Free Ollie Morgan [Seven Brothers for McBride 3] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic ManLove) by Anitra Lynn McLeod Page A

that if Jonas were to do this, he would have to go it alone. If things turned ugly, he didn’t want Ollie blamed for any of it.
    “Since we cannot go into town, I propose I stay up at the big house with you.” Jonas ignored the stricken look on Ollie’s face. He had to in order to put his plan into motion. Soon enough, they would be able to be together forever. What would stun Ollie was that it would be with McBride’s blessing.

Chapter 10
     
    McBride realized his mistake halfway between the brothers’ homes and the big house. He never should have allowed Jonas and Ollie to walk together. He knew from prior discussions that Caleb did not like Jonas. He didn’t know why, exactly, he just knew the hatred was deep and abiding. The notion that Caleb didn’t like Jonas because of what he’d done to Ollie was part of it, but Ollie said Jonas had always been afraid of Caleb. Since his neck was untouched, McBride knew he’d never drunk from him, which was Jonas’s right, so he must have been fully in fear of the eldest Morgan brother.
    McBride saw Caleb running their direction from the field. “Hurry into the house.”
    Unaware of the impending danger, Jonas and Ollie stopped and turned rather than following his order. Once they saw Caleb, they ran for the house, but it was too late. McBride tried to head Caleb off, but he was surprisingly fast for a big man. He darted around McBride, causing him to turn that direction, but when he did, Caleb spun on his heel and turned the other way.
    “Damn it!” McBride hurried after him, but he wasn’t going to make it in time.
    Jonas and Ollie had just barely stepped onto the porch when Caleb snarled and reached for Jonas.
    Caleb didn’t yell, scream, or do anything other than lift Jonas up by the collar of his shirt and shake him violently.
    Ollie bellowed and slapped ineffectually at Caleb’s massive fist while Jonas turned blue from lack of air.
    Reaching out, McBride wrapped his hand around Caleb’s wrist, squeezing until he had to let go. Jonas stumbled into Ollie’s arms while McBride moved Caleb back.
    “Take him in the house, Ollie. I’ll be there in a moment.” McBride didn’t let go of Caleb until he had pushed, pulled, and practically dragged him back to his own home. Once they were inside, McBride slammed the door. The first thing that struck him was Caleb’s alluring scent, and the second was the unending fury in his eyes. Had McBride not intervened, Caleb would have strangled Jonas to death, and McBride would have had to arrest him for murder. The thought of Caleb being taken away like that scared McBride, reminding him that his emotions were already far too fully engaged. He had to do something, anything, to put distance between them.
    “If you sell my brother to that degenerate, I’ll—” Caleb abruptly stopped talking.
    After waiting a moment, McBride asked, “What? What will you do?”
    Visibly trying to calm himself, Caleb took several deep breaths before he spoke again. “Jonas took advantage of Ollie when he was a boy.” Caleb crossed his arms over his chest. His stance made it perfectly clear he’d made up his mind about the situation and he wouldn’t be budged.
    “A boy?” McBride lifted his brows. “We both know slammers aren’t sold until they are of age. Since you were sold as brothers, the youngest, Bailey, had to have been eighteen at the time of the sale.”
    “Maybe not a boy in age, but in temperament he was more child than man. Jonas took advantage of his naivety.”
    “Did he?” McBride felt like he was poking the angry bear with a stick, but he had to do this for himself and Caleb.
    “He turned Ollie into a thrall for him!”
    “Is that what Jonas did?”
    Ignoring his question, Caleb asked one of his own. “Are you going to leave them alone in your house? Jonas will take him again.” Caleb stepped forward as if he would push McBride away from the door and return to Ollie’s side.
    “You don’t think landed