Easton's Claim (Colebrook Siblings Trilogy Book 3) (6 page)

It was almost laughable. Everyone knew how his ex had up and bailed on his pathetic ass over a year ago. Brandon had never imagined gaining leverage against him so easily, having such powerful leverage at his disposal.

Brandon released Greg’s hair with a cruel jerk and stepped back, a hard, ruthless ball of anger forming in his gut. If he wanted to gain the attention and admiration of the top cartel members in DC, he had to up his game.

He’d never gone after innocents before, but he had no choice now. Not if he wanted to establish his reputation as a top contender. The organization was watching him; he needed to impress them and show that he was merciless enough to warrant bringing on board.

Greg’s nostrils flared, a move that had to be painful considering his broken nose. “She’s got nothing to do with this. Leave her alone. It’s between you and me.”

Brandon barked out a laugh. “You don’t get to call the shots this time, asshole. You brought her into this. Whatever happens to her is on you.” He was going to make an example out of them, as a warning of what happened to those who crossed him.

Leaving the prisoner to bleed and sweat in his seat, Brandon turned and walked away. “Think I’ll leave you to think things over for a while,” he threw over his shoulder. “Maybe when I come back you’ll have figured out a way to get what I want.”

He stepped past the man guarding the door and out into the hallway. His shoes were quiet against the tile floor, the air cool and smelling of cleaner instead of blood and sweat. In his world, power and money were the only currencies that mattered. Fear and respect were how you got them.

Brandon knew exactly what he would do.

He’d get back what was his, then kill the ex-wife in front of Greg before giving the bastard the death he’d earned.

After helping his dad bring the horses in from the pasture and put them in the barn, Easton walked out to the nearest white rail fence and paused to stare out at the rolling fields beyond it. The pastureland spread across the property like a lush green carpet beyond the paddocks. They sloped down the hill, then disappeared into the acres of forest that banded three sides of the property, offering them total privacy.

Setting one booted foot on the lower rail, he braced his stacked forearms on the upper one and inhaled a deep breath of the cool morning air. Fall was definitely here, he could smell the sweet dampness of it and see it in the bright bursts of color forming in the distant trees. His favorite time in the Valley, and while he loved being home with his family, all he could think about was Piper.

He hated that she’d been dragged into more drama from Greg, and wished he could make it all go away for her. She’d been understandably emotional last night after seeing the mess and blood at her house, and though he’d loved to have comforted her, she’d clearly wanted to be alone so he’d given her space.

Then the cops had come to look through the shed with them. They’d found the dresser Piper thought Greg meant, but hadn’t found anything in it that would explain his desperation.

He glanced behind him to check her window in the house, the need to see her pricking at him like sharp needles. She probably wasn’t up yet because the blind was still down and it was still early. After all she’d been through yesterday, she needed a good sleep.

Tamping down his impatience, he walked across the lawn and the gravel border that surrounded the house. He opened the back door and stepped into the kitchen.

“Hey.”

Startled, he whipped his head around. His sister Charlie walked toward him from the living room, coffee in hand. Her long, dark brown hair was drawn back into a low ponytail and she was dressed in sweats. She must have rolled right out of bed and headed for her car. “Hi. When did you get in?”

“About an hour ago. You guys were out in the barn. Where’s Dad?”

“Out there with the farrier.”

“He still does that? Hovers over the guy while he files down the horses’ hooves?”

“Oh yeah. Die hard control freak, gotta love it. So why’d you drive out so early?”

She covered a yawn. “After you called last night and told me what was going on with Piper, I couldn’t sleep, so I just decided to head out.” She looked over at the staircase. “She still sleeping?”

“Think so.”

His sister plunked herself into a chair at the long farmhouse table and rubbed at her eyes. “I hate that she’s going through this crap again.”

“I know.”

The floorboards creaked overhead. They both looked up and a moment later Piper appeared on the top of the stairs, her honey-colored hair loose around her shoulders, dressed in snug jeans and a black sweater that hugged the plump mounds of her breasts. Her face brightened when she saw Charlie. “Hi!”

