How to Rope a McCoy (Hell Yeah!) by Sable Hunter Read Free Book Online Page B

down!”
               
“Pepper’s a born mother hen.” Jaxson remarked dryly as they watched the
youngest of their clan dash across the room.
    “You’d
best sit down and get off that leg. Let me go get us both some punch. Why don’t
you give Dad a call and check on him? I’ll be right back.” He’d had hopes their
father would join them today, but his health hadn’t permitted it.
    “Okay,
I’ll sit down. Don’t worry about punch for me, though, I’m not thirsty. Go and
see if you can find your woman!” Jaxson called after his brother. The whole
family was worried about Philip, but Heath bore the brunt of the burden. They
all unloaded their problems on Heath. He was their rock. Guess that was why he
was beginning to have a gray hair or two.
               
“I don’t have time for a woman now,” Heath replied as he strode across the
room, weaving his way among the happy guests. What else could happen? How much
more could the family take? Philip’s arrest had shaken them to their very
foundations. Now Jaxson was injured and Ten’s ex-wife had thrown some outrageous
accusation at him concerning the paternity of the baby she was carrying. Ryder
had declared she was never going to get married and Pepper just informed him
she had two dates this week with different men!
    As
the eldest of Christian McCoy’s children, Heath had spent most of his adult
life trying to keep his brothers and sisters in line. Since they’d moved to
Highlands, their father had taken a backseat in most family and business
dealings, leaving the bulk of any decision making on Heath’s shoulders.
Shoulders which were aching from the burden.
    “What’s
going on?” Ryder ran up to him.
    “I
don’t know. Sounded like there was trouble. You stay here. I’ll go see if
there’s anything we can do.”
               
Ryder was having none of it. “Quit being so bossy, this is a free country. I’m
coming with you.”
               
Heath sighed, knowing a family conference was long overdue. They made their way
through the crowd and found their cousin Aron cradling Libby to his chest. She
had grabbed hold of her stomach and her face was contorted with pain. “I think
she’s in labor,” Aron explained with a tense look on his face. “Two weeks
early.”
               
“Damn. Did you call an ambulance?” Heath asked as he held back the crowd of
concerned friends.
               
“No, Jacob’s gone for the truck.” Aron explained, gazing down at Libby with
worry on his face. “How you feeling, darling?”
               
“Anxious,” she muttered as she panted through a contraction.
    Avery
and Isaac ran up, the bride holding her long train over her arm. “We’re going
with you,” she announced. Others of the family drew near.
    “No,
no,” Libby protested. “This is your wedding day!”
    “Hush
now,” Cady, Joseph’s wife, chided her. “None of us would miss this for the
world.”
    “What
about the guests?” Libby wailed as another contraction hit.
    Isaac
looked over at Heath, Ryder and Pepper. “Could y’all handle the party so we can
go to the hospital?”
    Heath
nodded with assurance. “Of course we will.” It was obvious all of Aron’s
brothers and their women wanted to be present at the birth of Libby’s twins.
“You all get going. We’ll play host. Don’t worry about it for a minute.”
    They
took him at his word and all of the guests applauded as a caravan of pickups
left Tebow and headed for the hospital to welcome a
pair of twin boys into the world.
     
    *  *  *
     
    Cato
watched Savannah and Patrick dancing, her head lying on his shoulder. How happy
they looked. Swaying next to them were Beau and Harley. The big Cajun seemed so
protective of his petite wife even though Cato knew Harley’s reputation as a
bomb tech was legendary.    Both couples had traveled over from
Louisiana together. Not too far away, Avery’s friend Tricia was