Make Her Mine

Chapter One

Chapter One

Tyrell

Carthage, Texas – Panola County

January 1st

The limousine moved slowly, almost stoically, through the newly fallen snow that covered the road. My younger brothers and I were on our way to a new life. A life we’d never even imagined.

On Christmas day I got a phone call from an Allen Samuels, an attorney in Carthage. My family came from Carthage—that much I knew. What I didn’t know were the reasons we’d never met our grandparents.

Later that day, Mr. Samuels sat in front of us in the limo looking through a folder he’d brought with him when he picked us up at the airport. A private plane had brought us to Carthage from Dallas. Being that Dallas wasn’t that far from Carthage, we all wondered why the extravagant lift was necessary.

“The whole of the estate that includes Whisper Ranch, a thirty-thousand square-foot mansion, and all the vehicles, including the Cessna Citation II you came in on, belongs to you three gentlemen now.” The attorney looked over his shoulder, then tapped on the dark glass that separated us from the driver. The window rolled down with a quiet swish. “Davenport, we need to make a stop at Mr. Gentry’s bank, please.”

“Sure thing, sir.” The driver rolled the window back up, giving us privacy once more.

Mr. Samuels looked at me, probably because I was the oldest. “Tyrell, what have you been told about your paternal grandparents?”

“Not much.” That was no lie. My parents rarely spoke about either set of their parents. “My mother’s famous quote was that if one couldn’t say anything nice about a person, they shouldn’t say anything at all. We’d assumed our grandparents weren’t very good people.”

Jasper took over, “Yeah, we stopped questioning Mom and Dad when we were very young. Just asking them who our grandparents were put them in a foul mood.”

“I see.” He looked out the window as we pulled into the parking lot of the Bank of Carthage. “Here we are. You will become the Ranch’s accountholders. We can transfer the remainder of your grandfather’s funds into accounts each of you will open here.” His eyes scanned us all. “If that’s okay with you. Certainly, you can open accounts elsewhere if you’d like to. Your grandparents used this bank exclusively for years. I can assure you that the president appreciates Whisper Ranch’s business and does everything to keep their customers happy.”

Looking at my brothers who flanked me on either side of me, I shrugged. “This bank seems as good as any. What do you guys think?”

Cash, the youngest at twenty-two, ran his hand through his thick, dark hair that hung to his shoulders in waves. “Sounds fine to me. It’ll be my first bank account anyway.”

Jasper, only a couple of years younger than me at twenty-five, shrugged. “Sounds fine with me, too. All I’ve got in my bank is about twenty bucks. Hell, I might not even have that. I bought a bottle of Jack before getting on the plane that might’ve overdrawn my account, actually.”

“This bank will do for us, Mr. Samuels.” We started getting out of the car since the driver had opened the door for us. “Thanks. Your name is Davenport, right?”

The older man nodded. “Yep. I can also drive the various tractors and trucks at the ranch. You need a ride, call me, and I’ll get you there.”

I thought it kind of funny that the man was clearly a farmer and not a chauffeur at all. And to be called Davenport seemed on the comical side. “If you don’t mind me asking, what’s your first name?”

“Buddy.” He smiled at me. “Your grandfather liked to put on airs.”

“We’re not like that. Mind if we call you Buddy instead?”

He shook his head. “Not at all. It would be nice, in fact.”

Jasper clapped the man on the back. “Nice to meet you, Buddy. I’m Jasper, this is Tyrell, and the feller there is Cash, the youngest of the Gentry family.”

None of us were kids anymore, and Cash always took offense at how Jasper teased him. “Jasper, you’re the littlest out of all of us, you jerk.”

Flexing his left bicep while threading his fingers through his dark hair, Jasper replied, “By a smidgeon of an inch, Cash. You’re shorter.”

“Also, by a smidgeon of an inch.” Cash walked ahead of us. “This bank is pretty fancy.”

“It’s the best one in town,” Allen said as he hurried to get in front of Cash to open the door. “Here we go. Mr. Johnson is the bank president; he’ll handle this for us.”

“The president will handle all of this?” That was unorthodox. “How much money are we talking about?”

Cocking his head to one side, Allen looked confused. “Are you telling me that even with the jet, the mansion, and the ranch, you still don’t understand how much capital your grandfather was worth?”

“Not a clue,” Jasper said as he stepped into the bank’s lobby. “Whoa. Posh.”

As I stepped in behind him, my eyes went to the chandelier in the center of the ceiling. “I haven’t seen many banks with a thing like that hanging above peoples’ heads before.”

“This bank deals with a lot of exclusive businesses here in Carthage.” He led us to the back of a large open area as all eyes inside soon fixed on us. “They can afford certain luxuries other banks cannot.”

A lady sat at a desk inside the first office we came to. “Hello, gentlemen. You must be the Gentrys.”

I reached out to shake her hand. “Tyrell.”

Jasper nodded. “Jasper.”

She smiled at Cash. “Then you must be Cash.”

“Yes.” He shook her hand and gave his most charming smile. “And you are?”