Charlie got up and enveloped her in a hug. Easton wished the hug and the smile were for him. “Hi, hon.”

Several inches shorter than his sister, Piper leaned back to peer up at her. “What are you doing here?”

“I was planning to come down and spend the weekend anyway, but Easton called me last night and told me what happened.”

“Oh.” She stepped back and lowered her gaze to the floor. “You didn’t have to do that.”

Charlie snorted and gave her a hard look. “Uh, yeah I did. You’d do the same for me, right? So what’s the difference when you need me?”

Piper sighed. “I just hate that I’m dragging everyone into this.”

“You’re not dragging anyone. In case you can’t see, we’ve volunteered.”

“And that’s why I love you guys.” A slight smile tugged at her mouth, then she looked Easton’s way and a fine tension settled in her expression. What was that about? “Morning.”

“Morning. Have a good sleep?”

“Pretty good, yes.”

Liar.
Her eyes were swollen and puffy and had dark circles beneath them. It bothered him that she’d been crying alone in her room last night. He’d have given anything for the chance to climb in bed beside her and hold her, make her feel safe and let her know she wasn’t alone. He’d been damn tempted to do just that.

One step at a time
. “Want some coffee?”

“Love some.”

He filled a mug for her, added sugar and cream before handing it to her.

She smiled as she accepted it. “Thanks. Remember that time we all went camping together and you accidentally left the milk out of the cooler? You made us all coffee the next morning and it looked like you’d poured cottage cheese in there.”

I remember
everything
about you
.

But he most definitely didn’t want her thinking about him as a fourteen-year-old kid. “Yeah, I had to ride my bike the eight miles into the nearest town to buy fresh stuff.” He waited until they were all at the table with their coffee and a plate of toast before continuing. “I talked to Wyatt last night. He and Austen are going to meet us at your place around nine. They’ll help us clean up and start repairs.” The cops had called her last night to say her house was no longer a crime scene.

Piper’s brow creased and she set her mug down. “Oh, but they already have so much work at—”

“Stop. They’re coming, so that’s that. They’re good at what they do, and between the five of us we can put a serious dent into the repairs over the next few days. If all goes well, you can restage your place and start showing it again on Monday.” Although part of him wanted it to take forever, so he’d get to spend more time with her—and so she wouldn’t be able to sell and move away. “Austen said she’ll be glad to take a look at the pie chest and let you know if she can fix it.”

Her face brightened. “She did?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Well, if they’re sure and they don’t mind taking time away from their own house…”

Easton exchanged a glance with Charlie and barely refrained from laughing when his sister rolled her eyes. As if there’d ever been any question that Wyatt and Austen would jump in to help Piper.

Being on the receiving end of charity always made her uncomfortable, but in this case, too bad. There was no reason for her to go through this alone when she had all of them to back her up. Family took care of each other and he couldn’t understand why she didn’t seem to get that. She’d faced everything by herself far too often in the past, something he admired her for but also regretted. If he’d known what was really going on with her before, he’d have…

You’d have what? You’ve been on constant rotations overseas for the past two years.

Well, he would have done something. And his family would have as well.

After they ate he drove them all to Piper’s place. She was quiet as they walked to the back door, then she squared her shoulders in a
let’s do this
move that was classic Piper.

He knew this was hard on her. If they’d been alone he would have pulled her into a hug just to reassure her but Charlie would know it was more than concern, and he didn’t want to tip his hand before he’d had a chance to talk to Piper about his feelings first.

“Holy shit,” Charlie murmured when they walked into the kitchen and she saw the damage on the inside.

“Pretty much, yeah,” Piper said, heading through the mudroom into the laundry room. “All the cleaning stuff is in here.”

“I’ll take the kitchen,” he said. He didn’t want Piper to have to deal with the blood.

“Okay. Thanks. I’ll start in the family room.” She handed him a bucket, mop and bottle of bleach.

“I’ll help you,” Charlie said, trailing after her with a broom and dust pail.

