Chase clears his throat and looks my way. “Are you okay, man?”
“Finally, someone is concerned about my welfare. You are now upgraded to my favorite brother.” I make the motion like I’m knighting him, then wave him off. “I’ll be fine. Thayden can give me a ride home whenever he gets them to drop the charges.”
Chase snorts. “Good luck with that. Sounds like you’ll need it.”
“I’m taking back my upgrade!”
He ignores me and shakes Thayden’s hand. Then they do one of these bro-y back slap hugs. It should look dumb when a man in an expensive suit does that kind of thing, but Thayden is always smugly confident.
“You think this will stay on my record?” Chase asks.
Thayden waves a hand. “Nah. It was just a night in the drunk tank, unofficially.”
“We weren’t drunk!” he protests.
“And you weren’t officially charged,” Thayden says. “It’s fine.”
“You think Harper will be mad?” Chase asks me.
I chuckle. “At me and James and Collin? Yes. You, on the other hand, can do no wrong in her eyes.”
“And if she is mad,” Thayden drawls with a wicked gleam in his eye, “just leverage it into some good make-up—”
I slap my hands over my ears in case he’s about to say the word I think he’s about to say. I yell nonsense words until Thayden and Chase are laughing. Slowly, I uncover my ears, then shoot them both death stares.
“She’s my sister! We don’t discuss … whatever thing you weren’t about to discuss because it doesn’t exist!”
Thayden is still laughing after Chase leaves the room to join my brothers. I wait, arms crossed, until Thayden straightens his tie and turns to me, brows raised. “Well, well, well. You’ve dug yourself a nice, neat little hobbit hole, haven’t you?”
“It’s more of a dungeon.”
Thayden lowers his voice. “Are you seriously considering getting married to help someone with a custody thing?”
Am I?
The reality is I have no idea what situation Lindy is in the middle of, only that she is in a tough spot even without what Wolf said. From her falling-down house to the thin veil of loneliness swirling around her, Lindy needs a leg up. I’m more than happy to be the leg in this particular situation.
Like I told her the other day, I want a second chance. We were so good together, and now we’ve been brought back together in the strangest way possible. I may not believe in signs, but I do believe in not ignoring what’s right in front of you.
“Would it be ridiculous if I said yes?” I ask.
For a moment, Thayden studies my face, his eyes intense but curious. Then he breaks out in a grin and slaps me on the back. “Pat, I am the poster child for strange marriage scenarios. I’ll tell you this—just because a marriage happens quickly or unconventionally doesn’t make it a bad idea.”
Not the answer I was expecting.
“I don’t have time to tell you about my marriage,” Thayden continues, “but ours was not the typical relationship. And Delilah is the best thing to ever happen to me. So, I’ll support whatever, man. Just don’t tell Collin I said so.”
“Hey, lawyer-client confidentiality. It goes both ways. So, you and Delilah, huh?”
Thayden stands. “I’ll give you the short version while we walk. Apparently, the courtroom is just upstairs. Gotta love small towns.”
“I hate small towns,” Thayden is saying an hour later as we exit the building.
I’m carrying my cowboy boots, which are almost unrecognizable with the mud caked over them. For the first time since I’ve known the man, Thayden looks flustered. I’ll give the town of Sheet Cake this: they don’t mess around.
I give him a few slaps on the back. “You’ll be okay, man. Don’t take the loss too hard.”
He gives me a look. “Why are you smiling? You’re wearing an ankle monitor. We both lost.”
Thayden kicks at my ankle, which has indeed now been outfitted with a court-ordered tracking device of sorts. One that will confine me to Sheet Cake indefinitely. It also doesn’t work with cowboy boots, which is the thing I’m most upset about. I don’t mind being confined to this town. Actually, it couldn’t be more perfect. Except for the fact that I don’t have a place to stay. Or my truck. Or shoes. I’m also still covered in dried mud, which is causing chafing in several areas I’d rather not discuss.
“At least I wasn’t slapped with a fine for being in contempt of court,” I shoot back.
Thayden groans, shaking his head and muttering about small town judges.
“How’d you fare with Sheet Cake justice?” a voice calls.
We turn to see Chevy ambling toward us in street clothes, a wide smile on his face. Clearly, he’s already heard the outcome.
I wiggle my ankle. “Is this y’all’s way of inducting me as an official Sheeter?”
Chevy chuckles. “Hardly.”
Thayden glances between us. “Well, fellas, it’s been lovely. But I’m headed home.”
“Hey—what am I paying you for? At least drive me to a hotel or to get some clean clothes and shoes.”
Thayden raises his eyebrows. “You really want to pay my hourly rate to take you shopping?”
“Never mind.”
“That’s what I thought,” Thayden says, then grins. “Plus, you’ve got a new friend! I’m sure Chevy here could be persuaded to take you. You might want to apologize for punching him first.”
I look over at Chevy, otherwise known as the deputy I inadvertently assaulted and the reason I’m currently wearing a police-issued anklet. Chevy winks.
“Rrrrright.” I clear my throat. “I’m sorry for hitting you, Chevy. I meant to hit the other guy.”
He laughs. “You could have a future writing greeting cards. Best apology ever.”
“Well done,” Thayden says. “And good luck winning back your girl!” With that, he jogs off toward his car, leaving me with Chevy, whose eyes have narrowed considerably.
“Is your fancy lawyer talking about Lindy?”
I lean over to scratch my ankle. Dang if this thing isn’t going to drive me up a wall. “Uh.”