invited Kate, too.”

  This elicited a groan from Jack, and, he realized after the fact, from him, too.

  “What?” Sadie asked. “Kate is my friend, and I want her here.”

  “She’s my little sister,” Connor said.

  “And I have to watch my mouth when she’s around,” Jack said.

  “But you don’t,” Sadie said, arching her brow. “Anyway, your boys
club gets stale. The testosterone is so thick a girl can hardly breathe.”

  “Hey,” Connor said. “What about Liss?”

  “She is an excellent source of estrogen, but firmly on your team,” Sadie said, reaching into her godforsaken bowl and taking out a handful of candy.

  He supposed he couldn’t argue that point. Liss was his friend. And had been for years. She’d stuck by him almost as long as Jack. And she wasn’t obligated by blood the way Eli was. Considering that, he definitely owed her an apology for being such a jackass this morning. But hangovers were not his friend.

  Considering that, he spent way more time with them than he should.

  “She’s coming, right?” Sadie asked.

  “Yeah, I’m surprised she’s not here yet.”

  As if on cue, the door burst open and Liss all but tumbled into the room, dropping her purse on the wooden floor and letting out a frustrated growl. “My damn car wouldn’t start.” She straightened and pushed her dark, coppery hair from her forehead, her hazel eyes telegraphing her evil mood with supreme effect. “I tried for twenty minutes in the parking lot at work, and then when I was getting ready to call a tow truck, it started for no apparent reason. That’s not a good sign.”

  Sadie closed the distance between herself and Liss and picked Liss’s purse up from the floor, not because Sadie was big into neatness, but because she seemed to like picking up after people. A therapist before she’d come back to Copper Ridge to open her bed-and-breakfast, Sadie liked fixing other people’s problems more than she liked just about anything else.

  Except antagonizing them with sports rivalries, apparently.

  “That sucks, Liss,” Jack said, leaning back in his chair, his eyes on the forbidden bowl of candy.

  “Eat the candy, Jack,” Connor said, keeping his eyes on Liss.

  She was wearing the same clothes she’d had on this morning, a pair of black dress pants and a blue button-up shirt, her hair hanging loose around her shoulders. She looked flustered, which was unusual for Liss.

  “Just one more thing I don’t need,” she grumbled. “Something smells good.”

  “Frozen pizza, à la me,” Connor said.

  “Yum!” Liss said, her crabby expression lightening. “Anything else?”

  “I brought pizza rolls,” Jack said.

  “Anything else?” Sadie asked.

  “There’s cheesy garlic bread in the oven. And marinara sauce to dip in,” Connor said.

  “So,” Sadie said, “pizza, pizza that’s folded in on itself and deconstructed pizza.”

  “Pretty much,” Connor said.

  “Any vegetables?” Sadie asked.

  “It’s like you don’t know us at all,” Jack said.

  “I’m on board with your choice of menu for the evening,” Liss said, sitting down at the table across from Jack and immediately snagging a beer from the Ducks bucket. “I require carbs, cheese and grease to deal with my mood.”

  “I’m sure Jake will take a look at your car,” Connor said, referencing Copper Ridge’s new mechanic. Jake was still building a client base, and he was counting on word of mouth to help do that.

  “Probably. But I don’t really want to go begging for free work. Anyway, as long as it’s a minor issue I can afford to deal with it. But I am not in a position to buy a new car.”

  Jack snorted. “Who is?”

  “Probably you,” Liss said.

  Jack just shrugged. Jack might be in the position but Connor certainly wasn’t. Not with his barn reduced to ash and charred ranch equipment. Though, truly, he supposed that was a fixable problem. But somehow, every time he went to fix the paperwork the insurance place had sent over, he got distracted and ended up doing something else. So the changes never got made. And the paperwork never got fixed. And his bank account stayed empty. And his barn stayed ash.

  Damn, he needed a beer.

  He took one out of the bucket and rested the bottle against the corner of the table, pulling it down as he slammed his hand on the top of it.

  “Show-off,” Sadie said.

  He shrugged. “Yeah, I just figured I’d put all my skills out there tonight. Putting frozen food in the oven, popping beer tops without a bottle opener. I’m a badass.”

  “A superepic one,” Liss said, taking a drink of her beer. “And after I’ve had this entire bottle, and possibly another, I might even upgrade you.”

  “To what?” he asked.

  “Superepic rock-star badass.”

  “I like that. But I think cowboy should be in there somewhere.”

  Jack winked. “You’re not a real cowboy, though, Connor. When was the last time you rode a bucking bronco?”

