Oklahoma Moonshine (The McIntyre Men #1) (22 page)

“I’m pretty sure they already do.”

“I was just getting ready to bring ‘em in for the night. Want to help?”

“You think I came out here to do my nails?”

He smiled and nodded. “Close the front door. Jeeze, were you brought up in a barn?”

“Pretty much this very barn,” she replied. “We were forbidden to come out here, but we did anyway. The hay loft wasn’t full of junk
like the rest of the place. We’d swing from the rafters, as a matter of fact.” She looked up through the open trapdoor into the barn’s
second level as she said it. “We’d jump off the top of a mountain of baled hay up there. The old-fashioned rectangle-shaped bales. We’d
use them like giant bricks to build a castle.”

“You and Kendra?”

Her smile wavered a little. Dammit, what a dumb thing to say. He knew there was tension between her and her sister. Hurt, betrayal. He couldn’t
imagine one of her brothers doing to him what Kendra had done to Kiley. Twins were supposed to be tighter than other siblings, weren’t they?

Quick, he thought, new subject. “I um…I want the mares to come when I call them, but I’ve gotta show ‘em what’s waiting when
they get here.”

“A girl needs a reason,” she said, and gave him the once over. His ego grew a size and a half.

He led the way to the small tack room, then dipped into his feed bin and scooped a little grain into each of two pails. “Come on,” he said,
handing her one of them. “Follow my lead.”

He opened the barn’s back door, and they stepped directly into the meadow where the mares stopped munching on clover blossoms to look up at them,
almost as one unit.

“I figure if we let’em smell what we’ve got in these buckets, they’ll follow us anywh—”

“Uh, yeah, totally unnecessary,” Kiley interrupted.

The white mare came trotting right toward them, shaking her mane and blowing. She was high-stepping like a Rockette, and he thought he got the message.
I
’m the boss, not you. Now gimme that grain.

She stopped right in front of him, head down, nostrils flaring as she caught the scent of molasses and oats. He held the bucket just out of reach as she
went for it.

The other seven had already gathered around to see what was going on and whether they could get themselves a taste of what smelled so good. Kiley backed
into the barn first, holding her bucket out and staying ahead of them. The stalls were all open, and each one already had grain waiting inside, along with
soft straw bedding and fresh clear water.

“Which stall for which horse?” Kiley asked, whispering like she didn’t want to startle the mares.

“Let’s let them decide.” He went all the way to the front of the barn, taking her bucket from her on the way, and set them in the tack
room and closed its door.

The mares didn’t follow at first. The white one just stood in the doorway, taking them in. She could smell the grain, though. And she wanted it. Then
finally, she came in, hoofs clacking sharp on the clean concrete floor. She poked her head into one stall, then backed out and walked directly to the one
dead center, right hand side. She went right into it and buried her nose in her grain. The others came in and picked stalls seemingly at random. He and
Kiley closed the stall doors as the horses went inside.

“Have you thought about names for them?”

He nodded. “The Blue Roan is the prettiest. And she’s sly and clever. She was nuzzling the door earlier when I first came out. I think she
smelled the grain and thought it was in here, unsupervised. I was gonna call her Kiley, but that could get confusing. What’s your middle name?”

She was blinking like she had something in her eyes. “Louise.”

“Okay. She’s Louise. Which means the dun has to be Thelma. They seem to be best friends.”

He was joking, but she wasn’t laughing. She was standing in front of the stall, looking in at Louise to avoid his eyes. It got to her, him naming
that magnificent animal after her.

“What about the white?” she asked.

“Lady Vee.” He said it with a firm nod. “She’s the boss of the entire herd. Definitely gotta be Lady Vee.”

“For Vidalia. That’s perfect.”

“So are you ready for this dinner?”

“Still gotta change clothes.”

“Mentally, I meant. Emotionally. It’s gonna be…intense.”

“I’m trying to focus on The Long Branch’s amazing cook.”

“Chef. He’d be offended to be called a cook.”

