Chapter 4: Chapter Four—Montgomery

Mont stood, looking down at the mess his brother called a desk and the variety of bills, paperwork, and contracts. His brother was one hell of ranch hand, but it was pretty obvious that he had no idea what he was doing with the ledgers.

Like he had no idea Mont dug through their paperwork.

He sat down in the big, black chair, not really knowing where to begin. He wasn’t a bookkeeper either, and the dirt underneath his fingernails, along with the callouses from years of riding bulls, proved it.

“What in the hell—”

Mont looked up to his brother’s angry face in the doorway. “Good morning.”

Kaden glanced over his shoulder at his shut bedroom door at the end of the hallway. “Who let you inside?”

“She doesn’t know I’m here. Don’t worry, I didn’t roofie her. I slipped through my old bedroom window. Love what you’ve done with it. Those dead deer heads really brighten up the place.”

Kaden pressed his mouth tight. “So, you broke into my—”

Mont slammed a folder shut, standing to meet his brother’s narrowed look. “Our. This house was left to us, not that I want it, but I do want my half of the ranch. I want to take care of it. So, I’m here to get this shit in order because honestly, brother, you suck at this.”

Kaden pressed his fists against the center of his forehead, letting out a long breath. “Abigail was taking care of this until—”

“Dada.”

Mont’s heart plummeted into the depth of his stomach, threatening to stop beating altogether. The little girl waddling toward Kaden’s feet looked maybe two or so but took after her momma.

Kaden was a dad. Mont was an uncle?

Mont felt the ever-contradictory feeling to both beat the hell out of Kaden and hug him at the same time. He hadn’t mentioned once that he’d been married, had a child, or a life.

Kaden picked up the toddler rubbing her eyes with tight little fists. Her blond hair was curly like Kaden’s was if he let it grow out. “Who dat?”

Kaden glanced over his shoulder. “Why don’t you go back to bed with Mommy, sweetie?”

“I wanna bite,” she whined, pulling at her Paw Patrol nightgown.

Mont could only watch as she clung to Kaden, whining for something to eat, and him not acknowledge the fact that he’d never met his niece before.

“Why didn’t you wake Momma, Kathryn?”

Kathryn was their momma’s name.

Mont met Abigail’s gaze from over Kaden’s shoulder, and she immediately pulled her bathrobe tighter. “Why didn’t you tell me we had company?”

Kaden handed a squirming Kathryn to Abigail. “Because he snuck through the window, and he is leaving.”

Mont cleared his throat. “Sorry about that, but I knew Kaden wouldn’t let me in, even though it’s my house too, and ranch.”

“I told you that I wasn’t having that—”

“He is right,” Abigail said. “He is your brother and deserves half of the ranch. You and I have both read the deed. We don’t want any lawsuits against us, King.”

Kaden closed his eyes. “You don’t understand.”

“I do,” she said, turning to walk away. “And you need to get over it.”

Kaden let out a harsh chuckle. “Just great. You’ve already got her thinking you’re a good guy.”

“Am I not?’ Mont asked. “Did we not grow up in the same house with the same morals? I haven’t done anything to you deliberately—”

“Kathy Jo—Kathy St. Claire aside, Mont, you left me here with the ranch to deal with everything by myself, and then you suddenly want it back? Why is that fair?”

“I couldn’t stay here, Kaden. I had to get away from their memories.”

He didn’t believe Mont, but there was no making Kaden believe anything. Right next to bull-headed in the dictionary was Kaden King.

“Listen to me,” Kaden said, taking a step toward him. “Unfortunately, I can’t stop you from being here, but I can keep you away from my family. Don’t step foot into this house without me here, or without me knowing. Do you understand? I’ll figure something out about the books, and you can help me on the ranch. That’s it. No brotherly love or family get-togethers. You had your chance for those but chose to leave.”

Mont thought about being shunned from Kaden’s life and his family. At least he’d be in Kaden’s work life and part of the family business. “Deal.”

Kaden nodded, rubbing his head with an opened palm. “Okay. We can talk over breakfast at Megan’s.”

Mont didn’t ask why they wouldn’t eat at their house when he could hear Abigail in the kitchen cooking. It was because he didn’t want him around his family.

“Okay.”

Kaden grabbed his keys from the front door but stopped to look over at Mont. “I’m not going if you’re going to harass that new girl.”

“Harass? No. Talk to her, probably.”

“You haven’t been here, so let me catch you up to speed. This girl came out of nowhere with a kid, won’t talk to anyone, and walks everywhere. She’s bad news; I can smell it.”

