Spurred (Steele Ranch 1)

“Me?” Briggs pointed to himself, then laughed. He even leaned back in his chair, slid his legs out long in front of him, as if he were at a bar, not in jail. “It’s Beth. She’s the crazy one. She talked about her sister’s inheritance and approached me.”

If I were a woman, I’d think him to be attractive, and I could see why Beth fell for him. His dark hair and eyes combined with the sociopathic personality could get practically any woman out of their panties—and their sisters’ fortunes. But he was also cocky and a total asshole. He all but looked down his nose at Archer, as if he were better and that once the small-town sheriff was done with his little chat, he’d be out the door.

“Did she hold a gun to your head when you got married?” Archer asked.

Briggs studied the sheriff across from him for a moment, assessed the conversation and answered accordingly. “A few kind words and she spread her legs. If she wanted to kill her sister, that was fine with me. I was content just helping her spend all the cash. Murder?” He shrugged. “That was all Beth’s planning.”

“No. God. No,” Beth murmured. “That’s not true. None of it is true! I didn’t know anything about it. He’s lying!”

Beth was crying now. Hard. The deputy reached up, turned off the sound from the other room because that was more than enough for her to see the true man she married. It was bad. Really fucking bad. Briggs would do anything to get out of hard time, even pinning the murder rap on Beth. He might be a drug addict, too, but he was high-functioning. I had to guess he had some money of his own that could feed his habit and keep him from being desperate. Keep him out of lockup. It didn’t keep him from being greedy though.

“You’re going to jail, Beth,” Kady said, her voice soft, but even. “You can decide if you want to go to prison rehab or a cell. It’s up to you. You’re on your own.”

Beth’s face was turned down, looking at her cuffed wrists, the floor. Tears dripped down her pale cheeks.

“I love you,” Kady added. “I always will, no matter what you do. But I can’t protect you anymore. If you choose to turn your life around, get clear of drugs once and for all, you know where to find me. Right here in Barlow.”

Beth just nodded, but didn’t glance up. Didn’t even have the decency to apologize for what she’d done, for what her actions had almost done to her sister. Until she was clean and looked Kady in the eye, stated what she’d done and apologized, she wasn’t getting back into her life.

Perhaps Kady thought that too, because she didn’t say anything else. She turned and took my hand. “I’m done here.”

That’s right. It was over. All of it. I had no doubt Archer would continue to interrogate Briggs and have him officially charged before too long. We didn’t need to stay and listen. As for Beth? Her sister would always be a strain for Kady. Even if she went to prison rehab, Kady would still worry. That was the kind of woman she was. But she’d let go of making her a responsibility and it was time for her to move on. With us.

I led her out of the office and out into the night, Cord right behind us. It was late, close to midnight. The stars were like a blanket across the inky black sky. All was quiet. While the air was cool, it wasn’t cold. A perfect night.

“I love you,” Kady said. No, she blurted it out, as if she’d been holding it back for so long it just popped out.

Cord froze. I tugged on her hand so she spun about to face me. Even under the harsh parking lot lights, she was so beautiful.

“What?” I asked, even though I’d heard her the first time.

She looked up at me, then Cord, tucked her hair back behind her ear.

“I love you.” This time, the words were said with less conviction and quite a bit of doubt.

“Sweetness, we know,” Cord replied.

“You…you do?” she frowned.

He cupped her jaw, stroked his thumb over her cheek. “In everything you do, say. In the way you look at us. The way you give yourself to us so beautifully.”

“Completely,” I added. “You don’t hold anything back.”

It was true. She loved with her whole heart and we were two fuckers lucky enough to have it. That was why it was so damned scary. We had her perfect, fragile heart in our hands.

“Is it true what you said?” Cord asked. “That you’ll be here in Barlow?”

She nodded. “Yes. God, yes. There’s nothing for me in Philadelphia anymore. I’ve kept my parents’ house because it’s always been home, but without them, without Beth in it, it’s not the same. And Beth…well, she won’t be there. Obviously. I’ve been lucky with my job, but I can teach anywhere.”

“Archer did mention they had an opening at the school,” I reminded, feeling even more hopeful by the second.

“I’d like to look into it. I’d like to stay.”

“With us?” I added.

She rolled her eyes. “Of course, you. No one else has given me jewelry.”

“You want a sparkling jewel on your finger to go with the pretty one we got for your ass?”