Two hours later, they were being shown to a table set for five as if they were guests in The Long Branch’s fancy dining room. The decor was Old West
as interpreted by the TV show
Gunsmoke.
There were red velvet drapes with gold rope tie-backs, marking the transition from barroom to dining room.
The Miss Kitty lookalike was not played by Vidalia tonight, but often was, and Kiley was dying to see her in the role. She showed them to their table,
which was on the opposite side of the room from the player piano. The bartender, Rob’s older brother Jason, stood behind the bar in a white shirt
with thin black suspenders and a bolo tie. He nodded as they’d walked in, but other than that, was giving them space.

“I keep forgetting how amazing this place is,” Kiley said.

“I do, too. It’s different being here as a guest instead of an owner.”

“Yeah. That must be weird.”

A young waitress dressed in a tamed-down version of saloon-girl attire, came to take their orders. She was new, and it struck Rob that he’d really
been letting his brothers down in the running of the saloon. He was a full shareholder and wasn’t doing his part. He was going to have to talk to
them about that.

“Can I get you something to drink while you wait for your companions to arrive?”

“I’ll take a beer,” Kiley said. “One of those from that local microbrewery with the funny name. You know, Rob, the ones we had at
the house—” She stopped there, bit her lip and then said, “You know what? I’ll just have a sweet tea.” 

She was remembering how sick she’d been on that beer a few days ago. He saw the thought flit through her eyes almost as clearly as if it was flitting
through his own head.

“Same for me,” he said, and the waitress went away.

Kiley smiled at him, was about to say something, and then looked across the room, and said, “Shoot, here they come.” Her smile died, her eyes
turned cold, and she turned to watch her father and sister coming down the stairs and into the dining room.

Her dad was a handsome man who turned women’s heads everywhere he went. His hair was still like dark honey, his eyes, still Newman blue. He came down
the curving staircase slowly, his gaze sweeping everyone in the room. “The guys have been referring to them as Jack and Kendra Jones,” Rob
said. “I don’t remember if you picked up on the alias.”

“It’s an old standby,” Kiley muttered. “Here comes Joey. It’s on. How’s my resting bitch face?”

He glanced at her. She looked good and pissed. And yet, still beautiful. “Pretty convincing.”

Then he rose as Joey, Kendra and Jack arrived at the table. He clapped his brother on the shoulder, and extended a hand to Kiley’s dad.
“It’s good to meet you, Jack. I’m sorry it took so long.” This with an irritated glance at Kiley.

She rolled her eyes and reached for her water glass.

Her sister frowned her way, but quickly readjusted and beamed her bright, phony smile at Rob. “Nice to see you again,” she said.

He nodded hello, and Joey pulled out a chair for Kendra, then took the one beside her. Jack sat down on her other side, taking the seat between the two
sisters. “How are things going out at the ranch?” Jack asked, like he gave a damn.

“Fine.” She and Rob both snapped the word at the same time, and he cleared his throat and said, “Couldn’t be better.”

“Ah hell,” Joey muttered.

Their sweet teas arrived, and the waitress asked about appetizers. Rob managed to keep his pissed-off demeanor in place the whole time, though it was an
effort. They agreed on a couple of sampler platters for the table, and ordered their main courses, and Patty, the new waitress, scurried off looking
worried. No wonder...she probably wondered how she’d managed to piss off the boss she’d only just met between drink and appetizer orders.

“I need to use the restroom,” Kiley said. She got up, leaving her chair out, and hurried away.

Kendra glanced at her father, and he gave her a very slight nod. “Me too. Excuse me,” she said, and she got up and went after her.

Jack pursed his lips, then said, “I can’t help but notice things seem…strained between you and my daughter.”

“Strained is a good enough word,” he said. “But like you said, it’s between me and your daughter, so—”

“Sorry, sorry.” He held up a hand. “I shouldn’t pry.”

“You’re not splitting up are you?” Joey asked.

Rob sent him a quelling glare.

“But Jeeze, Rob, not now. Not with—“

“That’s enough, Joey.” He said it firmly.

 His brother held his eyes for a minute, then sank back against his chair with a huff and said, “Well this is gonna be a real pleasant
evening.”

Betty Lou Jennings, the real estate agent whose shape roughly matched her beehive, glanced Kiley’s way. They were alone in the bathroom, but Kiley
held up a finger and nodded toward the door.

Betty Lou nodded in understanding, and Kiley said, “I’m glad I ran into you, Betty Lou. I need a little more time to come up with the
money.”

