Jack’s hair was a mess, his shirt was unbuttoned, his belt was buckled but his fly was undone. And he didn’t seem a bit concerned that Gavin saw his state of undress.
“Sorry.” She gave Gavin a sheepish look. “We, um, borrowed your room for a few minutes. Sierra was coming out of that room the same time I came out of this one. So I thought it’d be best if Jack stayed hidden.”
So they had snuck off for a quickie. In the midst of all this chaos? In a house filled with family members?
Yeah, Gavin planned to keep Sierra far, far away from Keely.
Keely was already focused on Jack, smoothing the wrinkles from his shirt. “GQ, we have to straighten you up before you go out there. You look like you’ve been rolling around in bed.”
“Or more accurately, on the floor.” Jack made a low noise and wrapped his hand around the back of Keely’s neck, pulling her closer. “Since I’m half-dressed…it’s your wifely duty to get back in here and make sure I don’t miss any buttons.”
“But we already—”
“That one was for you. This one? For me.” She squeaked when he tugged her into the room.
The last thing Gavin heard: “Lock the damn door, cowgirl.”
At least someone was getting laid in this place.
He shot a look at Rielle’s closed door. He knocked. No answer. He started back down the hallway. When he reached the entryway, Quinn walked in through the front door.
“Hey. I wondered what happened to you.”
“Just enjoying the fresh air. You look like you could use some.” Quinn smiled. “Dad—Charlie—is outside. I was getting him a beer.”
“I’ll take it to him.”
Quinn reached into the cooler and pulled out a Miller Lite. “Have at. Better see if Libby needs my help with the kids anyway.”
Gavin grabbed another beer and stepped onto the porch. He took a second to breathe in the cool night air and take in the blessed quiet. He saw Charlie sitting on the steps and walked over, dropping beside him. “Miller Lite, right?”
“Gavin.” Charlie didn’t hide his surprise. “Wasn’t expecting you.” He quickly added, “But I’m glad you have time for a beer.”
“I needed a break. I left the kitchen in Vi’s capable hands.”
Charlie twisted the top on his beer bottle. “She’s in her element. Thanks for asking her to help. It means more than you know.”
“Help? Hell, it was her idea.”
He chuckled. “I ain’t surprised to hear that. So how’re the West boys comin’ with the garage? I couldn’t see much of it in the dark tonight.”
“They do great work, but they had to stop for several weeks and finish another project. It’s almost done. You should swing by during the day and check it out. They don’t mind having people around.”
“I’ll do that. I guess my question is do you mind havin’ me around?”
Gavin released a slow breath. “I’ll admit even after being here a while I don’t know how this living close to family thing works. What are the parameters? Do you just drop by Quinn and Libby’s? And Ben and Ainsley’s?”
“We used to. Not so much anymore. We call first.” He took another pull off his beer. “Vi…God love the woman, but she overstepped her bounds with Quinn and Libby from the moment they got married. Things went south for them for a while and they ended up mending fences. Quinn warned his mom to butt out. Then she made a pledge to all the boys she wouldn’t try to control them, or guilt them, or nag them. And she’s even stuck with that promise—for the most part.”
“I remember the first time I showed up here and Vi said that situation with Quinn and Libby was a wakeup call for her?”
He nodded. “Vi had one of those moments where every damn thing you’ve done wrong just smacks you square in the face. That’s when she finally told me about you.”
Gavin didn’t have the balls to ask if Charlie felt what Vi had done—giving him up for adoption—was wrong. Because one thing he’d noticed about Charlie? The man had fierce loyalty. If he disagreed with his wife, he never said so in public. He held Vi in the highest regard. Whereas Gavin’s father, Dan, was the complete opposite. While a shrewd businessman, he made a lousy husband, and Gavin’s mother had turned a blind eye to her husband’s many affairs.
“I ain’t gonna pretend I wasn’t mad. I was mad as hell. And don’t take this the wrong way, but my anger was directed at her—not that she’d given a baby up for adoption, but that it’d taken her so damn long to tell me about it.”
“Would it have made a difference if she’d told you ten years earlier? Twenty years earlier?”
“I can’t answer that. Sweet baby Jesus her father was a mean bastard, so I never doubted for a second that shaming her into an unwed mother’s home was solely his doing.” Charlie tipped his bottle up and drank. “I argued with her for even wanting to name our second son Bennett because I didn’t want anything to do with that SOB.” He sighed. “Sorry. I’ve started doin’ that old man rambling thing. I’m sure this had a point, but I’ll be damned if I remember what it was.”
“I asked about your family policy on drop-ins.”
“Ah. Policy. Well, remember that I ranched with Quinn and Ben, so we were at each other’s places every day. Chase hasn’t lived around here for any length of time since he started ridin’ bulls. This thing with you…is a new situation for us. We don’t wanna crowd you, but you oughta know that we both consider it nothin’ short of a miracle that you’re even here, livin’ a few miles up the road from us. It’s more than we ever had hoped for.”
“I fear the reality won’t match up to the hype.”
“You mean living in Wyoming? Or living around family?”
Both. Neither. “I don’t know what I mean. I appear to be rambling too.” He changed the subject. “The driving lessons with Sierra are going well?”
Charlie smiled. “I’ll admit it’s a lot different teaching a girl to drive. I don’t recall that I ever taught the boys much. They just seemed to know it. She’s eager to learn, that’s for damn sure.”
“She listens to you?”
“Mostly. The girl does ask a lot of questions. And she likes to talk.”
“Bet that’s a different experience.”