“Ahh, that’s probably cow shit you smell,” Mont said.

“Just because she’s pretty, doesn’t mean she’s good for you. Don’t bring any trouble around my family, Mont, you’ll regret it.”

Abigail cleared her throat from the kitchen, drawing both brothers’ attention. “Why are you going to Megan’s? I’m cooking?”

Kaden scowled. “We need to talk in private.”

“So, you take him to a public restaurant? He can eat here, and we can go to the parade together afterward.”

“Ah, I ain’t going to that stupid—”

“Daddy said a bad word!” Kathryn shouted from her seat at the kitchen table.

“Daddy is sorry,” Abigail said, giving Kaden a warning look. “Sit your ass down,” she mouthed. “Kathryn and I will eat outside while y’all talk.”

She turned to grab Kathryn, and the kitchen door shut before Kaden could say anything.

“Damn woman,” he hissed beneath his breath. “Okay, come on, have a seat.”

Mont had never seen a woman boss Kaden around the way she did, but Mont liked it. Kaden needed someone who could put him in his place.

Kaden and Mont spent the next thirty minutes eating pancakes and talking about Mont’s role at the ranch. Kaden wasn’t willing to give him too much responsibly, which Mont planned on conquering soon. He’d show him how much he could handle, and hopefully things would fall into place for them.

***

Montgomery could tell when he wasn’t wanted. Abigail had asked him to tag along to the parade, but the look on Kaden’s face told him not to take it.

He declined and decided to ride his four-wheeler that’d been tucked safely in his shed back home up to the post office and watch from there.

He parked beside an older gentleman that gave him a double take, which Mont knew meant he’d end up in conversation with the man. He’d been one of his elementary school friend’s dad, and Mont ended up siting on the tailgate of the man’s truck as the parade started.

The parade didn’t last more than twenty minutes, being that town was less than a thousand people. The cheerleaders from the high school started off with a float where the football players were dressed like they were from the eighteen hundreds, which was about the time the town was originally founded.

Small school organizations and town stores had small floats with similar themes. The Manns always had the best float, which made Mont laugh every year.

The sheriff’s department rode by, and the town’s sheriff spotted Mont. Mont knew what would happen next.

“Montgomery King. Get your tail up here,” he yelled over the bullhorn. The sheriff hopped off his horse and made a grand gesture toward the steed. Mont knew the one because he’d tamed it before his parents’ death.

“We have our small-town hero back home, ladies and gentlemen. Let’s get him to get his tail up. You’re not too good for us anymore!”

Mont slid his palm over his face, laughing as the townspeople screamed his name, and he saddled the horse. It felt good to be back on one. He’d spent the last several years on the back of angry bulls. It was the simple life to ride a horse leisurely though the town.

The horse neighed beneath him, and he stroked his fingers through his mane.

The parade lasted only a few more minutes, and Mont rode the sheriff’s horse to the grocery store parking lot where it ended.

“Look what we have here.”

Mont looked over his shoulder at the sheriff as he walked toward him, arms outstretched. Miller Brown had been their sheriff since Mont graduated high school.

The man was country as all get-up. If he wasn’t in his uniform, he was in camouflage going to the deer woods. Mont had been best friends with his son, Henry, growing up. Henry was a smooth talker and had moved off after graduation to go to law school in Oklahoma. He moved back to Willow Country a few towns over after graduation and started his own firm.

He’d been the one Mont threatened to call after Kaden.

They’d been Salt and Pepper growing up. At least that’s what the other kids had called them. A brother from another mother.

“Hey, Salt,” the sheriff called out.

Mont laughed, bringing him in for a hug. “How’s Henry doing?”

Sheriff Brown’s eyes brightened. “Good. Handling a big case right now; somebody was found dead at Beach Creek.”

Mont frowned. Murder wasn’t something talked about often in their small town. It was a rarity in such a small place for anything like that to happen.

But in Montgomery’s experience, evil lurked everywhere.

“Well, that’s bittersweet. Anything we need to worry about?”

He waved him off. “Nah, they’ve got it under control.”

“Sheriff!” someone shouted.

He sighed, gesturing toward the crowd. “My duties call,” he said. “Come on over sometime, and I’ll have Wanda whip up some of that pie you like.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Mont said.

Mont watched the sheriff walk off with his horse and started back toward his four-wheeler, waving as people shouted his name down the street. He’d gotten to the corner of the post office while the tail end of the parade wrapped up.

The staff from Megan’s trailed a small trailer that had Dobbs and one of his friends dressed up like the founding fathers.

