mugging for the camera. Dell on a horse. “You’re happy here,” Brady said.
“Very. Maybe you’ll feel the same.”
Brady shook his head. “Why does it matter so much to you?”
“Sol gave us this land. All of us. But Adam and I have gotten all the benefits.”
“You guys built this place. It’s yours.”
“You know, once we meant something to each other.”
Surprised by the vehemence in Dell’s voice, Brady looked at him. “Yes.”
At that, Del seemed to relax marginally. “We came from nothing—less than nothing—the three of us. And we forged a family. Your family, you stubborn ass, whether you like it or not.”
Brady’s eyes locked on the last picture. A lone man, head shaved, built like a tree trunk, staring into the camera with fierce intensity, and just looking at him made Brady’s chest ache like hell. Sol. “I know,” he said very quietly.
Besides him, Dell let out a breath. “I was beginning to wonder if I was going to have to kick your ass to remind you.”
Brady let out a rare smile. Because it was true that Dell had kicked Brady’s ass, exactly once. Of course Brady had been drunk as a skunk at the time and already down for the count. They’d been teenagers, and once Sol had gotten hold of them, they’d all been down for the count because Sol had made them drink the rest of the stolen vodka, watching in stoic silence as each of them had puked up their guts. Probably not a condoned method of parenting, but it’d worked.
Brady had never overindulged again.
“I could have taken you even without the vodka,” Dell said, reading Brady’s mind.
“Hey, whatever helps you sleep at night.”
They both laughed softly, the tension gone. “When the Bell came into our possession,” Dell said, “I knew we had you.”
Brady blew out a breath. What the hell. No use denying that. He was here in the States with nowhere else pressing to be, and it was a sweet old chopper. “Yeah.”
“You going to stick, then?”
Chances were he’d stick all right. He’d stick out like a sore thumb. But he was used to that. And what the hell. He watched as below Lilah carefully picked back up her precious bundle, loving him up as she did so.
He wouldn’t mind being loved up by those arms, that was for damn sure. “For a month,” he heard himself say. “Just a month.”
Five
L ilah took Toby back to the kennels. Actually, she had no idea what the dog’s name was since he hadn’t come with a collar, but he was an adorable mass of tangled fluff and looked like a Toby to her. He was also in desperate need of a bath, but getting him cleaned up turned out to be tricky since he told her he was deathly afraid of water.
Loudly.
She sweet-talked him into calming down and carefully soaped him up, working around the stitches from his surgery, and ended up wearing more of the soap than he did. Keeping up a steady stream of soft cooing and baby talk seemed to soothe his concerns quite a bit.
“There,” she murmured. “Doesn’t that feel better, to be clean?” Giving him a final rinse, she wrapped him in a towel.
He watched her solemnly from the most adorable, soul-searching eyes she’d ever seen, then very carefully licked her face.
“My second kiss of the day,” she said.
“And the first?” Cruz asked, coming into the back, leading Lulu the lamb to her pen.
“Not telling,” Lilah said.
Lulu stretched her neck and tried to take a nip out of Cruz’s tush, and Lilah burst out laughing.
“That’s okay,” Cruz told the lamb. “All the ladies want to bite my ass. You can’t help yourself.”
Lilah rolled her eyes. “You leaving for your gig?”
“Yes. Unless you want to take a bite out of my ass. No?” he asked, grinning when Lilah just gave him a shove to the door. “Okay, but you’re missing out. I taste better than the jelly filling you have on your right boob.”
Lilah looked down. Strawberry jelly, from her toast. “Balls!”
“Balls?”
She sighed. “I can’t
“Very. Maybe you’ll feel the same.”
Brady shook his head. “Why does it matter so much to you?”
“Sol gave us this land. All of us. But Adam and I have gotten all the benefits.”
“You guys built this place. It’s yours.”
“You know, once we meant something to each other.”
Surprised by the vehemence in Dell’s voice, Brady looked at him. “Yes.”
At that, Del seemed to relax marginally. “We came from nothing—less than nothing—the three of us. And we forged a family. Your family, you stubborn ass, whether you like it or not.”
Brady’s eyes locked on the last picture. A lone man, head shaved, built like a tree trunk, staring into the camera with fierce intensity, and just looking at him made Brady’s chest ache like hell. Sol. “I know,” he said very quietly.
Besides him, Dell let out a breath. “I was beginning to wonder if I was going to have to kick your ass to remind you.”
Brady let out a rare smile. Because it was true that Dell had kicked Brady’s ass, exactly once. Of course Brady had been drunk as a skunk at the time and already down for the count. They’d been teenagers, and once Sol had gotten hold of them, they’d all been down for the count because Sol had made them drink the rest of the stolen vodka, watching in stoic silence as each of them had puked up their guts. Probably not a condoned method of parenting, but it’d worked.
Brady had never overindulged again.
“I could have taken you even without the vodka,” Dell said, reading Brady’s mind.
“Hey, whatever helps you sleep at night.”
They both laughed softly, the tension gone. “When the Bell came into our possession,” Dell said, “I knew we had you.”
Brady blew out a breath. What the hell. No use denying that. He was here in the States with nowhere else pressing to be, and it was a sweet old chopper. “Yeah.”
“You going to stick, then?”
Chances were he’d stick all right. He’d stick out like a sore thumb. But he was used to that. And what the hell. He watched as below Lilah carefully picked back up her precious bundle, loving him up as she did so.
He wouldn’t mind being loved up by those arms, that was for damn sure. “For a month,” he heard himself say. “Just a month.”
Five
L ilah took Toby back to the kennels. Actually, she had no idea what the dog’s name was since he hadn’t come with a collar, but he was an adorable mass of tangled fluff and looked like a Toby to her. He was also in desperate need of a bath, but getting him cleaned up turned out to be tricky since he told her he was deathly afraid of water.
Loudly.
She sweet-talked him into calming down and carefully soaped him up, working around the stitches from his surgery, and ended up wearing more of the soap than he did. Keeping up a steady stream of soft cooing and baby talk seemed to soothe his concerns quite a bit.
“There,” she murmured. “Doesn’t that feel better, to be clean?” Giving him a final rinse, she wrapped him in a towel.
He watched her solemnly from the most adorable, soul-searching eyes she’d ever seen, then very carefully licked her face.
“My second kiss of the day,” she said.
“And the first?” Cruz asked, coming into the back, leading Lulu the lamb to her pen.
“Not telling,” Lilah said.
Lulu stretched her neck and tried to take a nip out of Cruz’s tush, and Lilah burst out laughing.
“That’s okay,” Cruz told the lamb. “All the ladies want to bite my ass. You can’t help yourself.”
Lilah rolled her eyes. “You leaving for your gig?”
“Yes. Unless you want to take a bite out of my ass. No?” he asked, grinning when Lilah just gave him a shove to the door. “Okay, but you’re missing out. I taste better than the jelly filling you have on your right boob.”
Lilah looked down. Strawberry jelly, from her toast. “Balls!”
“Balls?”
She sighed. “I can’t
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