Free Edge (Gentry Boys #7) by Cora Brent Page B

low lately.  I’d seen too many boys sent away for double digit years for the crime of dealing in more hardcore stuff.  I’d suffered through a few jail visits myself and that was enough to make me realize I didn’t want to make it a permanent lifestyle. 
    It wasn’t quite enough to make me go legit though. 
    Deck knew when to back off and when he realized he wasn’t going to get anywhere on the subject tonight he stopped trying and made me promise to stick my head into his tattoo shop soon and say hello. 
    “By the way,” he said, “you talk to Creed at all tonight?”
    Actually I’d barely talked to Creed in years.  There was nothing specific that had ever gone down between us but Creedence Gentry was a pillar of stoic honor and I sensed that he still didn’t quite trust me after all the crap I’d pulled, all the trouble I’d gotten into.  The Gentrys all had committed their fair share of trouble in their youth but they were solid, law abiding guys now.  They had a lot to protect.  I understood.  I wanted to protect them too.  So I never pushed Creed, who might have felt like he needed to offer me much more than a cool nod at family gatherings if he knew the truth, if he knew that we were actually brothers. 
    “We haven’t run into each other,” I said carefully. 
    It was getting late at this point for the family oriented crowd and people were starting to leave.  Stone and Evie were busy hugging their guests goodbye while Deck scanned the yard, wondering aloud where his wife had gone. 
    “You looking for Jen?” Saylor called.  “Izzy was getting kind of tired so I told Jen she could lay her down on one of the girls’ beds.”  She pointed at me.  “As for you Conway, don’t you dare try to escape without saying goodbye.”  
    “Well,” said Deck, “I better go hunt down my girls.  Make no mistake though, I will remember your promise and I’ll be expecting a visit.” 
    “You got it,” I said. 
    Now that the party was winding down I decided to make myself useful and help clean up. 
    “You don’t have to do that,” Cord said when he spotted me piling paper plates into a black garbage bag. 
    “I don’t mind,” I said and tied up the top of the bag.  
    “Well, in that case how about helping me move that bitch of a cast iron table back to the patio?” 
    I helped move the table.  I helped fold up the chairs.  Cord’s girls started untying all the balloons and batting them across the yard. I figured they’d been waiting all day for the chance to do that.  Someone must have decided to keep Angus The Dog indoors for the last few hours but now he came bounding outside like a hairy cannon ball. 
    All the friends and coworkers had departed at this point and only Gentrys remained. I saw Creed and Truly getting ready to take off with their two kids and thought about going over to say hello but figured that might end up being nothing more than an awkward moment.  
    When I felt the hand on my arm I knew who it belonged to even before I turned around.  I faced my brother as he cleared his throat and seemed altogether shy. 
    “I haven’t formally asked, Conway,” he said, “but I figured it went without saying that I want you to be my best man.  So will you?” 
    He blurted all this out with uncharacteristic rapidity, like he’d been nervous about bringing it up. Somehow that made me sad, that he would second guess asking me. There was never a chance in hell I was going to say no.
    “Stonewall,” I said seriously. “I’d be honored.” 
    He smiled.  “Yeah?”
    I smiled back.  “Yeah. But I may have some explaining to do to Evie because I’m gonna throw you one wild bachelor party.” 
    “Thanks, man,” he said solemnly and for the second time in one night I hugged my brother tight. 
     
     

CHAPTER SIX
    ROSLYN
     
    I said I wasn’t in the mood to go out but Emily wouldn’t take no for an answer.
    Apparently she’d been texting back and forth