“Sandra, the executive assistant.” She let go of his hand to lead us to her boss’s office. “And if you gentlemen will follow me? Mr. Johnson will get things started.” As she opened the door, her eyes scanned me. “Judging by the blue jeans and t-shirts, you all will be greatly surprised by what you’re about to inherit.”

I figured we’d be lucky to get a million bucks and a hefty amount of debt from the Ranch. From what Dad told us before we left Dallas, our grandfather had been making more enemies than friends when Dad and Mom left town. Dad also said not to get our hopes up for what we were about to inherit, which might be more problems than profit.

The man sitting behind the large desk smiled and got up as we came into his large office filled with furniture that looked as luxurious as it was stunning. Mounts of various game animals adorned the walls. “Bryce Johnson, at your service, gentlemen. Please take seats anywhere you’d like. May I offer a cigar? They’re Cuban. Or a drink perhaps? A thirty-year-old Scotch would be perfect for this occasion.”

My brothers and I sat down on a sofa that felt a lot more like a cloud than a piece of furniture, and then I got right down to it.

“Okay, Bryce. We’re quite certain this ranch is swimming in debt right? And we’re not even close to being ranchers. Our father’s advice was to find a buyer for it and move on.”

Cash looked at me with narrowed eyes. “I’d love a Scotch, Tyrell. Let the man handle this meeting, will ya?”

“Scotch for everyone then,” the bank president told his assistant who hurried off to fetch them. Turning his attention back to us, he asked, “So, Allen hasn’t informed you?”

“I have. Not the exact numbers, but I’ve told them about everything they now own.” He sighed and looked a bit put out. “They don’t seem to get it, Bryce.”

Sandra came back with a tray of crystal glasses half-full of a dark liquid. “Here you go, gentlemen. Enjoy.” She held the tray out for us to grab a drink, and we each took one.

“A hell of a lot of hoopla, don’t ya think?” I asked as I pulled the glass to my lips.

“You’re all worth it,” Sandra said before putting the tray down on a nearby table then taking a seat on a chair that looked spoke of affluence.

Bryce picked up some documents from his desk, then handed one to each of us. “I’ll let the numbers speak for themselves.”

When I looked at the page, there were more numbers in a row than I’d ever seen before. “Not sure how to say this number,” I admitted. “And not sure I understand what it even means. Our father told us there has to be debt the ranch has built up.”

Laughing, Bryce shook his head. “Whisper Ranch is one of the most profitable businesses this bank deals with. What each of you are looking at is your allotted third of the money Collin Gentry had in his personal accounts.” He handed one paper directly to me. “This is what’s in the ranch account.”

Again, more numbers in a row than I’d ever seen before. “If I’m seeing this right, the ranch is worth millions.”

Bryce shook his head. “You’re not seeing it right. Look again.”

“Oh, thousands.” I squinted trying to make sense of the numbers.

Cash sounded out of breath as he said, “Tyrell, the ranch is worth billions, and we’ve each inherited fifteen billion dollars.”

That didn’t sound right. “Dad said there’d be more money to pay than receive.”

“Your father was wrong,” Bryce informed me. “Your grandfather went from raising cattle alone, to raising racehorses. You might’ve heard of some of his famous horses. The General’s Son? Old Faithful? Coy’s Burden?”

“We’ve never followed horse racing, sir,” Jasper let him know. “I guess those horses are on the estate?”

“They are. And they all are prize-winning stallions,” Bryce acknowledged. “Your grandfather began selling their semen and making a good penny from it. Those sales, along with the cattle, and the racehorses have made him a pretty penny. Pennies that now belong to the three of you.”

It hurt me to think our grandfather left his only child out of his will. “Our father isn’t mentioned?”

Allen looked at me with compassion. “Look, it may be difficult to understand, but let me show you in writing why that is.” He pulled a paper out of the files and handed it to me. “Your father signed a statement that he wanted nothing from Collin or Fiona Gentry from that date forward. He wasn’t forced to sign it. Coy did it to prove a point to his parents when they refused to acknowledge his marriage to Lila Stevens.”

What is he talking about? “Wait. What?”

Bryce took over, “Your grandparents wanted to make the Gentry name something akin to royalty around here. But your father fell in love with a female from the wrong side of the tracks. A woman whose family lived on welfare. A girl who’d once worked as a maid at the ranch house.”

My brothers were just as confused as I was. “Why would they never tell us about that?”

Allen had the answer, “Most likely because they didn’t want you to know what they walked away from. They chose love over money and over their families. Your mother’s family was just as against their marriage as the Gentrys were.”

“Wow,” that was all I could muster up. “Seems our parents hid a hell of a lot from us.”

“There’s one more thing you need to know about the will, gentlemen,” the attorney said. “It stipulates that neither your mother nor father is ever allowed on the property. And your grandfather’s money can never benefit your parents in any way. If you so much as hand your parents five dollars, the entire estate will revert to the state of Texas.”

“Harsh,” Cash muttered.

“Yeah,” Bryce agreed.

“Your grandfather was considered to be a harsh man. So harsh that most people think your grandmother died at the age of forty-five, only two years after your father left the ranch, because of his hard ways.”

What the hell?