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Chapter 1

Knox

There’s nothing I like better than a day down by the river with family and friends Hot, clear weather and the waters of the Guadalupe River sparkling with sunlight Cold beer in hand, burgers on the grill, andup nearby It’s pretty much perfect

Until my brother’s neife, Ivy, ruins it

She hands a stack of red Solo cups to her husband, Boone, and then looks over at me and my other brothers, where we’re parked on the nearest picnic table, enjoying a couple of Natty Lights “My sister Wynonna’s bringing a friend And Clay’s bringing his girl and she’s bringing a friend”

I bite back est brother Seth puts down his can “They hot?” he asks Of course he’s gonna ask that He’s twenty and still thinking with his fucking dick

Of course, I’irls these’ll be Blonde Giggly Vapid Angling for rich guys Wynonna, Ivy’s younger sister, is a sweet enough girl if not my type But, ine the horrors that Clay is going to be flinging on us

“Two babes,” Gage says, giving me and Seth a smooth, confident smile “That means one for me and one for whoever wants my leftovers”

I snort and pick up a cigarette butt froe “What makes you so sure that they’d be interested in you?”

He just lays his confident smile on Seth, all cockiness “Because I’m me”

Seth looks over atfor his beer Instead, I shrug “He ain’t wrong”

Seth’s frown turns into a scowl and he glances back over at Gage “Suck a dick, Gage I bet I can get one of those chicks faster than you can” He’s not paying any attention to his beer, and so I drop the butt directly into the can Noe’ll see how long it takes for Seth to notice it’s there

“Oh, I’ll take that bet,” Gage says in his laziest voice

“So will I,” I add in “We both know they’re gonna take one look at Gage and cream their panties Happens every time”

Gage just flashes his white grin as if it’s soe Price I’m just amused, mostly And I watch his beer to see if he puts it down

“Howhis arot the most bravado “Fifty? Hundred?”

“How about that shiny new truck of yours?”

“If we’re betting that, it’s gotta be a real challenge for you then,” Seth demands

“So e retorts He puts his beer down and turns on the bench toward Seth I casually slide his can towardaround here to put into his beer The ketchup bottle is nearby Ketchup and Natty Light? Sounds like a shit-show to e of the table and intomy focus on my brothers as they bicker about the terms of their bet

This is how it always is with Gage and Seth They’re the youngest Price brothers and the closest in age and temperament Out of the five of us, Seth is the careless hothead and the youngest Gage is a year younger than me, and he’s the pretty one, the ladies’ e can get ’em in the back of his truck within a hot minute All he has to do is flash his smile He’s the only one that inherited Dad’s ladykiller attitude Of course, I hope he doesn’t end up like Dad, with five boys and five different baby mamas That shit always turns into a mess

Then, of course, there’s Boone, the oldest Price and the responsible one I glance over at hi with Ivy, her pregnant belly sticking out like a basketball under her dark swimsuit and white, breezy cover-up He’s utterly devoted to her, and if I didn’t like Ivy soso irl and makes him real happy, so I can’t be mad

Clay’s all wound up over a girl, too: his high school sweetheart, who he just recently reconnected with I think of Natalie back when I saw her at her father’s ranch Plue’s type, so I’ with her

I finish squeezing a few hearty rounds ketchup into my brother’s can of beer when Ivy wanders off with Boone, heading to the restrooms At that e and Seth both lean forith interest I mostly sit back and watch