Contents Song List Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Epilogue Other Books by Brooklyn Taylor Acknowledgments Contacts for Brooklyn Taylor Copyright Brooklyn Taylor 2020 No parts of this story can be duplicated, copied or sold without the rights of the author. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Edited By: Karen Hrdlicka Cover Designer: Cover Me Darling Interior Formatting By: DL Gallie My loving Husband. You are and will always be my reason. Song List Prayed for You - Matt Stell My Way to You - Cody Johnson With you I Am - Cody Johnson You Make it Easy - Jason Aldean Always on my Mind - Willie Nelson Wrong Again - Martina McBride Believe- Brooks & Dunn As Good As You - Kane Brown Nobody But You - Blake Shelton & Gwen Stefani Brooklyn Taylor does not own these songs and is no way affiliated with them. Rights belong strictly to the artists. “Man makes plans and God laughs.” ~ Unkown 1 WYATT Galloway. Most people around Houston, Texas hear that name and think royalty: Texas oil, money, privileged, never having to work for anything, born with a silver spoon in my mouth. Until you meet me, and I tell you I’m not related. Very few know the truth; I am the youngest son to my father who would have inherited everything he had. Well, my half. My elder brother followed in his pathetic footsteps. My brother, Cash, I know ironic, isn’t it, lived the life that was set out for us. The life I had decided to live against. If I was going to feel important, I was going to earn it, unlike my father and my brother. Respect wasn't inherited, not as far as I saw it. I knew at the ripe age of twelve that the life I was born into wasn’t the life I wanted. I didn't belong, to say the least. I wasn't the black sheep per se, but rather felt in my bones I wasn't a true Galloway. You would have thought I committed murder or treason when I decided to pull away, to live a life where I worked for everything I had. I had walked away from everything that was given to me and started fresh. If I didn’t earn it myself, I didn't have it. Best decision I ever made. I guess that depended on who you asked though. When I had decided to have a career in public service, my father lost it, quite literally. The last thing he wanted was a sheriff in the family. Then when he heard I was going to work toward my dream, of becoming a Texas Ranger, he really became enraged. He felt humiliated. Some people get pleasure out of making their father happy, me, on the other hand, the exact opposite. I found much joy in making him mad, frustrated even. Should I have taken the higher road like I had been told? Probably, but I had no interest in such. I was going to live my life how I pleased, to everybody else’s dismay. And for those of who don’t think I can, watch me. I love a challenge. BREIGH There were a lot of things people wanted out of life… and what I wanted was not the norm. I had been run through the gamut and had my heart broken, as well as broken hearts. As a single woman at age twenty-eight, everything had come into perfect perspective. Maybe it was because I had already done my fair amount of running around, or maybe it was because of my harder than normal upbringing. Nevertheless, I had a great career, my Grammy, and best friend, Emma, by my side. What else did a girl really need? But truth be told, I felt like I had forgotten how to live. How did a person get that back again? My life had become days of working long hours and not having any fun. “You need to get out and have fun before you aren't able to anymore.” In my Grammy’s words, the wisest woman and one of the loves of my life. My Grammy and my grandfather were the ones who raised me, having lost my mother very early in life. Unfortunately, my father wasn’t how he should have been, but truthfully, I hit the jackpot being raised by my grandparents. I had learned to be grateful for my shortcomings rather than be remorseful for them. A lesson I learned early in life. My cup was half full rather than half empty. I decided I was going to start to live again, if it killed me, come hell or high water. 2 WYATT I was standing at the bar, waiting for my drink; I started surveying the crowd to see if my brother was here yet. This place, Kellye Joe’s, seemed far below his normal standards but he always seemed to surprise me. I, on the other hand, enjoyed this place. I had been here a few times and it was great for people watching. I guess with my career as a sheriff’s deputy, I was always observing people in some way or the other. Cash, my older brother, was in town for the weekend on a business trip. He traveled often, for business, or so he said. There wasn't any business to do though with my father’s company. Cash just liked to make himself feel important, something he inherited from my father. I was surprised by his call, especially when he asked to meet me here rather than my house. Although, I knew he would have rather been caught dead than walk into my home again. That was the one and only