Mont’s gaze traveled over Tonya’s swaying hips to the lame marching band song playing to Swayze.

She looked miserable, which made Mont howl with laughter. She had on her uniform for the diner, which Mont didn’t mind at all. The way those shorts curved to her looked sinfully good.

Swayze had something about her that drew him nearer. Those slender shoulders sagging as she followed behind the group of older waitresses and swayed to the rhythm of the band.

God, that hair was long. Mont could imagine wrapping his fingers into it and forcing her mouth upward so he could devour it. That sexy swinging walk of hers had his head gone, but not enough to not notice her losing her balance on a batch of stray rocks.

Mont found himself nearing her, grabbing her elbow as she stumbled, losing his own balance, and bringing her down on top of him, in the middle of the paved road.

The group of her coworkers didn’t see and continued to turn into the grocery store parking lot.

Swayze’s soft palms pressed against his chest, and her small body nestled between his legs had him hot allover.

Despite the heat of the Louisiana day, he knew it had nothing to do with the humidity.

“Wow there, Sally,” he whispered. “Tripping over me already.”

Swayze’s eyes turned to his, and a small laugh slipped from her throat as she pushed herself off of him and stumbled upright.

“Wow.” She looked over her shoulder. “They didn’t even notice. Maybe I can get out of going back to work.”

Mont stood, watching her contemplate not going after them.

“Nah, I need to go. Sorry about that and thank you.”

“No thank you for the flowers?” he asked.

Swayze’s apologies were short lived. Giving him a deadpanned look, she opened her mouth.

“Swayze.”

Dobbs gestured her over like she exasperated him.

She sighed, giving Mont a look he couldn’t decipher before turning to leave.

Mont didn’t mind. He had started to like watching her walk away.

***

Montgomery went back to the ranch after the short parade and helped Kaden in the field. They hardly spoke; there was only short instruction from Kaden and the sounds of horses and pigs grunting.

When Abigail walked out onto the back porch, she yelled, “What do y’all want for lunch?”

“We are going to Megan’s,” Kaden yelled, not missing a beat. “We have something else we need to talk about.”

That sounded bad.

But the chance of seeing Swayze would hopefully make it worth it. Not that she showed too much interest, but that was what he liked about her. She didn’t fall at his feet, and he knew once she did, he wouldn’t let go.

Kaden left in his own truck, proving Mont’s theory that them getting close wouldn’t be easy. He walked toward his truck, digging the keys from his jeans’ pocket.

“He’s hurt.”

Mont looked up at Abigail, who stood on the front porch with a wiggling Kathryn on her hip.

He wouldn’t engage in an argument with her because that’s where it would lead. Mont knew Kaden better than her, and he knew better than to speak too much to her.

It’d add to the fire that Kaden had toward Mont.

“Be back later.”

When he walked inside Megan’s, he noticed several flower arrangements—if that was what you wanted to call them—in red, plastic drinking glasses set on every other table. A rumble of laughter bubbled up his throat. She’d put the flowers he sent her in those cups.

Mont searched the tiny diner for Kaden, who sat at one of the back booths, his back to him. Mont started down the tiny aisle, noticing Swayze stood at the booth in front of his brother’s, her tiny hip popped to the side as she took an order.

Passing by her, Mont let himself brush against her back, her vanilla scent mild like it was her soap and not perfume. The subtle softness of it pinched his stomach into a knot. A small sound escaped her as she turned to see him walk by her and take a seat with his brother.

“What’s so funny?” Kaden asked.

“Swayze.”

Kaden looked over his shoulder at her taking the Sweenys’ order behind them. “Her ass is funny to you?”

“No, her ass is…” He grinned. “Perfect. I sent her those flowers yesterday, and she put them out here.”

Kaden glanced around at the array of tulips and sunflowers. “Maybe you should take a hint.”

“Not in my nature. She’ll come around sooner or later.”

Mont watched as she slid her ticket to Oscar behind the counter and laughed at something he said. He raised an eyebrow, because she’d do anything not to laugh at Mont. It seemed Oscar and Ryker had something he didn’t.

Swayze turned around, catching Mont’s eye, so he winked at her, but she rolled her own, as she turned toward Tonya. They had a heated discussion before Tonya sighed and walked toward their table.

“I guess the flowers were a bust,” Kaden said.

Mont coughed as Tonya stopped at their table, her cigarette smell tagging behind her. “Where is Swayze?”

“Mont—” Kaden said “I want my regular waitress,” Mont said. “Please, ma’am.”

“Oh, so a new tail comes, and you’re over me?” Tonya asked playfully.

