Stepbrother Cowboy: A Western Romance Read Free Page B

shouted at me.
    They argued with each other, and I stood from the chair, and let it flip over backwards. Neither of them noticed me walk out of the office, right past them. My mother, Bill, and Alison waited in the main lobby, talking with a deputy when I approached.
    “So Sheila bailed you out?” Bill asked me.
    “She the suit lady?”
    “Yeah, she’s the lawyer we keep on retainer for the ranch.”
    “Oh. Well, the sheriff didn’t arrest me, but I don’t think they are done arguing yet,” I nodded my head towards the office where the voices argued louder and louder.
    “So you’re free to go?” Mom looked at me, then towards the front door.
    “I should be. I guess the douche bag was the sheriff’s nephew—.”
    “Tim,” Alison corrected softly.
    “What?”
    “His name is Tim. He’s my ex-boyfriend.”
    “Well, I doubt he’ll be back,” I turned to the deputy standing by my family. “Did they end up arresting him?”
    His expression froze somewhere between priceless and ‘oh shit’.
    “Did they?” I moved my body in front of him.
    His mouth opened and closed a couple of times before he found his voice. “He’s in the hospital being evaluated. He’ll be charged once he can be moved. You really did a number on him.”
    “Sorry about that. I was holding back,” I muttered, and playfully pushed on Alison’s arm, sending her crashing into Bill.
    “Hey!”
    “Hey yourself. You ok?”
    “I am now.”
    I had gotten my shirt back from her. She wore a black blouse to replace the torn shirt. She actually smiled a bit, and I had to fight the urge to not grin back.
    “So are we free to go?” I asked the deputy.
    “I don’t—.” The office door slammed open, and Sheila stormed out.
    “And if you don’t charge that kid, I’ll sue this department,” she threatened.
    When she got to us, she barely looked in our direction. “You’re good to go,” she power walked out of the station without stopping.
    The deputy watched her figure disappear down the street in silence. He turned back to us and scratched the back of his neck. “I guess you are good to go.”
    “That lady scares me,” I whispered to Ali.
    “I doubt it,” She pushed me with both hands, and almost made me stumble.  She snickered and smiled for the first time.
    “Kids,” Bill’s instant fatherly tone broke the tension, and I cracked up, finally.
    “Let's go get ice on your hands. And since we’re all in town, we can pick up your outfits,” Mom told us.
    I looked at my hands, swollen and slightly crusted with blood from both Tim and me. I nodded and headed outside. Mom drove my Jeep into town when the sheriff put me in the back of his cruiser to bring me to the station. Bill tossed me the keys to drive, and the girls piled into the back seat. We all piled in.
    “You know, the sheriff may hold a grudge,” Bill started.
    “No jury would convict me.”
    “No, probably not. Ok, let’s drive over to Gillie’s first, then how about we grab some lunch at the diner?”
    “Sounds good.”
    ###
    We bought the western-style clothing for the wedding at Gillie’s. When Alison tried on different shirts and came out of the changing room to look in the mirror, I tried to look disinterested. Gone was the little girl with acne. A slender woman a year out of high school replaced her. I couldn’t quit stealing glances her way. She captivated my imagination as I replayed how she stayed strong throughout the ordeal.
    Later, while we ate our lunch, the family filled me in on what had been happening in and around town, and why Mom hadn’t told me about her and Bill.
    Mom’s tone held no apologies. “We wanted to make sure. Things ended bitterly the first time, and we wanted to make sure this time that we were doing it for the right reasons.”
    It made sense that she’d keep some of her life with Bill apart from me. My first reaction would have probably been poor based on their history, and old feelings of hurt and pain would have