Rebel (Renegades 2)

Lexi stretched up on her toes, her hands filled with plates. “I kinda want to practice something else. ”

And she kissed him again. Jax groaned. He set the dishes in his hand down without breaking the kiss and gripped Lexi’s face, pulling her in and kissing her hard. Wes didn’t know how he knew, but he just knew—those two were going to last the distance. He was both thrilled for them and envious of them at the same time.

Rodie let out one impatient bark, dragging Wes’s gaze down to his brindle-and-white face. He took one look at those lopsided ears and smiled. He was one really freaking great dog, which, he knew from a lifetime of raising animals, said a lot about his owner. He glanced at Rubi once more and found her fingers still, hovering over the keys. When his gaze lifted to her face, she was staring, puzzled. The Are you really okay? look in her eyes propelled him toward the beach with the Frisbee.

The phone in his back pocket buzzed. He flung the Frisbee for Rodie, then pulled his phone out. “Yep. ”

“Hey, stranger. ” His sister’s bouncy voice instantly quelled his unease. The tension slipped from his shoulders and his jaw loosened with a smile. Somehow, the simple sound of her voice brought balance back to his topsy-turvy world. His family had always grounded him.

“Hey, yourself. What’s new?”

“Let’s see,” Whitney quipped in a way that made him smile. “Mom and Dad’s clothes drier caught on fire this morning while Tori was at the hospital with Wyatt and Abby and Emma and their new puppy were at Mom and Dad’s—”

“Puppy?” He watched Rodie jump the waves and grab the Frisbee. Wes had just talked with Tori, Wyatt’s wife, two days ago, and she certainly hadn’t said anything about a puppy. “Where the hell did the puppy come from?” He didn’t wait for an answer before he moved on to an even bigger question. “And what the hell are they doing getting a puppy when Wyatt—?”

“Tori thought the girls needed a distraction. Said the girls were stressed and depressed with everything going on with Wyatt. ”

“Oh, for God’s sake. ” He was suddenly reminded of the constant chaos that seemed to reign around his childhood home—family, friends, neighbors, pets, church groups, his mother’s bunko club…and during harvest, complete mayhem for weeks. That brought up thoughts of his niece, Emma. “How’s Emma dealing with that?”

“Well, you know Emma,” Whitney said. “Depends on the day. ”

Yeah, he did know. Her autism made it difficult for her to tolerate such chaos. “You didn’t suggest that slice of insanity, did you?”

“Bite your tongue. ”

He shook his head at just another one of his sister-in-law’s bizarre whims. Kinda like deciding to get pregnant without discussing it with Wyatt, and before they’d decided to get married. Although, Wes had to smile when he thought of his oldest niece, the little result of that whim. “That girl… Shit, you know I love her, but sometimes…”

“Believe me, I know. I live here. ”

Wes chuckled. “Lots of room out here in California, not to mention a shitload of messed-up heads for you to shrink. You’d be a millionaire in no time. ”

“Ah, California…” she said wistfully, then, “Speaking of, Mom tells me you’re flying in tomorrow. I drew the short straw, so I’m stuck on airport duty. You’ll have to take me out for drinks to make it up to me. ”

“Deal,” Wes said. “How’s Wyatt?”

“Little better every day. Depressed, which is to be expected. Tori’s…well, Tori. Up, down, sideways. ”

“This has got to be hell on her. ”

“It is. ” Whitney’s voice turned sad. “It’s pretty much hell on everyone. ”

“Well, I have good news. ”

“Yeah?”

“The physical therapy rig I’m making is really coming along. I’ve got a friend helping me with it. She’s programmed it to respond to muscle stimuli. She’s just adding some safety features as we speak. The whole thing is pretty slick. But don’t tell anyone yet. I don’t want Wyatt to get his hopes up until I have it in my hands, ready to go. I really think this is going to work great, Whit. Get him on his feet faster and stronger. ”

“God, I hope so. It’s an amazing concept, and you could build a spaceship out of a trash can. So how are things with you?”

He reached down to take the Frisbee from Rodie’s mouth, and the pup shook out his wet fur, spraying Wes with cool seawater. He glanced over his shoulder toward Rubi and found her watching him, a soft smile on her face. “Another day in paradise. ”

Whitney laughed, and the sound made Wes smile. He did miss his family. He missed the support and sounding board they’d always provided.

Which prompted Wes to say, “Hey, Whit?” before he’d fully thought out what he was going to say, then stumbling through, “Do you know much about…neglect?”

She hesitated. “What kind of neglect?”

“In kids. You know, when parents aren’t around or don’t care. ”