“Why, you interested?” I teased. Then I realized his face hadn’t changed after a few seconds. “Really?”
He shrugged. “Rodeo season is tapering off and there’s not much else to do. Besides, you seem to have a lot of fun out there.”
I grinned. “I do.”
“Hang on now,” Boone said from his corner of the table, stuffing a forkful of chicken into his mouth. “Colt just wants to horn in on your dating game out there.”
I laughed, and Colt actually blushed, which only made me laugh harder.
“It’s fine,” I said. “There’s always more pretty ladies out there than I can keep entertained all at once. You’ll be a welcome addition. As for what we do, well, believe it or not, I put them to work.”
“Yeah,” Annabelle said. “I’ve poked my head in once or twice on his ‘ranch experience.’ It’s basically teaching a bunch of middle-aged men how to not fall off a horse and getting them to move cattle around.”
“Pretty much,” I said. “It’s fun though. We’ll spend the week touring the ranch, crashing in the bunkhouses I built last year.”
“And you wouldn’t mind if I joined you?” Colt asked.
“Hell no,” I said, smiling wide. “I’d love to have you out there with me. It’ll be a blast.”
The truth was, I was elated my brother wanted to join me. The rest of the brood wasn’t exactly champing at the bit to get out there, and it was becoming more and more popular with every tour. Word of mouth was making it so I was getting referral after referral and even a number of repeat customers. Having an extra person out there with me other than the hired hands I sometimes brought out would be extremely helpful, and Colt was a charismatic guy. He could really sell the experience.
Dinner rolled along, and the laughter and general talk filled my soul as well as the food filled my belly. I loved having such a large family and everyone being so close. It was even more important to me that we had these weekly dinners than it was for Cassidy, and considering his clear attempt to become the head of the house, that was saying something. Cass was stepping into the role Dad always had, and surely, there wasn’t a better one of us to do it.
As we moved on to desserts, I got quieter as I usually did. The fuller I got, the less jokey and the more punch-drunk I tended to get. My mood was at a high, though, and I glanced over at the women at the table. Annabelle was curled up in Garrett’s arm and occasionally fed him a piece of the pumpkin pie from the table.
I knew part of me should wretch at seeing my best friend all lovey-dovey with my brother, but I couldn’t. Not after the life Garrett led and him disappearing for over a year. I got all my frustration out with him when I found out, and now I was just happy for the two of them.
Then there was Gia. Gabby was sitting in her lap and happily digging into the pie with an extra tall mound of whipped cream on top. Gia’s right hand rested on the table, and every so often, Clayton’s finger would run down one side of it. It was so clear how in love the two of them were and how seamlessly Gia fit into our family. Gabby was a delight, too, and as she glanced over at me, I made a face that made her giggle. Garrett saw the interaction and smiled in a way that I could tell lit up his soul.
Shannon laughed loudly from the end of the table, and I turned to her next. She and Jesse were talking to each other in low tones, and something he said made her laugh so loud that she put her hand over her mouth and shrank down in embarrassment. It was adorable and seeing the two of them together again after Jesse’s return from the military and the ugliness of their separation when he left was healing for the whole family. Jesse still dealt with demons from his time in the desert, but Shannon made it easier for him to adjust and return to being the rough-and-tumble ball of energy he was when he was younger.
When dessert ended, the boys moved out to the patio, a bottle of whisky with them, while I helped Annabelle clean up the plates. It was