“What’s up, Jace?” Parker asked as he pulled off a pair of leather gloves and slapped them across his jean-clad thigh. Dust billowed up from the point of impact as Parker never slowed his stride.
“I brought us dinner. I thought it would help coerce Porter into a checkup.”
Parker nodded, but Jace knew something was bothering him. Jace walked down the steps of the cottage porch toward Parker instead of going inside the house.
“What’s on your mind, Park?”
Parker and Porter were two years younger than Jace, but they’d grown up together. Jace, Ariana, Kale, Porter, Parker, Colton, and Landon could often be found getting into mischief together during their teenage years. While the older cousins had it worse under the watchful eyes of the uncles, the younger cousins were able to sneak away and wreak havoc. Although their parents may have missed it, Parker and Porter alone got smacked with Miss Lily’s broom too many times to count.
Parker let out a sigh as he tapped his gloves against his thigh. “I’m old, Jace. My body is in peak condition, but my brain has wised up that I’m one injury away from permanent disability or worse. Port is even worse. Don’t tell him, but Porter always took the hardest rides and the hardest falls.”
“Are you thinking of retiring?” Jace asked with concern.
“I just came from the office,” Parker said of the office on the nearest end of the barn. “I have offers on all the roping horses I’ve been working on. It’ll set us up for at least a year. The horse business is going well. However, I don’t know if I want to do it full time. Like I said, how many more cracked ribs can I take?”
“You think Porter will be upset if you leave?”
Parker let out a frustrated breath. “I don’t want to leave. I just want riding to be my hobby. What I need from you is a physical. I need a clean bill of health for a job I’m applying for. You know how Porter and I majored in criminal justice because we basically already had a master’s degree in it just by growing up in this family? I want to join the United States Marshals Service. I have the college degree for it, plus apparently riding in the rodeo has me in physical and mental shape for it. They like the quick thinking and calmness under stressful situations that I’ve learned in my time as a rodeo rider. I think having a father who’s a former CIA agent helps, too. Anyway, there’s a twenty-one week training camp all agents have to go through. I just learned that I got in. I have to have a physical sent to them within the next couple of months. I withdrew from future rodeos so I won’t risk any injury before camp.”
Jace was surprised. While Parker and Porter had always been wild, they’d found an outlet for that wildness in the rodeo. Now it seemed as if Parker had grown out of it. “I’m happy for you, Parker. Call me next week and we’ll squeeze you in. What does Porter think of it?”
Parker’s lips thinned as his jaw tightened. “I just don’t want to let my brother down.”
“He’ll be proud of you, Park. Just like I am and I’m sure everyone else will be,” Jace assured him.
“Come on in, I don’t want dinner to get cold. Thanks for picking it up for us. It’ll be nice to hang out tonight.” Parker walked up the steps and opened the door. Jace heard the sound of the television as he entered.
“Jace brought us dinner,” Parker told Porter, who was sitting on the couch with his feet on the low coffee table in front of him.
“Great. I’m starving. Where’s Stella?” Porter asked as he looked back to the door.
“With Molly for some girl time.”
“Molly’s cool,” Porter said as he moved his feet off the table. Jace saw the grimace Porter tried to hide. “I even thought about asking her out the other night, but wanted to check with you first.”
“Let me examine you while Park gets dinner ready.” Jace didn’t give Porter time to argue. He was already pulling things out of his medical bag before Porter could even sit all the way up. “Why would you need to ask me first?”
“She works for you and is your friend. Plus, I always thought the two of you would end up together. After seeing you and Stella together, I can admit I was wrong. You and Stella are perfect together.”
“Listen to you waxing poetic,” Parker teased. “High on pain killers?”
Porter shot his twin the bird. “Since I’m stuck here, it’s just got me thinking about life, that’s all. Our sisters are married and pregnant. Our cousins are racing to the altar faster than green grass through a goose. Just gets you thinking about your own situation. And don’t tell me you haven’t been doing the same, Park. It’s completely understandable at this point in our lives.”
Jace let them talk as he did his exam. “You’re looking good. As you know, you’ll continue to be sore for a while. Just keep it easy. No riding. No weight lifting. Just let your ribs mend.”
“You got it, Doc.”
“Now, not to sound like a bunch of gossips,” Parker said as he handed Porter a plate of food. “What’s going on with you and Stella?”
Jace smiled and his cousins sent each other a silent smirk that let him know he was grinning like a fool in love.
“Now, what I want to know,” Porter said with all seriousness, “is if your mom has fought her yet. Kale told us about his mom declaring that she’d fight his future girlfriend since it was sexist if only the guys got picked on.”
“Stella’s in shape,” Parker said, handing Jace a plate and then grabbing his own and joining them in the small living room. “But your mom is like a little Tasmanian devil.”
Jace burst out laughing and shook his head. “No fighting, but today Mom did drag Father Ben over to meet Stella. I think she’s gone from subtle to obvious in a blink of an eye. Not that subtlety was ever her strong suit.”
“Well, I agree with Port. I like Stella. Now when do we get to welcome her into the family, like, the specific date and time?” Parker asked, pulling out his phone.
Stella loved the small house in the cute family neighborhood that Molly lived in. It was in Lexington, but on the side closest to Keeneston. The drive had flown by as she and Molly chatted. Now they were two glasses of wine into their planting party and having a great time.
“This is so much fun. Thank you for inviting me,” Stella told Molly as she patted the soil down in the container. “It’s been so long since I’ve had girl time like this.”
“I know. It seems as if Sarah and Jace are my life,” Molly laughed. “And while I love them, I don’t drink wine and plant flowers with them.”
“Sarah seems lovely, though.” Stella turned the planter so the optimal angle faced the sleepy little street.
“She is. We’re just at two different points in our lives. She’s married with kids and I’m not quite there yet.”
“If it’s too personal, you don’t have to answer, but is there someone special in your life?”
Molly nodded. “There is. I’m just trying to get my nerve up to tell him.”
“Do you think it’s mutual?” Stella asked.
Molly smiled happily as she thought about him. “I do. We’ve had some bumps along the way, but who hasn’t?”