Also didn’t change the knowledge that he, cold, bitter, woman-hating, reclusive Cord McKay would like nothing better than to walk straight into her arms. Right here, right now, right in front of Toots the bartender, Sam the banker, Bebe the town gossip and everyone else.
Kade took him aside. “He’s wasted.”
“Yeah. I noticed.”
“Says he wants to press assault charges against you.”
“I ain’t surprised.”
“Toots ain’t callin’ the sheriff. I’m gonna take him home.”
“Thanks.” Cord knew that wasn’t enough, so he repeated it. “Thanks, Kade. I really appreciate it.”
“No problem. But I will tell you that you’re gonna hafta come up with a way to deal with him, Cord, and I doan mean with your fists. I lived with the son of a bitch and I’d no idea it’d gotten this bad.”
“Appears he’s been good at hidin’ it up until now.”
“Appears so. But it’s out there now. Whole damn town’s gonna know about it by tomorrow. I doan envy you tellin’ Uncle Carson and Aunt Carolyn ’bout this. I’d call them right away before someone else does.” Kade focused on Cord’s cheek. “Get someone to look at that cut. You’re bleedin’ pretty good.”
Someone. Right. He had no one.
Cord made it to the exit when he smelled her behind him. He slowly turned around and wondered if he looked as pathetic as he felt.
“You okay?”
No. “Sore. Pissed off. Embarrassed.”
“I figured. You going home?”
“Yeah. But first I get to wake my folks up and tell ’em their son’s a drunk and caused a scene in public. Then I get to call my brothers and my baby sis and tell them the same damn thing.” He sighed. “What the hell am I gonna do about him?”
“I don’t know.” AJ looked right into his eyes. “I want to come home with you. No strings. I just really don’t think you should be alone tonight.”
“AJ—”
“Would it be so hard to let me take care of you? Just for one night?”
Cord stared at her, wishing his hand wasn’t bloody so he could touch her sweet face.
Wishing he could be a man instead of a shell of one.
“Cord?”
“I’d like that, baby doll. I’d like that a helluva lot more than you could ever know.
I’ll see you at home.”
Chapter Fifteen
Kade threw Colt in his pickup and he passed out before they hit the outskirts of town.
He had that same hollow feeling in his gut he’d seen in Cord’s eyes. Poor bastard.
No extra cars were parked at the Boars Nest, just Kane’s and Dag’s trucks.
Great. He hadn’t seen his cousin since he’d inadvertently seen way more of Dag’s nocturnal activities that night he’d moved out. If he was lucky, maybe Dag’d be passed out and he wouldn’t have to deal with another f**ked up situation with one of his cousins.
Colt managed to stumble into the house on his own. Kade still felt some perverse responsibility to make sure his brother was all right. After he checked on Kane and found him snoring in bed, he noticed Dag sat in the darkened living room, drinking cheap whiskey straight from the bottle.
“Evenin’ cuz.”
“Evenin’ Dag.”
“You pissed I moved inta your room?”
“No. Just wondered why you skipped out on your dad.”
Dag snorted. “He don’t need me. He’s got his hired hand and Chassie’s squeeze, Trevor to whip the West homestead into shape.” He saluted with the bottle. “Fuckin’ place is rundown. None of the damn equipment works, and somehow the old man sees that as my fault. Even when I ain’t been around for years.”
“Maybe that’s why he’s blamin’ you, Dag. He’s old. He ain’t been able to take care of that place for a long time. Since way before your mama died.”
“He don’t wanna take care of it. He ain’t never wanted to be a rancher. He wanted to be a damn mechanic. But rather than stand up to granddad, he knuckled under. And instead of lettin’ me pursue my dream of pro rodeo, he done the same damn thing to me.”
Dag took another swig. “Makin’ me quit the circuit to come home to tend to forty lousy cows and two hundred acres. I could hate him for that alone.”
“You don’t mean that.”
Dag sighed. “I probably don’t. It’s just…I didn’t ask for this. Ain’t my fault I was born first, the only male. I ain’t like you and Cord. I don’t wanna spend my life a slave to the land.”
Kade bristled. “So instead you’re just gonna be a drunk? Carryin’ on about your glorious past rodeo days? Don’t you think there are times Cord and I wanna walk away?
Say f**k it and do something easier?”
“No, I don’t. You’ve both got too much of that goddamn McKay pride my daddy warns me about.”
“What the f**k does that mean?”
“Why do you think my dad didn’t want his sister—your mother—to marry a McKay? Because they don’t care about no one but themselves. You ain’t neighborly.
You ain’t aware of nothin’ that goes on outside the borders of the all important McKay Ranch.”
“Drunk talk. That ain’t true.”
“It is. You’ve all got too much pride.”
“I’d rather have some pride than none like you.”
“Fuck you too.”
Here was the opening he’d been looking for. “No thanks. But I didn’t know you swung that way until I got an up close and personal view of some of your nighttime activities.”
“What’re you talkin’ about?”
“Don’t pretend you don’t know.”
“I don’t. I can’t remember shit about anything.”
“You’ve been drinkin’ so much you’ve been blackin’ out?”
“So?”
“So, do you ever wake up with a sore mouth, a sore dick and a sore ass**le with no clue of how you got it?”
A hint of wariness crept into Dag’s bloodshot eyes.
“I don’t care if you’re g*y, Dag. But if bein’ gay and bein’ afraid to come out is causin’ you to drink too much, you need help on a couple of different levels, cuz.”
“Me? Gay? I ain’t g*y. Is this some kinda joke?”