Redneck Romeo (Rough Riders 15)

Brandt’s gaze sharpened. “Why’re you bein’ so hostile about this?”

Two f**king days back here and Dalton was slipping into old patterns. Be enough to make him roar with outrage if he hadn’t gotten a handle on that former tendency too. “I’m not hostile. I’d like to know why it was so all-fired important for me to be here when it’s obvious he doesn’t want me here.”

“You wondering why he don’t want you here?”

No. I already know.

Brandt blew out a frustrated breath. “Look, he’s mentioned over the years he don’t think it’s right that you just up and left your ranch responsibilities to us.”

Dalton shoved his anger down, way down deep. After the mean bastard had all but chased him out of town, he had the f**king balls to talk smack about him to Brandt and Tell?

You’re surprised? He always tried to get you and your brothers to turn on each other.

Pointless. All of it. And he wouldn’t get sucked into an unproductive fight with his brothers because Casper had orchestrated it. He stood and gathered up the newspaper. “You’re right. My hostility, veiled as it may be, is causing problems. So I’ll go. I wouldn’t want to impede Casper’s recovery process.”

Maybe a small part of him was disappointed when his brothers didn’t try and stop him from leaving.

Tell stared at the door that’d banged shut after Dalton’s abrupt departure. “What the f**k is goin’ on with him?”

“Hell if I know,” Brandt said.

“I hate this.” Tell forced himself to flex his fingers, which had balled into fists. “Why won’t he talk to us?”

“I wish I knew.” Brandt got up and started pacing. “I never understood why he took off like he did after the thing with Addie. Something else happened. Something he didn’t tell us then and he ain’t tellin’ us now.”

Tell agreed. He’d gone over that last conversation between Dalton, Brandt and himself a million times. Still made his chest tighten when he remembered how fast it’d happened and everything in their lives had changed.

He and Brandt had shown up at their little brother’s trailer five days after the wedding fiasco at Dalton’s request. He’d taken his lumps for being a runaway groom and the three of them exchanging the good-natured barbs they always did. Then he’d tossed them the keys to his trailer and announced, “Thanks for coming by. Just a heads up that I’m leavin’.”

“What? Why?” Brandt had demanded.

“I don’t fit this place anymore.”

“Bullshit. It’s just a kneejerk reaction,” Tell said.

“I assure you it’s not.” Dalton pointed to his pickup. “I’m packed.” He pointed to the house. “It’s cleared out. Propane is shut off. They’re coming to cut the electricity Monday. The water is turned off. I wanted to say goodbye before I take off.”

“To where?”

Tell had watched as Dalton’s gaze swept the land he’d worked on, cursed at and been part of his entire life. “Anywhere but here.”

“No need to do nothin’ rash because of the Addie situation,” Brandt said. “It will blow over. We’ll help you figure something out that makes more sense than you running off.”

“Look, I appreciate the offer but my mind is made up.”

“Just like that? You didn’t come to us about any of this?” Tell demanded. “You just handled it on your own, like you do everything else? Fuck that, Dalton. You don’t get to leave.”

“Tell, that ain’t helpin’,” Brandt warned.

“I don’t care. This has been building for a while and we all know it. I thought if you settled down with Addie, things would go back to normal between us.”

“Normal…how?” Dalton asked.

“Don’t be a smart ass.”

“I’m not. I’m dead-ass serious,” Dalton said, trying to keep his tone even. “Things haven’t been normal around here since Mom and Casper split up and he got hit by the Jesus stick. We lost our family unit—shitty as it was. We’ve lost out on land. We’ve bought land. We’ve made plans to do something different in agriculture to expand our income base beyond what we’re makin’ as part of the McKay ranch. But I realized it’s all talk.” Dalton held up his hand when Tell started to protest. “Not laying blame. Just stating facts. The feedlot ain’t gonna happen. We’ve got extra acreage but we’re not running more cattle. Haying it does save us feed costs, but I didn’t charm Charlene Fox to become a damn hay farmer.” He paused. “And I get it, all right? You guys have wives and families of your own and you’re settled in. Those plans don’t mean as much to you now as they used to. But I sure as hell can’t implement any of those plans on my own, so I’m gonna take my cue from you two, let it go and move on.”

“So we didn’t do things your way, on your time frame, so you’re showing us how pissed off you are by leavin’ town? That’s pretty freakin’ childish, bro,” Tell said. “Plus, you are part of this ranch. It is your job to hay. Just because you ain’t happy with the work we’re doin’, or the way we’re doin’ it, don’t mean there ain’t work to be done.”

“My job, huh? When was the last time I helped either of you with chores?” Dalton asked, looking between them. “You don’t know, do you? I do. It’s been over a month. Five weeks and four days. The fact that neither of you noticed I wasn’t around at all during that time just proves you don’t need me around.”

Dumbfounded, Tell said, “Dalton, that ain’t—”

“Let me finish. Jessie helps out. Georgia helps out. Not because they have to; because they want to. That’s what both of you wanted in a wife—a partner who understands ranch life and is a daily part of it. Problem is, there’s nothin’ left for me to do.” Dalton’s jaw tightened. “I’m already known as the youngest McKay. I’m already known as the last single McKay. I sure as f**k won’t be known as the worthless McKay. Which is why I’m leavin’.”

“Tell?” Brandt prompted.

Jerked out of the memory, he opened his eyes and looked at his older brother. “Sorry. What?”

“We have to figure out a way to get Dalton to talk to us,” Brandt said softly. “It’s on us as much as it’s on him that this has gone on so long.”