Wyatt
“Oh, shit,” I mumbled under my breath as Shane Wakefield walked into the barbecue restaurant. It was just my luck that he would show up.
He saw me almost immediately and then looked over and saw Sadie sitting next to me. A grin spread across his face as he headed over to us. He held up his hand to wave, but I looked away, pretending I didn’t see him. I did not want to talk to this asshole. I turned to Sadie in hope that she wouldn’t notice him. “So I was thinking that—”
“Hey, guys!” Shane obviously missed the fact that I didn’t want to speak to him as he stopped by our table. “Hey, what’s up, man?” He nodded at me. “Sadie, you are looking absolutely beautiful today.”
“Hi, Shane. I didn’t even know you were back in town.” She jumped up and gave him a hug.
I frowned. She was far too friendly. Didn’t she understand that men took hugs to mean something else? Shane was probably thought she was a sure thing already. I would have to talk to her later.
“Yeah. I got back to town about a week ago,” he replied. “In fact, my mama saw Mrs. Hamilton at the store yesterday and asked to pass along a message because I didn’t have your number.”
“Oh, what message?”
“I just wanted you to give me a call. I guess I could have popped over to your dad’s ranch, but I didn’t want to just show up on announced, you know?”
“Oh, that would’ve been fine, but I wasn’t even there. I just got back from Idaho today. Wyatt picked me up.”
“Hey, man.” Shane nodded at me. “Good to see you, buddy.”
“Yeah,” I said in response, not really happy to see him. Shane and I had been friends in high school. We’d both been on the football and baseball teams together, but he had been a douche bag. He had broken almost every girl’s heart and didn’t care. Sadie had had the biggest crush on him for the longest time. He had never shown any interest in her, but he’d talked all kinds of trash about her in the locker rooms.
The day he said he wanted to take her behind the bleachers so that he could bend her over, I’d told him in no uncertain words that if he even dared think about it, I would knock his front teeth out. And that had been that.
“So, what you’ve been up to, Wyatt?” Shane asked.
“Just working on the ranch. You?”
“Well, I told you I finished law school. Oh, rather, I guess I didn’t tell you, but I’m sure you saw on Facebook.”
“Nah,” I shook my head. “I don’t really use Facebook or Instagram or any of those social media things. Waste of time, I think.”
“Oh, Wyatt, you sound like my granddad.” Sadie rolled her eyes. “So, congratulations on the law degree, Shane. Didn’t you go to like Duke or something?”
“Yep,” he nodded “But I’m back home now. Dad wants to expand, and we’re thinking about …” He paused, “Well, I guess I shouldn’t say anything right now as its private information, and you’re a competing ranch.” He looked at me.
“Okay,” I muttered.
I really didn’t give a rat’s ass what he and his dad’s ranch were going to do. Horseshoe Ranch, my family’s ranch, was one of the largest ranches in the state of Montana, and we were at the forefront of everything. There was nothing that Shane’s dad could do that we couldn’t do, but I wasn’t about to get into a competition. I was the youngest of seven brothers, so what I had to say didn’t really matter at Horseshoe Ranch.
On the other hand, Shane Wakefield was the oldest in his family, so he could make decisions because one day he’d inherit the whole thing. I chewed on my lower lip. I didn’t mind being the youngest brother most times, but sometimes it irked me. Having six older brothers meant you didn’t really have much of a say in anything. And I had a lot of ideas, a lot of really good ideas, but no one listened to me because I was the baby of the family. It was annoying as shit.
“Hey, Wyatt,” Sadie sat in the chair next mine, “what do you think?” I blinked looked at her. She was smiling, her blue eyes alight with happiness.
“What do I think about what?”
“Shane just invited us to come over tonight. He said we could go canoeing.”
“Canoeing?” I looked at her and then I looked at him. “I don’t think so. We have plans.”
Sadie looked confused. “What plans?”
“It was going to be a surprise,” I lied. There was no surprise, but there was no way in hell I was spending the evening with Shane and Sadie. I knew Shane would start flirting. And the last thing I wanted was for Sadie to flirt back with him. She had the absolute worst taste in men. I didn’t know what she would do without me looking after her. She’d probably end up with some douche bag.
“Is it something that I can join?” Shane grabbed a seat and sat at the table with us.
“No.” I narrowed my eyes at him. “Nice manners, taking a seat before you’ve even been invited.”
“Wyatt!” Sadie hit me in the shoulder. “He’s just joking,” she said to Shane. “Why’d you say that?”
“Why did I say what?” I looked at her. “We were enjoying a meal—”
“Oh, Wyatt, stop being so grumpy.” She looked over at Shane. “He’s just pissed off because I was going on some dates in Idaho, and he thinks that I have bad taste in men. And I guess I hurt his feelings because I said I might have stayed in Idaho, but I didn’t stay in Idaho. I’m here. So there’s no need to be grumpy.”
