“I’m looking forward to seeing that museum Jackson told us about,” Parker said. Then he smiled. “And meeting Ari and Charlotta and Laci…and those two men Addison married, Mike and Terry. I’d like to see Grandma Kate again.” Then he grinned. “And if we get the chance to go to Divine, the two men Veronica married, too. I’d personally like to thank Travis McDaniel for his contribution to nailing those two little Maxwell fuckers. Killing those feral horses. Despicable.” It was the reason Liz Maxwell’s sons were in prison. They’d stolen horses that had been under the protection of the Bureau of Land Management—horses that had been on land Jesse and Barry had offered free of charge to the government for that purpose.
“What do you think about that? About all our cousins here being in ménages? I know what the rest of the family thinks, but you and I have never really talked about it.”
Parker shrugged. “I recall being really surprised when we first heard about it—and then finding out that our Grandpa Emerson’s folks were three, and not two. But you know what? I look at what we have back home—the way George and Norah have always been fighting, and the way none of the families really get along. I look at the way our brothers behave and how our cousins Randy, Carl, and George are—they’re all so-called normal. So I say, if our Texas cousins are happy, then they should be able to live however the fuck they want.”
“I’m looking forward to this vacation, Parker. God knows we’ve never had one, and that never bothered me before. Hell, I could work year after year with a few just days off at a time to kick back and fish or hunt or just read. Never needed to go anywhere—not until they all turned into complete assholes back home.”
“I’m with you. It’ll be nice to take a break from all that meanness.” They finished their coffee, and Parker left money on the table and then took a trip to the can. When he exited the restaurant, Dale was waiting, the keys to his truck dangling from his finger.
“I changed my mind. You can drive.”
They got in, buckled up, and headed south, out of town. Parker pulled into a gas station and filled the tank. Then he followed the GPS’s directions to Highway 84, heading east.
He cast a glance over at his brother, who was already dozing off. Parker wasn’t sure exactly what they’d discover when they got to Cord and Jackson’s place. But he found himself hoping that the version of family waiting for them was a hell of a lot more welcoming than the one they’d left behind.
Chapter Two
Dale glanced over at his brother, not one bit surprised that Parker looked about as dazed as he felt.
This had been the most remarkable family gathering he could recall. He and Parker had pretty much mostly listened, and watched, as the huge group of Benedicts around the table—some their first cousins and some brand new-to-them cousins—ate and talked and bantered their way through a very tasty meal of roast beef and potatoes, as well as some Tex-Mex sides he didn’t recognize, but liked.
He made to get up to help clear the table.
“Naw, you two sit. Tonight, you’re guests.” Jackson smiled as he said that then swooped in and kissed his pretty wife, Ari. Dale did blink when Cord did the exact same thing. The other men present—Jesse and Barry, Trace and Lucas, and the new cousins, Chase and Brian—all helped with the clearing, all also kissing their wives.
Jesse and Barry also each took a moment to tickle their nearly seven-month-old son, Patrick, making the cute baby giggle in a way that put smiles on everyone’s faces.
“Sorry we were late arriving.” Carrie Benedict, the new cousin married to the new cousins, flashed a grin he thought was cute. “Junior here has been giving me fits the last month or so.”
“No need to apologize, Carrie,” Parker said. “Baby comes first. Is everything okay?”
Carrie blushed. “Well, I had a lot of morning sickness the first few months,” she said.
“And then there was June twenty-sixth,” her husband Chase said. He’d come back into the dining room to scoop a few more things, and to kiss Carrie again. He left his hand on her shoulder and looked at Parker and then him. “We refer to that as the Night of the Tornado.”
Dale felt his eyes go wide. “The what?”
“You’d think living in Texas all our lives that wouldn’t be such a big deal, right?” Chase said. “But believe it or not, that was the first tornado to touch down in Lusty—well, since there’ve been Benedicts and Jessops and Kendalls here, anyway.”
“Was anybody hurt?” Dale asked.
“Minor injuries.” Brian said that, and he smirked. There were a few snickers, and Dale immediately had the sense that there was a story here.
“Let’s get these pies cut up and passed around,” Cord said. “Then we’ll tell you all about our little dustup with Mother Nature.”
“You won’t forget the part about how it was mostly the women who saved your bacon, will you, sweetheart?”
Cord looked at his wife and then leveled a look at every other woman at the table. Then his laughing eyes landed on Ari again. “Red, y’all are making real sure none of us ever forget that part—for which we’re all grateful, of course.”
“Wow, Cord.” Laci’s smile looked huge—and teasing. “That ‘y’all’ sounded downright Texan!”
“Thank you, cousin. I’m working on it.” His smile was accompanied by a wink.
Dale noticed three extra dessert plates were set on the table at about the same time the front door opened and then closed.
A feminine voice said, “I hope we’re not too late for pie!”
Dale and Parker—and all the other men—got to their feet as the woman entered with two strapping men in tow.
“Addison! You’re looking good!” Dale was the first to reach her. He held out his hand intending to shake,
