Earth and Sky

crack of dawn tomorrow.”

    Hunter swatted the back of her head. “Hey, watch your mouth,” he told his sister, making sure she understood he wasn’t serious. He did want her to stop, though. Hunter knew she wasn’t shy around Grant, and he didn’t want her to say anything to make Grant think he was interested in him.

    Instead of continuing her banter, Izzie’s face suddenly went dark. “Oh, shit,” she mumbled.

    “What’s wrong?” Hunter asked.

    Izzie pointed across the curved bar at the entrance. “Delco and I just broke up. I’d hoped he would just get in his truck and drive off, but I guess he’s not done with me.”

    The two men watched Delco look around and finally settle far enough away from Izzie so she could stay out of his range of vision.

    “Do you want me to take you home?” Hunter asked.

    Izzie shook her head. “I promised myself that I was going to have fun tonight. I’ve finally worked up the courage to get that pest out of my life. I’m not going to let him ruin my evening.”

    Hunter could see the determination in her face, but he could also see her trying to keep an eye on Delco’s movements. He couldn’t blame her.

    “We’ll protect you, sis,” Hunter assured her.

    “Yeah,” Grant agreed. “Come stand between us. A shrimp like him wouldn’t touch you with two butch guys like us standing by you.”

    Izzie chuckled and bumped Grant’s hip with her ass as she moved to sit between them. “You’re right,” she said, flirting more than she usually did with Grant. “Maybe it’s time we piss him off just a little.”

    The band had finished getting ready, and Jack took the mic. “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Especially the lovely ladies here tonight. Let’s start off getting some of you on the dance floor! This is ‘Shake a Tail Feather’.”

    Jack and his band started playing a country rock song, and the dance floor filled up fast. Most of the patrons knew Jack and the band, so the tone was set from the first chords that were played. Izzie, Hunter, and Grant watched from the bar, losing sight of Delco.

    It wasn’t until Hunter saw Hugh crossing the dance floor, making a beeline for where they were standing, that he noticed Delco wasn’t sitting where he’d last seen him. He looked at his two companions, both mesmerized by the band on stage, Grant’s arms hanging loosely on the bar behind Izzie without touching her. Hunter didn’t have time to react when he suddenly saw a fist whiz past him and land squarely against Grant’s jaw.

    The big guy wavered a bit but recovered, a stunned expression on his face.

    “Delco!” Izzie shouted.

    Delco hesitated, unsure why Grant didn’t retaliate, but then he turned to Izzie. “You whore. You couldn’t wait to get rid of me so you could get into his pants! Well, I ain’t leavin’.” He was pointing at Grant, who was rubbing his jaw but otherwise seemed the epitome of calm.

    Hunter knew he needed to intervene. “If you think she’s such a whore, maybe you should just leave her alone?”

    “Nobody calls Izzie a whore,” Hugh said from behind Delco, grabbing him by the shoulder and twisting him around before slugging him with his fist. Hugh, being almost a head taller than Delco, packed a mean left hook, and Delco fell back against Izzie and Grant, who immediately pushed him up again, so Hugh grabbed Delco by his shirt and hauled him outside.

    Not everyone in the bar followed the altercation, but those who did saw Hugh walk outside, closely followed by most of the wranglers from the Blue River Ranch. Once outside, it took three men to drag Hugh away from Delco, but not until Delco’s nose was bleeding and his lip was split.

    One of the men following them to the parking lot was the county sheriff. “Break it up, guys. Enough is enough.”

    “Arrest him, Sheriff,” Delco cried out. “He’s a bully. Look at what he did to me!”

    “He started it,” Grant interjected calmly, pointing at Delco. “He slugged me first.”

    The sheriff, assessing the situation and likely understanding there was a mob here that was ready to defend Izzie’s honor, defused the situation. “Let’s go back to the station and sort this out. Hunter, I trust you’ll bring the men who were a part of this with you? I’m taking this one with me now.”

    Hunter nodded.

    About an hour later at the sheriff’s station, Delco was in one room, Izzie and Hugh in another, and Hunter and Grant were sitting in the