“I’m not being grumpy. And if you move to Idaho, that’s on you. Though why would you move to Idaho from Montana? It’s a significantly inferior state.”
“I’ve got to agree with Wyatt there,” Shane agreed. “Idaho?”
“I have cousins there.” She glared at me. “And you know that I’m …” she paused. “Anyway,” she said quickly looking over at Shane. I realized she didn’t want Shane to know that she was looking for a husband. I cleared my throat.
“So, Shane, you know that Sadie’s looking for a husband. She wants to get married and have lots of kids right away. Don’t you Sadie?”
“No!” She glared at me.
“Is that what you’re looking for, Shane?”
“Um, well, you know, I just got back into town.” He got up quickly, glancing between Sadie and me. “But I guess you guys are busy and eating. I’ll see what you’re up to later. Okay?”
“Okay.” I raised my cowboy hat and nodded at him before turning to Sadie. “Well, I guess he’s not Mr. Right.”
“You’re such an asshole. Why would you tell him that?”
“Why would I tell him what?” I shrugged innocently. “Aren’t you looking to get married and have kids soon?”
“Yeah, but that’s not something you tell a guy before you even go on the first date.”
“So you were trying to go on a date with Shane Wakefield? Really? After he was such a douche canoe in high school?”
“How is he a douche canoe? He and I never even dated. So maybe he’s really sweet.”
“You forget I was on varsity football and baseball with him. And you heard the rumors.”
“I don’t know if the rumors are true.”
“Trust me, the rumors were true.”
Her eyes widened. “I don’t believe it. There’s just no way.”
“Trust me. There was a way.”
“So you are saying it is true that every single member of the varsity cheerleading squad gave him a blowjob?”
“Yep.” I nodded. “Every single member.”
“But didn’t they know about each other?” She shook her head. “That’s so disgusting.”
“They didn’t care, girl. And who knows what lies Shane told them?”
“I guess. But we’re not in high school anymore. He’s changed.”
“Men like Shane Wakefield don’t change. Trust me.”
She sighed. “You think that every guy’s an asshole, but there are some good guys out there.”
“Name me one,” I said.
“Well, there’s Beau, there’s Austin, there’s you, there’s Ranger, there’s—”
“Who’s not a Hamilton.”
“There’s my dad.”
“You want to date your dad?”
“Ew! You’re absolutely disgusting. This isn’t like Oedipus!”
I laughed at the horrified look on her face. “Yeah. Let’s hope not.”
“You’re horrible, you know that, Wyatt?”
“I’m not so horrible that you don’t love me, though.”
“I love you because you’re my best friend. And we’ve been friends for ages, but if I were just meeting you now?”
She wrinkled her nose, and I thought how pretty she looked. I’d missed her. I’d missed laughing with her and bantering with her. I didn’t want her going back to Idaho anytime soon. In fact, I didn’t want her going anywhere anytime soon.
“What are you thinking about?” she asked. “You have a weird expression on your face.”
“I was just thinking that, yeah, maybe I did miss you a little bit.” I grabbed a fry off her plate. “But only because I miss having your annoying little voice in my ear every day.”
“Um, is that some sort of backhanded compliment?” She reached over and took a fry off my plate.
“Is it a backhanded compliment or just a compliment?”
“Does it really make a difference?” She laughed.
“I guess not. Welcome home, Sadie.”
“It’s good to be back,” she said softly. “I missed you too, you know?”
“Of course you did. How could you not?”
She rolled her eyes. “But you know, I am looking for a boyfriend, Wyatt, and …” She paused.
“What? Spit it out.”
“You make it harder.”
“I make what harder?”
“Goofball. You make it harder for me to find a boyfriend.”
“How do I make it harder for you to find a boyfriend?”
“Because we’re always together. And men just assume that we’re together like boyfriend, girlfriend or something. So they don’t approach me.”
“Um, that’s not true.”
“It is true. When I was in Idaho, all these different guys approached me, and I was telling my cousins that never happens here.”
“Maybe the men in Idaho just aren’t as polite.”
“No, it’s because they see you with me and they think I’m taken, but I’m not taken.”
“So what? What do you want to do?”
“I think I need to hang out sometimes without you.”
“You do hang out without me.” I rolled my eyes. “What are you talking about?”
“I mean, maybe a little bit more.”
“You don’t want to hang out with me? What, are you trying to end our friendship or something? Are you crazy, Sadie? Are you so man-crazy that you’re going to end our friendship just so you can go on the prowl for a man?”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying. I’m just saying that …” She sighed, “Obviously I’m not going to end our friendship, and obviously I’m not going to stop hanging out with you, but I will need more me time.”
“Okay. Is this like, a feminine thing?”
