Her Three Wilde Champion Men (Wilde, Nevada 2)

“Yes, sir. I’ve got it.” Jim jumped up and unlocked the door that led to the cells in the back. He closed it behind him, leaving Brandon alone with his brothers.

Alex leaned against the desk. “Shelby doesn’t deserve any of this shit.”

“No she doesn’t,” Justin said. “You’ll get her name cleared up, won’t you, Brandon?”

“She’s innocent,” Alex interjected. “Of course, he will.”

“Innocent or not doesn’t always mean much in a court of law, especially in Elko County with Byrd as sheriff.” Brandon felt the gravity of the situation deep in his gut.

“You can’t fail her,” Alex said, a tinge of panic in his voice.

He agreed, his mind trying to figure a way out of this mess but coming up dry. What kind of attorney kissed his client? Apparently his kind. Get your head in the game, Brandon. Her gun had been found at the scene. So many questions surrounded that bit of evidence. How had it gotten there? Who had taken it from her home? Her two guests, Norma and Lily, were at the top of his possible suspect list. Shelby had told him not to pursue them, but he must. As soon as possible, too. Why would they want to implicate Shelby? Or was it the drug lords, as his pop had suggested? There were a ton of loose threads to investigate.

“She needs you, Brandon. Hell, she needs all of us,” Justin said.

“What do you mean by that?” Alex asked.

“I love her, and I know you love her too, Alex.” Justin looked at Brandon. “You’re falling for her, admit it.”

“That doesn’t matter. She’s my client. It’s unethical for me to do anything about my alleged feelings for her.”

“Alleged? My ass.” Justin grinned. “You’re as gone on her as I am.”

“Which one of us is going to get her?” Alex asked.

“Not this fucking game again,” Brandon snapped. “I thought we outgrew that crap.”

“Listen to me,” Justin said. “She’s not looking for one of us. Shelby’s from Wilde. She wants all of us. Get it?”

“Yes,” Alex nodded. “I get it. I’m not sure that kind of thing would work for me, but if that’s what Shelby wants I’m willing to give it a try. No promises.”

Justin smiled. “That’s all she’s hoping for. A chance.”

Shit. Brandon had never even considered that as a possibility. “This isn’t the time or place for this discussion, Justin. Shelby’s in big trouble. We have our work cut out for us to make sure she’s cleared of all Byrd’s charges.” He needed to get his brothers focused back on helping Shelby. “When Byrd comes back and we get her released, you go talk to Austin. He’s at the center of this Mexican cartel crap. Alex, go see Pop. I bet he has some ideas about who else might be behind these murders. I must follow up with Shelby’s guests.”

“What the hell is taking that kid so long?” Justin growled, looking up at the big clock on the wall above the deputy’s desk. “He should’ve been back already. Shelby better be okay.”

Jim came back through the door, closing it behind him. Brandon heard the lock click, a reminder that they were still separated from Shelby because of Byrd’s doing.

“Did you tell her what I told you to say?” Brandon asked.

“I did. She was crying. I got her some tissue. I hate to see a woman cry.”

“Thank you for taking care of her for us,” Alex said.

“I did try. I gave her a bottle of water and some chips from the vending machine.”

Alex leaned forward. “Good job, Deputy.”

Brandon hated every second that passed. He’d never been able to bring Byrd down, but he swore that one day he would succeed. Now, more than ever, he wanted to make that happen, especially for Shelby.

“Did you not hear what Jim said about her, or are you going deaf? Shelby was crying.” Justin turned to the young man. “I don’t give a fuck what your goddamn rules are, Deputy. You are going to let me go back there right now or you’ll regret it. Trust me.”

Justin always had the shortest fuse of the three of them. He was in a state of rage, which wasn’t a good thing for any of them, especially Shelby.

Brandon stepped in between Jim and Justin. “Everyone needs to settle down.”

“Fuck that. Byrd’s responsible for this. Maybe I should go looking for him.”