Claiming the Enemy: Dustin (Porter Brothers Trilogy 3)

“Get up, Asher.” Dustin reached his hand out to help him to his feet, but Asher got up on his own, ignoring his hand.

“I’m sorry my brother didn’t man up and tell the sheriff that Diane and Luke were the ones responsible and stole from your family,” Holt said, giving Asher a harsh glance before facing him again. “The Hayeses aren’t thieves. Since you didn’t accept my offer, I’m going to remind him of that when we get home.”

Dustin saw Asher blanch at Holt’s threat.

“I’m also thankful for what you did for Jessie. That being said, I would appreciate it if you would leave. We don’t need you hanging around Jessie. I’ve watched my sister hankering after you since she was a kid, and I’ll be damned if I sit back and watch you sitting around, feeling sorry for her. She’s a Hayes, and she’s got a pride unlike the other whores you take up with. We don’t need your help trying to find out who did it to her. And if anyone is going to kill the bastard, it’s gonna be me.”

Dustin had never wanted to hit a man more than he wanted to hit Holt at that moment. “You’re upset about what happened to Jessie, so I’ll put that into consideration and not yank what you call a brain out of your left nostril and shove it back up the right. If you wanted me to leave, all you had to do was ask.

“You want to know the difference between the Hayeses and the Porters?” Dustin asked rhetorically. “Tate, Greer, and I learned from our pa’s mistakes about how to treat our women, to become better men. You and Asher just keep making the same pecker-headed mistakes. A real man doesn’t have to show who’s got the biggest set of balls in the county to protect his family; you just get it done. Good luck finding out who hurt Jessie without help. Neither you nor Asher could find a way out of a paper bag without help.”

He was done letting the Hayeses badmouth him. He had borne insults since birth, but he was a grown man and the days of having to turn the other cheek were over. Logan was growing older and would have the same insults turned on him if he didn’t put a stop to it. His pa had always been too concerned about what the town thought, that his customers wouldn’t buy his moonshine or pot from him, so he took every insult thrown at him.

Dustin left the hospital with a swish of a sliding door. I will fucking leave Treepoint before raising my child in the same environment, he thought furiously.

As much as he loved the mountains and living near Tate, Greer, Rachel, and their families, he wouldn’t stand one more disparaging comment directed toward him. There were other towns and mountains that wouldn’t have the power to hurt Logan. They could come for visits, making a new home elsewhere.

So disgusted with Holt and Asher, he was planning on loading Greer’s truck with his and Logan’s belongings when he got home. He was almost to his car that one of the deputies had dropped off for him when he realized he couldn’t leave.

The one thing he wouldn’t be able to take with him was deeply rooted in Treepoint. You couldn’t disturb roots when the plant was fragile and weak, or you risked the chance of losing it. You had to give them time to get strong before you could dig it up carefully and plant it in another soil where you wanted them.

He had stupidly cut off Jessie’s friendship when he was young and dumb. He wasn’t willing to risk getting Jessie back before he could repair the damage he had done. If repairing that damage meant he had to back off until Jessie was stronger, he would.

Over his bout of temper, Dustin grimaced to himself as he got in his car, remembering the hell that he, Tate, and Greer had given Cash when he had come courting Rachel.

“Damn, every dog does have his day.”

11

“Why don’t you go sit on the porch and get some sun? I’ll make us some coffee and sit with you.”

Jessie didn’t look away from the television set at Asher’s offer. “No thanks. I’m watching a movie.”

“It’s on the DVR. You can start it back up when you come back inside.”

“Not right now.” Tugging up the afghan that her mother knitted before she had left, Jessie slid farther down on the couch, hoping to get Asher to leave her alone.

“Come on, sis, at least for me. It’s not good for you to just sit here day after day, watching television. You need to get out, you’ve been cooped up for two months. You could go back to work for a couple of days a week, build yourself up to going back full-time,” Asher cajoled.