“Miz Kellogg, I am out to dinner with my family.” Betty Lou always sounded as if she had inhaled a little helium. “If you want to discuss
business, call me during business hours. Not that it’s going to matter. I told you I was putting your partner’s share back on the market, and
that’s what I’m going to do. It’s what he asked me to do, and you don’t have any say in it.”

“I don’t want to lose half of that ranch. I can’t lose it. Not now. I just need some time to get the money—”

“You should’ve thought of that before you tried to swindle a decent, upstanding man like Robby McIntyre.”

“He told you?” she asked.

“No details. It must be pretty bad, though, if he’s willing to give that place up.” Betty Lou lowered her voice to a loud whisper.
“Especially given that it’s sitting on a potentially lucrative deposit of crude oil.”

“He told you about that too?” Kiley gasped.

“Of course he told me. It’s a selling point. He’s so desperate to get out of this partnership that he’s willing to take
significantly less than he paid for the place, too.”

“How much less?”

Betty Lou smiled evilly, fully into her role. “More than you’ve got,” she said. Then she bustled back into the restaurant.

Kiley turned to the sink and quickly wet her eyes. Then she braced her arms on either side and let her head hang between them.

The door creaked, and Kendra said, “Trouble in paradise?”

She jumped as if startled and shot her sister a look. “None of your business.”

Kendra sighed and came closer. “What’s going on, Kiley? I thought you two were—how do the cowboys put it? Knockin’ boots?”

It had been so much more than that. It had been beautiful, and Rob probably regretted it had ever happened. She’d thoroughly polluted his pure, clean
life. Her lips pulled tight and real tears threatened. “You just had to show up, didn’t you? After I’d already told him you were dead.
How was I supposed to explain that?”

“He can hardly be mad at you for that,” she said.

“No. But it made him suspicious. And it didn’t take much digging to find out I’d been raised by a con man who was doing time. Then he
realized he’d been tricked into buying half the place.”

“You tricked him? What did you play?”

“Slippin’ Jimmy and Grandma’s Rock,” she said miserably. Her eyes were honestly burning. “I didn’t realize how much I
was gonna—” She shook her head, snagged a paper towel and ran it under the faucet, then pressed it to her eyes.

“Gonna what?” Kendra asked, coming closer. “Love him? Do you love him, Kiley?”

“It doesn’t matter. He’s selling his half. I just…I don’t want to lose him.”

She wet the towel and dabbed her eyes again, then tried to press them dry with her fingers. “Gotta get back out there. Do I look okay?”

Kendra lifted her hand and pushed Kiley’s hair off her forehead. Then she said, “No.” And then she opened her purse, took out a compact,
and dabbed powder around Kiley’s eyes.

Kiley blinked, stunned by how tender she was being. She almost wept again, wishing it could be real.

“I’m sorry if we ruined things for you, Kiley,” Kendra said.

She shrugged. “It never would’ve worked anyway. He’s…he’s good. He’s just good, you know? Way too good for someone like
me.” She glanced at the mirror, then reached into her purse for a comb, and brushed her hand over the little velvet covered diary. She pulled it out,
handed it to Kendra. “I found this at the house. In that hideyhole in the bedroom closet.”

Kendra took the tiny book, ran her hand over the velvet. “I don’t know if I want to look at it. All my hopes and dreams are in there. All our
crazy plans from childhood.”

“I don’t think it’s ever too late to reclaim some of those crazy plans. It’s what I’m trying to do.”

Kendra held her gaze, and Kiley glimpsed some kind of deep pain behind her sister’s eyes. “It’s too late for me,” she said.
“But maybe not for you.”

She handed the book back, but Kiley shook her head. “No. Keep it. One of these days, maybe you’ll want to remember.”

Kendra nodded and dropped the diary into her bag.

Somehow, they got through dinner. Somehow, Rob managed to act pissed off and Kiley managed to act wounded and kind of angry about it, and Joey, who was in
on everything, managed to act confused and concerned. Kiley declined dessert and everyone else followed suit, and finally they were able to make their
excuses and leave.

She got into the parking lot and looked around for her car. Rob had insisted they drive it there. But it was nowhere in sight.

Rob, however, was heading right toward a little red Jeep Wrangler’s passenger door.