Page 12 of Kaden & Keegan
They finished their breakfast in silence, although it was obvious Kaden’s mind was running a million miles a minute. That was the way his twin’s brain worked. Whenever Keegan planted an idea, his brother would veto it immediately, then spend considerable time mulling it over until he came to a final decision. Generally, Keegan would go along with whatever his brother wanted, because truth was, Keegan was the laid-back one. Most things he could simply take or leave. Didn’t matter. But something hadn’t been sitting well with him lately.
While living and working in this small town had always been a dream of his, there was only one teeny tiny problem… They hadn’t really put down roots. When Keegan took stock of what they had to call their own … besides their trucks, there wasn’t much of anything.
Take the house they occupied, for instance. Someone else’s. Technically, it was now just one of seven separate structures Curtis had built for his boys when they were old enough to venture out on their own. Originally, it had been Kaleb’s place. Then it was Jared’s for a bit. Now it was theirs until they figured out what they wanted to do.
To buy or not to buy? Coyote Ridge or bust? For the moment, their options were open although real estate in Coyote Ridge was scarce and what did come available was usually snatched up within hours of being listed. If it ever made it to listing at all. Just like the building on Main Street. If they didn’t make their play, it would be gone before they knew it. There wasn’t even an apartment to be had. Not that Keegan had any desire to live in an apartment. He preferred wide-open spaces.
Sure, he loved Coyote Ridge. Had since he was a kid, when their parents would bring them and their brothers and sister down to visit their aunts and uncles. He remembered one summer—they were probably twelve, maybe thirteen—his brothers and sister all ganged up on their parents, tried to convince them to move to the small town their father had grown up in. Their parents won in the end, determined to hold down the fort in El Paso, but they’d all talked about moving here eventually.
Their oldest brother was the first to take the leap, relocating to Coyote Ridge permanently. Jared had fled a bad situation only to have it all turn around for the best once he settled down here. Of course, Quinn and Eve had rolled in only a month ago, with Wesley promising to pull up the rear sometime in the next year. At the very least, Wesley had promised to make it down here at some point during the holidays. Keegan was looking forward to seeing their overachieving doctor brother as well as their parents.
Even having his family close wasn’t doing what it used to though. Keegan wanted something more.
Then again, perhaps that didn’t have anything to do with the house they lived in or the jobs they held or the hobbies they’d picked up along the way. In most ways, they had the life they’d hoped for. Perhaps his settling-down issue had more to do with a someone, not necessarily a something.
That, of course, was Kaden’s fault. His twin was still adamant they would eventually have the big wedding and greet some sweet young thing at the end of the aisle where they would vow to love endlessly, blah, blah, fucking blah. Keegan was no longer disillusioned in that area. Been there, done that. Twice. Another ride on the merry-go-round that was shitty relationships? No fucking thank you.
Unfortunately, he was starting to suspect Kaden had a specific woman in mind.
Did he still want to share women with his twin? Damn straight. He didn’t know any other way. Their desire to share women between them was something that had come naturally since they were old enough to don a condom. Then it had been sealed thanks to Mrs. Whitley, the sexy housewife who’d turned two horny teenagers into men. Some found their untraditional need an abomination, but that had always been the way it was for them, and Keegan wasn’t the sort to make excuses for it.
It was the marriage part he wasn’t on board with. Nothing permanent, either. Fucking for the sake of fucking, that was his motto. Why, you ask? Well, that was because their attempts at happily ever after had blown up in their faces not once but twice in their history. Thank the good Lord, they’d never made it to the altar either time, but that had been the plan.
He was still on board with shagging the same chick, but he was no longer interested in seeing if it would lead to something more. It wouldn’t. Might as well steer clear of the heartache.
Which was another reason Keegan was content to live in Coyote Ridge. He saw the way people treated Travis, Kylie, and Gage. They certainly weren’t abominations and they were making the ménage à trois work. Of course, that was a different version of what Keegan and Kaden engaged in. Travis was in love with both Kylie and Gage, he was intimate with both of them, while Keegan and Kaden merely wanted to bang a willing, sexy woman from both ends. At the same time.
Crude, yeah, he could see that.
And yes, he was jaded.
So fucking what.
Kaden’s cell phone rang, drawing Keegan from his rambling thoughts.
His brother snatched the phone off the table. “What’s up, Trav?”
Keegan watched Kaden’s face, waited to see what emergency they were being dragged into now. For whatever reason, they were the go-tos when it came to helping out Curtis’s branch of the Walker family tree.
“Absolutely. We can run by there now, take them to the daycare. No problem.”
Keegan grinned. Looked as though they were on chauffeur duty again.
When Kaden hung up, he grabbed his napkin, wiped his mouth, and signaled the waitress over.
“What was that about?”
Kaden reviewed the check, pulled out some cash. “Travis needs us to run by his house and pick up Kade, Avery, and Maddox. Asked us to drop them off at the daycare.”
“Somethin’ wrong?”
Kaden got to his feet. “Said Haden isn’t feelin’ well. Runnin’ a fever. Kylie’s hesitant to get him outta the house.”
“Can’t blame her there. What about Kate? She back at school yet?” Keegan asked, hopeful the little darling was finding some normalcy again after her horrific ordeal with the crazy psycho bitch who’d snatched her.
“Not yet. Travis said she’s with him at the resort. Gonna take her to Lorrie this afternoon.”
Keegan got to his feet, grabbed a five out of his wallet, and tossed it onto the table along with the money his brother left.