“No, it’s not a feminine thing, but I guess I’ll be hanging out with Olivia and Lucy again.”
“Beau and Austin aren’t going to like you taking their girlfriends to go prowl for other men. Trust me on that.”
“I’m not going on the prowl for anything. Why are you so condescending to me, Wyatt Hamilton?”
“I’m not condescending to you, and since when have you used SAT words?”
“Since forever, because I’m smart.”
“Uh-huh. So what are we going to do tonight?” I said changing the subject.
“I don’t know. What do you want to do?”
“I was thinking maybe we’d watch a movie. You can stay over at the ranch.”
“Okay. You sure your mom and dad won’t mind?”
“When do they ever mind?” I laughed. “Come on now, you practically live there.”
“Fine, but let’s drop my mine first so I can see my mom and dad and let them know I’m back. And I’ll pick up some clothes so I can stay at yours.”
“Okay. Sounds good.” I grinned at her. “If I didn’t tell you already, I’m glad you’re back.”
“You told me ten minutes ago, Wyatt. Do you have Alzheimer’s or something?”
“Oh, let’s hope not.” I pulled her towards me.
“What are you doing?” She pushed me away.
“I don’t know. I just wanted to give you a hug or something.”
“Oh, Wyatt Hamilton, you are a weird one.”
“Mm, I might be a weird one, but I’m not as weird as you, Sadie Johnson.”
“So what are we going to watch tonight?”
“What do you want to watch tonight?”
“A rom-com.”
“Oh no.” I shook my head. “I hate rom-com. They’re so unbelievable. And they make women think that men are going to be perfect. And trust me, there are no perfect men, and you of all people should know better, Sadie, because you’ve grown up with seven Hamilton men. You know none of us are perfect. And yet you have this idea that you’re going to be swept off your feet by a Prince Charming.”
“I am going to be swept off my feet by a Prince Charming,” she insisted. “I mean, I hope so.”
“Girl, there are no Prince Charmings. When are you going to understand that?”
“Don’t say that, Wyatt.”
“What? You don’t want to hear the truth?”
“Just because you aren’t romantic doesn’t mean a romantic man’s not out there. I mean, look at Austin and Beau and how much they love Olivia and Lucy. I want what they have.”
“Okay.” I shook my head. “Delusional.”
“Why am I delusional? Just because I want a fairy tale?”
“Yeah. Fairy tales don’t exist, Sadie. And as your best friend, I’m here to remind you of that. Don’t have all these crazy expectations. And the best way to stop having these expectations is to stop watching rom-com.”
“Fine,” she said, “We can watch anything you want to watch then, seeing as you’re the boss of everyone.”
“You’re such a drama queen, Sadie. But I’m glad you know I’m the boss of you as well,” I teased her. “That’s great. There’s this new horror movie on Netflix—”
“I don’t want to watch horror. I hate watching horror at night. I can’t sleep.”
“Well, you can share the bed with me. And if you get scared, just bury your head in my shoulder.”
“But I get nightmares when I watch horror movies.”
“Well, I’ll protect you, Sadie. You know that, right?”
“I know.” She smiled. “You are the best best friend, Wyatt. But …” She turned away.
“What? I frowned “What’s the matter?”
“My cousins think it’s kind of weird that we still share a bed sometimes.”
“What are you talking about? Your cousins are getting on my nerves, you know that? We’ve been sharing a bed since we were little kids.”
“Yeah. But they said we’re not little kids anymore, and we’re not. And they just think it’s weird that, you know …”
“Know what?”
“That we share a bed, but nothing’s happened.”
“Ew.” I shook my head. “Sadie, really?”
“I know,” she laughed. “That’s what I said to them. But I was just … wondering, you know?”
“What were you wondering?”
“What age should we stop?”
“What age should we stop sharing the bed?”
“Yeah.” She stood up. “I’m just going to go to the restroom. I’ll be right back.”
“Okay.”
I watched as she walked away, her hips swaying from side to side, her long legs shown off in her short shorts. I mean, she was Sadie. She was my best friend. I didn’t see her as a woman … but that wasn’t to say that she wasn’t one.
I knew her cousins were right in a way. I’d just never really thought about it like that. Some of the girls that I’d dated had been very upset that Sadie and I would share a bed and were so close. They always thought I was cheating on them with her, but Sadie and I didn’t have that type of relationship.
We’d never even kissed. We had both been very clear about the fact that we were friends and we weren’t going to go down that road together because it would ruin our friendship. And that was the last thing I would ever want to do. The very, very last thing.
She was my Sadie, my best friend, my confidant. My favorite cowgirl. The person I loved to spend the most time with in the world.
The way I saw it, Sadie’s quest for a boyfriend was going to interfere with both of our lives.
I didn’t like it. I didn’t like it at all.