“Nothing’s changed, man. I don’t know what you’re worried about. Trixie and I are the same people we were, but now we’re sleeping together.”
“If you believe that, then you’re the idiot.”
“I’m not an idiot, Beau. I’ve got feelings for her, but I’m pretty sure they’ve been around for a hell of a long time.”
“But now you’re acknowledging them. That’s big. That’s a change. Let me give you one piece of advice. Don’t make Trixie live within your fucked-up boundaries.”
“That was the advice I gave you about Char.”
“And you were right. But, Nick, you’ve got fucked-up boundaries, too. You make my old walls look like they were made out of paper.”
“Did you call to give me hell?”
“No, but it’s kind of fun.” Beau chuckled. “I wanted you to know that I’m happy for you. Trixie’s great, and you’ve always been good together. Whatever you two need, I’m here. I can build another barn for her horses, a wedding arch, a bassinet…”
“You’re an asshole.”
“An asshole who loves you, man.”
Another call rang through, and Trixie’s name flashed on the screen. “Sorry to do this to you, but that’s Trixie calling. I’ve gotta take it. She had a big meeting today.”
“Nick Braden is officially whipped.”
“Fuck off, and give my love to Char. Hope to see you before Zev and Carly’s wedding.”
“We can make it a double wedding.”
“Bye, Beau.” Nick switched over to Trixie’s call. “Hey, darlin’. How’d it go?”
“I have a soft visit! She loved me! She gave me referrals! And I was so proud to give her my business card!”
Nick held the phone away from his ear as she shouted. “That’s fantastic, Trix. When’s the visit?”
“A week from Monday. I’m so glad I ordered the vests and shoes for the horses. I need to practice with them. Annabelle especially. I want to bring her first. She feels like the big sister. Will you practice with me? I’m not taking her to see patients. We’re just walking through the facility. I wish I had a place with people where I could take them to practice when they’re all suited up.”
“I can ask Cole if we can take them into his office. Would that help?”
“Do you think he’d mind? That’s a lot to ask. But it would make me feel more confident if I could do a trial run before the real thing. They’d be around people and noises, and we can take them in the elevator. Wait. The building owners might not let us do it.”
“Then I can ask my buddy Jace Stone. He owns Silver-Stone Cycles, and they have a new manufacturing plant and headquarters in Peaceful Harbor. It’s not a medical facility, but it’s got noises, machines, people, and elevators.”
“That sounds perfect. But I don’t want to put you in an uncomfortable position if it’s too much to ask.”
“Darlin’, I’d be more uncomfortable knowing you didn’t have what you needed than asking a buddy for a favor. Besides, you’ll dig Jace. He’s a great guy, and he’s married to a cool chick, Dixie Whiskey. She models for his company, but she’s not really a model. She’s a tough biker. You’d love her.”
“Dixie and Jace? Jilly’s mentioned them to me before. She said Jace is bigger than you, which is hard to believe, and a great dancer, and that Dixie’s family owns that biker bar Sam likes to go to, Whiskey Bro’s. We should go there sometime.”
He scoffed. “I’m not taking you to a biker bar.”
“Party pooper. Look up the driveway, cowboy. I’m home!”
He saw her truck coming down the driveway, and his pulse thumped faster. He shoved his phone in his pocket as she parked. She ran to him, dropped her messenger bag, and launched herself into his arms with a squeal. He spun her around and kissed her. “I’m so damn proud of you.” He kissed her again, long and hard.
When he set her on her feet, she clung to his T-shirt, snagging a few chest hairs. The excitement bubbling out of her was worth the sting.
“We did it, Nick! I wouldn’t have gotten Annabelle and Alfie if you hadn’t suggested it and taken me to meet Ed. We make a great team. I made some big decisions while I was there. Once I get settled at my dad’s, I want to offer groundwork with the minis and come up with a schedule where I do site visits a few days a week and work with the animals on the ranch the other days. That way the horses aren’t traveling so much. I’m so excited I can barely see straight. I need to go change my clothes. I want to spend time with my babies.”
She barely took a breath as she grabbed her bag and his hand and headed for the house. “I felt so confident talking with Jordan, who was awesome, by the way, and I know I felt good because Alfie and Annabelle are so well trained. I want to be sure to train Buttons and Prince just as thoroughly. I’m going to look over all my notes from our visit with Ed and try to emulate his training the best I can. I think I’m going to save up and find a way to make fake patient rooms, like Ed had. I can’t buy an elevator, but I can buy an old bed and I’m sure my brothers can help me make fake medical equipment out of wood or something.”
“Your brothers? How about me? I’m a pretty handy guy,” he said as they went through the kitchen door.
She wrinkled her brow. “But you’ll be here. I’m talking about after I go back home.”
“Right.” What the hell was he thinking? That I want to be the guy you turn to for help, no matter where you are. “It’s only a two-hour drive, Trixie. I’ll do that stuff for you.”
She put her bag on the counter and wound her arms around his neck. “If we weren’t sleeping together, I’d say I love you! But I know sleeping together brings new meaning to those words, and that would freak you out. So…I love that you’ll do that for me!”
When she went up on her toes and pressed her lips to his, he held her tighter, deepening the kiss, trying to escape the bevy of questions pecking at him. Why did it bother him that she dismissed those words so quickly? She wasn’t wrong. Hearing them that way probably would have freaked him out. They were heavy words, and they triggered questions he didn’t have the answers to, like exactly what he felt for Trixie. His feelings for her didn’t feel different than they always had. They just felt a hell of a lot bigger. Was that love? How the hell should he know? It had been easy for him to see a difference in his brothers when they’d fallen in love. Beau had physically changed, from the light in his eyes to the way he carried himself. He’d become less protected, more open. Graham had always been open with his emotions but had never seemed content. Morgyn had given him that, and he’d changed his whole life to include her. And Zev? Hell, he’d gone from a wild child, running from his past, to a man, accepting and becoming one with it. He no longer gave off a perched-to-leave vibe. He had become settled and at peace. But Nick looked at himself in the mirror every morning, and he didn’t see any difference. He felt happier and his thoughts were consumed by Trixie, but they had been for the last year. That wasn’t new.
As their lips parted, he pushed that can of worms closed before it could fuck with his head any more than it already had.