  “No, asshole, you’re confused. You’re not a real cowboy. You just play one in the ring,” Connor said.

  Sadie started humming “Rhinestone Cowboy,” and Connor decided he liked her a little more than he had a few moments ago.

  The oven timer went off and Connor crossed the living room and went to the kitchen, getting some hot pads and taking the bread and pizza out of the oven. The pizza rolls were sitting in a ball on the counter, and he stacked the pan laden with the real pizza on top of the bowl and carried the tray of bread in his other hand, taking it all into the dining area.

  He set the food down in front of Liss and Jack, and Sadie gleefully reached for a plate, hovering near the bowl of pizza rolls.

  “Next time, I promise to bake something,” Sadie said. “Quiche. That might elevate this a little bit.” Although her expression said she didn’t really mind slumming it with their subpar pizzas.

  “Sure, Sadie, you could do that,” Connor said.

  The door opened again, and Kate burst through it, followed by Eli, who was still in his uniform. Everything a stranger might want to know about his two younger siblings was conveyed by the way they walked into his house. Kate was exuberant, her footsteps loud, her grin irrepressible. Eli’s steps were measured, cautious. And when he saw Sadie, the slow, subtle smile that spread across his features expressed a depth of happiness that made Connor’s bones hurt.

  That had been him once. At least, that was how he remembered it.

  When he’d walked into a room, there had been only one place his eyes had gone. Jessie. She had been his focal point, his North Star, from the time he was eighteen years old. And then suddenly, she was just gone.

  And so was his star.

  He cleared his throat and took another drink of beer. There was no point in following that train of thought. No point in thinking about her at all. Except it was hard on nights like this. On the one hand, he depended on these get-togethers. They were his one opportunity to smile. To laugh. But when everyone was together like this, it was impossible to ignore the fact that it wasn’t everyone. And it never would be again. Jessie had always sat next to him when they played poker. And sometimes she cheated, and he pretended he didn’t notice.

  He hadn’t played a hand since without wishing she was there to look at his cards.

  Still, it was better than drinking alone.

  Liss sat next to him now. And he figured if he couldn’t be with his wife, he should be right near his best friend.

  Eli winced and reached into his jacket pocket, producing a vibrating cell phone. He let out a long-suffering sigh. “I’ve got to take this. Campaign stuff.”

  “It’s fine,” Sadie said, answering for all of them.

  “I’ll turn it off for the game.”

  “It’s fine,” Connor reiterated.

  Eli waved a hand and walked back outside, the phone pressed to his ear. Sadie was smiling dreamily after him.

  “He’s so sexy when he’s doing political stuff,” she said.

  Connor and Kate groaned. Then Kate moved farther into the room, offering her greetings.

&nb
sp; “Hey, Jack. Hey, Sadie, Liss,” she said, walking over to the table and taking a big piece of pizza off the pan, not bothering to use a plate. No greeting for him, but whatever. That was what younger sisters were for. “Did you sort out the rental situation?”

  It took him a moment to realize that Kate had directed the question at Liss. “What rental situation?” he asked.

  “Sorry. I didn’t realize you hadn’t told everyone,” Kate said, her expression sheepish.

  Liss looked slightly embarrassed. “Oh, no, it’s not a big deal. Anyway, no, not yet. But I will.”

  “Wait a second, what rental thing? Is something happening with your house, Liss?” Connor asked, feeling annoyed now, because his little sister knew something about his best friend that he didn’t.

  Liss let out an exasperated breath. “I’m dealing, Connor. Put away your duct tape and superglue. You don’t need to fix this.”

  He almost opened his mouth to say he hadn’t offered to fix a damn thing. Because it was true; he hadn’t. He hadn’t offered to fix a damn thing in years.

  There was no one around to complain if he didn’t. So sinks stayed leaky, windows stayed drafty and...well, he got drunk while his friend was having a problem, and motherfucker, he didn’t like that at all.

  “Well, maybe I want to fix it if I can,” he said.

  “That’s nice of you, Connor, but I don’t think you can. Unfortunately, I’m uncovering a lot of damage Marshall did to my credit when he took off a couple of years ago. Some of it was obvious and came to my attention pretty quickly. Some of it has been less so. There were other credit cards, an additional car loan, plus what I already knew about. Basically, even with the credit bureaus correcting some of it, I can’t get a new rental easily. And now that my landlord is selling...”

  “That’s not fair!” Kate said around a mouthful of pizza. “Most everybody here knows you, Liss. And a lot of us knew Marshall. So we kind of know he was an ass.”