Mastered by Malone (Haven, Texas 6)

“Gotta get out of here before the cops find me.”

Her heart raced at those words. “What exactly did you do?”

He stumbled his way to the truck, trying to get in the driver’s side. She reached out and tugged at his arm. “Jaret, you’re drunk. You’re not driving.”

He let out a bark of laughter and gave a salute. “You are so right, darlin’. You are so right.” She helped him around to the passenger side.

Somehow, even though he outweighed her by a good hundred pounds, she managed to get him inside the truck. He didn’t bother to put on the belt. She grabbed it, and pulled it over him, locking it in place.

“Ah, you take such good care of me, darlin’. Wanna marry me?”

“No.”

“Too bad. You’ve got a great ass.”

She shook her head and just shut the door. She leaned against it, her legs wobbling. She was out of shape. And feeling a little weak and lightheaded. She definitely needed some more sleep and food.

“Idiot! The whole bunch of them are idiots!” She walked around to the driver’s door and climbed in, turning on the truck.

“Course Alec would kill me if I made a move on you.”

“Alec wouldn’t care.”

“Warned us all off you, course he cares. Way he looks at you, easy to see why. Like you’re prime filet and he’s been on a vegetarian diet for years.”

“You’re drunk and delusional,” she muttered as she drove out of town and towards the ranch.

“Yes to the first, no to the second. Have to be blind not to see he wants you. Won’t have you, though.”

“Oh yeah, and why is that?” she asked.

“Cause Alec never lets himself feel anything. Not for his brothers, not for the women he fucks. And that’s all he does. Fucks. Oh, he likes that dominance stuff. But he always chooses women he doesn’t have to have feelings for. Cause he doesn’t have feelings.”

She wasn’t certain about that. “Everyone has feelings.”

He glanced over at her. “Sure. Unless they bury them deep. Unless they cut all ties to the people they’re s’pposed to care about. He pushes everyone away. Has since . . .” his voice trailed off.

She glanced over, wanting to prod him, knowing it was none of her business. But had something happened to Alec that meant he now kept people at a distance?

“He’s a bastard,” she muttered more to herself than to Jaret.

“That he is. It’s deliberate. If you hate him then you won’t want to be around him, and he can live out his miserly existence alone.”

That sounded awful. It was her worst nightmare. Having no one. And she was close to living it. But at least she had Mike.

“But he has all of you.”

“Yeah, and I bet that just pisses him off. Has to keep us around. We’re family. Doesn’t mean he has to love us. Alec Malone doesn’t love. He’s loyal. He’s bound by his own moral code. But he doesn’t love.”

She was quiet, thinking that over, and her anger against Alec dissipated. To be replaced with pity.

“Hey, this is one of the work trucks,” Jaret said suddenly.

“Yeah, well, I don’t have a vehicle. So I had to take one.”

“No worries, darlin. Everything we have is yours.”

It was a nice thought. But not true. She wasn’t family. She was just an obligation.