Mont shrugged one shoulder. “I have a thing for brunettes,” he said.

Tonya let her arm fall, her pad slapping against her leg, aggravation on her aging face. “I’ll be right back.”

“Mont,” Kaden said. “Don’t make a scene in here. We need to be respectable in public—”

“Have I ever not been respectable to a woman, Kaden? Listen, I know you don’t like me since you’ve repeatedly told me so and kept things from me—”

“I haven’t kept anything from you,” Kaden said. “You weren’t there to see any of it. I haven’t kept you from coming home. Get it right,” he said, leaning back against the booth.

Mont watched Swayze’s and Tonya’s shadows from the bathroom hallway as they animatedly talked about waiting on them. In any other restaurant, he’d be offended, but he’d let it slide this time.

“I don’t care that you think I abandoned you, Kaden. I was healing. Now if we’re gonna do this together, I’ll stay away from your family like you asked, but you won’t dictate my personal life. I like her,” he said. “I don’t give a damn what you think about it. I won’t bring any drama to your house, but you won’t tell me who to date.”

Her small footsteps drew nearer, and Mont’s traitor eyes turned from Kaden’s scowl to her. There was something about the way she walked.

The way she snapped back at everything he said and how easily he got under her skin. It was his daddy and momma all over again.

He didn’t want to get ahead of himself, but he wanted her for the long haul. But he’d settle for a date—soon. Kaden mumbled something, but Mont couldn’t hear or make any sense of it. She forced him to look without a word.

“Well, good morning,” Mont said, looking up at her angry face. Even with those narrowed, blue eyes and scowl she was beautiful. “I see you got my flowers.”

Swayze looked over at Kaden, who shrugged his shoulders.

Swayze mumbled something underneath her breath while digging her pen and pad out of her apron. “Well, I guess some people take longer than others to get the hint. What can I get y’all this morning?”

“The usual,” Kaden said, sliding her the menu.

Mont opened his menu for the first time, studying it like he didn’t already know. The menu hadn’t changed in ten years. “Do you need a minute?”

“No, I like having you stand here by me, makes me feel special.”

Swayze pressed her mouth into a thin line.

“Ah, I guess I’ll take the usual.”

Swayze went to snatch the menu from his hand when he pulled it back, causing her to fall toward him, catching herself on his shoulders. “Whoa there, you don’t have to fall all over me twice in one day, Sways. I’ve been begging for a date.”

Swayze’s face turned red as Mont gripped her shoulder to steady her. He loved the way just one touch had her flustered.

“I’ll put in your order now,” she hissed, scurrying away.

“Is she bothering you?”

Mont glanced at Kaden, who looked behind him where the Sweenys sat.

As Kaden moved his head, Mont could see nothing had changed about her other than gravity pulling at her skin. “No, ma’am, I find her pretty sweet, and I’m flattered that she is our waitress.”

Mrs. Sweeny snorted, which made Mont want to smack the White Shoulder perfume off of her. She’d always been a prude, ever since he’d known her. Mont had dated her daughter in ninth grade, and she’d threatened to call his daddy when he broke it off with her.

The truth was that her daughter was just as stuck up as Mrs. Sweeny. The last he’d heard, she’d married a doctor in Dallas and was currently draining him of everything he was worth.

“Seems to me that she is a little handsy.”

Mont glanced over at Swayze, who had an eye on the Sweenys. Did he sense some animosity between the two? “Nah, I like her,” Mont interrupted her.

Mrs. Sweeny simply shrugged like she didn’t care and looked out the window at the slew of cars rounding the curve. Mont didn’t give a damn about what they thought.

“Making old friends new again,” Kaden said.

Swayze dropped off their drinks at the table, taking the long way around to avoid walking back by the Sweenys.

“I guess we need to talk about the financial side,” Kaden said. “Obviously the books are behind. Ever since Kathryn was born, Abigail has fallen behind on keeping up with them. We need someone that can sort them out.”

Mont took a drink of his tea. “I don’t think that’s me.”

“No, you need to help me in the field. I need help with labor, hay, and feeding the horses. There are a few horses I need broken in the next couple of weeks. And a few places in the back-field fence that needs repair.”

“Easy enough.”

Kaden nodded. “I’m gonna be gone in a few days to buy some cows. I hope by then you’ll be able to handle it by yourself.”

“I can handle it,” Mont said.

Kaden went silent, looking outside, and Mont would have rather been pushing nails in his fingers than sat there in an awkward silence with his own brother. It’d been bad enough that morning eating breakfast through heated glances and snarls.