He got to work cleaning up the blood then disinfected the floor, wiped down all the cabinets and the countertops. In the middle of pouring the last of the red-tinged water down the sink, Wyatt and Austen showed up.

His eldest brother strode in through the back door without knocking, his gaze going straight to the bloody water in the bucket. The mass of scars on the right side of his face tightened. “You need help in here?”

“No, almost done. Worst of the damage is out front.” He nodded in the direction of the family room.

Austen came in behind Wyatt, shot Easton a smile that made her silver-gray eyes sparkle, a stark and beautiful contrast to her light brown skin. She was tall, the same height as Easton, and solid muscle, a former firefighter and talented carpenter. She was awesome, and he was beyond thrilled that his brother had found her.

Truth was, he’d been worried as hell about Wyatt before Austen had shown up. They all had. That IED blast in Afghanistan had changed him into a completely different person, and not just because it had taken one eye and his lower leg. Wyatt had lost his military working dog as well as his men, and that kind of loss never went away.

Easton wasn’t worried about him anymore though. That girl had Wyatt wrapped so hard around her diamond engagement ring-studded finger it wasn’t even funny. Easton would have loved her forever for that alone, so it was just a bonus that he liked her anyway.

“Hey, handsome,” she said to him.

“Hey.” He grinned back at her. “Thanks for coming.”

“Wouldn’t miss it.” She glanced around, her tight, dark curls bouncing around her shoulders as her head moved. “Wow.”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

“Where’s the pie chest?”

He’d already explained to her over the phone last night how important it was to Piper. He hoped she’d be able to fix it. “Through there.” He pointed toward the sound of broken glass being swept up.

Austen walked through the kitchen and headed for where he’d indicated, but Wyatt hung back, leaning against the counter and crossing his arms over his massive chest. “She okay?” he murmured, staring at him with intense hazel eyes just like their father’s.

“Not sure. You know how she is. Strong, stubborn. Suffers in silence.” He hated that
so
much.

Wyatt nodded and clenched his jaw, making the scars twitch. “I knew that fucker wasn’t finished screwing with her yet.”

The show of protectiveness didn’t stir any jealousy in Easton. There was zero attraction between his brother and Piper. She was a Colebrook, plain and simple. Easton hoped to make that official someday, hopefully sooner rather than later. A ring on her finger, and not long after that, giving her his name. “Well, looks like he’s paying for it now.”

“Still no word on what happened to him?”

“Not yet. Hoping for an update sometime today. Come on, let’s go see how we want to tackle this.”

“Is the glass all cleaned up?”

“Think so.”

“Hang on, I’m gonna get Grits. Piper would like that.”

Yeah, she would. But as big and tough as Wyatt was, he wasn’t fooling anyone with that excuse. He was almost as attached to that dog as he was to Austen. Another miracle, considering Wyatt had vowed never to own another dog after Raider had been killed.

The start of the transformation had been all Piper’s doing. She’d known Wyatt since they were eighteen and had seen right through his miserable recluse act. Somehow she’d known the dog would force him to feel again, and had dropped Grits off on his doorstep without warning. She’d not only rescued Grits, but Wyatt too, and Easton would always be grateful to her for that.

Out in the family room the girls had cleaned up all the broken pictures and stacked them onto the now-righted coffee table. “The TV’s a loss,” Piper said in a discouraged voice.

“I can definitely do something with this pie chest though,” Austen said, running her hand over the split in the rear of the now-righted chest, and the broken doors. “No guarantees I can make it as good as new, but it’ll be close.”

The sound of little paws on the hardwood made Piper turn her head. Her entire face lit up when she saw the dog trotting toward her, feathery white tail swishing, long brown ears flopping. “Grits!”

The Cavalier King Charles spaniel rushed over, tail wagging, his prosthetic right rear leg thumping on the floor. The asshole who had tried to kill Austen and Wyatt a few months ago had shot Grits. Little guy had lost a leg, but it hadn’t slowed him down any.

Piper scooped him up and buried her face in his soft fur. “How’s my little sweetheart doing, huh?” she crooned, kissing and cuddling him and basically turning the little guy into a puddle of mush in her arms.