Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 57423 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 230(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57423 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 230(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
“Her stepfather wants me to.”
There wasn’t a lot he could do about that. He’d thought the scenarios through, and he was comfortable with any decision Big Tag wanted to make. “I screwed up. If it makes your life easier to fire me, you should do it.”
Big Tag sighed. “I told Gavin Jacks that if he wanted to do my job, he should start his own company. I offered for him to find another security group, but that wouldn’t solve his problem. You would still be right there. If it helps, he called me back this morning and apologized. I suspect you’ll get a hearty ‘don’t hurt my daughter’ lecture, but otherwise they seemed to be supporting her.”
“I’m glad because she deserves it.” At least they had the bad part out of the way. “I think she should be safe here. The building is gated, and you need a security code to get the elevator to work. I’ve already told the front office to hold any packages any of us receive down in delivery. I’ll check each and every one. I have a meeting with the head of studio security, and I’ll go over all of this with him.”
Big Tag nodded as though this was exactly what he’d expected. “All of this is very by the book.”
“Am I missing something?” There was a weird air around his boss. Like he knew something West didn’t.
“Yes. You accepted the whole job loss possibility with relative ease.”
Had the boss expected him to throw a fit or something? “I know I screwed up.”
Big Tag’s eyes rolled. “Some of my employees have literally almost caused World War Three and I didn’t fire them. All I’m saying is this might not be your passion and time is wasting. I know it seems like life is long but, brother, it goes by in such a flash. You did the right thing. You came to Dallas so your brother wouldn’t be alone. He’s good now. He likes his job. He’s found his other half. It might be time to let go and start looking for what you want.”
He kind of wanted to look around for the camera because this had to be leading to a prank of some kind. Big Tag barely noticed him. Right? “I’m perfectly happy here.”
“Are you?” Big Tag asked. His demeanor had changed from his perpetual annoyance to something much warmer. “It’s okay to not be.”
Was he trying to get him to quit? That felt bad. “Do you think I want to go home? Do you think all I’m good at is herding cows?”
“That’s not what I said,” Big Tag corrected. “There are a lot of people who thrive in small towns and genuinely enjoy rural life. I don’t think you’re one of them. You’re a curious one, West. I’m still trying to figure you out. Rand was easier. He needed the discipline and confidence to allow himself to be who he is. You never had that problem. You adapt to every situation. When you lived on the ranch, you were an excellent cowboy.”
He wasn’t sure where Ian was going with this, and he had to admit it made him a little wary. “I wouldn’t say excellent, but I did the job that needed to be done.”
“You went to college and seemed to do well there.”
He hadn’t loved every class, but he’d enjoyed the experience. Though there had been a lot of pressure on him at the time. “I was very aware at the time that money was being spent. It’s easier now. We don’t have to worry about the ranch going under.”
“And if that gas hadn’t been found, I would bet you would still be there working beside your brothers.”
There was no question in his mind. “Probably, but I wouldn’t be happy. I wasn’t cut out for that life. Clint was. Heath and Clay are happiest when they’re on the back of a horse.”
“Where are you happiest?”
West had to think about that.
Big Tag pointed his way. “And that is what I mean. It can be hard. It can feel wrong to make the decision to figure out what you want to do, what it takes to make you happy. Prioritizing your own needs can feel selfish, but you’ve done your duty. It’s your time.”
“He’s not wrong about that,” a familiar voice said. Rand put a hand on West’s shoulder. “You have been the best brother I could have had. You stood beside me even when it was hard, when it cost you friends.”
“They weren’t my friends if they couldn’t accept my brother for his very normal need to love who his heart tells him to love.” He was getting emotional.
“I want that for you, too.” Rand sat down beside him. “I think what Ian is trying to say is that all of your options should be open. Especially given what happened last night.”