Swayze came around the corner a few moments later with their food. Her dark hair was twisted into a bun on top of her head, and he couldn’t take his eyes off the way she moved. He was a sucker for each step she took with those sexy swinging hips.

And just like that, she tripped.

Both plates clattered against the tile floor, food and silverware sliding everywhere. He was beginning to think the girl was just clumsy after the parade incident, but it wasn’t until he stood up to help that he noticed Mrs. Sweeny’s foot slide back underneath the booth table.

Mont saw red as Swayze tried to pick herself up right beside Mrs. Sweeny, tears at the corner of each eye. He reached down to help her up, noticing Mrs. Sweeny examining her pants and food that splattered on the leg.

“What in the heavens—” Dobbs said.

“It was my fault,” Swayze said.

Mont ground his teeth together, briefly wondering what Kaden thought, but then decided he didn’t give a damn. “Mrs. Sweeny did it. I saw her trip Swayze.”

Dobbs’ face turned white as a ghost, and with good reason. First off, Mont would beat his ass if he tried anything funny, and second, the Sweenys were prominent people in their small town.

Thirdly, because Mrs. Sweeny was his momma.

“She would never do that,” Dobbs said. “Get up, Swayze. Let’s get this cleaned up.”

Mont helped her up, and pushed Swayze behind him, stepping closer to Dobbs. “You ain’t afraid of ya momma, are you?”

“What?” Swayze asked, making her way around Mont. “That’s his mother?” She laughed, her head falling back. “That explains so much,” she said, taking off her apron. “This is some hick town shit right here. You can clean the mess up yourself, Dobbs, maybe ask your momma to wipe your ass afterward.”

Montgomery watched in shock as she tossed the apron at Mrs. Sweeny’s face and marched out of the diner. Mrs. Sweeny swatted the apron away like it was herpes and tossed it on the ground.

“Well,” she said. “I guess it’s good the trash saw its way out then.”

Mont eyed Dobbs, daring him to say anything about her. “You’re an asshole,” he said.

“Mont,” Kaden stopped him. He was right to stop him because it was evident she’d been out to get Swayze, and Dobbs wasn’t man enough to do anything about it. “Let it go. Oscar, can we have our food to go?”

“You don’t have to take up for her,” Mrs. Sweeny said.

“I’ll do what I damn well please, thanks.”

Oscar gave him a thumbs up as he walked outside to catch Swayze. She sat on the corner of the restaurant sidewalk away from the diner’s eyes with her face in her hands.

“It’s funny,” she said, slowly standing up. “I’d been doing well here, and I hadn’t had a strike until you show up and can’t take no for an answer. Now I have to move—”

“Move? Hold your horses, Hoss,” he said, stepping forward.

“Don’t touch me,” she said.

Mont groaned, stepping back with his palms out in surrender. “Calm down. You know anything about keeping up with books? Paying bills?”

Swayze gave him a deadpanned, defeated look. “There is nowhere else hiring here. I checked when I moved here, and this was the only job I could get. I don’t want or need your help. Just leave us alone.”

Mont pressed his lips together, aggravated that she was so dismissive of him. “I know we’ve gotten off on the wrong foot—”

“Pfft.”

“But my brother has gotten so far behind in the books that we need a receptionist out at the ranch. You can have it if you want it.”

She shook her head violently, not even giving the offer a second thought. “No way. I don’t want or need your help.”

Against his better judgment, Mont grabbed her elbow, pulling her closer to him. He almost hated how much he wanted to pull her the rest of the way, how the smell of her made his body swoon like a damn girl. “What other options do you have? I don’t know your story. I’d love to know, but it’s obvious you’re not willing to share. I don’t know what you’re running from—”

“I’m not—”

“It doesn’t matter,” Mont said. “I’ll wait for that, but you will be safe working for us. I’ll take care of you.”

Swayze had a wild look on her face for a moment. He was on the brink of thinking she wanted to strangle him, but she shook her head. “No, thank you.”

Swayze started toward the road.

“Wait.”

“Spare me the embarrassment of your brother kicking me off his property and let me leave.”

Mont watched her turn back toward the road. “He wouldn’t do that, and I wouldn’t let ‘im.”

She kept walking toward the road until Mont couldn’t see her anymore past the trees beside them. Mont hardly knew her, but something told him she couldn’t afford to move to another city, and he knew the waitressing job at Megan’s hadn’t given her a lot to save.

Biting his lip, he walked back toward the diner to grab their lunch to-go. He’d wear Kaden down somehow and get Swayze the job. His gut had never been wrong before, and he refused to let her suffer in silence.